The Killer’s Vow by Aria R. Blue
Simon
4 months later
It all started with a veil.
Two hundred and twenty days ago, I saw Vera through my gun scope as she stood in a white dress before another man. A tulle and lace veil was covering her beautiful face.
He reached out to lift her veil.
Even before I knew her, that didn’t sit right with me.
A confusing possessiveness spread like wildfire in my chest.
I didn’t want any other man to see her eyes.
She was mine to admire.
So I killed the bastard who dared to touch what was mine.
Since that day, Vera and I have revolved around each other. She was the star, and I was her satellite, unable to stay away.
We went on the journey of a lifetime together, finding peace in the middle of a war. Making fire in the middle of a snowstorm.
Everything else dropped away, and it was just her and I.
She became the only thing that mattered.
And now, my heart squeezes as tigritsa moya steps out of a limousine in a white dress.
The sight of her in a wedding dress does something to my heart. My eyes burn even as I smile.
Only she can bring forth all these poignant emotions in me.
She owns me, heart, body, and soul.
A veil covers her beautiful face as she walks toward me. Her family follows her, coming to a stop at the entrance of the church.
We’re back in Russia for the wedding.
I orchestrated a plan with the crime families of Chicago. With their help, we secured the entire Rublevka area.
The wedding is taking place at a church close to Vera’s favorite place, the dacha of her childhood.
The rest of Vera’s friends and family are waiting inside the church. Even Rebekah is here. I had to give her specific instructions not to steal anything from the guests at my wedding.
She said she’d try her best.
My rapid heartbeat slows as Vera stops by my side. She brings calmness and warmth into my life.
We stand at the entrance of the church together.
It’s a traditional Russian ceremony.
Vera never told me that she wanted it like this, but I know a part of her is old-fashioned.
The priest gives us lit candles that we hold as he reads from the scripture.
I can’t take my eyes off her.
Everything about her is an assault to my senses. From her forest scent to the way I know that she has a hickey over her left breast.
We’re led into the church.
The second part of the traditional ceremony is the crowning.
We stand on a rose-colored cloth as crowns are placed on each of our heads.
As the prayers are being said, I wonder how I turned into such a fortunate man.
And all it took was a single decision.
To protect the girl I was sent to kill.
Everything that followed felt like a trail of destiny. It fell into place so easily.
There were some hiccups on the way, but it only acted to make us stronger.
She held me when I confessed that Vlad was my birth father. I got a DNA test done to confirm it. She told me that it was okay for me to feel sad about the father I never had.
What he did was wrong.
Lying to me about the Bureau, making me kill for his personal agenda, trying to get innocent people like Vera killed for a fatter bonus.
And he did all this knowing that I was his son.
There was also the matter of my ADHD diagnosis.
It was one of his psychologists who diagnosed me.
The medication, which was a placebo, was a way to control me. It was a way to make me feel like I was dependent on something just to be normal.
I should hate him for it.
But now, all that I care about is in front of me.
I have a family.
A home.
A purpose.
And I know that as long as Vera is by my side, I’ll do the right things. She teaches me to always choose love before anything else.
If she can forgive her family for what they put her through, I can too.
The priest hands us a glass of wine, from which we each drink three sips.
Her veil remains lowered as we say our vows. And then finally, finally, they say the words I’ve been waiting for.
Man and wife.
Zhena moya. My wife.
I lift the delicate veil up her beautiful face. Her eyes are more blue than gray today.
And they dance for me.
It started with a veil.
It ends with a veil.