Chapter 26 I walk into the small house and note, even in the dark, that it smells expensive. Like wool carpet and new appliances. "We're keeping the lights off," Dimitri quietly states. He's not talking just to me, but to everyone. "Let's not make it too easy to be found." I wrap my arms about his waist, laying my head on his chest. His arm tightens around my back as he draws me closer. Tazz steps to my other side and I actually feel safer with him there. It's like the more I'm around men, the less afraid I become. I wish I'd realized that years ago. That surrounding myself with the right men would help me heal. Cadence stands next to Zane, his hand on her shoulder, his body slightly in front of hers in a clearly protective stance, though she doesn't need it. Men have always flocked to Cadence. But if she makes it hard for me to take care of her, with men...she has always been staunchly independent. Aggressively so. Dimitri begins to speak, sharing information I already know. His father is the head of his family and their business. He's been holding his sisters hostage. He also shares his attempts to force his father's hand. "This is my fight. Any and all of you are welcome to leave. But I ask that you do so now, if you're going to go." No one moves. I don't open my eyes to see their faces. I keep them closed, my nose buried in Dimitri's chest. Only my ears are open. But no one shifts or speaks, the silence is resolute. I give Dimitri the smallest squeeze. "He knows Trent brought Ava here, so he'll know I'm here too." "What's his end game?" Tazz asks. "Kill me or punish me for trying to gain my independence," Dimitri answers with a slow exhale. "And if it's the latter, then he'll have an eye on forcing me back into the fold." I squeeze him tighter, my hands spreading out on his back. He continues to hold me close. "Will he physically attack?" Gris asks. Dimitri pauses. "In the past, his moves against me have been more...tactical, in that they are meant to manipulate." "He's been holding your sisters hostage and then he tried to what... Why have Ava pushed into The Hunt?" Luke asks. I lift my head to look at him, considering. It's a good question. "I..." Dimitri's hand fists in my shirt. "To test my commitment to her." Gris makes a low growl in his throat. "And what you proved today was that⁠-" "I'd kill for her." That makes my head snap up, my eyes going wide as I look up at Dimitri's chiseled jaw. "What does that mean?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper. But his other arm is around me as he lifts me off the ground. "Gris. I need you to get Ava out of here. I've made a mistake⁠-" A red dot appears on the wall behind us. "Everyone down," Tazz barks out, pushing Dimitri with me in his arms. We crash to the ground, Dimitri twisting so that he lands hard on his shoulder, protecting my body from the fall. A second later, shots ring out, a high-powered rifle littering the walls and ceiling with bullets. I don't even have time to register the fear, as Dimitri covers me, protecting my body with his. It goes on and on, lasting for what feels like forever. My hands cover my ears as I shrink deeper into his protection. He rolls on top of me, his hands coming to my ears too. I sob into his shirt, squeezing him until my entire body aches. The noise stops as suddenly as it started. I only have one second to relax into the silence before the tension of not knowing what will happen next hits full force. "Dimitri," a man's deep and familiar baritone calls from outside. It lacks Dimitri's honey, but I know it's his father without being told. "Otets," Dimitri replies. "To what do we owe this pleasure?" He doesn't get up. If anything, his grip around me tightens. "You know very well." I practically hear the sneer in his heavily accented voice. "I'm not sure I do," Dimitri answers as he slowly releases me. He sits up, but as I go to follow, he holds his hand out to stop me. "You're selling a lot of real estate, son." "Not yours. Only mine." Dimitri's hand splays out on my belly, before he looks over at Gris who is slowly sitting up. Gris nods and then crawls over to us. Dimitri stands as Gris blocks my body. "You know very well that you made the money to buy them from my business." "No. My business. My payment for running your casino," Dimitri rolls his shoulders out. "Everything in this family is mine, Dimitri. You know that very well." "I do." Dimitri takes a step forward, toward the doorway. "Shall we discuss terms?" "What makes you think there are terms?" is his father's reply. "I assume, if you don't want me to continue with the sale of the three properties, you're here to offer an alternative?" "No alternative. Don't sell them or you'll never see your sisters again. Have I not been clear?" I see Dimitri draw taller, my own heart hammering in my chest. "You've been clear. Which is how I know you're not allowing me to see them either way." There is a pause, the thickness of it making it hard to breathe. "You think you are going to force my hand?" I can hear the razor-sharp edge in his father's words, the danger in them, making me shiver. And then the cock of a gun fills the silence, my own body jerking in response. A feral snarl rips from Dimitri's lips, but I can't see what's happening. "Don't."