Russian Roulette: One Life Novels & Stories

I mumbled silently but loud enough for her to hear. “We are going to back each other while we shoot them down, okay?” she said to me. “yes.” I whispered at her. “Surrender already or we will shoot you.” One of the men said in his deep Russian accent. “now.” She whispered an in a fast motion, we backed each other and shot at them immediately. She shot down three men, and I only shot down one. Then I shot the remaining one after I breathed out from killing a man. Is that how to kill?

And then his gaze landed on Lorenzo, who sat casually twirling his blade between his fingers. Nikolai leaned back in his chair, his hand resting possessively on Evangeline’s waist. His lips curled into a slow smile. “Not really children, Viviane. They’re men now.” I clenched my fists, biting back a string of curses. Scott stepped back, running a hand through his hair, his grin widening as he pulled his revolver from his waistband. He held it up, spinning the cylinder with his thumb, “You know how this works, right?” he asked, “Russian Roulette. A classic. One bullet, six chambers. You tell us what we want to know, we decide if you're telling the truth and every time we feel like you two are

"Well, you have no choice!" Margaux could have said more things, but then Rome didn't give her a chance to push back anymore. Swiftly, he reached for the gun sitting quietly on the table and started feeding its cylinder with three bullets. One flick to shuffle what he had loaded in it, and he pushed the cylinder back to its place without looking at her. "Have you tried playing Russian Roullete before, Cara mia?" "What the? R-Rome, no! I can't. We can't—shit!"

I had my finger along the frame of the pistol—not on the trigger yet because if I hit it too soon, it could end up badly. Marcus was enjoying it. I could see it in his face—those smug little smiles every time Katherine whimpered, every time Dacre’s hand shook as he lifted the revolver for that sick game. Russian roulette. Marcus had always been fond of control, but this… this was something else. He wanted it to hurt. He wanted blood. I couldn’t stay still. I couldn’t let it go on any longer. But if I moved now, if I jumped and missed, Katherine would be lost forever. And Dacre... He could be hurt.

"Do you have anything to say to Lady Cora?" Camera flashes blinded me. I knew Cora had arranged this whole spectacle. I ignored their questions and started the engine. The pain in my soul and body made me dizzy. My hands trembled on the steering wheel. "We're live from Silvermoon territory," a reporter chirped into her camera, "witnessing the fall of a queen. This is rock bottom for the once-revered Luna Elena." The truck slowly pulled away from the territory. In the rearview mirror, I could see them still filming.

I lifted my leg and shook him off. "You're too late," I said indifferently. I pulled up a photo on my phone and dropped it at his knees. The photo showed a tiny, undeveloped fetus, streaked with blood, lying motionless on a cold metal tray. It was our pup, the one killed by his neglect. Cassian's sobs broke off. He stared at the photo until the last of his hope crumbled, his body going slack as a low, broken howl of grief ripped from his throat.

“Devil, please. You don’t understand, Bishop, he, ” Kain waved a hand lazily, cutting him off. “You bore me, Viktor.” Then he looked at Luca. The mask angled toward him, paper crinkling faintly as Kain smiled behind it. “Puppy,” he said, tone almost gentle. “Shall we play a game?” Luca blinked, his voice catching. “A… a game?” Kain’s thumb rubbed over his wrist. “Russian roulette.” The words fell heavy. Viktor stiffened. The woman’s gun didn’t waver. The other men at the table went still, the kind of stillness born from fear, the kind that didn’t dare exhale.

Then, with a flick of my wrist, I snapped it shut. "Russian roulette. One shot." I handed the revolver to him. "Hold it against your head, and shoot. If you survive, I'll let you guys go. If you die, it'll be your atonement." Caleb held my gaze, but his pupils were blown wide and trembling. Blood and sweat trickled down his temples, all mixed together. His handsome face looked pathetic now. "What? You're too scared?" I giggled. "Weren't you pretty brave when you schemed against my mother?"

John Moore walked up to me from behind to relight the cigarette in my hand. He then asked, "The muzzle wasn't aimed at his heart. Did you have second thoughts?" White smoke rose from the lit cigarette. I replied in a disdainful voice, "Second thoughts? I never planned on killing him. A bullet is enough to end Thomas' life. What I really want is the PIN to his Swelia Bank's account, the ledger to all his dirty deals, and all of the legal businesses under his name. There's no way I'll let him die that easily."

To help her childhood sweetheart, David Middleton, take my place studying abroad, my wife, Sharon Griffin, destroys my records and deliberately fills in false information, ensuring that I'm permanently denied a visa. She even severely injured my hands before sending me to the Behavioral Reform Center. My mother-in-law, Paula Brown, who has always treated me with affection, takes Sharon's side. "Kyle is so ungrateful. We gave him everything, and he still wanted to get a PhD abroad to find his biological parents. Who's going to take care of me if he's gone?" Sharon snorts. "He's just vain. When he found out I'd turned down Westbridge's offer of admission, he gave me the silent treatment an