Page 278 of Gilded Cage (Kovalyov Bratva 1)

The thought makes me slightly more confident. If these men fight like Razor and his idiots, then I have nothing to fear.

Still, I’m not about to celebrate until their bodies are lying at my feet.

Stanislav’s old words ring in my head.

Even a dead snake’s venom can still kill you.

The tall man stops only inches away from me. When he turns to look at his comrades, he shows me the back of his neck.

I strike instantly.

I grab him by the throat and smash his head into the same tree I’m hiding behind. I smell the release of fresh blood at once.

I don’t wait to find out if a single strike was sufficient. I ram his face against the tree a second time.

When I pull him away, his eyes are wide and glazed with shock.

His lips move. Before he makes a noise that gives away my position, I twist his neck hard. A dull snap rings out.

And his eyes go cold and lifeless.

I drag his body to a dark corner and cover it with some loose branches. Hopefully, his friends won’t come across it before they come across me.

Then I continue pushing forward. Two other figures only lurk a few feet away.

I move stealthily, taking care to time my footsteps so the crunch of leaves meld with sounds of the forest creatures.

“Where’s Suka?”

I stop moving and listen.

“Went that way. Come on…”

“I told the fucker to stay with us.”

The second voice is closest to me. I pull out the sleek switchblade I bought in town and move as fast and as quietly as I can.

He sees me right as my blade finds his throat.

His eyes bulge in terror.

And one smooth, seamless cut robs him off his life.

He falls to the forest floor with a thud. I dart back behind another tree.

“What the fuck was that noise? Where are you?”

The new man is about to turn the corner. When he does, I know he’s going to see the body and he’s going to alert the rest of them.

I try to time it, but he’s faster than I expected. He sees me coming before I can reach him.

I’m halfway across the distance when he unleashes his gun.

It fires just as I tackle him to the ground.

By some miracle, it misses. The bullet buries itself in the dirt. I don’t wait to see if he fires again.

Instead, I snatch the gun right out of his dumbstruck hand and turn it on him. No explanations, no introductions, no apologies.

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