by K. C. Crowne
After Maksim had told me what Viktor had been, I felt very differently about him. I didn’t believe that Viktor was a bad man, even though I did believe that Viktor had done things in his past that he wasn’t proud of. I just couldn’t find it in myself to hold those things against him when he was so clearly set on making a change.
Wasn’t that what counted? He had chosen a different life, and he was serious about making it a reality.
His past was catching up with him. He was worried that it would scare me off. But I didn’t feel that way about it. I didn’t know why I trusted him, but I’d never trusted anyone more.
Viktor blinked his eyes open.
“Did I wake you?” I asked.
He shook his head. “We should get up soon.”
I nodded. We were caught in a time warp of sorts. As soon as the sun rose, all hell was going to break loose. But until then, we were okay. We were in a bubble where time stood still and just the two of us existed.
“Did you sleep okay?” he asked. He cupped my cheek and ran his thumb over my lower lip.
“I did,” I said in a breathy voice.
He offered me a cocky smile, and I shivered. I wanted him. Sex with him now would be a hell of a release after everything that had happened. But we would have all the time in the world after this was over.
“What are the plans?” I asked.
“I’m leaving in a short while, to take care of things.”
“You’re leaving without me?” My stomach twisted and fear grabbed me.
“I won’t be long.”
“I’m not staying behind,” I insisted. “Where you go, I go.”
Viktor sat up. He rubbed his eyes and shook his head. “No Malen kiy.” His voice was firm. And it pissed me off.
“You can’t tell me what to do.”
“It’s dangerous,” he said. “I’m not going to let you go out there again. I just got you back.”
I knew it was absurd that I wanted to go with him but staying behind seemed terrifying to me. When I was with Viktor, I felt safe. I opened my mouth to say something, to argue with him, but Axel opened the door without knocking.
“They’re here,” he said.
Viktor jumped to his feet. “What?”
A fresh wave of fear washed over me. “How did they find us?” I asked in a voice that sounded as scared as I felt.
Viktor didn’t answer me. He stormed out of the room. Through the open door I saw him grab a gun, check the ammunition, look around. Axel was doing the same thing, whipping out a gun I hadn’t known was within reach.
The two of them were a fierce pair, both comfortable with weapons. When Viktor turned to glance back at me, the look on his face scared me. His eyes were so dark they were almost black. His lips were pressed in a thin line, and he looked like a hunter. A predator.
I hadn’t seen this side of him. Maybe this was what Maksim had talked about.
“Stay here,” he commanded.
He nodded at Axel, and they burst through the front door. The moment they set foot outside, gunfire started.
“No!” I screamed and ran across the living area to one of the windows. I peeked around the sill, looking out.
Maksim’s men were everywhere, crawling through the trees like ants, firing at Viktor and Axel. The two men had run into the trees and disappeared behind the trunks. My throat closed as I watched, frantically searching for any evidence that they were still there. Something… anything.
Except a dead body. Please, God, let nothing happen to them.
Viktor appeared from between the trees again, grabbing one of the men that had been shooting in the direction of the cabin. He twisted his head around so fast, I’d barely been able to track his movements. The shooter sank to the ground. Viktor looked at me, our eyes locking for a moment through the window where I hid most of my body behind the wooden wall of the cabin.
He’d known exactly where I was. His eyes were cold as death. And for some reason, I’d never loved him more, knowing what he would do to protect me.
I watched as the two men worked together, moving through the trees like ghosts. At first, Maksim’s men were confident, shooting, serious. But as time ticked on and they couldn’t find a mark, the shooting slowed, and they seemed more unsure of themselves. One by one, the men started disappearing, and that freaked them out, too.
I heard something on the other side of the cabin. I ran to the other side, grabbing a poker from the hearth. Viktor had taught me to shoot, but I wouldn’t be able to train a gun on someone and pull the trigger. I was too soft for that.
