Ryder falls, his head slamming into the base of a chair as he does.

Volkov stands at the top of the stairs behind him.

I ignore him. Ignore the gun pointed my way. Ignore the threats he spews at me if I make a move. Ignore him completely as I run straight toward Ryder's collapsed form.

I fall to my knees next to him, my hands shaking as they hover over him. I'm unsure what to do. Where to touch. If I should be touching him at all. I finally press my fingers to his neck, checking for his pulse. Praying that there is still one and feeling enormous relief when I can still feel his pulse.

It's weak and his breathing is slow, but it's there. Blood continues to spread across his chest and I take off my jacket, pressing it over the wound in an effort to stop the bleeding.

Tears stream down my face and I have to choke back the sobs that want to escape.

I press my fingers gingerly at the newly formed gash on his head from his impact with the chair.

"Come on Ryder," I whisper as I press my hand gently to his still face. "Stay with me. I'm going to get you help," I tell him.

"I doubt that," Volkov speaks up and I'm reminded that he is still here.

I glare up at him from my place on the floor by Ryder's side.

"Though," He starts, keeping his gun aimed in my direction. "I might be willing to allow you to call for an ambulance. Might be willing to actually allow him to live. If . . ."

I feel my breath catch in my throat as I wait for him to give me his conditions. Though, I suspect I'm already aware of them. But if it means saving Ryder, I'll do it. Unfortunately, I know what one of his conditions will be for sure and I don't think I'll be able to meet that particular one.

". . . you return the money you've stolen and," He continues, an evil glint forming in his eyes. "you return to the gang."

One I was expecting. The other, not so much.

I don't say anything as I look down at Ryder's unconscious form. As I look down at my blood soaked hands. Ryder's blood.

The answer is so obvious. So simple. And yet, he's a few days too late. Because even if I wanted to, I can't give him what he wants. Not anymore.

Not that that matters. It's almost time.

"Well?" Volkov presses.

"My family," I whisper quietly, mostly trying to stall. To buy time. "You'll leave them alone?" I ask. "You'll leave them to lead their normal lives?"

Volkov looks annoyed as he glares down at me. "Yes," He says dryly. I know he's lying.

I smile up at him in a mocking sort of way, though I'm sure it looks more ridiculous than anything else, seeing how tears are streaming endlessly down my cheeks.

"I don't have it," I tell him simply.

Volkov stares down at me for a long time. Probably because he's still processing and not believing what I just said.

"What?" He spits out.

I continue to smile. "You're a few days too late Volkov," I tell him. "I don't have it anymore." I glare coldly at him. "And I'll never join up with the gang again."

His hand strikes out like a snake, wrapping around my neck and lifting me off the ground. He walks until he backs me into a wall.

I claw at his hand, trying to suck in a breath of air. His hand just squeezes tighter.

"What did you do with it?"

I cough and choke as I continue to pull at the fingers around my throat. I'm barely able to get more than a few gasps out at first before he finally loosens his grip enough for me to speak.

I suck in a sharp breath. "I hired somebody," I choke out.

His eyes narrow at me. "Hired who?"

The alarm on my watch starts beeping. And as if on cue, a red dot begins moving across the walls and floor behind Volkov.

I can't stop the smile from spreading across my face. "John."

I notice the red light has stopped at a certain point of the wall. And there are only two reasons for that. Ordinarily, there would only be one.

First, he doesn't have a clear shot to Volkov from where he's at.

Second (and this only applies to John), he's waiting for Volkov to kill me first.

Since I'm not entirely sure which is it, I decide I'm not going to wait around to get killed first.

His grip on my neck tightens once again. "You're going to wish all I'm going to do is kill you," He growls.

I swing my legs up so they're tucked into my chest before planting them into his chest and shoving back with all my might.

We go flying apart. I crash into the wall behind me and fall to the floor. He almost falls down the hole in the floor again.

He scrambles to his feet and starts running toward me. It doesn't get very far.

I don't even hear the gunshot. I just hear his shout of pain and watch as he clutches at a wound in his side. Blood seeps through his fingers. I take that opportunity to run toward Ryder.

Trying to move him is like dragging a sack of boulders through quicksand.

And I know, I probably shouldn't be moving him, but I don't have a choice. If I leave him out here with Volkov, he'll be killed for sure. At least right now he's got a chance. However slim it may be.

I can hear several sounds that sound like pops as bullets embed themselves into the wall between me and Volkov, keeping him back as I try and drag Ryder to one of the rooms.

I kick the door shut when I finally succeed. There's still a lock on the door, but it's so old I know it's not going to last very long. Nevertheless, I lock the door and then shove a large set of drawers in front of it. Not that that will deter Volkov for very long. Though I'm hoping John will kill him before he even makes it to the door.

"Ryder," I mutter as I stare at him, my fingers once again feeling for his pulse, making sure he's still with me. I press the jacket against his chest before I notice the rectangular outline in his front pocket.

Phone!

I pull out his phone and call Damien.

"I just got here," Damien says harshly instead of a greeting. "Calm yourself already. I'm sure your little girlfriend's still alive."

