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“Yeah, but Sasha wasn’t scheduled to show up for another week. What do we do until then?” No way was Alex just going to chill out and do nothing.

“Actually, I do have something for you both. It’s delicate.” Gideon pointedly looked at Alex. “There can’t be any fuckups, and you’re to do exactly as you’re told.”

“Yes, Boss,” Alex answered.

“We got word that one of Vladimir’s sons is coming this way.” Gideon slid a tablet across the desk, which Alex swiped.

“Do we know why?” He glared at the image of Vladmir’s son as if he were trying to eviscerate him.

“I’m not sure, but something tells me that the deaths of Sasha and Ruslan and the possibility of that crack house not being a good hub for them could have something to do with it.”

“What do you need from us, Boss?” I asked.

Gideon pointed to the tablet. “That’s Maksim Ivanov, Vladimir’s middle child. I want the two of you at the airport. Trail him—I want to know where he goes, who he talks to, everything. Don’t make contact with him. I need his pattern. He’s a big player.”

“You want us to babysit him?” Alex sneered. “Why not take him? If Ivanov thinks someone took his kid maybe he’ll come here too, and then we’ll have him.”

“No!” Gideon snapped. “If you can’t follow my instructions, sit this one out. I’m keeping you involved, but I’ve said it a hundred times and I’ll say it again: This has to be done carefully. I don’t need the entire Bratva coming down on our heads. Especially since I don’t know who this Oleg guy is. So, do this as instructed or wait until I have something else for you.”

Gideon didn’t get angry often, and while he wasn’t so much mad at Alex, he was worried about him. We all were. If he went off on his own, he’d surely get himself killed. And if he left a wake of Vladimir’s men, it would be a war I wasn’t sure Gideon could win.

Alex glanced at me, and I tried to urge him to follow the order. He sighed and nodded. “Okay, yeah. Sorry, Gideon.”

“I get it, Alex. I know you want to make Vladimir hurt, and I promised you would. But it has to be meticulous.”

“Understood.”

“Do you know when he’s arriving?” I was trying to change the subject.

“He’s coming in at a private airstrip, because of course he is. According to my source, his plane is scheduled to land at three p.m. at Paisley Airport. So, you two be there. Keep an eye out and report to me on everything.”

“We’ll be there,” I promised.

“Good. Now, I have to go make sure my children are getting ready for bed. Keep me informed on everything Maksim does and once I know more about Oleg, I’ll inform you.”

As we walked out of Gideon’s house I tried to figure out how to see if Alex wanted to come to my house and maybe watch a movie or play a video game. I didn’t want him to be alone, especially considering how upset he’d gotten in Gideon’s office. I was about to just spit it out, but he beat me to it.

“Want to get some subs and come to mine and watch the game?”

“Yeah, sounds good.”

The ride to the restaurant was quiet. I knew Alex was playing over everything Gideon had told him. We ordered our subs and took them back to his house. He set up the game he’d recorded, I sat on his couch, and as the game played I couldn’t help feeling as if I were sitting in a tomb. Mila was in every design, stitch, and inch of this place.

Alex was never going to heal if he was living with a ghost.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Alex

Paisley Airport was independently owned and generally catered to private jets. Gideon had his plane here, so Danny and I had no issues getting in. We still had about forty minutes before Maksim was due to land, so we sat in the lounge, near the gate he’d be exiting, and waited.

“Did you get the info on Maksim that Toni sent?” Danny was currently reading from his tablet.

“Yeah. He’s not much to write home about. No wife, no kids, no nothing. Just some spoiled thirty-year-old living off daddy’s money.”

“Toni has down here that he’s a piece of work. He has some arrests in Russia, none that stuck. Assault, burglary, drug trafficking.”

I snorted. “And none stuck?”