Brutal Kiss

I shoot him a second time in the face.

He explodes in bloody mist and gore. I lay there for a few seconds, breathing hard. The knife fell out of my arm in the scramble, and a thick hole leaks blood. I’m drenched in the stuff as I manage to push myself to my feet and stagger over to Daley.

“Are you okay?” I ask, ripping the veil from her mouth and untying her hands.

She throws herself at me. I grunt as my arm wound flares, but I hug her back, holding her tight. “I didn’t think you’d come,” she whispers, crying. “I thought they were going to—they were going to—”

She can’t get it out. Sobs rack her body. I kiss her softly and wipe her tears, trying to calm her down. “It’s okay, everything’s okay. I’m here now, and I swear I’m never letting you out of my sight again.”

I kiss her again, tasting her lips, a wild sense of relief flooding my body as I pull her up to her feet.

The danger isn’t over yet. We’re not out, and we’re not safe, but at least I have her in my arms. This is more than I ever dreamed possible, and I won’t squander this miracle.

“What’s happening outside?” she asks as I lead her to the doorway.

“Your brothers are causing a distraction.”

“There are like thirty guys downstairs. They’ve all got guns and—”

She trails off as I grab her and push her to the side of the door. I press her back flat to the wall and hold a finger to my lips. Someone’s coming up the steps and walking fast. The door’s open and in a second—

A massive man steps into the room and spots the corpse. He grunts like he’s staring at a particularly attractive bouquet of flowers and turns.

He’s absolutely enormous. I squeeze the trigger and shoot him in the shoulder and the chest, but he roars and brings his own gun up. I shove Daley out of the way and down to the floor as he shoots. The bullet slams into my shoulder, and I shoot him in the chest again, and again he stays on his feet. I roll to the side as the big man staggers, growling like a lion, and finally put a bullet in his neck. Blood’s spraying everywhere as he groans and staggers back, somehow still standing. I put two more in his chest, and he’s still not down. I kick him in the knee, shoot him again in the heart, and the enormous creature finally expires.

“Anarbek,” Daley says, sounding dazed as she gets to her feet. She looks at the dead man like he’s a pile of trash. “He killed Aiden. He did the flowers.” I look around and notice the streams of blossoms all over.

“He’s dead. Come on.” I take her hand and lead her into the wall. My shoulder is aching, but I’ve got enough adrenaline still to keep going. My knife wound leaks blood, and I can only guess at the damage.

I pause at the top of the steps. The gunfight is dying down now, and I’m positive the guys shooting at Callum and Nolan heard me kill those two assholes back in that hellish bridal suite. I can stay here and pick them off, one by one, but I won’t be able to kill them all. Even though I want to wade in their blood. The only option is to run, but I’m not very fast right now.

It’ll be close.

“This way,” I growl in frustration, dragging Daley along. My arm throbs, and my ear feels like it’s being chewed on by a dog, and my shoulder’s on fire now. I’m a fucking mess and losing blood fast. Daley says nothing as we hurry through the empty office, backtracking along my original route from the side door. It’s quiet and we reach the exit without issues. “You first.”

She steps through the shattered glass, going carefully. She’s wearing simple white flats with cloth bottoms and a shard cuts her feet. She leaves little bloody footprints on the concrete.

“Okay,” she whispers, crouching low in her wedding dress. “I’m out. Come through.”

I move forward, ready to crawl through, but something clicks behind me.

I turn and there he is. Emin Aksoy holds a gun aimed at my chest. He’s standing at the base of the stairs we just descended, and he’s got a grim frown on his lips. There’s blood on his shirt, and he’s bleeding from a wound on his forehead, the rivulets cascading down his face, dripping onto the carpet.

“So that was your plan,” he says quietly, not moving, the gun steady. “The frontal assault was a distraction. I didn’t think Fergal had it in him, but I guess I was wrong.”

“It’s finished, Emin. Daley’s gone.” I hear her shift just outside the door, pressed against the wall and out of sight. Good girl. Stay alive no matter what.