Chapter26
The good thing about gasoline was that it burned bright and hot. The bad thing was that it burned fast. The second I threw the match on the pile of brush that I had soaked in the five gallons of gasoline that I’d borrowed from the front office, I knew my time was limited.
Maybe that was a good thing, because then I had less time to second guess the moronic plan I’d come up with.
I pictured Borya’s handsome face in my head, took a steadying breath, and then jammed on the gas, sending the SUV hurdling toward the new construction house.
My bravery fled as I approached the house, and my eyes squeezed shut right before impact.
Everything seemed to move in slow motion. My body slammed forward on impact as debris floated around me. My foot instinctively moved to the brake as though that would do any good at this point.
Everything came to a screaming halt when the airbag hit me in the face. Maybe the airbag hit me in the face first. Everything happened in a blur, and then the SUV was parked in the middle of the house.
Oh, shit. What did I do now? I had a plan, right? Crash car, get Borya. The room needed to stop spinning before I could get to him, though.
Except, when I opened my eyes and stared through that spinning room, I saw the man with the rolled sleeves approaching Borya. Oh, hell no.
Tossing the deflated airbag aside, I jumped out of the SUV, flailing to keep my balance after my feet touched the ground, which was now covered with wood and brick dust. But all my attention was on the man approaching Borya, who was kneeling on the ground. Borya looked like a soft breeze would send him crashing to the ground. The approaching man had a knife, and I wasn’t about to let him get closer.
“Hey, jackass!” I called.
He turned immediately. I thought I was going to have to talk him into coming after me instead, but as soon as his eyes locked on me, he altered his course. “The girl. Come all this way to save her lover. Foolish for you. Fortunate for me.”
His dark eyes shone with bloodlust, and Borya growled as he pushed to his feet.
“Borya’s brother is going to rain hell down on you if you don’t let him go. Backup is on the way. I’m just the opening act.”
The man outright laughed at me.
Rude. I wasn’t lying. Exaggerating maybe, but it was all true. Though now that I thought about it, I was standing here with no weapon, and the men who had gone to investigate the fire could be back any minute. I needed to get Borya in the SUV and get out of here ASAP. The SUV was still running, so I had to hope it would get us out of here. Borya was in no shape to run.
“Little girl. You come here with no weapons and no friends. What makes you think you stand a chance against me? Against the Black Thorn?”
I scanned my mind for a list of snarky retorts, but the hulking dark figure of Borya rose behind him. He took my breath away. Even through his pain and injuries, he was the most terrifying and beautiful thing I’d ever seen. He moved silently before he grabbed the man’s head in a steely grip and gave a fierce twist.
“I am her weapon,” he growled as the man dropped lifelessly to the ground. “May you rot in filth, Artem.”
I stood motionless, the shock not allowing my brain to process what happened. But when Borya started to fall forward, everything kicked back on for me and I ran to him, catching his weight.
He groaned in pain. I couldn’t even imagine all the shit he’d gone through.
“It’s okay. I’ve got you, baby.”
“I love you, too,” he said between gritted teeth.
At first, I thought I imagined the words as I kept moving him towards the passenger side of the SUV. “Huh?”
“I should’ve said it back. I was a fool not to. I love you. I’m obsessed with you. I own you. You own me. Love is the only word I can use for what I feel.”
I tried to help him in the seat, but he was so big; he had to do most of the work on his own, grunting and groaning through what might be the sweetest love confession I’ve ever heard. “This had damn well better not be a concussion talking,” I muttered before I shut the door and ran to the driver’s side.
I’d left the car running, thank goodness, and banged it into reverse.
There were groans and smells that for sure hadn’t been there before, but the car moved.
Shouts sounded from the left and then bangs from gunfire. The next thing I knew, my head was being shoved down.
“Give it gas,” ordered Borya as he took over the wheel.
“I can drive!” I yelled, even though he wasn’t letting me up. I thought he would be in too much pain to fight me, but he had just killed a guy right in front of me. Stubborn man.
I kept my foot on the gas as Borya yanked the wheel in different directions. “We need to get distance,” he grunted.
“I flattened their tires before I started burning shit, so we shouldn’t be followed.” Unless there was a car in hiding, but considering how few men were there, I don’t think I missed any.
Finally, the pressure on my head lessened, and I was able to take over the wheel as Borya fell back against the seat. “You flattened tires, started a fire and drove through the building?”
“I was only one person, so I had to make an impact.”
He chuckled before groaning and clutching his side with one arm. The other was hanging limply at his side. How had he broken a guy’s neck when he was in this kind of shape?
“I’m going to call your brother. He’s already on his way here, so it shouldn’t take long to have his men get you to a hospital. You’re going to be okay, Borya. I promise.”
His swollen eyes opened, and he smiled at me. It was hard to believe that someone could look so full of love, even through the blood and bruises. “Of course I am. I have the fiercest kitten in the world looking after me.”