I can almost feel Dmitri’s stare on the back of my neck, wondering what the hell I’m doing. The smart thing would be to kill her and be done with it. But another idea has started to form, one that can turn this situation into an advantage for me. And I know exactly how to get her to agree.
“You come with me, work for me. Use your skills as I see fit.”
Her eyes narrow. “And my other option?”
“There is no other option, Miss Volkova. You work in exchange for the safety of your family. I believe you have two brothers and a sister, don’t you? Your younger sister had orchestra practice today? Your oldest brother had a shift at Enzo’s Pizza after his Business Analysis class, did he not? Your father visited Kashta for lunch?”
Eva’s eyes widen again, and she begins to shake under my hand, sweat beading on her forehead.
My smile disappears, and I lean close enough to whisper in her ear. “Do you want to know what happens to those who cross me? I’ll tell you if you ask nicely. I hope you have a strong stomach, because it’s not pretty.”
The woman’s breathing quickens, her pulse racing beneath my hand, and I pull back to look into her face.
“Choose now. Work for me or call my bluff and see what happens.”
“Fine, I’ll do it!” Eva can’t agree fast enough.
My hand remains on her throat for a moment more, our gazes locked, my grip tightening until her breath starts to rasp. She stumbles as I let her go, straight into the arms of one of my men.
“Bring her and all her equipment. I want it to look like she was never here. Kill anyone who comes through the door.”
“No!”
Her scream follows me out, and so does Dmitri. Though he doesn’t question me now, I know he’ll have questions once we’re alone.
I’ve just spared the life of someone who challenged the Bratva when anyone else would have been dead. But this will all fit into my plan.
As soon as I have more than a glimmer of one.
4
EVGENY
“You can’t keep me here against my will.”
I might be amazed that the young woman, Eva, is still putting on a brave face if I weren’t so angry.
The drive back to my home in Palos Verdes on the 405 gave my anger ample time to grow. Alas, even the powerfulvory v zakonecannot control Los Angeles traffic.
This tiny woman, whose bones I could break with my bare hands, has managed to put both my Bratva and my business in peril. Worse, she walked into a club owned by a member of the Kucherov Bratva, spun a plan to snare my attention, and nearly seduced me.
I don’t know why, but I will find out.
“Do you think this is some kind of game?” I growl. I tighten my grip on her elbow until she yelps. I lengthen my stride, smirking as she trots to keep up. “Do you think this is some kind of movie where everything works out in the end? A fairy tale where the princess lives happily ever after?”
Our steps, and those of the men behind us, echo in the hallway, the sandstone and marble magnifying the sound.
“This is no game, and happy endings don’t exist, Miss Volkova.” I flash a leonine grin, devoid of humor or joy. She gasps. “I have far more power and resources at my disposal than you.”
She cringes. I shove her back against the wall, pinning her there with my hands locked around her shoulders.
“I know where your siblings go to school and what time your sister gets home. I know your brother works at a pizza shop near campus and lives with five others in a house a block from there. I know your father has a drinking problem that started when your mother died and that your other brother, the one from last night, cannot stay out of trouble.”
Eva’s lips part in surprise, then clamp shut. Her eyes narrow in a defiant glare that, given the circumstances, is almost impressive.
“I know all about you, Miss Volkova, and I can tell you now that what happened last night will not happen again. You will not surprise me a second time. I will be on my guard against you and your schemes. There will be no second chances to seduce me, here or otherwise.”
An odd emotion flickers across those brown eyes, perhaps confusion, before anger and fear swallow it again.