A window broke and I screamed, turning towards the sound, ready to defend myself. But hands wrapped around me from behind, an arm closing around my throat and another pulling my arm behind my back, forcing me to drop the poker.
“Help!” I screamed and screamed until I heard a voice that killed my own.
“Quiet, bitch,” Maksim’s voice rasped in my ear. I shuddered when his breath brushed against the skin of my neck. “I’m going to kill you in front of that asshole boyfriend of yours.”
I kicked and fought and squirmed, but Maksim was so much stronger than I was, it was futile. He dragged me through the cabin and toward the door.
As soon as we were outside, I screamed. “Viktor!”
“I said quiet!” Maksim shouted in my ear.
He pushed me away from his body far enough to slap me across the face. I stumbled and fell to the ground. My hand dug into the dirt when I tried to stop my fall. The click of a gun cocking made me freeze. The cold steel of the barrel pressed against my temple, and I didn’t dare move. I was going to die.
I tried to look for Viktor between the trees, but I was too afraid to move my head. I just wanted to see his face one more time before it was over.
Viktor
For a short while, when Axel and I had stormed out into the fray to end this shit once and for all, I’d been confident we had it in the bag. Maksim was brilliant at what he did, but close contact wasn’t his forte. His strength was in the long game, sniping, working out how to infiltrate, strategic attacks.
This was different. We were in the mountains where I was comfortable, and I had Axel on my side. We could see enough through the trees even though the sun hadn’t risen; his men were city dwellers, uncomfortable in the woods.
Now, though, I wasn’t sure we were going to make it. I’d managed to take out Maksim’s men one by one – he’d really picked the roughest scum out there. Some of them weren’t Russian. Maksim had been losing men hard and fast since the moment we’d stepped out of the cabin.
Axel was a hell of a fighter, too. He’d held up his end of the deal. He’d promised to have my back, and he was doing just that. Except, now he was in the dirt with a boot on his face and a gun at the back of his neck. He looked at me, his face twisted, teeth gritted. He wasn’t ready to die; I could still see the fight in him.
Angela was hostage again, too. Maksim had nabbed her from the cabin. She was crying. Tears rolled down her cheeks, and she whimpered softly. My heart broke at the sound. I needed to save her. She needed me.
I was going to kill that motherfucker if it was the last thing I did.
“Come on, Viktor,” Maksim said. “Look who I have.”
“I’m looking,” I said. I stepped out from between the trees so Maksim could see me. I laid my gun on the ground. “Don’t kill her.”
Maksim laughed, a fucking ugly sound. “You’ve gone soft, comrade. I expected more from you. But our heroes all have feet of clay, right? That’s how the saying goes?”
I snorted. “What the fuck do you know about heroes?”
Maksim laughed and shook his head, his laughter turning into a sigh. “Oh, Viktor. You know, I never thought I would see the day where you begged for a life instead of taking one. It’s not a good look on you. I like you better with a gun in your hand and death in your eyes.
“You want me, you have me,” I said. “Let Angela go. She’s not a part of this.”
/> “Oh, but Viktor, you don’t understand how punishment works.”
“I’ve exacted your revenge for a long time, Maksim,” I said. “I know exactly how it works.”
Maksim shook his head and pressed the barrel harder against her head. She flinched and whimpered. I balled my hands into fists. I’d put down my gun, but the barrel of a second gun dug into my back where I’d shoved it into my pants. I needed to bide my time. I couldn’t play my hand until the time was right.
“No, Viktor,” Maksim said. “If I kill you – or send someone to do it – you won’t feel what it means to betray me. What did I ever do to you?”
“I didn’t want that life anymore. You wouldn’t let me go if I told you that was what I wanted.”
“No one fucking walks away, Viktor!” Maksim shouted. He took a deep breath and spoke more calmly. “You don’t walk away from your blood.”
“You’re not my blood.”
