Page 15 of Branded in Love
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GAVRIIL
Icannot read my brother’s mind, but I know I’d find nothing but trouble if I could. The sole look in Sasha’s eyes is enough to chill the blood in my veins. Wild fury mirrors in his stare. Something is terribly wrong.
Side by side, we march down the hallway, heading to the library. I see his clenched fists, the stiffness of his shoulders. “Gavriil…” he begins.
“Not here, Sasha,” I warn him. The last thing I want is for Luciana to hear anything he has to say.
As soon as we close the doors behind us, I speak. “What is it?”
“It’s worse than we thought,” Sasha says, catching his breath. His frantic stare sweeps the ceiling, then drifts and finds mine. “When I summoned the Elite, out of the twenty, only twelve answered the call.” He pauses, and I do my best not to interrupt him, but I fail.
“Our brothers in Rome,” I add. “They answered the call.”
“No.” Sasha shakes his head. “Our brothers in Saint Petersburg are traveling here as we speak,” he manages to say. “Our men stationed in Rome never replied.”
“Why is that?” I press. My brow creases with worry.
“I asked myself the same question.” He dips his hands into his pants pockets.
“And?” I urge him.
“I went to the safe house, and…” Sasha swallows hard. The anger in his expression slowly fades and gives way to dread. He’s afraid to tell me the truth. Why?
“Sasha,” I speak, not as a friend, but as his king.
His eyes rim with tears. “It was a bloodbath, Gavriil.” He steps back and drops on the couch. “They’re all dead.”
Rage burns through me like molten lava. “Those fucking vampires!” I growl. Wave after wave of unhindered anger washes over me. I can’t breathe. I can’t think. Only the raw desire to see the blood demons destroyed pulses inside me. I would like nothing more than to tear this room apart, but what good would that do? The noise would frighten Luciana, for sure.
“Who’s behind this?” I manage in a calmer voice, though my jaw clenches tight.
“Andrea Barone,” Sasha says. “The leader of the Roman vampire coven.”
My palms sting from digging my fingernails into them. “When will our brothers arrive?” I ask in a calmer voice.
“At around midnight.”
I nod. “We’re going to make him pay, Sasha,” I tell him with a vacant stare, yet the clearest conviction. “We’re going to skip the middle vamps and strike Barone himself when he least expects it.” A pause. “But first, I must take Luciana to Natalya.”
My Enforcer startles. “Natalya?” He springs from the seat. I read fright in his blue eyes, more than I noticed just a few minutes ago. Then it hits me.
“Oh, that’s right...” I heave a sigh. “Listen, you don’t have to come if you don’t want to…”
Sasha harrumphs. “No,” he says, finding his nerve again. “It’s perfectly fine. I haven’t seen her in a while, that’s all.”
“You can wait in the car, if you prefer...”
“Of course not.” He speaks with sternness, squaring his shoulders. “I have no problem with it. We cared for each other once. But that was a long time ago.” He nods swiftly, slipping back into the role of my Enforcer. “I’ll set up the team as soon as our brothers get here.”
I stare at him sidelong.
“Luciana won’t even know they’re there,” he assures me, fully aware of my concerns. “We will be discrete.”
“Good,” I say.
In silence, Sasha bows his head. He turns to the doorway.
