Page 7 of The Bratva’s Secret Heir

“I’ll find him,” Dmitri says.

“Freeze his accounts first.” The pain makes the next words harder to push out. “His brother owns a freight company.”

Dmitri nods. “What about the mistress?”

“Her mother owns property outside Tver. Search it.”

“Why there?”

“He wouldn’t trust his own family, but he’d trust hers because he thinks no one will look.”

“He's right.” Dmitri leans against the wall. “Kirill already found a vehicle registered to the mother.”

“Good.”

A cough catches beneath the words, and pain pulls through my chest and abdomen. I press a hand over the dressing until it passes.

Dmitri watches me settle back against the pillow. “Don’t talk so much. You’re still tied to furniture.”

I look at Maksim. “Why am I tied to furniture?”

“Because your heart stopped.”

For a moment, I hear only the monitor. “For how long?”

“Eighty-six seconds.”

Maksim doesn’t smile. “Your chest was already open. Markova performed internal cardiac massage while they pushed medication and worked to restore a rhythm.”

I look toward the monitor as it continues its steady complaint. “She put her hand around my heart?”

Maksim watches me more carefully. “She kept it pumping until the rhythm returned. The first two attempts to restore the rhythm failed, but she kept going.”

A memory breaks through the fog, bringing a woman’s voice close to my ear.

“What exactly did she do?”

“Reached into your chest and squeezed your heart until it remembered its responsibilities,” Dmitri says.

I look down at the dressings under the thin hospital gown. Vera Markova has put her hand around my heart. There are easier ways to attract my attention.

“Where is she?”

“Off shift,” Maksim says. “Her final surgery report was filed yesterday.”

“Get me the full report.”

His expression hardens. “You need rest.”

“I rested for three days.” Pain builds under the dressings, and I wait for it to ease.

Dmitri crosses to the end of the bed and picks up my chart. “You lost enough blood to drown a small man.”

“I’m tall.”

“You’ve got damage to the lung, liver, and spleen. The thigh wound missed the artery because even your assassins find you exhausting.”

I manage a weak smile.