AllFreeNovel
Share Us
It wasn’t a man at all. It was the one thing that brought me joy like no human ever could.
A few soldiers stood around the still sizzling remains of my dog. They gave me a wide berth when they saw me coming.
Never show anyone your pain, ditya. Pain is for the weak. Only the weak give their enemies tools to use against them.
My mentor’s sprout of wisdom resonated deep within me. Of course, the bastard had been flogging me while he spoke those words. He’d been beating the shit out of me for going against one of his damn rules back in Siberia. Basic Navy SEAL training had nothing on Sokolov’s boot camp.
I towered over Cerb’s remains. My gaze fell on his silver collar a few feet away. They had taken it off so there would be no doubt in my mind whose dog this was.
When I continued to stay silent, the soldiers left to return to their job of patrolling the perimeter.
I clenched and unclenched my hands. No one would tell any tales about me flipping out over a mutt. I was the one who decided to feel rage, hurt, or whatever the fuck I was supposed to feel. No one else but me.
“There’s also another matter.” Viking leaned against the wall, lurking there like a gargoyle. “Some woman called, claiming she was your mother’s...”
I tuned him out and eyed the remains of my dog again. They’d set him on fire. Someone had fucking set my dog on fire.
“The twins know about this?”
Viking shook his head. “Haven’t told them yet what the Jamaicans did. You know how they feel about animals.”
I knew. There was a reason for the legendary stories about their exotic pets. Most of them were no more than that—urban legends. But the stories all had one thing in common: they spoke to the twins’ love for animals. Either of them would kill a man without blinking an eye, but they would never harm a defenseless animal. To them, it was a cardinal sin.
Viking eyed me closely. “What do you want me to do?”
What could a man do when his dog had been burned to a crisp? Apparently, Iwasdigging two graves today, after all.
“To get me a shovel.”
And grenades. And a whole lot of AK-47s. Lots and lots of them.
Tomorrow night, the head figures of the Russian Bratva were gathering at my house. I had to show them I was cool, collected, and in control. But the morning after they left I was setting the city on fire, because we were going to war against the Jamaicans.
3
KATYA
We made two stops before we finally arrived at the Golden City. By then, night had settled and darkness shrouded the bay, not exactly honoring its shiny name.
My mother stopped the car in front of a two-story Victorian mansion on the outskirts of town. It stood lonely on a hilltop, far away from the nearest houses. An enormous black gate blocked our entry and high walls surrounded the entire property. There were men inside the gate patrolling the perimeter.
“It looks very…guarded.” I didn’t know how else to describe the place. When I didn’t get a reaction from my mom I fell silent again. I still didn’t know who this Kristoff was and if I wanted to meet him.
The door next to the gate opened. My eyes widened when I got a better look at the man who approached us. He looked like the personification of one of those Greek marble statues I’d once seen in a museum. Except he was in color, and in the flesh. Golden-blond hair brushed his shoulders, and his taut muscles were not very well hidden in a suit that seemed to be custom made for him.
It probably was. Dressing him in anything off the rack would be a crime against women. For that matter, against men as well, ‘cause I’d bet he got attention from both genders. If there was a third sex or another species in this universe, they’d be smitten too.
He walked up to my mother’s side of the car. “What can I do for you ladies?”
“I’m here to see Kristoff. I called earlier.”
His eyes narrowed. “Well, aren’t you miss persistent.” He walked around the car. When he reached the trunk, he tapped on it.
My mom pressed a button and the trunk sprang open. After he made sure that it held no threat, he walked back to my mom’s side of the car.
I felt like I was starring in a spy movie or something. What exactly did he think we could possibly do to him?
He spoke something into a walkie talkie and the heavy front gate opened.
