Page 36 of Shattered Oath

I feel a cold shiver run down my spine as everything he says starts to sink in. It takes a few seconds to finally come to my senses and bring myself back to the moment.

This changes everything.

“I’ll give you the full account when I see you,” he says as the line begins to stutter again.

“Right,” I finally grit out as his words come to a close. I quickly tell him how to reach us. “Now get your ass here. I’ll keep a handle on whatever goes down in the meantime.”

“Watch your back, Boss, we don’t know how deep this goes, but you’re going to need an army behind you.”

“Yeah,” I say curtly. Whatever goes down, I’m ready. I’ve been in plenty of tight spots where the only army I had was me.

“Whatever happens today, Boss…” Petrov’s voice trails off. “It’s been an honor.”

“Likewise, Petrov,” I tell him. “Now let’s wrap this shit up.”

Cutting the call and shoving the device away, I take a deep breath. Fuck, I almost just walked into a trap. If it wasn’t for Petrov’s call, things could have turned out very differently.

I think of Aurora for a second and guilt starts to gnaw at me. If what Petrov is saying is true, that means…

Shit!

But there’s no going back now. There’s no time for that. Taking a deep breath, I jog across the road to where my men are waiting in the shadows.

My men.

I almost scoff at the thought.

“Is it clear?” I ask Ludis as I arrive, and he gives a grim nod.

“Everyone bolted, but we got the ringleader. The one she’s been working with,” he says. I set my mouth in a tight line, already knowing that the answers I get here won’t make me happy.

I enter the warehouse with Ludis and the other men flanking me, all armed to the teeth.

“When did it happen?” I ask Ludis.

“Over an hour ago,” he says.

I nod and enter the open space of the warehouse. It doesn’t strike me as a surprise to find it completely empty. No ringleader, no nothing.

I flick Ludis a questioning look, knowing that the moment has come for the truth to finally surface.

“So this is it, huh?” I ask him. “There was no attack. This was your plan all along… To lay an ambush for me?”

Ludis starts smirking. His strides have shortened and when I turn to face him, I’m staring into the muzzle of his Glock.

My first instinct is to laugh… and then to take him out. But unfortunately, the rest of the men have their weapons trained on me too.

Thank fuck for Petrov’s call.

If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t have expected any of this. I try to remain calm, even though I can already see where this will end. At least a dozen more men step out of the shadows; many who I know. Even though Petrov’s warning had prepared me to expect the worst, the rage that rises almost has me losing my shit.

Keep it together, Ivanov!I tell myself. I know there is no way I’ll be able to take them all. All I can do is keep my cool and keep them busy until Petrov gets here. The weight of my Tokarev sits heavily against my hip, but I know there’s no sense in reaching for it.

“Are you working with Aurora?” I ask as I face Ludis. He starts to laugh.

“You must think highly of your wife if you think I’d take orders from her,” he says. My mind is working overtime as I make sense of his words. All the evidence has pointed to the fact that she’s been working with someone. But if not Ludis, am I looking at a double-cross within a double-cross?

Ludis steps forward and shoves the barrel of his gun in my face.

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