I feel sick as I finally force myself to dress as Misha’s warnings echo in my mind.
Remember where your loyalty needs to be, Katya.
Guilt eats at me, even though I’ve done nothing wrong.
There’s a burner phone in my purse that Misha gave me, turned off for now.
My brother has assigned me the task of watching my husband closely for the next week. I’m to analyze his routines. What he eats, where he goes, how long he’s there.
Poison, Misha informed me, will be the easiest, best way to accomplish the job.
Clean, he said, dusting off his hands like he could so easily absolve his sins.So much less messy than a bullet.
I knew the instant Misha issued the demand that I wouldn’t be able to do it. I’m nothing like my brother. The thought ofcausing Enzo physical harm makes me sick. The thought of killing him in cold blood… I can’t. I understood that the second the words left my brother. But I also knew Misha wouldn’t accept no for an answer.
I argued with him, trying to use reason and logic to persuade him that the risk of harming my husband far outweighs any perceived reward for Misha. Enzo is in his twenties, and he’s in peak physical shape. No one is going to believe he’d suddenly drop dead. All eyes in the Andriani family will be on me. I’ll be the prime suspect if anything happens to my husband.
The police will be involved.
Misha hates the heat that police scrutiny brings.
But no amount of arguing on my part convinced my brother to change his mind. The deal that went wrong gave him a new goal. He intends to claim Mafia territory for himself, starting with the Andriani family and working through the rest. He wants to take the Andriani throne and put himself atop it.
By using me.
It is a beautiful idea, he said.We’ll choose the right time to strike. No one will know. The poison I’ve obtained is virtually untraceable.
I told him I couldn’t do it.
I had a feeling you might say that,sestrenka, he coolly replied.That’s why I’ve taken the liberty of moving Svetlana from her home to somewhere she will be safe… Unless you don’t do what I’ve asked of you.
That’s when hopelessness truly hit me. When Misha showed me surveillance footage of Svetlana on his phone. I have no idea where he’s taken her. With Misha’s power and connections, she could be anywhere. Even, perhaps, back in Russia. All I do know is that the woman who has been a mother to me for most of my life is now in Misha’s ruthless control.
Her life is hanging in the balance, and a monster is calling the shots.
You’d be surprised at how easy it is to make someone disappear, Misha warned me before I left.
My hands shake as I finish dressing. My mouth is dry and my stomach is twisted up in knots. I have zero idea what to do, how to face Enzo when he comes home. I’m terrified he’ll take one look at me and know I’m hiding something.
Can I trust him? Confide in him? Can I put Svetlana’s life in Enzo’s hands?
Part of me says she’ll have a much better chance there than in Misha’s. But the other part of me is fucking terrified. Everything that’s happened between Enzo and me is new. We’re still getting to know each other. How can I be sure he’ll trustme, if I tell him the truth?
I have way more questions than answers, and I feel like I’ve already betrayed him.
I’m out of the guest bathroom and moving through the penthouse when I realize I’m not alone.
“Cara mia.”
I whirl around, heart in my throat, and find Enzo sprawled on one of his immaculate white couches. He’s got one long arm resting along the cushion back and a drink dangling from the fingertips of his other hand. The tracery of tattoos is more pronounced with the white backdrop, and so is the stark contrast of his black suit and dark allure.
He looks deceptively at ease.
And I am so not calm.
“You’re home,” I say, forcing a smile. “I didn’t realize you were here.”
He cocks his head, watching me with an unnerving, icy stare. “No sushi waiting for me today?”
