Nikolai’s face cracks as he graces him with the faintest of smiles.
“It’s called sheep dipping.”
“What?”
Ilya clarifies, “You eradicate someone’s purpose by placing them in a legitimate organization. I have several such identities. Admittedly, Niven was a newer one.
“The moment I entered the interrogation room was mere minutes before I had confirmation that I’d located you.
“Victoria was my top priority, Maxim. Especially after what I saw that asshole doing through the two-way mirror.”
Inwardly, I seethe. “How did you find her?”
“Legitimate channels, but they buried your case. It was cleverly done. Too clever. It triggered my suspicions and I had to head to the police station to see if I was on the right track.”
“Can we utilize those legitimate channels in the future?”
“If I can use Victoria’s when she’s accepted by the Veronians, yes.”
She fidgets. “There’s still a chance I won’t be.”
“After today, doubtful.”
I cast a look at her. “What happened? Is it to do with that boy you terrified?”
“You heard about that?” she asks him, not me, because she knows she has guards on her.
“I was in the area and curious. You keep a quiet schedule. It wasn’t difficult to trace you.”
“Just your presence could endanger her.”
Ilya rolls his eyes at my outburst. “She married you. She knows the risks.”
“That doesn’t make it right, dammit!”
“Maxim,” Nikolai warns. “Hear him out.”
The urge to throw my glass against the wall is all-consuming.
But that’d only confirm why Misha says Nikolai’s our father and not our brother.
And I’m not confirming shit after he went behind my back on this.
“I spoke with… I don’t know. A handler? A minder? Told him about Dyers's brand.”
Ilya nods. “That went down about as well as you’d expect with the top brass. They’re paranoid about those damn things. It’s pathetic, really, when they’re so easy to expose.”
“Do you know who betrayed us to the Veronians, Levin? Was it you? Are you playing us off against each other? It wouldn’t be the first time.”
He sips at his fourth shot. “No, it wouldn’t be the first time.”
I grit my teeth. “Meaning?”
“I have my ways.”
“For fuck’s sake! If you were involved from the offset, then you could have told us her whereabouts sooner!”
“I didn’t know her whereabouts. I was asked to deliver a dress. So I did. It behooved us all for me to comply. Nikolai told me about your Veronian-shaped plans?—”
