Page 39 of The Payback

I round on him, wiping the tears from my cheeks and levelling a glare at him with a haughty scoff.

“Shut up, Nik.”

CHAPTERFIFTEEN

Nikita

On my orders,Igor, our driver, speeds to the penthouse.

Ellie is clutching her arm as blood seeps through her clenched fingers.

“You need a hospital,” Dimitri curses under his breath.

“Not a chance. I’ll be fine. Just give me your tie.”

He slips the material off, and she grabs it, fastening it around her upper arm and holding the tail ends out to Dimitri. The man is shaking. He couldn’t tie his shoes right now if you offered him a million bucks.

“Give me that.” I shove his hands out of the way and roughly tie the tourniquet in place. “I’ve got a kit at home. Just keep pressure on it.”

Beside me, Dimitri is a ball of rage and retribution, ready to launch himself at the next threat.

Once we reach our building, we stumble from the car, race through the lobby, and silently ride the lift to the penthouse. As soon as the doors are open, I wrap my hand around Ellie’s good arm and start dragging her inside, her feet scrabbling for purchase as I set off at my pace.

“Dimitri, call the twins and get them en route. The licence plate was BKM-4445.”

“4446,” Ellie corrects through gritted teeth.

I swing her around and stare down at her face. “You’re sure?”

She shrugs. “Yes, but I doubt they’ll have kept the plates on for long, so what does it matter? It was a black Mercedes Sprinter. Have someone get the traffic cam footage. You guys can do that, right?”

I nod and lift my gaze to Dimitri. He’s vibrating with rage, and any hand he puts on Ellie right now will not help her and might hurt her further. “Fucking do it, D. I got this. Cool your jets and take it out on someone who deserves it.”

He shakes his hands at his side, and the tension vibrates in his shoulders.

I look down at Ellie. “Go up to my room. I’ll be there in a second.”

“It’s locked, asshole.”

“Been trying to get in?” I ask with a raised brow.

“It is my home now, isn’t it? I didn’t know the guest room was off-limits.”

I take my phone out of my pocket and, with a few clicks, I disengage the lock and wave a hand up the stairs when the audible click rings down the staircase. “All yours. Try not to go snooping through my underwear drawer,” I tease, knowing that’s exactly what she’ll do when she gets in there. She’s always been the curious type.

Ellie huffs and walks up the stairs.

“This is not over,” Dimitri says from the opposite side of the foyer. “You cannot come between my wife and me.”

“Look, man. You’re a triggered mess. I don’t know what set you off or what it threw you back to in that head of yours, but you’re tense and all over the fucking place. If you touch her right now, youwillhurt her. It’s not a question of might. It will happen; I guarantee it.”

“Someone fucking shot at my wife!” he bellows.

“No, asshole, they shot at you. You’re okay, but she’s got a graze, and you’re losing your shit. Get it together and get the twins on this before that car gets farther away. Sergei and Oksana took Ana home. I’ll bet Aleksandr has already called Ivan, which means the tanks are rolling all over NYC, combing the streets looking for those fuckers. Give them direction.”

“They weren’t shooting at me.”

I roll my eyes. “You’re thepakhan. Of course they were shooting at you. Now GO!” I bellow back at him. There would be time later to find out who was shooting at who, but Ellie’s blood loss is my priority right now.

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