Chapter 3

The car was coming to a stop, the sound of gravel crunching beneath the wheels suggesting they were somewhere industrial, maybe even outside the city. She didn't fight as the trunk opened and she was hauled out, though even bound and blind she could have, and instead kept pace with her captors as they walked her forward. It was better to assess the situation before deciding how to handle it. The bag over her head prevented her from making out her surroundings but Tess didn't need her sight to tell her where she was. The smell of seaweed and brine was thick in the air, as was the metallic tang of oil; they were at one of the city's shipyards, which made sense given that Ivan Shevchenko, the man who's men had taken her, used them often. Ivan was a local arms dealer whose connection with the Bratva gave him illusions of grandeur. He'd probably seen her at the club and decided to try his luck. And in doing so fucked up her evening.

The only reason she'd gone out in the first place was because Liam had asked her to see her. He was a contact and the owner of The Tomb, an underground den for criminals, but more importantly he was a friend. He'd had information, nothing critical but still solid information about a weapons shipment arriving in Bahrain that she could pass along to her team. And if she were honest she liked the club. She also liked Liam. He was good humoured and smart, not to mention well connected, and he never asked for anything in return, not that he needed to. It was the way their friendship worked, the way most of her relationships did now. A favour for a favour. Those who knew her well, like Liam, knew that promise didn't equal a blank cheque; she never did anything she didn't want to, and hadn't for a long time.

Present moment not withstanding.

They'd gotten lucky grabbing her. She'd been in the back alley when four of his men ambushed her, while Ivan himself stood back and watched. Normally they wouldn't have been a problem but with the wound on her stomach she just hadn't been able to block the blow that had knocked her out. She also hadn't been expecting it. The Tomb was neutral territory, no fighting allowed, but it seemed Ivan had decided those rules didn't apply to him. If he got out of tonight alive Liam's' men would be having a word with him. It was too much to hope they would show up before hand- neutral meant neutral, and while it was common knowledge the two were friends there were some lines he couldn't cross.

No, tonight she was on her own.

Suddenly the men holding her stopped and shoved her to her knees. "To sweeten our deal." She heard Ivan say cockily as someone finally pulled the bag off her head. Sure enough they were in a shipyard, Ivan and his goons behind her and Igor Kuznetsov and two of his own men before her.

This night just kept getting better.

Igor was a Bratok, a high ranking Bratva member who oversaw the transport and transfer of weapons into the entire Midwest. He was smart, fast, and vicious. He also didn't like her.

"Surprise." She greeted him with an easy smile, her sapphire eyes light, as though she was completely unbothered by the situation.

She and Igor had met a few times over the last few years, mostly on good terms, but he'd never forgotten the first. He had tried to kill her, and gotten his ass kicked in the process, only to be called off by his Avtoritet, the man who ran his unit and who understood that her own connections in the Bratva were a lot higher than either of theirs. She was hoping he would remember that now but by the way he grinned she didn't think he did. Or more likely didn't care.

"Where did he snatch you up?" He asked, taking a few steps closer as he examined the rope binding her wrists. It was thick, coarse and tight; she'd loosened it but not enough, and by the wicked spark in his eye he knew it.

"The Tomb." She replied smoothly, watching as he immediately looked to Ivan, his brows furrowing with irritation.

"Outside. Which is not technically on the grounds." His words may have been confident but his tone wasn't. Ivan was a coward at heart, someone who'd made his way up the ranks by ass-kissing and trickery. Both of them dismissed him.

"I doubt Liam would agree." Igor replied dryly, cocking his head as he looked back at her.

"I doubt a lot of people are going to be happy about tonight." She said softly. It was a warning.

"That's probably true." He nodded, but the gleam in his eyes grew and she knew he wasn't going to heed it. "But only if you live."

In a second his gun was pointed at her head but she was faster. She grasped the barrel, holding it steady as she twisted so that the bullet just grazed the flesh of her upper arm. Not a second after he'd fired a force slammed into their hands so hard it knocked them both to the ground and as her palms slapped the gravel, the rope now dangling uselessly between them and an angry red streak across one wrist Tess felt the sharpest, strongest tug in her heart.

Jay.

Her head whipped forward and she swore she was looking right at him, was in two moments at once, two shots, two gazes locked through a scope. Two orders to keep fighting.

And she did.

She pulled back from the fist Igor sent her way, grabbing his wrist and rolling atop him. The feeling of her own fist smashing into his face was darkly satisfying but years of fighting had her rolling off just as a bullet embedded itself in the rock where she'd been. The man who'd fired it dropped a second later and Igor cursed, kicking her legs out from under her as he grabbed the gun and scrambled away.

