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Kuznetsov reached for his wine glass with his good hand. Eyes locked on his granddaughter as much as hers was on him, he took an unhurried sip.
As if they were playing an invisible game of chess, he eventually said, “It was unexpected, you teaming up with Conor O’Donnelly.”
“An advantage?”
He nodded. “How could it not be? The great aCooooig and Lodestar, working as a unit, making history together...” His smile was too cheerful for the conversation we were having. “You’ve made a lot of friends along the way, haven’t you, child?”
“Some are better than others.” She stunned me by gently pressing the backs of her fingers to my knee under the table. “If you know who has earned that label from me, you’ll also know the lengths I’ll go to to protect them. So, tread carefully, old man. I’m not afraid to bite.”
23
STAR
“What I offer,child, is everything you’ve been working toward since you escaped your prison.”
I studied him, reading between his lines in an attempt to come up with the raw bones of a deal that’d make him my version of a fairy godmother.
But Conor wasn’t naive and, like he’d said, he was one of the few, if not theonlyperson who could keep up with me. That meant Kuznetsov had used his feelings for me to manipulate him and that Kuznetsov would do that, would use feelings that too few people had felt for me in this godforsaken life I’d been leading, annoyed the everliving shit out of me.
“If something sounds as if it’s too good to be true,” I countered in response, “then it usually is.”
Kuznetsov grimaced as he tucked his hand closer to his chest in a subconscious act. “So distrusting.”
“I wonder why,” I mocked, not an ounce of guilt plaguing me for stabbing him in the hand.
I didn’t give a shit if he was ninety or nine. Conor was right—you fucked with my people, you fucked with me.
And, already, he’d fucked with Conor.
He’d brought himherewhen I’d taken myself away from him on purpose.
I was many things but not a hypocrite.
Iwas fucking with my people, so I needed to be punished.
Maybe Conor and I were more alike than I realized.
He called it atonement. I called it retribution.
Conor gently pushed his bowl away, leaned his elbows on the table, and started playing with his hands as he reasoned, “It must be a massive task if your idea of remuneration is bringing down the Sparrows.”
Kuznetsov angled the glass at Conor. “The task is not gargantuan but it is specialized.”
“If you think only Conor and I can do it, that’s an understatement.”
“It requires more than just the two of you.”
I frowned. “You need a team of hackers?”
“You can use thePauksfor assistance—”
“They work for you,” I clipped. “If you think I’d trust them—”
“You can use BDSec if you prefer,” Kuznetsov slipped in quickly. “I don’t care so long as the job is done.”
As my brow furrowed, Conor rasped, “BDSec? Why would we work with them? We’re not affiliated—”
“I was one of the founding members,” I admitted, cringing.
