Chapter 26
Reyna knew something was wrong the moment she opened her eyes and looked at Lev. He stared at the road as if it were his enemy. A muscle ticked in his jaw, and his body was tense.
He glanced her way when she sat up. “How are you feeling?”
“Better. Where are we?”
“About forty kilometers from the coast.”
She licked her dry lips and glanced down to find the cell phone in the cupholder. “What happened?”
“I called the Loughmans.”
“Is everything all right? They didn’t get attacked, did they?”
“They didn’t.”
Her body was cold from sleep, so it took her some time to slowly shift to see him better. “Who did, then?”
“Sergei.”
She put her hand on his arm. He didn’t need to say more. She knew by his tone and attitude that Sergei was dead. And she knew who was responsible. “I’m so sorry.”
“The phone was in the car,” he explained.
It seemed like he needed to talk, so she didn’t reply.
“I tried Sergei, but he didn’t answer. I assumed he was asleep. So, I called the Loughmans. That’s when Owen told me Sergei’s car had blown up.”
Reyna closed her eyes to block herself from the agony she knew Lev felt. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and try to take some of his pain, but she couldn’t at the moment.
Lev’s blue eyes briefly slid to hers. They were filled with torment and anguish. “He was an old man.”
“It was a way to get to you, that’s why they went after Sergei.”
“They’re cowards.”
“Yes, they are,” she said. “Sergei wanted to join the fight against the Saints. He knew he physically couldn’t, which is why he turned to you.”
Lev took her hand and squeezed it. “I wasn’t there when he died. I should’ve been there.”
“He wanted you in Kiev.”
“I should never have gone. I should’ve remained with him. Maybe then he’d still be alive.”
Reyna glanced at their intertwined fingers. “Or you would be dead with him.”
Lev didn’t respond, but he was no longer as tense as before. That was something.
“Sergei saw what I do,” she continued. “You’re the type of fighter who gets under the skin of groups like the Saints. They underestimate you, which gives you an advantage. The kind that will help to topple them.”
Lev gave a small shake of his head. “You give me too much credit.”
“No, I don’t,” she said with a laugh. “I’ve been doing this for years now. I’ve worked with and encountered all kinds of people who are highly trained. You have their skills, yes, but you come at things differently. It makes you unpredictable. That scares them.”
“Until someone comes along who stops me,” he said as he glanced her way.
Reyna shrugged her right shoulder. “Maybe. Maybe not. Look what the Loughmans have done. You’re now a part of that, and that scares the Saints.”
“You don’t know that,” he said, a frown of disbelief on his face.
She quirked a brow. “Have they attacked the Loughmans?”
“Not since the first time.”
“That’s because they want to make sure they are able to wipe everyone out the next time. They’re testing each of you. You’ve put a kink in their plans.”
Lev released a long breath. “Good. Because I intend to do much more than that.”
“It’s easy to get lost in the anger and grief of losing someone. If you do, you let the Saints win. Focus everything you’re feeling on bringing them down.”
“No.”
She was taken aback by Lev’s succinct statement.
Then he turned his head and met her gaze. “I’m also going to think about you.”
She smiled, her heart melting as he looked at the road again. “I could get used to you saying those kinds of things.”
“Then you better get used to it because I’m going to be telling you all the time.”
She leaned her head back against the headrest and sighed.
“Are you feeling okay?” he asked, worry in his tone.
“A little peckish.”
He grinned. “I’ve been hungry for a few hours. I’ll stop up here and see about getting food and petrol.”
Reyna wanted to get out and stretch her legs, as well as go to the bathroom, but she knew they took a huge chance every time they stopped. “We need to avoid cameras. They’ll use them with facial recognition to try and pinpoint our location.”
“I saw a cap in the back.”
“You use that. I’ll find some way of disguising myself.”
He nodded and fell silent as he drove. Reyna found herself thinking about Sergei. She had really wanted to meet the man who Lev considered a father. It broke her heart that she wouldn’t get to do that. And she hated that the Saints had taken him from Lev.
It was just another reason for her to hate the group. She’d spent five years with them. She’d thought she would go in and find they were evil people who’d joined a cult.
The sad part was, some of them were really good people. Human beings she would be proud to call friends. If she hadn’t known their true motivations, she might have trusted them with her life.
How could seemingly normal people be turned to such an organization? What had been the keyword that switched them from a ‘no’ to a ‘yes?’ And why didn’t it work on everyone?
Though she should be thankful for that. Yet it seemed that there were more and more individuals joining the ranks of the Saints. For decades, the Saints had built their shady society in the darkest shadows when they would’ve been small enough to squish like a bug.
Now, it felt as if they were the giants wearing the boots.
