She dialed Sacha, and he answered immediately. He sounded a bit desperate. “Good morning,” she said as she put the phone on speaker.

“Giordano called me this morning and told me about his doctor. That bitch is still alive.”

“She is and headed south. We have to agree that Miami is where she’ll end up if she survives the trip, and that we’ll work together this time to make sure the job is finished. I’m sending my people there, so be careful not to kill anyone who’s trying to help you.”

“As blunt as ever, my friend. I can agree to that as long as your people agree to the same.” Sacha laughed, but it sounded forced. “Do you think Nicola’s woman will want payback for me moving against her?”

“Abigail will send you an edible arrangement in thanks if you bury a knife in Nicola’s skull. The only one who wants Nicola alive is Nicola. Once that’s done, you’ll never hear from Abigail or her children again. The Antakov side of the family will be erased and will want no future claim on the family.”

“You sound so sure, but there’s still Linda’s brothers to consider.”

“Accept that I’m telling you the truth, Sacha. There’s a new leader, and the only way anyone takes the crown away from you is if you give it away.” She smiled at Finley, and the tension in her cousin’s shoulders seemed to ease. Life was about meticulously lining up dominos with a steady hand for days, but it made it that much more satisfying when you flicked the first one over. “Do you want to give it away?”

“Fuck, no.”

“Then long live the king.”

✥ ✥ ✥

Nina sat in the uncomfortable seat in the back of the ambulance and tried to ignore the pain in her lower back as she watched the slight rise and fall of Nicola’s chest. Her boss had yet to regain consciousness, but she was still alive. Once Nicola was able to form words, her first would be to order her death, of that she was certain. The phone call she’d received as they were leaving the restaurant warned her there were men in the kitchen waiting to kill Nicola, so she’d stayed inside to cover Nicola’s back. That meant she hadn’t been there when the first bullet hit.

“Fuck,” she said softly. She’d been inside, and Nicola was outside, close to death. It’d been a good thing she’d had Dimitri with them, and he’d been able to carry Nicola to the closest car and hotwire it to get them to safety. Dimitri was one of David’s trusted guards and had wept when he’d seen Nicola for the first time, glad she was alive.

“Nearly there,” Dimitri said from the front seat. “I called, and the doctor is waiting.”