My sister rolls her eyes at me. “Save your life, and how do you thank me? By throwing me under the bus.”
I shrug. “I’m not taking the blame for you. Plus, I already said thank you.”
“Could have said thank you by not making me help you carry dead bodies.”
My father chuckles. “Got to learn to clean up after yourself, kiddo.” Kenzi makes a noise of disagreement.
“I don’t clean up bodies,” she deadpans. “I leave them.”
“She never picked up her toys as a kid either,” I whisper loudly to my father. “Always made me or Libby do it.”
Another eye roll.
“Ava!” My ears perk up at the sound of someone yelling my name rather frantically. “Red!”
It’s Matthias.
I walk into the kitchen from the alley, following the sound of his voice. The bodies of the staff have already been taken to the local mortuary, and the families have been notified by the twins. I shiver. I’d rather clean up the dead bodies than talk to any family members. I barely make it past the bar top when my husband scoops me up into his arms, crushing me tight against his chest.
“Matthias,” I choke out. Jesus, he’s crushing me.Death by Russian hug.Wouldn’t be the worst way to go. “I can’t breathe.”
“Shit,” he curses, loosening his hold on me enough to allow my lungs to expand but not enough to squirm out of his hold. After a few moments, he sets me back on my feet, his hands roaming my body diligently. He is clinical with his touch, which is probably good since we are in the middle of the bar with everyone watching.
“Are you okay?” I eye the blood covering him from nearly head to toe. In fact, I look around at Maksim, Vas, and Nicolai. They are all covered in blood. The only one who managed to come out barely scathed is Dante. “What happened?”
He looks down at me with a knowing smirk. His hand, covered in dried blood, cups my cheek gently. “Worried about me, Red?”
Feigning nonchalance, I shrug. “I just don’t want to hear Vas bitch and moan about you being dead again, and funerals are a pain in the ass to plan. Trust me, I know from experience.”
My father laughs from somewhere behind me. “That’s my girl.”
Matthias’s chest rumbles possessively, and it makes my core clench like a seasoned hoe. The man has fucking ruined me foranyone else. He tears his eyes from mine reluctantly and gazes around the room. His forehead puckers, eyes narrowing at the scene before him.
“What the hell happened here?” he asks my father, who rolls his eyes as if it is obvious.
“We were attacked,” he deadpans. “And do you mind? You’re getting blood everywhere.” Matthias looks down at the blood-stained wooden floor, then back at my father, eyebrow raised.
“Really?”
My father shrugs. “I’m assuming you were hit by the same people?” He looks Matthias and his men up and down.
“That was my thought, but it seems like they sent considerably fewer men after you.”
Inclining my head, I stare up at him quizzically. “What do you mean?”
“We were ambushed by nearly four dozen men,” he frowns. “Highly trained operatives.” Matthias bends down to pick up one of the smoke grenades that had been thrown through the front windows of the bar. “This is an M18 smoke grenade. Simple but effective. However, it’s not high tech and provides little cover.
“The smoke grenades that were used at the club were M106. Obscurant type. It provides quick and fast cover but also messes with infrared. Mark had a hard time identifying how many men there were because of it.” Matthias pauses and turns toward my father. “Where are the men who attacked you?”
My father shoves his thumb toward the kitchen doors. “Out back in the alley, being loaded into a van.” Matthias nods and stalks toward the service doors.
“You couldn’t change first?” My father groans as we all follow behind my husband, who appears to be on a mission.
Matthias flips him off over his shoulder. “Bill me.”
Father laughs.
We step into the alley where Ioan, one of my father’s lieutenants, and Kenzi are casually tossing the rest of the dead bodies into the back. It is going to be a full load. They stop when they see us.