Page 61 of The Russian's Innocent Prey
The admission hung in the air like a bomb waiting to explode. Lev’s eyes widened further, his mouth opening slightly as he processed this information that should have been shared in private, in joy, not screamed out during a hostage situation.
But there was no time for proper revelations, no space for the conversation we should be having about the life growing inside me. Because Erin—or whoever she really was—had been in our home for weeks, had been feeding me, caring for me, planning God knows what kind of death.
“Pregnant,” Lev repeated, the word barely a whisper.
I could see him trying to shift gears, trying to process the joy and terror of becoming a father while simultaneously dealing with the immediate threat to our lives. But training kicked in, the survival instincts that had kept him alive this long overriding everything else.
“Trev,” he said, his voice deadly calm. “Take her to the interrogation spot.”
Trev nodded and hauled Erin to her feet with efficient brutality. She didn’t resist, didn’t struggle. Just smiled that cold, empty smile, like she was exactly where she wanted to be.
“Wait.” I grabbed Lev’s arm as understanding crashed over me like a wave. “Who is she? Really?”
Lev’s jaw tightened, and for a moment I thought he might not answer. Then he met my eyes, and I saw something there I’d never seen before—not just anger or determination, but actual fear.
“Mila Kozak,” he said, and the name hit me like a physical blow. “Petro’s daughter. Professional assassin.”
My knees threatened to give out again. Three weeks. For three weeks, I’d been living with, eating food prepared by, trusting my safety to a trained killer whose father wanted my husband dead.
“Sasha.” The name came out as a croak. “Where’s Sasha?”
Lev shook his head, jaw tight with frustration and guilt. “No idea. Nothing yet.”
My voice cracked as the full horror of the situation hit me. “Lev, Sasha is important to me. I want her back alive.”
She was more than important—she was family. The little sister I’d never had, the bright spot in days that had been growing progressively darker. If something happened to her because of me, because of this world I chose when I fell in love with Lev Antonov….
“Trev will find her,” Lev said, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. His lips lingered there for a moment, and I could feel him breathing me in like he was trying to memorize my scent.
As Trev dragged Mila toward the door, she turned back to look at me one last time. That ethereal, almost angelic face was completely transformed now, showing the predator that had been hiding beneath the surface.
“You should have drunk the juice,” she said conversationally. “It would have been easier. For both of you.”
The casual cruelty in her voice made my blood run cold. This wasn’t some crime of passion or a desperate act. This was a professional doing her job, eliminating targets with the same emotional investment most people brought to grocery shopping.
“What was in it?” Drew asked, laptop already open, probably running analysis on whatever surveillance footage he could pull up.
Mila’s smile widened. “Something that would have made sure the Antonov line died with her baby.”
The words hit me like physical blows. Not just poison—something specifically designed to kill my unborn child. Something that would have let me live just long enough to experience that loss before finishing me off.
Lev’s hands clenched into fists, and for a moment, I thought he might launch himself at her despite his injuries. Maxim put a restraining hand on his shoulder.
“Save it for the interrogation,” Maxim said quietly. “We need information first.”
As they dragged her away, I sank back onto the couch, my hands instinctively moving to my stomach. Six weeks along, the doctor had said. Barely the size of a grain of rice, but already so fiercely protected by every instinct I possessed.
“Are you really okay?” Lev asked, settling carefully beside me. His face was drawn with pain, but his eyes were focused entirely on me.
“I think so.” I leaned into him, needing the solid warmth of his body to ground me. “The nausea, the dizziness—I thought it was just pregnancy symptoms. But she could have been poisoning me slowly, couldn’t she? Building it up in my system.”
“We’ll get you to a doctor,” he said immediately. “Full blood work, everything checked.”
“What about you? You’re supposed to be in the hospital.”
A ghost of his old smile touched his lips. “Hospital can wait. My wife and my….” He paused, the word catching in his throat.
“Baby,” I finished for him. “We’re having a baby, Lev.”
