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“You must be Tabitha,” Dimitri greets, reaching out to shake her hand. “How lovely to finally meet you.”
“You know about me?”
“Our business is information. It’s in our best interest to know everything.”
Two other individuals are in the room, one I recognize from that day at Matianna and one I do not. The man I recognize as Luka’s father. He’s dressed in a comfortable, dark green sweater and a pair of jeans, seated at a chessboard by the window. He seems rather sweet, smiling and nodding like this isn’t about to turn into a war meeting.
The woman next to him is… frightening. It’s her eyes, I think. Cold and sharp like obsidian. Her features are twisted with obvious disdain, from the pinch of her lips to the high point of her nose. She doesn’t seem pleased to see me.
“So,” she mutters, “this is Luka’s woman?”
The tips of my ears burn. Is that seriously how they refer to me around here? “Agent Dani Harper,” I correct, none too pleased with her tone.
Dimitri gestures to the couple. “Dani, this is our father, Lev, and our mother, Catherina.” Something in the way he saysmothercolors the word with bitterness. It takes me by surprise. I thought Dimitri was the happy-go-lucky one. I guess even he can be rubbed the wrong way by Mother Dearest.
Lev throws Tabitha and I a kind wave. “Welcome, ladies. I hope you find your stay comfortable.”
Pyotr shakes his head. “No, Father. Only Tabitha is staying.”
“Oh, pardon me. Sometimes I get my facts confused.” Lev speaks softly and slowly, like his mind is playing catch up with his mouth. There’s a gentle quality to him that I honestly wasn’t expecting.
When I was first putting together my surveillance operation on the Antonov Bratva, I found little to no information about the parents. Lev and Catherina Antonov were mysteries to me, their pasts practically non-existent.
Catherina snorts. “Trusting my son’s safety to the likes of you,” she grumbles under her breath. I don’t appreciate her death glare. “How far have we fallen?”
I put my hands on my hips. “Excuse me?”
Dimitri pats Lev on the shoulder. “Dad, why don’t you show Tabitha the gardens? I’m sure she’d like that very much. The rest of us need to talk business.”
Lev chuckles happily. “Oh, what a splendid idea! I can show you the greenhouse.”
“Oh, uh…” Tabitha gives me a quick glance. I give her an encouraging nod. “Okay. That sounds nice, actually.”
“Do you like orchids? I have a whole garden full of them.”
The two of them exchange polite chit chat as they exit the room. Once they leave, the real work begins.
“How much does the girl know?” Catherina asks me sharply.
“Enough,” I answer. “Your secret’s as safe as you want it to be.”
“I don’t like this,” the mother grumbles. “The authorities can never be trusted. What’s to stop her from turning us all in?”
Irritation licks at the nape of my neck. “If I wanted you all in handcuffs, it would have happened by now,” I snap. “Luckily for you, that’s not why I’m here. All I want is to retrieve Luka, safe and sound.”
“And we’re supposed to take you at your word? How foolish do you think we are? You have no reason to help us.”
I cross my arms over my chest. “Look, I’m not exactly pleased to be working with a bunch of criminals, but the way I see it, I’m in deep. There’s no going back now. If the FBI thinks I’m emotionally compromised, it’ll only get me in trouble. I’d be screwed if I revealed the truth to them, so I can guarantee I won’t be turning to them for help any time soon. We rescue Luka, end of story. I solemnly swear I won’t have you all arrested the moment the job is done, as long as you keep my little sister safe.”
Mikhail nods. “You have our word.”
“Then you have mine.”
“What’s our plan of action here?” Pyotr asks, getting straight to the point. “Has the FBI discovered anything useful?”
“From what I understand, all evidence of the bunker has been destroyed. We were deep within the national park. I have a feeling the Canadian authorities won’t be able to find anything. My best guess is they’ve already moved Luka to a secondary location, somewhere remote and out of sight. You’ve been monitoring your accounts, yes?”
Dimitri nods. “We’re still seeing a steady withdrawal rate. Luka’s dangling them along. He could easily drain our funds all at once, but I’m sure he’s come up with a clever excuse about red flags or what have you.”
