Page 154 of The Bratva Sinner

I see the acceptance in Sergei’s eyes when they meet mine.

“It’s done,” he says.

Lila straightens slightly. “What’s done?”

There’s a question in his eyes.

“You can trust her,” I say. “Tell her everything.”

“The krye,” he says. “The man behind all of this. The man your father sold you to in the hopes of gaining power. He’s dead. And everyone in the succession line is gone.”

The breath goes out of her like she's been holding it for years.

“Dead?” she asks.

“Yes. It will take them years to recover. If they ever do.”

I lift my hand to touch the back of her neck. She’s processing.

“You did that?” she whispers.

Sergei looks offended. “No one fucks with my family.”

He turns and walks out.

Lila remains frozen, staring at the space where Sergei stood. I feel the tremor move through her body.

"Arlind told me something while I was in that chair."

She turns to look at me.

"Your bloodline. Your father's family carries a direct line to Albania's greatest warrior. That's what they were hunting. It was a debt, yes, but ultimately, they wanted your blood."

She's very still.

"I'm descended from a warrior," she says.

"Yes."

She looks down at her hands. The hands that clawed Arlind's face open. That threw her from a moving car and pulled horses from a burning building.

"That explains absolutely nothing about why I can't parallel park."

I laugh. It hurts like hell, but I can’t stop. "You've always been my warrior, voinitsa."

She's quiet for a moment, and I feel her slowly exhale against my shoulder.

“It’s over,” I say quietly.

She turns to look at me.

I see relief. Freedom. All of it.

“I love you,” she says.

“I love you, Lila. Always.”

I reach up and wipe her tears with my thumbs, and I watch in real time as she pulls herself together.