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ADRIK
“Viktoria is still watching us from the door,” Emery says, strapping her seatbelt on.
I glance up and see the silhouette of my sister-in-law through the glass. She’s too smart to turn her back on us. But still careless enough not to force me to sit down and keep my hands to myself while I was in her house.
Oh well. Her loss is my gain.
I start the car and pull away from the curb.
“What do we do now? Just wait?” Emery asks.
“We won’t have to wait long,” I tell her. A few blocks later, I park in front of a series of nondescript row houses. I grab my phone and open the app again.
“What are you listening for? She’s alone.”
I turn up the volume on my phone as loud as I can. “She’s going to call Yasha and tell him what happened.”
“You’re sure?”
I turn to her. “Who would you call in a situation like this?”
Emery tucks a long strand of golden hair behind her ear. “You.”
I nod. “And Viktoria is going to call Yasha. I’m sure of it.”
A second later, the bug picks up the click of footsteps across the hardwood floor. Then Viktoria’s voice.
“They were here,” she says quietly. “… Yeah, they came together.”
Muffled motion. The quiet thump of a nervous footfall. Another.
"I didn't tell them anything. Not that I know anything, anyway," Viktoria snaps.
"Guess he doesn't trust her, either," Emery remarks.
I nod. "You can't trust anyone."
Emery frowns, but I meant what I said. In this life, every person who knows the truth is a weakness waiting to be exploited. And exploitation is a bloody, painful affair for all involved.
"It would be nice to know what you're doing," Viktoria says. "They said that Adrik isn't trying to cut you off. They said that you are—What? Why should I put you on speaker?"
Viktoria stops talking and then sighs.
And the next voice we hear isn't hers.
"Where did you hide it?" Yasha calls. His voice is staticky and a little garbled from filtering through Victoria's phone, the listening device, and my phone speaker. But it's obviously him.
"Hide what?" Viktoria asks. "What in the hell is going—"
"Not you, idiot woman," Yasha hisses. "I'm talking to Adrik."
Chert voz’mi, I curse in my head. Emery’s brow is creased. She’s just as confused as Viktoria.
But I understand exactly what is going on.
"They already left, Yasha,” Viktoria says in bewilderment. “I told you. They—"
"He bugged the house," Yasha interrupts. "Was he wandering around the room? Refused to sit down?"
There's a beat. A single second of fuzzy silence. Then…
"Shit," Victoria hisses. "I didn't even… Goddammit."
“Find the bug and destroy it.” Yasha chuckles, but it sounds unhinged. Like an evil clown in a horror film. Then he speaks directly to me. "You taught me all of your tricks, big brother. You'll have to try harder than that."
My hand clenches tightly. My knuckles are white.
We were both raised to be ruthless when there was a need for it. To never make idle threats. To deal out violence when necessary.
But Yasha is unpredictable. He has always been a loose cannon, especially once he’s angry. The amount of fights and near-death situations I’ve had to break up… I knew he was dangerous, but I never expected my little brother would turn that chaos on me.
“I taught you loyalty,” I say, even though Yasha can’t hear me. “I taught you to respect your family. I never taught you to hurt without reason.”
Emery reaches over to lay a hand on me, but I shift away. I feel like a grenade with a hairpin trigger. Anything might push me over the edge.
"I'm so sorry I missed your visit," Yasha croons. "It would have been nice to catch up with you. Both of you."
Emery flinches. It’s one more reason to kill my brother.
He terrifies her.
"Especially since all I want is a happy little reunion," Yasha continues. "I want us to put the past behind us. Bygones and all that. I want us to be a family."
She shivers. I push down the fire rising in me and lay a hand on her knee. As I do, I can feel her lean into the comfort.
“How can two people come from the same gene pool and be so different?” she whispers.
I grit my teeth. “The same way a man like him could make a girl like Isabella.”
“He didn’t make her,” Emery snaps. “She’s mine. She’s yours. She’s sure as fuck not his.”
I feel the truth of what she’s saying in my chest. It’s like my heart grows, making room for Isabella and Emery—for the family we’ve created.
The family I’ll fight to the death to protect.
"I want to meet," Yasha blurts. "Today."
Viktoria gasps. "Yasha, no! You said it wasn't safe. What if they—”
“I want to meet today,” Yasha says again. “But… I want to see my child.”
“What—” Viktoria starts.
Yasha cuts her off. “No violence, no tricks. That’s all I want.”
“He’s talking about Isabella.” Emery lays her hand over mine and squeezes fearfully. “He wants to meet her.”
I nod. “But he’s making Viktoria think he’s talking about her baby. About their child together. As if we might kill him and he won’t make it home.”
“He’s good,” Emery grudgingly admits.
“We can meet today at the compound,” Yasha says. “If you agree to my terms, then remove your men and security from the perimeter of the compound. Have them stand down. If I even see a shadow sneeze wrong on my way through the gates, I’ll destroy the entire fucking place.”
“Isabella,” Emery breathes.
