AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I sighed.
Chapter 8
Ivan
I walked into Drago’s office eager for information about Orlov. We’d given up looking for him after the fire, thinking he was most likely dead. Now that we had evidence that he was very much alive, Drago had been using his connections to dig up information about him.
Paolo Martoni, the guy who took over the Alfonsi outfit, said he’d talk to his men and see if Orlov was reaching out to anyone in his crew. We had a tentative truce with the Italians right now, and Orlov had worked with some of Alfonsi’s men in the past. Maybe Orlov was still in touch, though I doubted it. It’s not like that little fucker knew how to make friends.
“Hey, you talk to Nikolai?” Drago asked the minute I sat down in the chair in front of his desk.
I stared at him for a moment, knowing I wasn’t going to like what he was about to say. “No. Why?”
“Apparently, Emmy was wandering around campus by herself last night. I guess her roommate had a guy over. Fuck, I can’t believe I’m talking about the dating habits of college students,” Drago muttered.
“What the fuck?” I popped out of the chair and started pacing back and forth in front of his desk. “I told her to call me if her roommate kicked her out. I made her promise to tell me so I could pick her up. What the hell was she thinking?”
“Why do you think she didn’t?” Drago asked, lighting up a cigarette and taking a drag. I knew my sister was trying to get him to stop smoking, but she knew he occasionally had a couple at the office.
“How the hell should I know? She’s a teenage girl. Who knows what the fuck they think?” I grumbled.
“Well, you better become a mind reader because you know a crazy fuck like Orlov is probably only waiting on the perfect opportunity to make his move.”
“Yes, I know. Fuck,” I spat, unable to believe how angry I was that Emmy hadn’t contacted me. We were going to have a long talk later about fucking protocols and communication. I wasn’t going to tolerate her putting herself at risk. My stomach churned when I thought of how vulnerable she had probably been last night.
“Don’t worry, we’re putting up cameras today, so you’ll know if she wanders off by herself in the future.
I nodded and threw myself back into the chair. “You make any headway with Martoni’s men?” I asked, trying to calm myself back down.
Drago took another drag off his cigarette but stubbed it out only half smoked. I smirked thinking that was Katya’s influence.
“No, none of his guys have seen or heard from him since they worked with him last spring. He’s completely in the wind. We’ve got some feelers out to freelancers and Callahan is checking with his contacts too. The problem is Orlov doesn’t work with other people much. Even in the Bratva, he was a loner.”
I nodded. “Yeah, I only remember him as a teenager, Christ, he’s only a couple years younger than me, but he didn’t exactly bond with anyone. He was too fucking unpredictable and crazy.”
Drago nodded. “A quality Yuri typically appreciated in his men.”
I nodded grimly. That was an understatement. “I checked the roommate out—her social media and shit. Fuck, those platforms are so annoying. Anyway, she seems to check out, everything looks normal. She posted about the boyfriend, but just took pictures of, like, flowers he bought her and shit like that. I’ll find out more about him.”
Drago nodded. “Okay, we’ll keep looking. You attach yourself to Emmy like her fucking shadow. I want Orlov’s ass, and though I’m not one to use innocent girls as bait, here we are.”
I nodded and walked to the door. “Don’t worry. I’ll be having a long talk with Emmy about keeping her ass safe.”
Drago smirked. “I’m sure you’ll have no problem protecting her ass.”
I flipped him off and walked out the door.
*****
I weaved through throngs of young people on the way to Emmy’s class, my anger on a low simmer. I hated navigating this stupid campus with its crowds of mindless kids chattering about bullshit. I got a hold of Emmy’s schedule—she had it taped to her desk yesterday and I snapped a picture of it—and memorized where all of her classes were.
I still couldn’t believe that Emmy left her room yesterday for two hours because her roommate had her goddamned boyfriend over and didn’t call me.
I didn’t want her out roaming around with no protection. It was probably after dark when she got back to her room. The thought of her walking unprotected, possibly being followed by that fucking lunatic Orlov had me grinding my teeth aggravation and anxiety.
Finally, I was in front of McHenry Hall. I wanted to go inside the building and wait by the door of her class, but that was a little much, even for me. Instead, I frowned at every student that exited, mentally preparing the lecture I planned to give Emmy when I saw her.
When she sailed out of the door, all the words flew out of my head. Just the sight of her was like a gut punch. It was hard to know if she was getting more and more attractive every time I saw her, or if my unrequited lust was influencing my judgment. Regardless, she was wearing a pair of skinny jeans with a blousy, sleeveless shirt that displayed her smooth, pale shoulders and the elegant line of her neck.
