Chapter 12
Cara
After hours of cocktails, jazz, and fake smiles, we finally leave the gala.
I’m so ready to get back home and take these heels off that I could shed a tear. I won’t though, especially not in front of Annika, who has been pouncing on every chance to embarrass me.
If I weren’t protecting my cover, I probably would’ve torn some of her extensions out by now. I can only take so much before I explode, and I really don’t want to show that side of me in front of Dmitri.
I need to be as cool, calm, and collected as possible, even when his awful fiancée is terrorizing me.
“O-M-G, hi! I didn’t see you!” Annika gasps as she notices two of her friends in the lobby of the fancy hotel. She pulls away from Dmitri for once and rushes over to them.
Dmitri glances at two of his men, who have been scattered throughout the ballroom and out in the hallway to keep an eye on things. “Stick with her. I’m going to take Cara out to find a car.”
His men nod and venture closer to Annika and her friends.
Dmitri turns to me and holds his arm out. “I’ll have one of my drivers take you home.”
I nod my thanks and let him lead me out of the hotel, the chill of nighttime sweeping over me. I instinctively move closer to him.
“Sorry, it’s a little chilly tonight.”
Dmitri pulls off his suit jacket and wraps it around my shoulders as we pause in front of the line of cars picking people up. Other guests linger on the sidewalk and talk as they wait for their rides, a muffled drone of chatter filling the air.
“Don’t worry, milaya. I won’t torture you with another gala again,” Dmitri promises me with a subtle smile on his face as he adjusts the collar of the jacket, his fingers brushing my hair.
I nearly shiver, goosebumps moving up the back of my arms. Whenever he touches me, my body reacts before my brain can stop it.
It’s a little annoying when I’m trying to focus on playing my role.
“It wasn’t that bad,” I assure him. “The best part was the dance, though.”
Dmitri’s smile broadens a little as he nods. I like his smile more than I should. “It was nice.”
That’s…surprising to hear him admit.
Our eyes linger on one another, tension filling the space between us.
What would’ve happened if we were all alone on that dance floor? Would he have kissed me? Would I have kissed him back?
And would I have done it for the plan or for myself?
“Your cars have arrived, sir,” one of Dmitri’s men tells him, interrupting our moment.
That’s probably for the best. I’ll pick back up with the flirting and wooing on Monday when my feet aren’t killing me.
A line of black SUVs that I know are Dmitri’s approach us, ready to pick up him, me, and all his men. And Annika, wherever she is.
I sneak another glance at Dmitri because he admittedly looks damn good tonight, but I don’t get a chance to admire him for even a second. My heart drops as a red dot crawls up his chest.
“Get down!” I scream before grabbing his arm and jerking him down to the ground with me just as the sound of a gunshot echoes throughout the plaza.
A bullet whistles over our heads and shatters one of the glass hotel doors behind us, making people shriek in terror and scatter.
Dmitri immediately jumps into action and wraps his arm around me, shielding me as a flood of people scream and run in all different directions to escape as more shots ring out from different places. “Where are they? Where the fuck is the shooter?”
“I don’t know, sir! We can’t see them!” one of Dmitri’s men tells him as he lifts his handgun, trying to see through the surrounding darkness for any sign of the attackers. His head suddenly snaps back as a bullet pierces his forehead, making him collapse in front of us.
I can’t even find my voice to scream as I stare at his body while blood slowly pools around his head. His lifeless eyes peer back at me, a glassy sheen falling over them.
Just like that. He’s gone.
“Fuck,” Dmitri grits out before waving at some of his men. “Get him in the car! We need to move!”
I hold on to him as he helps me to my feet, my head remaining low to avoid catching a stray bullet. My legs threaten to weaken as fear clutches me, but my survival instincts are stronger. I refuse to die tonight.
“This way!” Dmitri tells me as he leads me to one of the SUVs down the sidewalk, fighting through the wave of people rushing away from the resort.
My heart pounds as my eyes dart back and forth, trying to find the shooter. Who is doing this? Why is this happening tonight of all nights?
Dmitri grabs the handle of the passenger door to open it, but the window suddenly shatters, making us stumble back into the torrent of people. They push and shove us forward, nearly separating us as chaos and panic ensue.
We need to get out of this crowd. We have to get out of sight. Dmitri was the first target, which means he’s probably the main one, and they’ll be looking for him.
“Dmitri!” I shout as I grab his arm, yanking him to the left off the sidewalk. I point to a side door of the hotel. “We can leave through a back exit!”
