Page 61 of Den of Thieves

“Just a little Kyusho Jitsu.” Renee smiled, wiggling her fingers.

“Badass. I am so learning that.” Karina nodded. “My snippy cousin-in-law is right, though. We need to get out of here.”

“Lucky for you, we have a ride.”

“Can it not be a helicopter? I’ve had enough of those for one day.” Karina groaned. Renee and Kida shared a look.

“Actually, it’s a van.”

“Good. AK needs a ride back to my house. We have a doctor on staff that can tend to her wounds and take her to the hospital under an alias.”

It took some work to get Aksana’s unconscious frame downstairs. Each of them carrying a limb to keep her body as stable as possible, but they got her in the van without preamble. Khruschev and Bogdan woke up and escorted her to the Kovalyov estate with strict instructions. Karina informed them that if they stopped even for a bathroom break, she was going to shoot their dicks off. The men covered their fronts and nodded vehemently before driving off.

“You know, when they said they had transportation, I assumed we all would be riding back to the compound.”

“You know what they say about assuming, Nikolai. It makes an ass out of you and me.”

“Yeah, well, I’m tired as hell. My friend died, I got nicked by multiple bullets today, and my feet hurt! Sue me.”

Karina was tired of his attitude. They all had a fucking day today. She barely stopped herself from calling him a princess. She whirled on him so fast there was no time to back up. Her anger flared and the blues of his eyes decreased as his pupils enlarged with fear.

“Your King, your first fucking cousin, is out there fighting for his life, for all of our lives. You don’t get to go back and lick your surface wounds. This is the fucking Bratva, damnit. Grow a pair of balls, Nikolai. If anything happens to him, so help me, I will shove my foot so far up your ass you will never be able to sit down again without crying out in pain like a little bitch in heat!”

“Alright, damn,” he muttered, raising his hands.

A slow clap had both of them looking towards Kida. “There she is. The Cutthroat Queen.”

Karina’s cheeks heated, and she was thankful for her brown skin. She had no idea her reputation preceded her all the way down to Japan. That didn’t make her words any less true. She had to find Vladimir before it was too late.

“We don’t have all day. Let’s move out!”

Everyone fell in line and stuck to the shadows with someone in Kida’s ear feeding them intel on which turn to take next. They were the only sadists creeping towards the gunshots and explosions in the distance.

They were walking for half an hour before they found one of Osvo’s hideouts. It was abandoned with bodies littering the street and the sporting goods store that was obviously a front. Karina’s eyes lit up when she found a two-way radio. She turned it on and did a little dance when the light turned from red to green.

“These radios only work within a quarter of a kilometer or so," Kida said, twisting the knobs. He found a station, but nothing but static came through before someone’s panicked words came through the device.

“He’s a psychopath. Fall back! Fall back!”

“You’ll never take me alive!” A voice that was unmistakably Vladimir’s was followed by unhinged laughter.

“Erm, why does it sound like he’s having fun?” Renee asked.

“Because he probably is,” Karina said, shaking her head.

“Karina,” Kida said grabbing her arm.

“What is it, Kida?”

“Be cautious. After all of this rage—I’ve only seen Vladimir this upset once before.”

“When?”

“A long time ago. We were mere boys in comparison, but you need to be careful around him.”

“Vladimir would never hurt me.”

“I’m not talking about intentional damage. He will likely be experiencing bloodlust over the next couple of days. It was hard to snap him out of his bloodlust back then. He has more to lose now, though. I doubt he’ll realize who we are for a while.”

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