By now shots were firing all around. She didn't know how or why but Jay was here and so was his team. They'd come from within the stacks of shipping containers and flanked the Russians on either side, forcing them to take cover behind their vehicles. A brief glance showed they had things under control so she focused on the man before her, one of Igor's' men who'd thrown himself into her path, a noble but foolhardy attempt to protect his boss. She dodged his first two blows and blocked the third, using his arm as an anchor as she pivoted and sent her elbow into the back of his head. As he stumbled forward she swung back, this time using his arm to pull him down into the knee she had primed to send into his stomach, and a final wrenching of his shoulder had him falling to his knees, and one more blow to the head had him sprawled on the ground. Another scan showed Igor making a break down the dock so Tess threw herself after him, quickly dropping into a slide as he whirled and raised his gun. By the time he fired she was already pulling herself back up, knocking the gun from his hand as she did. But Igor wasn't like his Ivan or his lackeys. He had fought his way to his position. He blocked her next punch and landed his own to her cheek, his other hand fisting in her hair as he swung her around and slammed her into dock railing. Before she could blink he yanked so hard she couldn't help but cry out, and then he wrapped his hand around her throat and squeezed. Hard. He was stronger than her, strong enough she knew she couldn't break his hold so instead she planted one foot against the bottom slat of the railing and hooked the other over it, linking her arms with his and surging forward with everything she had.

He pulled her with him as she flipped him over the side, as expected, and she kicked him away from her as they fell, taking advantage of the momentum to swing herself inwards until her hands found purchase in wood and rope. The pain that radiated through her side as she made contact with the post blinded her but it was nothing compared to the agony that filled her as a scream tore through the air.

"TESS!"

Jay.

She couldn't see him but she could picture him, hurtling towards her, ready to throw himself in after her and though she was already gasping for air she gathered everything she had left. "Don't jump!"

The sound of pounding feet turned to scuffling and sliding and then he was leaning over the edge, the world going still as their eyes met. For a moment it was just him and her and every moment they'd shared, all their history and love. It was the bond that had always been between them, that despite the pain and distance of the last four years was as strong as it had ever been. Looking at him now Tess like she could finally breathe again. It was over in an instant and he disappeared, his head popping out underneath the railing a second later, and as he reached for her she took stock of her position for the first time. She was ten feet above the water, one arm wrapped tightly around the thick dockyard rope while the other was stretched out, clinging to the rough wooden post. Not bad for making a plan up on the fly. She took a steadying breath and then tightened her hold on the rope, reaching her left hand out to his.

"I got you." Jay breathed as he took hold of her forearm. His hand was warm on her skin, solid and steady and she felt a sudden surge of annoyance that his hoodie prevented her from feeling more of him.

"I know." If there was one thing she knew with absolute certainty it was that he would always protect her.

For another moment everything went still and then suddenly Kevin's head was poking out next to his, the man quickly assessing the situation. He cursed and reached out his hand but as she went to take it a shot rang out and he jerked back, a bullet lodging itself in the wood where his arm would have been. Jay swore and grabbed her with both hands as she dropped, his tight grip on her arm all that stopped her from falling into the water below. She would have gladly let go and ended this herself but she knew if she went in so would he. Another shot sounded but he didn't flinch, not even as Igor screamed in rage and kept shooting, the bullets miraculously missing them. Above them someone returned fire but they ignored it, locking eyes once more.

They moved together.

He swung her, right then left, and just before Tess smacked into the pillar she kicked off it, a cry of pure will breaking past her lips as she launched herself upwards. Kevin didn't have time to finish his curse this time, quickly lunging forward and fisting his hand in the back of her shirt. The sudden silence told her someone's shot had at last found it's mark, and though she knew his death would complicate things she didn't really care. Igor had made his choice. The men pulled her up, holding her steady as she climbed through the railing, and the moment she was through Jay was pulling her into him. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, one hand cradling her head, the other her right arm, his eyes frantically darting from one injury to the next and back again, taking glances in between at the tattoos that peeked out beneath her sleeve and collar. He'd never seen these ones before.

Her own eyes were locked on his face, taking in every detail, every change the last four years had wrought. He'd always been handsome, devastatingly so in her opinion, in that classically rugged way, but it was different now. He was different. There was still a boyishness to him but the youthfulness was gone. He was older, more experienced, more confident, and it showed.

God she'd missed him.

"Hell of a shot Ranger."

His eyes lifted to hers, that deep hunter green drawing her in and then he smiled, bright and true and she swore she fell a little more in love with him. He yanked her into him and for a moment she just buried her head in his shoulder, breathing him in and letting his scent surround her. Tess knew they had an audience, that his team and a bunch of Russian mobsters were watching but she didn't care.

She was finally home.