Page 79 of Savage Truce

“It will be done by Tuesday, but I’ll wait a week between shipments, so we don’t draw attention at the border.”

“That works for me.” I hear a little girl’s voice, then he mutters, “Rodian, give me a second.”

“Sure.” I stop by the Rolls-Royce and glance over the deserted area where the warehouse is located while I wait.

“What’s wrong, my precious girl?” Constantin asks.

“I-I was brushing… my baby’s hair... and her head fell off,” the little one cries, making my heart squeeze in my chest.

There’s movement, then he uses a loving tone I haven’t heard before as he says, “There, all fixed. I’m almost done, then we’ll go to the park. Go put on your shoes.”

“Okay, Daddy.”

There’s a moment where nothing happens before he returns to his usual clipped tone as he says, “I’m back. I’m sending through another order today. I’d appreciate it if you could get it done as fast as possible.”

Frowning, I ask, “Are you preparing for a war none of us know about?”

“Something like that,” he grumbles.

“You need backup?”

“Not yet.”

“Just let me know when and where, and I’ll be there.” Curious, I can’t stop myself from asking, “You have a kid?”

“Yes.”

His brusque answer draws a chuckle from me. “One day I’ll get you to talk more.”

“Don’t start. Atanas is already a pain in my ass,” he mutters. “Talk later.”

When he ends the call, I open the passenger door and get into the SUV.

“Where to?” Andrei asks, already waiting behind the steering wheel.

“The office.”

Now that we have the manufacturing of weapons up and running, I’m looking into expanding into steel fabrication, foundries, and metal processing. It makes sense to start producing more of the materials we need for weapons.

While I have a second, I send Anastasia a text.

Rodian: How did the tea party go?

She reads the message almost immediately, then three dots appear.

Anastasia: It actually went very well. I met Sergei’s wife. She’s really nice, and we have a lunch date for next week.

I glance at Andrei. “Anastasia is going to have lunch with Katya next week. Will you mind taking over from Sergei for an hour or two? I don’t want to put him in a position where he has to choose between his own wife and mine.”

“No problem,” my friend answers without thinking twice.

Rodian: That’s good. Andrei will guard you during that outing.

Anastasia: Why? Where will Sergei be?

Rodian: He will be with me because his first instinct will be to protect Katya. Andrei will guard you.

Anastasia: Okay.