La Diavolessa

Part 4: Chapter 81

I rush out of the room after I shower and change my clothes. My instincts tell me, if I didn't hurry, Larion will come looking for me. I step into the corridor and collide with a black mountain.

Big hands fall on my shoulders steadying me. Blonde brows furrow at the bridge of strong nose. Ice and snow surrounds me, fills me up as I take a deep breath.

"What devil is after you?" Larion asks me.

He's dressed in his black gear, which now I understand it means he's going out of the house and probably for days.

"You. I thought I'm late for breakfast."

"You're not." His hands slide down my arms, his lips quirks up. 

A sizzle of heat runs through my body. I take a step back. 

"You're going somewhere."

"Something came up and I have to leave."

"Your thigh..."

"It's fine. I'll not be gone for long. A day, two at the most. Can you stay out of trouble for these few of days?"

I nod, although I'm not sure why he's asking. It's not like I go looking for trouble.

His hand reach out, long fingers close around my wrist. He turns around tugging me behind him. "Come. I have something to show you."

"What is it?"

"You'll see."

We go back to his room and he walks me into the walk-in closet. He stops in front of the rack of his suits and push some to the side. A panel appears. He press a code on the panel and the rack of clothes parts in half and a panic room appears before me. It's like a cell, with a bed on one side, a toilet and sink placed on the other side behind a partition. Water bottles and food cans and sachets lined on a shelve. A wall with more buttons and screens.

I step in and Larion follows behind me.

"The code to open the door is 5263X" He tells me. "No matter what happens, Clara. I want you to run and get into this room. You'll wait until I get to you."

"Are you going to war?" I ask lightly, but my voice shook at the end.

"Something of that sort. I want you to be careful."

I turn around to face him, my eyes wide. "What's going on Larion? You can't keep me in the dark if my life depends on it."

He rubs at his jaw, hesitating for a moment. "I received intel Orlov is on the move and heading this way. Someone had contacted him from here. The good news is whoever contacted him doesn't know the exact location of this place. Not all the guards know where they are, which means he's a minor guard who managed to get access to the communication center. Erast is looking into it right now."

"If Orlov doesn't know the exact location then why are you going?"

"I'm going to intercept him and lure him into another direction."

Without a thought I grab at the front of his vest. It is a bullet proof vest. My eyes widens as the enormity of the situation hits me.

"It's mad. Don't go."

"Don't worry. I've been in similar situations before." His pale eyes bores on my face, softening. His hand raise to cup one side of my face. "I'm a criminal, an assassin, remember?"

"You know what I mean!" I snap suddenly irritated by his stubbornness, shaking him, that is if mountains can shake.

"Come on Diavolessa. I thought you'd ask me to take you with me."