Page 120 of Love to Defy You
Oh, shit.Shit.
My adrenaline kicks into overdrive, and I run harder than I ever thought I could. Blood pumps in my ears as I race so fast that I nearly trip over my own feet. The rain is coming down hard now, and with every step, my bare feet splash into a puddle of icy water.
“Malishka!”
I almost don’t hear it over the roaring of pumping blood and pouring rain in my ears, but when I do, I halt and look over my shoulder behind me. It can’t be…
A man with shaggy brown hair and a baseball cap jogs toward me, his figure obscured in the rain. With a gasp, I hold up my hands and back away from the incoming stranger. I’m about to turn around and run for my life when the man rips off his hat and wig.
His familiarity makes me pause, even my heart, and I hold my breath.
When he walks under the streetlamp closest to me, his face comes into focus, and he rips off his glasses, dropping them on the ground.
“A-Alek?” I sob.
“It’s me.” Alek sprints forward, closing the distance between us to take me in his arms. “I’m here,malishka.”
“Alek!” I fist his shirt and burrow my face against his chest, breaking down into hysterics. His familiar smoky scent envelops me as he holds me tight, whispering how much he loves me into my hair and peppering my forehead with kisses.
I’m crying so hard I can’t speak, and I can’t hold myself up any longer. As I melt into him, my legs give way, and I sink to the wet concrete beneath me. Alek catches me just in time and falls to his knees, cradling me in his arms and rocking me like a precious child.
“What did Enzo do to you?” His broken voice punctuates the patter of rain surrounding us. “Tell me what he did, and I’ll end him,malishka. I swear it.”
My thoughts are racing, but one stark realization comes to the forefront amidst all the chatter in my mind. Alek is here, in Andarusia. He’s planning to commit murder in the country he’s been exiled from, and I cannot let that happen.
“N-no!” I cry, clutching his shirt. “He… he didn’t…”
Lying to Alek proves impossible, and I break down into another fit of sobs, trembling in the cold, wet night.
“Fuck, let’s get you someplace warm.” Alek scoops me into his arms and stands up like I’m no heavier than a rag doll.
I wrap my arms around his neck and bury my face into his shirt, seeking his warmth as he heads back the way he came. Even though I have no clue where I am, Alek seems to know the way, and he forges ahead with purpose, his face set with determination.
The fog starts to turn red and blue, and a distant siren echoes in the forest. It’s muffled by the pouring rain, but it’s distinct. Alek glances at me, and that’s when I notice his brown contacts. His eyes grow wide as his muscles tense under my touch.
I look up at him through wet eyelashes. “Is that…?”
“We have to go.” Alek sets me down on my feet and grabs my wrist. “Run,malishka!”
We take off at a sprint, with Alek pulling me behind him. Icy rain whips at our faces as he barrels forward, and each time my bare feet land on the hard sidewalk, it sends a jarring pain up my legs. My blood is pounding as I gasp for breath, but all I know is that we have to keep running until we’re safe.
But when we round the next corner, Alek skids to an abrupt halt. A police car is parked a few yards away, and a uniformed officer stands there, holding a gun pointed at us. He shouts at us in Russian.
Alek’s grip tightens on my wrist, and he holds up his other hand toward the officer as if to calm him down. He answers in Russian with a level voice, but the policeman responds with heated words I don’t understand. His partner remains in the car, shouting something into the radio.
Moments later, another police car peels around the corner behind us, lighting up the wet street in pulsing blue and red. We’re boxed in with no escape.
“What are they saying?” I shout at Alek.
He drops my hand and slowly reaches for the pocket of his jeans while keeping the other high in the air in surrender. Alek says something again to the officers in Russian before pulling out a cell phone.
“Take this,” he whispers to me, offering me the phone while keeping his gaze locked on the gun pointed at him. “Call your father to come pick you up.”
Panic seizes my chest. “But what about you? Aren’t you coming with me?”
At last, Alek looks away from the police officer and shoves the phone into my hand. “Not today,malishka.”
“Are you…?” I glance at the policemen closing in on us. “Are you being arrested?”
