51. Andrey

51

ANDREY

Leonty fills the screen of the video call at a low angle, giving me a view of his chin and straight up his nostrils.

"Where's Mila?" I ask.

"I've got eyes on her." Leonty twists the phone around so that I can see Mila's silhouette through the glass windows. "She's sorting out the gift for Nat. Apparently, I have horrible taste and my suggestions weren't helpful, so I've been relegated to idling in the car along the curb."

"Have you spotted any suspicious activity?"

"It's New York," Leonty retorts. "Everyone here looks suspicious."

There are times when I admire my cousin's lighthearted, easygoing nature. There are times when I do not.

"Are you sure she's okay in there alone?"

"If I didn't think she was, I'd be in there with her." He sighs. "I've been a bit overprotective this week because of Viktor's hit out on her. She says I need to give her space, so that's what I'm trying to do."

"Give her space when she's back in the manor," I reply. "Not when you're out in the open."

"Don't let Mila hear you or she'll gripe at you about being overprotective, too." He runs a hand through his stubble. Ironically, it only makes him look more boyish. "Ah, here she comes."

Instead of getting into the passenger seat, Mila stops outside Leonty's door and pokes her head into the window to share the screen.

"I placed the order," she informs me. "It should be ready in about a week."

"Good. Now, why don't the two of you get back to the manor?"

Mila frowns. "Are you kidding? This is the first time I've been out of the house in weeks!"

Before I can tell her to stop taking unnecessary risks, Leonty beats me to the punch. "Baby, there's an active hit hanging over your head, remember? We've tempted fate enough by coming out at all today. Let's just get home."

Her lips jut out in a pout. "What's one more hour?"

"Mila," Leonty grits, his tone harder than I've ever heard it.

"Oh, alright. I'll come home like a good girl." Jabbing a finger at me, she adds, "But you can at least give me five minutes to grab something from the chocolate shop next door. Kat's been craving cocoa lately. I want to surprise her with something sweet."

Before either one of us can say anything, she's turned and swept into the store.

"Women," Leonty sighs, unbuckling his seatbelt. "I'll go in with?—"

The unmistakable sound of gunshots blast through the air. Leonty nearly drops the phone, leaving me staring at a tumbling whorl of color.

"Fuck!" he screams. "Mila!"

The screen flashes before he dumps the phone somewhere. All I see is darkness, but I can hear every word.

"Motherfuckers!" Leonty screams under a torrent of splintering sound.

I hear glass breaking, more gunshots, and the panic of terrified screams. "Mila! Mila, stay with me, baby. Please."

I end the call and dial 911.

Shura, Kat, and Natalia come barreling around the corner just as I'm giving the emergency dispatcher Mila and Leonty's location.

"What happened?" Natalia asks, her face pale.

"There was an attack on Mila," I rasp. "I'm heading there now."

"I'll come with you," Shura says before darting out of the manor to fire up the Escalade. Katya follows behind him without a word.

"I'm coming, too!" Natalia insists.

"Natalia, I think it's better if?—"

"Mila's my friend!" she explodes in my face. "And I will not sit here and wait for news when I could be with her. I'm coming."

I briefly consider tying her down and forcing her to stay, but we don't have the time. "Fine, but you're to stay by my side the entire time. Is that clear?"

She nods. "Always."

Leonty is slumped on the floor of the emergency ward when we get to the hospital. Elbows resting on his knees, his head hanging between his shoulder blades.

He looks up, eyes red-rimmed, dried tears etched onto his cheeks. "Shit, you all came."

"Of course we all came." Natalia grabs his arm, holding on like she's afraid to lose him, too. "Where is she?"

"They wheeled her in twenty minutes ago for emergency surgery." Leonty hiccups. "Fuck… there was so much blood…"

"Mila's strong, Leonty," Kat chimes in. "She'll make it."

Leonty looks past Kat to me. "You were right, Andrey. I should never have let her out of my sight. Not even for a second. This is all my fault."

I squat down in front of my broken cousin and clasp him by the shoulders. "Stop this, man. Mila needs you to be strong for her. Blaming yourself won't solve anything."

His eyes are locked on mine, but it's like he's looking through me. "If she dies… what will I do?"

Natalia wraps her arm around him and he sobs against her shoulder. Katya sits on his opposite side, patting his arm. I join Shura in the corner.

"Thank fuck for the girls," Shura rasps. "I wouldn't know what to do."

I don't say a word. I just nod in agreement.

Every minute that ticks by feels like an eternity. I pace the corridor, willing the emergency door to open. Willing some nurse to come offer us some kind of update about Mila's condition.

Two minutes pass.

Five.

Ten.

Twenty.

After a while, Natalia leaves Leonty with Katya and walks over to me. I pull her into my arms and kiss the top of her head.

"I hate that he has to go through this," she whispers, nuzzling into my chest. "I'm so worried for Mila. Terrified for the both of them. But I'm so relieved that it isn't you and me in their position." She chokes on her own words. "Does that make me a horrible person?"

"Not in the slightest," I assure her. "Tragedy makes you grateful for what you have left, even if you lose something."

Natalia bites her lip. "Do you think she'll survive?"

"All we can do now is hope."

Finally, the doors swing open and Mila's doctor steps out.

Leonty beats us all there. "Is she okay? Is she alive?"

There's a pregnant pause. "She's alive and stable."

"Oh, thank God!" Natalia mumbles, bending over as though she can't stand the relief. "Can we see her?"

"Soon. She's being wheeled into a private room as we speak. She lost a lot of blood, but she was extremely lucky. The bullet missed her major organs…"

As the doctor drones on about the details of the procedure, I grasp Natalia tightly, savoring the solid feel of her. The warmth of her. Her pulse, softness, smell.

A few minutes later, Leonty goes off with the doctor to see Mila. The rest of us congregate outside her room.

Shura meets my eyes above the women's heads. Silently, I gesture for him to follow me down the corridor. "Do you think it's possible to keep this quiet?" he murmurs.

"I think it's too late for that already," I admit. "Viktor's thugs will have spread the word by now."

Our conversation is cut short when Leonty reappears, gesturing the girls forward. "You can see her if you want. She's still unconscious, but I think she'd appreciate you being there all the same."

I'm about to follow them in when my phone starts to ring. When I see who's calling, I curse under my breath.

"Is it him?" Shura asks.

I nod. "You go in. I'll handle this."

The moment the door swings shut, I answer the call.

"Is it fucking true?" he yells. "Is my daughter dead?"

"Your daughter is still very much alive, Ivan," I assure him.

"I heard there was an attack. That Mila was the target?—"

"There was an attack, yes, and yes, Mila was the target. She's just out of surgery. She's unconscious, but stable. The doctor expects her to make a full recovery."

"Surgery," Ivan croaks. "They tried to kill her…"

"But they didn't. She's still alive, Ivan."

"You promised me. You vowed that you would keep her safe."

"Listen—"

"No, you listen. My daughter was hurt under your watch. What good is your protection if it lands you in the fucking hospital?"

"Calm down, Ivan?—"

"A pakhan who can't keep his own safe is no pakhan at all."

My hand clenches into a fist. "Careful now."

"No, I think you should be the one to be careful. The others should know exactly what they're risking, allying themselves with the likes of you."

"Don't forget who you're speaking to, Ivan."

The pause on the other side of the line is rife with tension, laced with fear. "I haven't forgotten a goddamn thing."

"Good. Viktor will be dealt with. That's a promise."

He hangs up without bothering to reply, leaving dead air ringing in my ears.