Page 194 of Bride By Initiation

It doesn't take long before I realize there's no more life in Salvatore. I slowly get off him and glance at Zara, trying to catch my breath.

She has her hand over her mouth, and fear fills her eyes.

I jump in front of her again, looking around the room.

Tension builds, creating more dread within me. The audience stares at us, emotionless and silent.

No one stopped me.

A man at the table rises and declares in a Greek accent, "Your seats at the table are revoked. You have broken a sacred rule."

"Which would be what? Don't kill those who kill your father?" I snarl.

"Sean," Zara mumbles, reaching for my hand.

I look around us to make sure no one is within reach of her.

The Greek man answers, "The Omni are untouchable. No member of The Underworld can kill them. You will be sacrificed after your wife is given to the fourteen men. She will watch you die, then follow you in death."

"Override token," Kirill booms, stepping next to us.

The crowd erupts with loud gasps, followed by more tense silence.

My heart thumps harder against my chest cavity.

Zara digs her nails into my thighs, her knees wobbling.

The Greek man's eyes narrow.

I blurt out, "What does that mean?"

Kirill announces, "It means you're safe and will fill your seat with an alternate ceremony."

I stare at him in confusion, unsure why he's helping us.

Another man at the table interjects, "The committee has to approve. This is an unprecedented, serious violation."

"Approve it," Kirill orders.

Another man rises. He's bald, with huge biceps and wide shoulders. "The only way I'll approve is if Sean uses his token. And, Kirill, both you and Sean will owe us a nonnegotiable," he says, in what might be a Ukrainian accent.

I seethe, "Fine. Take my token. But the nonnegotiable doesn't involve my wife or me having sex with anyone else. From this point forward, sex is off the table."

An older Black woman with dark hair lined with gray streaks rises from her chair. She hands Zara a tube of lipstick. It's the same tube that she found in my pants pocket. She orders in a French accent, "Put it on."

Anger flares in Zara's voice. She snarls, "You planted this in our home?"

"Told you I didn't touch anyone else," I say to her.

"Yeah, well, I don't know anything about those coins!" she declares.

The woman with the lipstick states, "Your gold coins are a payment for the death of Salvatore."

My breath catches in my lungs. I recover and fume, "You wanted me to kill him?"

Kirill barks accusingly, "You wanted me to use my override token."

The Ukrainian man replies, "What matters is where we are at right now. Do you accept the solution, or do you want death?"

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