I feel myself choke on words as I stare down at Ryder. Oh yes, I'm still alive, thanks to Ryder's selfless stupidity.

"Ryder?" I hear Damien say. "You there?"

I finally manage to speak. "Damien," I whisper. My voice comes out choked and breathless.

Damien swears. "What happened? Tell me what happened Nicky."

I look down at Ryder. "Volkov," I say simply. "There's so much blood . . ."

Damien swears some more.

There's a pounding on the door to the room I'm hiding in. I turn toward it as I hear the wood start to splinter. I scream when Volkov starts putting bullets in the door.

"Nicky!" Damien shouts into the phone. "Talk to me!"

Volkov continues to break through the door.

"Help," I whisper before the phone slips from my grasp and I cover Ryder protectively. I listen to the door being broken away behind me and flinch every time there's wood splintering.

The phone starts ringing on the floor next to me. I pick it up with shaky hands, expecting it to be Damien. It's not.

"You got one more coming into the building right now," John tells me. "Just thought you'd want to know."

I'm suddenly very angry with him and wishing he was the one shot instead of Volkov. "And what's your excuse for why Volkov isn't dead yet?"

John curses me out. "I can't get a clear shot at him from where I'm at. He keeps running after you."

"So much for being the world's greatest hitman," I tell him.

He's dead quiet. "Would you like me to take you out as well?"

I hang up on him.

The set of drawers are kicked away at the same time the door's thrown open. I huddle myself over Ryder, covering him.

Volkov stands in the doorway, looking like somebody seriously pissed him off.

My bad.

"Any last words?" He asks me sarcastically as he aims his gun at me.

I'm thinking Ryder's been a very bad influence on me. Because the next words out of my mouth might have been something I was thinking, but it's not something I'd normally say with a gun aimed at me.

"Pretty sure you should've run out of bullets by now."

Volkov smiles evilly. "I'm going to enjoy finishing off your little boy toy after I end you."

"Yeah, let's not," Damien stands behind Volkov, pressing the end of his gun to the back of Volkov's head. "Back off before I blow your head off."

Volkov slowly holds his hands up, but he's got the look of an animal backed into a corner. Ready to fight.

"Damien!" I call out in warning but Volkov's already whirled on him, slamming him back into the wall.

He throws Damien away from him just as a bullet whizzes by and ends up hitting Damien in the arm. He hisses in pain and grabs at the wound.

"What the hell?" He mutters as he gets back to his feet and quickly charges Volkov, throwing his fist into his face.

I pick up Ryder's phone and dial John. "The second guy who showed up is not a target!" I growl.

"Figured that out on my own already."

"Then why did you shoot him!"

John hangs up instead of giving me an answer.

I look up and notice that Damien's winning. I feel like cheering. Jumping for joy.

But then Volkov pulls something out of his pocket. Something I recognize. Something he could only have gotten from my backpack. The one I'd left on the first floor.

"Damien look out!" I scream but Volkov's already pressing the taser into Damien's arm. I watch in horror as he jerks then collapses to the ground. His gun falling from his hand and sliding across the ground.

I lunge forward and grab it, aiming it Volkov as I slowly walk back and take my place by Ryder's side, protecting him.

Volkov smiles tauntingly at me and holds his arms out wide as if to say, "give it your best shot."

My hands are shaking, the gun in my hands aiming in every which direction as I try to steady myself. As tears continue to roll down my cheeks.

"Go ahead, Nicolette," He says smugly. "You won't do it."

I want desperately to prove him wrong.

I think of my family, of everything they've had to go through because of this man. I think of Ryder, lying on the floor next to me, blood continuing to spread across his chest. I think of Sarah, how he ended her life just to try and get to me. I think of Quinn, of her cabin, her home that was burned down. And then I think of me, and all the shit he's put me through.

I have plenty of reasons to want him dead.

Plenty of reasons to pull the trigger.

And yet . . . I find I can't do it.

Stupid, I know. He totally deserves it. But I've never actually killed anyone before. And even though he's a monster beyond all measure, I just can't take a life.

I lower the gun, my head hanging down in defeat. The gun slips from my grasp and onto the floor.

Volkov laughs and it's a terrible sound. I flinch away instinctively.

And then curse myself for not being able to kill him.

"I knew you weren't going to do it," He says smugly. "That was the one thing you could never do." I hear him taking steps toward me. "You let everyone else bloody their hands but you could never take a life yourself. It's your weakness."

He stops in front of me and kneels down. "It's a pity actually, if I'd had more time with you, I could have gotten rid of that weakness. Could have turned you into the kind of monster you believe me to be. But that was just the one thing you never were."

He takes my chin in his hands and forces my gaze to him. I glare at him, tears still streaming down my face.

Something moves in the shadows behind him.

"You're not a killer, Nicolette," He says.

"No, she's not."

Volkov whirls toward the deadly voice, firing off several shots in a row into the shadows. Almost as if in panic.

I watch as the dark figure moves once again, taking slow and deliberate steps toward Volkov. And completely unfazed by the bullets he'd fired.

The figure speaks again and the voice is a calm but deadly growl. "But I am."