Lila barely had time to register what was happening before Alexander's hand clamped around her wrist, pulling her forcefully away from the elevator lobby. The exotic woman stumbled along beside him, her eyes wide with terror."Alexander, let go of me!" Lila yanked against his grip, but his hold was firm—not painful, but absolutely unyielding. "What do you think you're doing?""Move. Now." His voice had changed completely. Gone was the hesitant, apologetic tone she'd grown accustomed to during their marriage. This was a command, sharp and brooking no argument."I will not be manhandled—""Lila, shut up and move!" Alexander snapped, his eyes scanning the lobby with an intensity that made her breath catch. "Anna's killer is here. In this building. Right now."The words hit her like ice water. She stopped resisting, letting him guide them toward the stairwell leading to the underground garage. The exotic woman kept pace, her high heels clicking frantically against the marble floor."This i

His hands moved to his shirt, tearing off strips of fabric. He wadded some up and pressed them against the wound, applying pressure.With his other hand, he fumbled with a lighter he'd found in the glove compartment.This was the worst part. The part that would scar her, but would save her life.He heated the blade of a small knife from the first aid kit until it glowed faintly red, then pressed it against the wound.The smell of burning flesh made bile rise in his throat, but he didn't stop. Cauterization was brutal, medieval—but effective. The bleeding slowed, then stopped.Lila had mercifully passed out again from the pain.Alexander sat back on his heels, his hands shaking now that the immediate crisis was over. He'd just performed field medicine that he had no conscious memory of learning. His body had known exactly what to do, his hands steady and sure even as his mind reeled.Who was he? What kind of life had he lived that this came so naturally?He pushed the questions aside.

Somehow, impossibly, he understood her perfectly. She'd said: Don't come closer!"Katarina, put the knife down," Alexander said slowly, raising his hands to show he meant no harm."Ya ne znaju, shto ty!" Her voice cracked with fear and tears streamed down her face. "Ty monster! Ty ubyvaesh' ludey kak nichevo!"I don't know what you are! You're a monster! You kill people like it's nothing!Alexander's mind reeled. He understood every word. More than that, when he opened his mouth to respond, the same foreign language poured out fluently, as naturally as breathing."Ya ne monster," he said gently, keeping his hands raised. "Ya spas tebya. Pomnish'? V klube? Ya kupil tebya, chtoby otpustit'."I'm not a monster. I saved you. Remember? At the club? I bought you to set you free.Katarina's eyes widened in shock. "Ty... ty govorish' na moyom yazyke?"You... you speak my language?"Apparently so," Alexander replied, still speaking her tongue without conscious thought. "Though I have no idea h

Lila's eyes fluttered open, and immediately, she wished they hadn't.Pain radiated from her abdomen in waves that made her want to scream.She bit down on her lip, tasting blood, and tried to remember what had happened.The chase. The crash. Alexander driving like a man possessed. The car going off the road...She tried to sit up and gasped as agony lanced through her stomach.Looking down, she saw her torn blouse and the crude bandaging wrapped around her midsection.The fabric was stiff with dried blood, and beneath it, she could feel the strange, puckered texture of burned skin.Someone had treated her wound. But how? And where were they now?"Alexander?" Her voice came out as a croak. "Alexander!"No answer. Just the distant sound of sirens and the eerie quiet of an abandoned neighborhood at dusk.Panic began to set in. She was alone, injured, in one of the most dangerous parts of the city. Her car was destroyed. Her phone—she patted her pockets frantically until her fingers close

"Alexander, you can't fight that thing!" Lila said desperately. "Look at it! It's not even human!""I know," Alexander said quietly. Then, louder, to the hooded figure: "You want the rings? Come and take them."The figure laughed—a sound like breaking glass mixed with howling wind. "Brave words. Or foolish ones. I have killed men far more powerful than you, little God of War. You don't even remember who you are.""Maybe not," Alexander admitted, rolling his shoulders and flexing his hands. "But I'm about to find out."He charged.The distance between them vanished in seconds. Alexander's fist came up in a devastating uppercut that should have connected with the figure's jaw—but at the last second, the figure flickered, seeming to phase slightly out of reality. Alexander's fist passed through empty air.Off balance, he stumbled, and the figure's hand shot out, grabbing his throat. Those too-long fingers wrapped around his neck like steel cables, lifting him off the ground with impossib