Patrick must not realize that Emma’s bracelet contains a tracker. They’ve left the interstate and are now headed up a state road towards Lowell. Several SUVs containing some of my soldiers and Maksim are headed towards the city to try and intercept them. Emma will need to see a familiar face when they pick her up.
“I’m sorry, boss,” Igor says immediately upon entering my home office.
“What the fuck happened, Igor!” I yell at him, grabbing him by his shirt and shaking him.
“Patrick O’Brien found us in Haymarket,” he started explaining. “One of the guards stayed with the car, so it was just me and the other one with her. Emma agreed to walk with O’Brien, essentially just to catch up since they used to be neighbors.”
“Go on,” I say, keeping a tight grip on his collar.
“I was keeping an eye on Emma when I feel a hand on my shoulder and a prick in my neck,” Igor continues, showing me the spot on his neck where he was stuck with something. “The guard who was with us drugged me with something, and when I dropped to the ground, Patrick took Emma and pushed her in to the car. I saw the car drive away, and the next thing I remember is being put in the car to come here.”
“Did you catch a look at the guy who was driving?” I ask him. I already know the answer, and I want to see if he’s going to lie to me or be truthful.
“It was the second guard, the one I left behind with the car,” Igor confirmed.
“So the guards I sent with you to protect Emma were working against us the whole time,” I say out loud.
“Looks like it, boss. Those guys used to work for Vladimir Zaytsev. We kept them on to ease the leadership transition,” Igor added.
“Damn it,” I say with a sigh, finally letting Igor go. I’m on the phone immediately to Dmitri, instructing him to meet us in the office.
“What’s the update?” Dmitri asks when he walks in. Igor repeats the information that he told me just a few minutes ago.
“Before anything else goes sideways, all of the soldiers that remain in our ranks and were in any way connected to Popov and Zaytsev are to be immediately removed,” I reply. “Alexei and Denis have sworn their lives to us, and now will be their chance to prove it. Let them remain, but keep them on a short leash.”
“Then what?” Dmitri asks.
“You’ll stay here and manage things with Igor. When Lidiya’s plane arrives, you will go to collect her and escort her back here,” I tell him. “Maksim is on his way north to intercept the car with Emma in it and bring her home. When she gets here, we’ll come up with a new plan to take out Callaghan and his organization for good.”
“Ivan, what about you?”
I look at my computer screen to check on the movement of Emma’s bracelet tracker. “I’m going to start arranging accommodations for our guests,” I say with a dark look. “The highest ranking of papa’s former soldiers that are still in our ranks are to be placed in the basement vault for interrogation.”
Dmitri pours himself a drink and one for me, as well, before bringing it over while Igor and Grigory get their work area set up inside the office. While I’m pissed as fuck at Igor for letting Emma get away, I know that deep down it’s my fault she’s in this position to begin with.
“We’ll get her back, Ivan,” Dmitri says, handing me my drink. I down it quickly in one gulp.
“It’s my fault,” I tell him. “We should have cleaned house when Papa retired.”
“I know. You did what you thought was best to ease the transition.”
“I failed her, Dmitri. I promised Emma I would keep her safe, and now she’s in Callaghan’s clutches.”
“We’ve got a plan,” Dmitri reminds me.
“I won’t rest until she’s back here with all of us. We are her family now, and we always take care of family.”
“Exactly. This might not be the right time, but I’m sorry for how I reacted towards Emma. The way you look at her tells me all I need to know. You trust her, and I trust you,” Dmitri replies.
I hear my phone ringing, and see Maksim calling.
“Tell me you have her,” I say, skipping right to the point.
“We have another problem,” Maksim says, hesitating to tell me what he’s doing.
“What problem? Do you have Emma or not?” I ask. I can see by the tracker dots that the car has stopped on a road outside Lowell. Emma should be there.
“We found the car, but Emma isn’t here,” Maksim replies.
