Read Online Betrayed (Undercover #3) by Helena Newbury - Free Book Online

in public, where everyone could see them. And with most enemies maybe that bravery would have worked. The gangs kept most of their violence off the radar. Even Ralavich had taken us off to a warehouse to kill us.
    But they didn’t realize how determined Adam was, or what levels he’d stoop to.
    “Find out where they went,” I pleaded.
    Minutes later, Roberta had followed the car to its destination. She said the name of the restaurant and started to give me the address, but I was already running to the cab driver and pleading with him to take me on one more trip. I knew the restaurant. It was where we’d had lunch, our first real date.
    I was going to finish this at the same place we’d started it. And I knew there was a very good chance I wouldn’t come out alive.

 
     
     
     
     
     

     
     
    I’d managed to clean my face up a little. But my dress was still soaking wet, my hair was a tangled mess and my face was almost as white as the snow outside. I saw the doormen hesitate as I walked up the steps to the restaurant.
    “I’m with Luka Malakov,” I told them. One of them doubtfully showed me in. I’d told the cab driver to leave me there—however this worked out, it was going to be dangerous and he’d done enough for me.
    Luka and Vasiliy were at the same table I’d sat at with Luka—his usual table, I guessed, although something looked different. There was food already on the table and wine, too. The tables around theirs had fallen into a sort of awed hush as people realized who they were sitting close to.
    Yuri was standing just a few feet behind them, keeping watch. He spotted me first and said something in Luka’s ear.
    Luka had been looking down at his food. Now his head snapped up and he looked right at me. My breath caught in my throat. Even with everything that had gone wrong between us, my heart gave the same lurch and then mad rush that it always did when I saw him. But God, the ice in his eyes, the raw, hot anger that shot across the space between us—it tore me apart.
    I put my hand up in front of me. “I’m sorry—”
    Luka stood, pushing his chair back so hard it clattered to the floor. He half-turned, reached his hand under Yuri’s jacket and returned holding a gun. A gun he pointed straight at me.
    People around me started screaming. For all they knew who Luka was, for all they’d heard about the Brotherhood and their crimes, they didn’t expect to actually see things happening right in front of them. No one would be crazy enough to shoot someone in a crowded restaurant.
    But if there was one person powerful enough to do it and get away with it, it was Luka.
    “I’m not here to argue with you,” I managed to say. “You need my help.”
    “I don’t need you at all.” His accent and anger combined to twist the words. It was almost a snarl.
    “ Listen to me! My old boss was working with Ralavich. He’s going to have both of you killed.”
    “He can try,” said Vasiliy quietly. “You should go, Arianna. I’m running thin on reasons not to kill you myself.”
    “ Please! You don’t know him!” I stared at Luka. “I don’t want to see you get hurt!”
    “You tried to kill my father! You lied to me!”
    “ I’m sorry!” It was useless. I’d thought that maybe I’d be able to reason with him and persuade him to lie low for a while, but he was far too angry to listen.
    And then, as I glanced around the room in frustration, I saw what was different. Like many places around the city, they’d brought in portable heaters to keep the place warm despite the blizzard outside. But last time I’d been here....I shut my eyes to make sure, going back to that day we’d had lunch. Yes...there’d been two heaters, one in each corner of the room, pumping out hot air.
    Now there were three.
    Luka still had the gun on me but I forced myself to turn away and shout to a waiter. “When did the extra heater arrive?” I asked in English.
    He looked blank.
    Well, I guess it didn’t