Before they reached the town, Lev pulled over and rummaged through the trunk and back seat. Reyna wanted to help him, but her pain was minimal at the moment, and she decided to conserve her energy since there was no telling when she and Lev would be actively running for their lives again.
Her door suddenly opened, and Lev squatted down beside the vehicle. He placed a scarf in her hands as well as a fedora. Both would be perfect to hide her face and hair.
“I’m fine,” she told him with a smile as she eyed the baseball cap he’d put on.
He leaned forward and put his lips on hers. “I just wanted a kiss.”
She was falling more in love with him every day. And if the Saints killed him, Reyna knew her poor heart would never survive.
“Hey,” he said worriedly. “What is it?”
“I don’t want to lose you.”
His lips turned into a crooked grin. “That should be me saying that since you were unconscious with a bullet wound a bit ago.”
“I’ll give you that.”
They laughed, but it was obvious that they were both trying to keep things upbeat instead of facing the reality that the Saints were outnumbering and outgunning them.
Lev rose and shut Reyna’s door before walking around the car. She wrapped the scarf around her head, making sure to tuck it beneath the ends of her hair so nothing would show. Then she set the fedora on.
He got into his side and started the engine. They reached for each other as he pulled back onto the road toward the city. Six miles later, he slowed the car as he turned into a petrol station and stopped beside a pump.
“I’ll try to hurry,” she told him. “But my bladder is about to burst.”
“Do you want food here? Or should we try our luck somewhere else?”
She looked into the store and thought of the bags of chips and other items and turned up her nose. “I’d rather wait if we can.”
“Then we’ll wait.”
Reyna took a deep breath and opened her door. The first movement of her legs caused pain to shoot up her body. And twisting to get out of the vehicle made her break out in a sweat.
She tried to walk as if she weren’t injured, but she knew it was still slower than a healthy person would move. Once she was on her feet and the door was shut behind her, she looked over the car roof to see Lev stand. Their gazes met, and they shared a smile.
They had an unspoken pact. They had come this far together, and they would face whatever was to come—together.
Reyna turned and began walking to the door of the store. When she was inside, she saw the signs pointing to the restrooms and went straight there without looking at the register.
The toilet was only for one, so she was able to lock the door. She took her time lowering her pants and relieving herself, and then took more time getting her clothes back on. She looked at herself in the mirror to ensure that the scarf and hat were in place before she unlocked and opened the door.
A woman stood outside with an infant strapped to her front with a blanket over its head. She said something in Norwegian. Reyna only knew a few basic words. She smiled and moved to the side so the woman could get in.
Out of the corner of her eye, Reyna saw the edge of a pistol. She hesitated in pushing the woman because of the baby, and that small delay gave the woman time to pull out the gun with a silencer.
Reyna slammed her hand into the woman’s right shoulder, which caused her to stumble backward and the blanket to fall off the baby. Except it wasn’t an infant. It was a doll.
“You bitch,” Reyna said and grabbed the woman’s hand holding the gun.
They wrestled in the small alcove of the bathroom. Reyna kept trying to turn the gun away from herself and toward her attacker. The woman was a little taller than Reyna, but she didn’t have the same anger and need for retribution that Reyna carried.
That’s what made the difference in the end. Reyna managed to twist the gun right before the woman pulled the trigger. Her attacker’s eyes widened in shock as she stepped back into the wall while the life drained from her. Reyna released her and walked away before the woman could slide to the floor.
Reyna was breathing hard when she strode from the store and to the car where Lev waited. She got in and said, “Drive.”
He didn’t ask questions as he put the vehicle in gear and drove off.
“There was a Saint outside the bathroom. She pretended to have a baby,” she explained. “A baby!”
“Is she dead?”
“Yes.”
Lev nodded. “Good.”
“They’ll know we were here.”
He shrugged and changed lanes. “Knowing where we are and catching us are two different things.”
“We can’t stop for food. I should have gotten something at the store.”
Lev glanced at her and smiled calmly. “We’re going to get whatever food you want.”
“Why aren’t you upset that the Saints found us?”
“Because I know we’re going to get away.”
She laughed, she couldn’t help herself. “How is that?”
“We’re going to find a private residence that has a boat and take it.”
“To cross the North Sea and the Atlantic, we’re going to need a good-sized vessel.”
He grinned. “Wealthy people tend to have exactly those types of ships.”
“That’s actually a good idea. I was thinking ports again. The Saints won’t be able to keep track of all residences. However, you know the owners of the ship will report it stolen. And I know the Saints have at least two submarines, so they can track us from below.”
Lev shrugged. “We’ll worry about all of that once we have the boat. I’m sure we can come up with some way to change the numbers and name.”
“That will require boating stickers.”
“Just one more stop we’ll have to make. But first, food.”