Maksim pulled his lips into a snarl. “That’s just the problem. You have no fucking loyalty. We are Russian, we are blood!” He pounded his chest as he spoke, though his gun hand never moved. “And I’m going to hurt the one thing you love the most. To teach you a lesson.”
Angela turned her head to look at me. Her eyes were bright, shimmering with tears. Her cheeks were wet. Her face was pleading. “I love you, Viktor.”
She was ready to die, but I wasn’t ready to let her go.
“This is your last warning, Maksim,” I said, my eyes focusing on him. “Let her go.”
Maksim laughed and grabbed Angela’s hair and yanked her back to her feet. He held her around the body, pressing her against him, and the gun was to her throat. “You know what happens next.”
Everything around us grew very still. The wind rustled the leaves around me, and I smelled the earth in my nostrils. My hands were sweaty with anticipation, and I could taste Angela’s fear on my tongue.
But I was calm. Focused. My heartbeat was slow, my blood flowing steady. I wiggled my fingers. Maksim started pulling the trigger. I could see by the way the muscle in his arm flexed, the way his face changed ever so slightly, anticipating the bang that would ring out a split-second later.
I grabbed the gun from my pants, yanked it out, aimed, and pulled the trigger. I hadn’t had time to aim down sight. I hadn’t had time to shift position, to make sure that the bullet would go where it was supposed to go. I trusted my skill, my experience. I trusted my heart and my gut.
Angela screamed and squeezed her eyes shut when she heard the gunshot.
The bullet hit him square between the eyes. A red dot appeared where the bullet went in, and he flew backward.
Angela jumped forward, shock on her face, and she spun around, looking at the dead man on the ground.
I ran to her and wrapped my arms around her.
“Is he dead?” she asked me in a trembling voice.
I nodded. “Angela,” I said. “Look at me.”
She was still staring at Maksim. I didn’t want her to look at that. I needed her to look at me.
“Malen kiy,” I said. “Look at me.”
She finally turned her eyes to mine.
“I love you, too.”
Angela
I was alive. Maksim was dead.
“Where are the rest of them?” I asked.
Viktor shook his head. “The one or two who were still alive fled when Maksim died. When the Queen Bee dies, there’s nothing to keep the hive together anymore.”
I burst out laughing, the relief ripping out of my throat. I stood in the forest, my laughter bouncing around between the trees. Viktor smiled, but he looked unsure.
Axel walked to us. He had a split lip and an eye already turning black, but he looked like he was in a good mood. “What’s so funny?”
“I’m not sure,” Viktor said.
I covered my mouth with my hand, trying to stop giggling, but I just couldn’t help myself. I think I was in shock.
“This is a hell of a mess to clean up,” Axel commented, looking around.
Viktor nodded. “I’ll make a call.”
“It would be good if the police aren't involved,” Axel said, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.
I glanced at him. He was running from something, too. He and Viktor fought in a way that wasn’t normal for civilians without a dark past. But that didn’t explain who he was going to call.
“Who are you calling/”
“I know people who deal with this sort of clean up discreetly.”
I started trembling. My adrenaline had run out. I felt cold, so I pressed my hand against my forehead and closed my eyes. His statement didn’t make me feel better.
“What’s wrong?” Viktor asked, tuned into my needs and concerned.
“When this is over, I want your whole story,” I told him, my breath more panting than breathing. I saw stars for a second. “I feel faint,” I said in a breathy voice.
“She’s in shock,” Axel said.
“I’m not in shock, just freaking out,” I retorted. My head had cleared, and I stared into Viktor’s eyes. “The whole story. The truth. Or I’m gone.”
“You deserve it and you’ll have it,” he promised, and I nodded. “I think it’s time we go home.” He glanced at Axel. “I’ll have this handled quickly,” he said, gesturing around us at the bodies.
He thanked Axel for his help. I mumbled something inaudible. I was struggling to think straight, struggling to make normal conversation. When we left, I was in a daze as we walked slowly through the forest to Viktor’s cabin.
