Page 96 of Vengeful King

“Bitch,” he spits. “I should have—”

He never gets to finish.

I didn’t hear Lachlan come up the stairs. I just see him turn the corner suddenly, spinning into view, making my heart leap inside my chest.

I don’t have time to be happy to see him. I don’t even have time to say his name. As soon as I open my mouth, Yuri is turning around, and I scream.

I can’t tell what happens at first, but I hear shots and then there’s a struggle. I see one gun skid away and clatter off the edge of the roof; the other flies through the air. I don’t know where either of them land. I stand frozen in place, terrified, not wanting to watch but unable to leave Lachlan behind.

He can’t die.

He can’t,I tell myself, like thinking it can make it true.Not for me.

My entire body is shaking with adrenaline, and I can barely understand what’s happening, but I see flashes of silver. Knives. Yuri darts forward, Lachlan steps back. They slice and jab, each trying to catch the other off guard. It’s a fast-paced dance.

I want to rush in. I want to throw Yuri off or do something to help turn the tide, but I know I’ll be in the way. So all I can do is stand there and pray that Lachlan isn’t hurt.

Yuri jabs suddenly, and I hear Lachlan hiss. My heart sinks, and all I can think isno.

No, not him.

I can see that Lachlan’s arm is bleeding. It seems like just a cut. But he’s grimacing, frustration and anger clear on his face. I feel like I haven’t taken a breath in hours; I can’t take my eyes off him. I just want him to be okay.

When Yuri manages to break Lachlan’s knife, he grins triumphantly, and I feel like I might be sick. But Lachlan doesn’t miss a beat, wrenching Yuri’s arm behind his back and disarming him. They’re fighting hand-to-hand now, elbows and fists flying. I can barely keep track, but I know that Lachlan is slowly gaining ground. He forces Yuri back, more of his punches hitting, faster as he gets closer.

I can see blood on their faces. I don’t know how injured they are; I just know it’s bad. It’s brutal. I’ve never seen two men fight like this.

But Lachlan is vicious, and he pushes Yuri toward the edge of the roof. I hold my breath, hoping it will end.

And suddenly, it does.

I watch as it happens almost in slow motion, Lachlan taking hold of Yuri and pausing for a fraction of a second. I don’t know if he’s waiting or saying something.

But the next thing I know, Lachlan throws Yuri off the roof.

I barely hear the scream. I only watch him disappear, gone over the edge, and it hits me in a rush that it’s over.

He’s dead.

CHAPTER34

Lachlan

You couldn’t kill me. And you can’t have her.

Those were the last words I said to Yuri. They felt like triumph on my tongue when I spoke them.

I watch him fall. I want to see him hit the ground, as gruesome as it is—I want to know this time for sure that he’s dead. I want to know that he’s gone.

I want to know that he can never hurt me, my family, or Katrina ever again.

As I look over the edge of the roof, all I can think of is the night years ago when Yuri fell from the bridge. I was younger then, terrified that I’d almost died. I was confused, angry, conflicted. I couldn’t believe a man I trusted had betrayed me.

I know now more than ever that it’s easy to betray. Real commitment and devotion are the hardest things in the world to find.

Yuri doesn’t move, his limbs bent at awkward angles as blood seeps from his skull.

I step back from the ledge, finally letting myself breathe again. There’s a dull pain settling into my body that reminds me I’m injured. Cuts, bruises, gashes, all earned in the fight. I’m going to need patching up, and it’s not going to be fun.

---