Midnight Sanctuary (Bugrov Bratva #2)(53)

I nod in confirmation. “Call Stepan or Mikhail if you need anything. The moment we leave the cabin, change the security code. No one will be able to get in unless you give them the combination.”

“Y-you’re leaving?” She’s pale and shaky.

I cup her face. “I’m going to get Polly. It’s time we bring her home.”

She nods but she’s biting on her bottom lip at the same time. “It’s going to be dangerous, isn’t it?”

“Nothing I can’t handle.”

Alyssa places her hand over the hand I’ve got cupping her cheek. “Bring Polly back,” she begs softly. “And bring yourself back, too. In one piece.”

I press my lips to hers. When I pull away, I look her in the eye. “I can do that.”

Then I head back downstairs to the SUV where Dimiv and Nikolai are waiting for me. I climb into the passenger’s seat and punch the ceiling. “Let’s get this shit over with.”





32





URI





When we get to Agapov’s estate, my men already have it surrounded, but they’re still far enough away from the security cameras to remain unseen. I get out of the SUV and huddle up with the leaders of each team.

“Stepan?”

“The front gates are high. South-facing walls are lower, more scalable. I think that’s the way we go.”

I nod. “South it is. Guards?”

“Four manning the front entrance, two at the back. As far as I can tell, one of the two is asleep. Has been for the past half-hour.”

“What about cameras?”

“Lots of them, pointed in every goddamn direction under the sun. Outside the property, at the gardens, at the house itself. I scoped the security station earlier and I suspect there are booby traps that trigger silent alarms in the main house if there’s a breach at the entrance gates.”

I glance towards Dimiv and Nikolai. “If we go in guns blazing, we’re giving Agapov and his men time to either run with Polly or hurt her. The longer we can go without triggering any alarms, the better.”

Nikolai’s forehead is creased with lines. “How do you propose to do that?”

I’m gonna take a page from Alyssa’s trespassing guidebook…

… minus the underwear.

“I’m going to go over to the south entrance, scale the wall, and disable the security cameras so that you all can get inside.”

Nikolai balks. “I think someone else should—”

“It wasn’t a question, brat. I was simply informing you of my plans.” I stand and crack the knuckles on each hand. “Stay here; wait for my signal. If the gates open, move fast and quiet. If you hear a gunshot or any sign of commotion, you attack. Take no prisoners. That clear?”

All of the gathered men nod in deference. Dimiv pulls out his gun. Nikolai is the only one who doesn’t move.

“Brother?”

“I’m not sure we should be sending in the most important member of this Bratva into the lion’s den.” He steps towards me. “Uri, you are the pahkan. Your life is more important than mine. Let me go instead.”

I put my hand on his shoulder. “I know I don’t say this often enough, but… you’re a good second, Nikolai Bugrov. And you’re an even better brother. But you forget, I’m the lion. I can handle this.”

He relents with a reluctant sigh. I don’t wait for him to fish for any other lines of argument—the time to move is now.

So, with one final breath, I’m off and running.

I stick to the shadows around the perimeter of the estate. Halfway along the southern wall, I see a pair of trees leaning over the barricade. That’s as good a way up as any, I decide.

You can do this.

For Polly.

I take two deep, measured breaths. Then I charge.

I jump, catch the lowest-hanging branch, and vault myself up toward the wall. I misjudge just enough that I slam into the wall and knock the wind from my lungs, though my hands still manage to grasp the upper lip. It’s a strain to pull my weight up, but I do, getting one leg over, then the other.

I pause at the top. The night is silent and still. Shadows move in the far distance as the patrols circulate, but none of them cast any attention in my direction.

This is how Alyssa must’ve felt. Whether she knew it or not, she was poised between two lives while she hung on that fence. There was no going back—all she could do was delay how long until the next chapter began.

I don’t intend to delay a goddamn thing.

I leap down and land gracefully on the grass at my feet. Twisting around, I clock the security station. Fifty meters away, give or take. So far, nothing seems amiss. There’s no sign that my entry has been noticed. I belly crawl my way towards the station through the thickets of grass.

As I get closer, I hear the whistle of a snore. Sweet dreams, motherfucker. I pull out the Swiss army knife hidden in my boot and slide it across the bastard’s neck. Blood sprays out like a garden sprinkler, but the man never wakes up. He slumps into his seat, maintaining the same position in death that he had in sleep.

I get to my feet and sneak a peek inside the security station. There’s one other guard in there with his back to me. I step into the doorway and dispatch him with a quick stab into the carotid. Before he can fall over onto the control panel, I loop a hand under his arm and across his chest, then drag him out into the night and dump him behind a hedge.