"This hotel was the locale of my first kill. By the doorway over there." Nik was no green recruit. He didn't look as the great-uncle wanted him to. "I stalked that man for weeks."
Nik's bad luck. How Tatyana's relative entered without being spotted. "Downed him with a single shot. It was perfect."
War stories, Nik hated them. "I plan to put three bullets in you." At least. One for Tatyana's mom, one for her dad, and one for Ivan.
"Now here I am again, about to kill you, my brother's ex-fiancee's grandson. She was a faithless whore, your grandmother." The great-uncle tried to draw an emotional reaction.
That wouldn't work, either. "It took nothing at all to convince her to leave my brother."
Gunfire, originating outside the hotel, echoed. The great-uncle hadn't arrived alone. "You convinced her to leave your brother. You betrayed him, your own family." Nik kept the man talking. If Pavel were here to back Boris up, he'd be assured of her safety. Two men protecting Tatyana after he died.
"I was his brother." The great-uncle's voice sharpened. "I was family. I should have been his partner, not your grandfather."
Strength partnered with strength, honor with honor. "So, you got rid of both your brother's fiancee and his partner with one betrayal."
"It should have been perfect. Another man would have killed my brother for what he said.
But no, not your grandfather. He ran away to the opposite end of the country. As you're trying to run away right now." The old man's hand shook slightly, the pose wearing on even Nik. "I can't allow that to happen, Kaerta." More gunfire, all around them. How many men did the great-uncle bring? "I'm going to put a bullet between your eyes."
Tatyana gasped. "Be still, Brat." Nik didn't want her taking action. The great-uncle would shoot her without hesitation. "You killed Tatyana's parents yourself, didn't you?" And he took pleasure in it, the assassin's job to retrieve, not eliminate.
"I was his brother, his brother! He didn't appreciate me. He didn't appreciate his family so I took them away from him; his wife, his daughter, his son-in-law, and now his granddaughter. And he did nothing, absolutely nothing to protect them."
"An error, brother," a voice murmured to Nik's right. "Let me rectify that." The great-uncle's gun veered. Nik pulled the trigger. Three shots rang out. Blood and mess splattered against the wall. The great-uncle collapsed.
Igroek and Nik's grandfather studied the fallen man, guns in their hands, no expression on their aged faces.
"Didn't know about the wife." Grandfather slid his gun in his holster. "Thought it was natural causes."
"We all thought that. Bastard." Igroek spat toward the body. "I failed to protect her, all of them. But..." He faced them. Nik didn't like his expression. "I won't fail again."
Shit. Now there were two. This was going from bad to worse. "Don't take another step." Nik swung his gun. He could only shoot one of them. He decided on the crazy gnome as Tatyana called him.
Igroek paused. Grandfather continued walking, his gun remained in the holster.
"He said, don't." Tatyana stepped out from behind him, her gun drawn. "I want Igroek," she told him.
"Fine. I'll shoot Grandfather." Shit. He hoped it wouldn't come to that. They shifted targets.
Igroek lowered his gun. Grandfather stopped, his eyes dancing as though he thought this was funny.
"A .22? What's she trying to do, Kaerta? Insult me?" Igroek laughed. "Granddaughter, put the lady gun away before you break a nail."
Tatyana gave him a rough time about being a male chauvinistic pig. "A .22 between the eyes will do some damage," Nik cautioned. If Igroek sparked the brat's temper, all hell would break loose.
"She has a very good aim." Pavel finally arrived, looking frantic and disheveled.
"Amazingly so," Boris agreed. "A natural, like she was born to it."
"She's an Igroek." Igroek straightened with pride.
"I'm a Kaerta," Tatyana corrected. "Nikky and I are getting married."
"Over my dead body," Igroek blustered.
"If that's the way you want it, I'll be happy to accommodate you." Her jaw tightened.
"Nikky?"
Fuck. She'd do it, too. "On your word, Brat." Nik glared at Grandfather, pissed that he'd force it to come to this. Him shooting his own grandfather.
Grandfather's grin faded. About fuckin' time he realized they were serious. "Igroek, shut the hell up. One more dumbass comment from you and our grandchildren are going to off us."
"They wouldn't dare." Igroek's mouth worked silently.
"I'll speak slowly so you understand. Nikolay's my heir because he's the best. He takes what he wants. He wants Tatyana. Your sweet little granddaughter has evaded professional killers since birth. When I first met her, she was covered from head to toe in blood. I guarantee. They would."
"They could try." Igroek looked from Nik to Tatyana then back again. "I won't let them marry, Kaerta. She's my only grandchild."
And Nik wouldn't settle for anything other than marriage to Tatyana. This was going nowhere. "Brat?"
He was sincere. Tatyana studied Nikky's determined face. He would kill his grandfather, his mentor, if she gave him the word. That's how much he loved her. "Would you allow us to marry?"
"No," the crazy gnome replied.
"You, shut the fuck up." She already knew his answer, Igroek expressing it time and time again. "I'm talking to Grandfather."
"Language, Brat," Nikky cautioned. They were debating whether or not to blow away their grandfathers and he was concerned about profanities.
"I'm yourȄ"
"Shut up, Igroek," Nikky's grandfather snapped. "You can marry with my blessing. I'd even stand up with you if you still want me to."
She did. "And you won't hunt us down?" They'd be free?
"There'd be no need. Marry after midnight and Nikolay is reinstated as my heir. You can return to the family."
Because he had concluded his no wedding ultimatum with 'today', sneaky bastard. "I don't want to wait until midnight," she pushed.
"It is less than three hours away. You'll need to fix your hair."
Her hair? She frowned. She touched a tendril. It was rock hard. She did want to look her best and if they married