Dmitri nods and kicks open the side door before hauling me inside just as a bullet hits the door frame. He takes my hand and leads me down the hallway, both of us breathing heavily. “Stay close to me.”
There’s no way in hell that I’m letting us get separated right now. Dmitri was the target, but I feel safer next to him.
Dmitri zigzags through the hallways, taking us deeper into the hotel and into the employee only areas. He grabs his phone out of his back pocket and calls one of his men in his recent contacts.
“Arman, get a car to the back of the hotel now!” Dmitri demands. “Tell the others to get the hell out of here. We can’t fight what we can’t fucking see!”
I end up kicking my heels off as we approach the kitchen, my bare feet hitting the floor. The last thing that I want to do right now is slow Dmitri down by forcing him to carry me the rest of the way.
He wouldn’t leave me behind no matter what.
Dmitri ends the call and leads me through the kitchen, dodging past workers and counters to reach the back door. He throws it open and heads out where the dumpsters are located, his head turning up and every which way to make sure no shooters are around.
The gritty surface of the ground bites at my feet, making them hurt even more, but the pain is at the back of my mind right now. If I’m feeling pain, I’m still alive. That’s what matters most after such a close call. Way too close.
“Who the fuck could be behind this?” Dmitri grits out to himself as gunfire still sounds from the front of the resort, accompanied by screams and tires squealing as people flee.
My blood turns icy as I ponder who has a motive to attack Dmitri’s convoy. The Ivanov family has a lot of enemies, but my father is one of their greatest. Knowing how cocky Sean can be, he isn’t above a public attack like this.
He knew that I was coming here with Dmitri and Annika. I reported that to him yesterday and asked if he would be here. So, if he staged an attack tonight, he knew that would’ve put me in danger too.
Would he have risked me anyway to take out his rival?
My stomach twists and turns at such a sickening thought.
“Fucking finally,” Dmitri says as one of his SUVs rushes into the lot. He throws open the door to the backseat and ushers me inside before climbing in as well. “Go!”
The driver slams his foot down on the gas pedal and peels out of the parking lot, joining the traffic on the nearby street. “We lost two men, sir. Everyone else is accounted for, including Ms. Suyunov.”
Oh, right. Annika. He just abandoned her.
That’s pretty telling about their relationship. It’s about as sturdy as a house of cards.
And I’m going to blow it all down.
Unless my father gets me killed first.
“Are you okay?” Dmitri asks as he turns to me, cupping my cheek as his concerned eyes inspect me for injuries.
My thoughts scatter for a second at the feeling of his warm hand on my face, a small comfort with all the worry swirling around in my head. “I…um…I…”
Dmitri’s frown lines deepen. “Did you hit your head when we went down?”
“No. I don’t think so.”
“You saved my life, Cara,” he whispers with what sounds like awe as his deep blue eyes lock onto mine.
I saved my father’s greatest enemy.
I didn’t even hesitate.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asks again.
“I’m fine,” I tell him as I fight to catch my breath, my chest feeling uncomfortably tight. “I just…I want this night to be over.”
Dmitri nods. “I’ll take you home.”
He has his driver drop me off in front of my apartment, and without much of a goodbye, they speed off to handle the situation as soon as I’m inside the building.
I wait until I’m safely inside my apartment before calling my father, my heart slamming against my ribcage a little harder with each unanswered ring. “Come on. Pick up!”
“Hello?” he answers on the fourth ring.
“Did you attack Dmitri and his men?” I question him, my voice threatening to shake. I could’ve died tonight!
A beat of silence passes before Sean answers. “No. Why? What happened?”
“I was almost killed tonight because someone started firing on us when we were leaving the gala!” I tell him.
“Well? Is Ivanov still alive?”
“Yes!” I exclaim, unable to believe that’s what he’s most worried about after finding out I could’ve died. “Do you swear that you weren’t behind it?”
“I didn’t have anything to do with any shootings. Too bad Dmitri didn’t eat it, though, yeah? That would’ve made things much simpler for us,” Sean replies with an agitated huff. “And you need to watch it with your accusations.”
I swallow hard as I hold my phone in a death grip, my hand trembling next to my ear. I don’t know if I believe him. Dmitri and his men may uncover the identity of the shooter, and I’ll learn the truth then.
“Sorry,” I say.
“Get yourself together, Cara,” he scolds me before hanging up the phone.
Silence fills my dark apartment as I stand in the living room feeling numb and confused.
I saved Dmitri Ivanov.
And I would do it again, no matter what it costs me.