Page 93 of Mafia King’s Dangerous Vow

“About what?”

“The alliance.”

“The alliance is working.”

“For now.”

“If you know otherwise, perhaps you should discuss it with Aleksander.”

“I discuss many things with Aleksander. But men in his position do not always understand what they reveal at home.”

“He does not discuss operations with me.”

Papa studies me. “You expect me to believe that?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s true.”

“Aleksander Sokolov married you under duress and brought you into his home. He rearranged his security protocols to restore your work. He placed his brother outside my door. And you expect me to believe he tells you nothing?”

Do not react.

Do not defend him.

Do not show Papa where the line is tender.

“Mikhail talks constantly and says very little. Igor is cautious. Aleksander is busy. That’s the full depth of my intelligence.”

Papa laughs softly, with no amusement in it. He leans back. “Bellweather.”

The word is so precise that the room changes around it. I keep my hand still over the photograph. “What about it?”

“Has Aleksander mentioned whether he considers the matter contained?”

“I don’t know what Bellweather is.”

“Meridian Fine Holdings?”

I look at him blankly.

“Tomás Saldívar?”

My face remains blank. Papa watches me.

I think of Aleksander in his study, screens open, jaw tight as Yuri said the names. I think of the old world hidden beneath polished desks and climate-controlled storage rooms. I think of the address outside Woodstock and the car that passed the school twice this week.

“If Aleksander mentions Bellweather,” Papa says, “I want to know whether he believes the channel is closed.”

“And if I don’t hear that?”

“You will.”

“You seem confident.”

“I understand men who think desire has not affected their judgment.”