Page 39 of Marked By His Touch

So she works at Spectrum, so maybe that’s why she met Cole?

That’s good and bad news. Good because it explains their meeting, bad because—why would she work there? Maybe she wants to work close to Gilbert? Or perhaps she got fired from her old job? That doesn’t make sense, though. Sarah’s great at her job, and they love her there. She’d never want to work in design, I’ve tried countless times to headhunt her to Spectrum. Even as a programmer—

I push the phone away. My heart feels heavy. A million unanswered questions are swirling in my head, but I can’t let them take over. I need to stay focused.

“Ready,slatka?” Zara asks, interrupting my thoughts. She’s standing behind me. I turn, catching a glimpse of her in the mirror. With her long dark hair, Zara looks like she just stepped out of a magazine. She’s wearing tight leather pants, a form-fitting top, and a fierce black eyeliner. A single silver ring adorns her nose, a glint against her porcelain skin.

“Ready,” I say. The adrenaline is starting to pump through my veins even before we leave the house.

Zara leans in, her grin mischievous. “Remember, right punch and kick to the balls, yes?” She gives me a playful nudge.

“Da,” I say, trying to push back the tidal wave of anxiety.

I turn back to the mirror, my reflection staring back, there’s a fire burning beneath the surface.

“We’re going to kick some ass,slatka,” I say, a smirk playing on my lips. It’s like a release, a way to channel the tension, to reclaim some control.

“You and me, ragdoll,” Zara replies, her grin mirroring mine. “We will show them.”

We are sisters in arms, warriors.

And tonight, we will take down Nikolai Romanov and the Veles network of Port Haven.

Chapter 12

The Night of the Attack

Dressedin her silver-trimmed trench coat, Katerina navigates the city streets as our chauffeur, her movements on the wheel precise and efficient. I’m sitting in the back seat, Zara beside me, and two other women across from us, Lena and Tatiana.

Four of us, a tight-knit group. Just enough to get the job done, but not enough to attract unwanted attention.

As we speed towards our destination, the city lights blur into streaks of color. Tatiana looks out the window, her eyes blinking. I notice a slight tremor in her hand. I grab her hand and lock eyes with her. “you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.” I say.

She nods, “I want, Ava, I want.” she says.

“Okay—” I answer and squeeze her hand. “If you change your mind, stay.”

I pull out my phone, my fingers hesitating above the keyboard. I start typing a message to Alexander but delete it immediately. I do this five times, each attempt more uncertain than the last. Finally, I type“I love you”and hit send to Alexander’s new number. I hope he hasn’t destroyed the new phone yet. If anything happens to me—

I leave the phone in the car; it’s too risky to bring it inside in case someone searches us. Before I stash it away, I quickly type another message to a different number and press send. Then, I slide the phone into the car seat pocket.

“Go get revenge,Devushka,” Katerina says, as she drives, her voice is a low rasp that vibrates through the car. “You train hard. You ready.”

Zara, illuminated by the car’s interior light, gives Katerina a playful wink. “Da, mamma.” Katerina’s eyes meet mine, a flicker of something I can’t quite name—-pride?

Tonight, we strike.

I glance at the guns resting beside me, loaded and ready. Katerina’s gotten us small guns to hide on our bodies. I’ve only fired a few shots at the safe house and once at the warehouse long ago when I shot the Raven. I strap mine to an elastic band on my thigh, near my hip. It feels heavy.

“Call me if there’s trouble,” Katerina says, tossing a brand-new miniature phone into Zara’s lap without letting her eyes off the road. “I’ll get Isaac and the guards if there’s any trouble.”

Zara nods. “No worry,mamma.We got this.”

“Remember where the cameras are? We avoid them,” I say.

“Da,” Lena and Tatiana say.

Katerina pulls the car up a quiet street corner a few blocks from the club. We creep out of the black car, the air instantly cold and biting. For a moment, I want to stay in the warmth of the car, to hold onto that fleeting sense of safety. But I don’t.

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