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“I must speak to her at once,” he demands, the vein in his forehead pulsing.
Angelo nods. “I will have her call you and take her home.”
Something in the way his stance is rigid tells me he thinks this is bullshit, and I’m sure it’s not the news he was expecting.
“I will send a car for her,” he says. “Once we’ve spoken, if she confirms what you say is true, then I will find out the necessary information and deal with it.”
“That’s not how this is going to work,” Angelo says. “We can’t rule out one of our own being involved. This organization wasn’t small, in fact, it was a global enterprise. I propose we find out from both sides what went on in our camps first, then act accordingly.”
Aleksi snorts. “You don’t even trust your own men?”
“Your man was involved,” I remind him. “And you didn’t even know.”
“I know what went on, and so does the rest of the world, Medici. Your family is to blame for this.” He points at Angelo.
“Careful, Petrov, we know how your famous temper fared during the last meeting. Every family has a black sheep, some have more than one, but you have my word that heads will roll for this. I don’t want this in my city, on my dock, or within my ranks any more than you do.”
He seems as displeased as Angelo, only he knows that he hasn’t gotten Katiya back yet, so there isn’t room for negotiation until she’s safe.
He looks Angelo in the eye and asks, “Why do you help?”
“Because for once, I think we can agree that underage prostitution and selling women and children against their will to be sex slaves isn’t something we encourage or endorse,” Angelo says, pausing for a reaction. “And I will stop at nothing to find out who did this, and I will kill every last fucking one of them.”
He assesses Angelo for a moment then nods. “I will find out what I can. In the meantime, you will release Katiya. I’m not asking again.”
Angelo gives me a chin lift as my heart sinks to the bottom of my stomach.
I don't want to hand her over. Not to him. Even though I know he cares about her, he’s still the enemy. He’ll still kill every last one of us if it means he gets to gloat about it.
This man can’t be trusted. Then again, neither can we.
“I want to hear about how you’re going to rectify your brother’s operation first,” Angelo says, cracking his knuckles. “And I’m sure after hearing all about it, we will come to some arrangement.”
“Katiya,” Petrov snarls. “Now.”
At least someone other than me cares about her. Thank God for small miracles.
* * *
On the drive back to Fortress, Angelo turns to me and says, “Do you know what bothers me in all of this?”
I scratch my chin, trying not to show my brother how much I dread going home.
Things I never thought I would feel about my castle, my fucking sanctuary.
“That Aleksi actually gives a fuck about her?”
Angelo shakes his head. “That I know this came from the Russians, and now I’ve given Aleksi the power to carry out justice.”
“Do we know that for sure? As you said, nobody can be trusted.”
He looks perplexed when he says, “What happened with Rayne’s blackmail was far too intricate and detailed for one person to be working alone. I feel it in my bones, we’re missing something.”
“Or rather, someone.”
“Touché. And they’d better hope and pray that Aleksi finds them long before I do.”
Angelo is not merciful, not to those who cross moral boundaries. There is no turning back once you start fucking with women and children.
