Page 159 of SINS & Riley
For all the tension choking the car, I know he’s trying to make me smile. But it doesn’t work.
I don’t want his jokes. I just want Zver.
By the time we tear up the drive, my gut caves in on itself.
No guard at the gate. The iron doors blown right off the hinges.
The estate looks like a battlefield.
Bodies sprawled across the gravel, guards strewn where they fell, blood slicking the stones like spilled oil.
Boris hasn’t even stopped the car before I’m out the door, sprinting.
Inside, the air reeks of smoke, black curls spilling from the kitchen. I stumble through debris, heart battering my ribs, until I see him—Dominic.
Crumpled in the middle of the wreckage.
“Dominic!”
50
RILEY
I drop hard, knees cracking stone, tears blurring everything as I pull his head into my lap. “Dominic?”
For one endless second, he’s dead weight in my arms.
God. No.
Then he shifts, a ragged groan tearing free, and I drag in a breath so shaky it burns, ash scraping down my throat.
“What happened? Where’s Zver?”
His voice grates out of him. “They stormed the place. Looking for information. Valuables. Anything.”
My head reels, spinning. “How did they even know where he lived?”
His gaze meets mine, hollow, stripped bare. “It’s not a secret. But they would never attack unless?—”
“Unless what?”
His answer comes like a blade, cutting deep.
“Unless they already have him.”
My lungs seize. Ice floods my veins.
No. No, no, no.
He winces, a dark bloom spreading across his shirt.
“You’re bleeding. We need to get help.”
“No.” His hand clamps mine, iron-strong despite the tremor in his body. He shoves a key into my palm. “The locked box… In Zver’s room…”
“Zver’s room?” I blink at him, stunned. “I don’t even know where that is. We don't need a box. We need to get you to a hospital.”
“They will help.” His breath shudders, every word gasping. “End of the East Wing. The box. There’s a phone in it. Turn it on. Press one.”