He stoked a fire in the pit outside and put a pot of water on to boil. I stayed at his side the whole time. Finally, he took me inside and brewed a cup of tea from leaves I didn’t recognize. He added honey, making it sweet, and offered it to me. I took it from him and blew on the top.
I sipped the tea. I took deep breaths in and let them out slowly, trying to calm myself. Slowly, I started calming down.
Viktor sat opposite me, his eyes resting on my face. He was worried about me. But I was alive, and so was he. And the danger was over.
“What?” I asked, feeling his stare on me so intense it drew me out of my thoughts.
“We have to get you home.”
I wanted to fight him. I started shaking my head, but he was right. I couldn’t stay up here forever. As it was, I was going to miss my flight. And it was high time I headed back to see my mom again. She had to be worried about me, she had to wonder what was going on, what was taking so long.
“Okay,” I finally said.
I finished my tea before Viktor and I hiked down to Snowmass, where we went through the same process of getting a car to take us to Grizzly Falls. This time, Viktor stayed with me at all times, his arm protectively around me. He didn’t outright threaten the driver, but the guy feared for his life by the time we climbed into the car.
Nothing was going to go wrong. I was going home.
I must have drifted off in the car. When we pulled up in front of my mom’s house, I woke up on Viktor’s shoulder. He gently nudged me and opened the door for me.
“You’re home, Angel,” he murmured.
I looked at the house, and it felt surreal to be here. It had only been a week since I’d been gone, but everything felt strange and out of place. I felt like I’d been ripped from a dream and was being shoved into a strange, harsh reality.
“Thank you,” I said.
Viktor and I climbed out of the car. We walked halfway through the garden, in full bloom with my mom’s flowers, when Viktor stopped.
“This is as far as I go, Angel,” he said.
I frowned. “Don’t you want to meet my mom?”
Viktor shook his head. “I’m not the man she wants to meet.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked. “She’ll love you.”
“People don’t love me,” Viktor said carefully. “But that’s not what it’s about.”
“Then what is it?”
Viktor hesitated for
just a moment. He ran his fingers over my cheek, brushed my hair out of my eyes. His eyes slid over my face like he was studying it, committing it to memory. And I got a terrible hollow feeling in my stomach.
“What’s going on, Viktor?” I asked.
His eyes slid to mine again. “I don’t think we should see each other again.”
His words crashed into me like punches. Breathless, I asked, “What? How can you say that?”
“Your life is different from mine. And it will become even more so when you leave.”
“I don’t want to leave,” I said in a small voice.
“But you will. Because you need to. You need to take care of the people in your life, and that’s how you’ll do it. Your life has no space for a man like me. And it’s better that way.”
I shook my head, tears welling up in my eyes. He was serious. Dammit! He was serious.
“You can’t do this to me,” I whispered. “I don’t want to say goodbye.”
“I know, Malen kiy,” he murmured.
I was suddenly angry. How could he hurt me like this just after he’d fought to protect me? He’d told me loved me! And I loved him… wasn’t that worth something? How could he just walk away from me, from everything we’d been through?
“Don’t call me that,” I said, tears welling in my eyes again. Dammit, I didn’t want to cry. I didn’t want him to know how much he was hurting me. “You don’t get to call me that.”
Viktor sighed. “I’m sorry, Angela.”
I shook my head and looked away from him, incapable of speaking.
“Good luck on your new adventure,” he said.
I nodded and turned my back on him, walking away. I didn’t know how long he stayed there looking at me. Maybe he’d just made sure I was inside safely. But after I’d closed the front door behind me and peeked through the window, Viktor was gone.
“Angie?” my mom called, coming from the living room, her eyes wide with surprise. “Oh, Angie!” She ran to me and wrapped her arms around me. “I’m so glad you’re home!”
“Me too,” I said, even though I felt like I was falling apart. “Me too.”