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I scoff at Ludvik’s words. It’s all bullshit, and we know it. She’s only doing this to get out sooner, and it’s working. I don’t know how people can twist things like this, but I guess it’sbecause others have been successfully doing the same fucking thing.
“Do you know how she got a lawyer? Last I knew, she was burning through money and had nothing.”
“I do. She’s got a new beau, and from what we found out, she’s had this beau for a while. Now, I can’t say why he didn’t help her get out of the charges in the first place… because he likely could’ve. He has money and lots of it. She has years’ worth of connections with Julio Ramirez.”
I know this name, but why? I’m trying to piece together everything when it finally hits me. This is the guy who wants to take over the Ramirez cartel.
“All right, you have to know more. I see it all over your face.”
“I do know more, and it gets really interesting, boss. As I just said, these two have known one another for years, but what I haven’t told you is what Lucy got really good at.”
“Continue,” I urge him, needing Ludvik to get straight to the fucking point.
“Lucy set up private adoptions for desperate teenage mothers. Most of them hid their pregnancies from their parents, and Lucy was a trusting face, but she wasn’t adopting the kids out. She sold them to Julio’s people, or rather the cartel he’s slowly been creating over the years so he can go up against his uncle Alejandro.”
I swallow hard at what Ludvik’s telling me because Emily told me her aunt helped her set up a private adoption. It’s what Emily’s aunt tried to blackmail her with. What if she never adopted out the baby, to begin with? What if she sold it over to whatever Julio’s been doing?
“It’s child trafficking, isn’t it?” I already know the answer as I ask him this, but I need the answer as a formality.
Ludvik nods immediately, “I’m one thousand percent sure that it is.”
Fuck. What in the actual fuck am I supposed to do right now? Do I tell Emily about her aunt’s involvement? I have no fucking idea. This is very much personal since I’m in a relationship with her, but at the same time, this is crossing the lines with the Umarova family business, especially since Julio’s come up a couple of times now.
“I need you to keep digging, keep looking into things.”
“I will,” Ludvik pauses for a moment. “I know about Emily’s personal situation with this, and I can look into things further as far as that goes if you’d like.” Ludvik’s speaking in a code, but it’s one I understand. He knows about her daughter, and I’d be grateful if he could find out something about her.
“Yes, please do, and I’ll give you as much information as I can to help assist your efforts.”
“Sounds good.” Ludvik walks off, and I take in a deep breath.
Fucking hell. I don’t know what I should do right now. Do I tell her, or do I stay quiet until I know more? Maybe I should wait until I have more information before I say anything. If I speak too early, it might only stress her out. If I wait until Ludvik comes back to me with more information, it could be better. I can only imagine what would happen if I told her about what her aunt’s been doing, and it turned out the only decent thing she did was find an actual family for Emily’s daughter. The last thing I want to do is stress her out when there’s no need for it.
***
The rest of the day flew by. We spent the majority of the time with Ruslan, Amelia, and baby Karim. We went out to some of the places we love the most, and I took Emily to a small art gallery Eset took me to about a year ago. I’ve never been a man who’s appreciated art, but my sister struck a chord in me. She explained how every piece of artwork is beautiful in its own way and how the artist’s goal is to embody the emotion they’re feelingin their work. Truthfully, if my sister wasn’t an artist, I don’t think I’d be invested in any of this shit, but I love my sister, so I’ve found a reason to at least try and understand what she loves more than anything else in this world.
Now, the girls are getting started on dinner together, so Ruslan and I are alone in his office with the door shut. “There’s a predicament I want your opinion on.”
“Mmm, that hardly ever happens. What’s up?” Ruslan asks as he takes a seat in the armchair and places his vodka down.
“I had Ludvik look into some things for me. One of which was Amelia’s mother. She’s threatening to blackmail Emily, and while I don’t want to go straight into the details, I need your input, and the only way for me to get it is by telling you everything.”
“All right, go on then.”
“I’ll keep things simple. Emily had a child when she was a teenager. She grew up in a very rural town with very conservative views. She trusted her aunt to help her place the child in a private adoption. Now, Emily’s aunt is trying to blackmail her into putting money in her commissary account while she’s still there, but things aren’t adding up for me. They’re only making less and less sense when I think about it all.”
“Okay, so I already know what you’re about to tell me is going to get messier.”
“Naturally so.” I pause for a moment and continue onward. “Ludvik found out Amelia’s mother is getting released sooner than any of us expected. Apparently, she’s a reformed woman who found God while on the inside, and her behavior has been so exceptional that they’re giving her a ‘well-deserved’ second chance.” I’m completely sarcastic, and Ruslan rolls his eyes.
“If she wasn’t Amelia’s mother, I would’ve put a bullet through her fucking head by now, but as badly as I want to end her life, I know she’s my wife’s mother.”
“She’s been horrible to Amelia. What’s stopping you?”
“She’s still Amelia’s mother, and I don’t know if my wife would ever forgive me for killing her.” It seems to me like Ruslan has debated this time and time again.
“Well, I don’t know what to say to that. There’s more to what I’m saying, and as you said, it gets messier. Lucy has ties to Julio Ramirez. Apparently, that’s her beau.”
