AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He was sitting in one of my favorite spots in the garden, the bottle of vodka he’d brought from Moscow on the arm of the chair, a currently empty shot glass on the table in front of him. Based on the level of the liquid in the bottle, he’d already had a few, but he was a man who could hold his alcohol, just like I was.
I cleared my throat as I stepped into the seating area, so he wouldn’t think I was sneaking up on him. He turned and scowled at me but made no new move to attack, so I sat in a chair just out of arm’s reach.
“You did promise me some of that,” I said, pointing to the bottle.
Oleg grumbled but reached beside him, pulled out another shot glass, begrudgingly filled it, and then handed it to me.
“I see you brought two glasses with you,” I said.
My old friend, possibly my new enemy, shrugged. “Leo told me you made Evelina cry.”
“I’m pretty sure it was you who did that,” I retorted.
His eyes narrowed at me, and he refilled his glass, drained it, then shook his head. So, no answer to that?
I swallowed the fine Russian vodka and broke the silence. “I admire and respect Evelina. She’s a grown woman now, who wants to make her own choices,” I said since I couldn’t exactly tell him she’d practically thrown herself at me.
He took a deep breath and clenched his fists but didn’t swing at me again. He was still glaring, though. “She thinks she loves you, and now her heart will be broken.”
“Does it have to be?” I asked, not sure I dared to hope but in a bad enough place to press my luck.
Oleg reached for my glass and refilled it. “Ah, but you said you only admire and respect her.”
“God damn it, Oleg.” I knocked back the vodka and returned his glare with one of my own. “Of course, I love her. It’s probably insane, but there it is. I’ve never felt this way. Surely, I don’t have to list all her good qualities—”
“No, you don’t.” He slammed his hand on the arm of the chair. “Of course, I know how amazing my daughter is.”
“What happens if I choose a life with Evelina?” I asked, throwing all my cards on the table, so to speak. “If she chooses a life with me,” I added.
There was an interminable pause while he stared out at the palms. “You risk death if you hurt her,” he said. “But I’d say that to anyone, even someone I deemed more suitable for her.”
“She seems to think I’m plenty suitable for her.” If he didn’t kill me for that, I’d probably live through the night, at least.
He only sighed and kept staring straight ahead. I had nothing more to say for the moment, and the only sounds were the swish of the breeze in the palm fronds and the never-ending chorus of frogs and cicadas out in the swamp. Then his phone pinged. And pinged again, repeatedly.
He picked it up and read the messages, chuckling. “I’ve just had a lot of money mysteriously show up in several of my accounts. Looks like Evelina’s gotten into Novikoff’s bank. He’ll be dry by morning and never know what hit him.” He looked up and laughed ruefully. “That’s how the kids destroy each other these days. Not with guns but a bunch of gibberish on a screen that I’ll never understand.”
“You’re not that old, Oleg.” I was proud of Evelina and wished I could congratulate her properly.
“You just say that because you’re a lot closer to my age than Evelina’s,” he said.
“Ouch,” I answered.
“Hurt as bad as your face?”
“Almost,” I admitted.
We lapsed into a companionable silence, sipping the vodka and listening to the sounds of the Everglades. After a few more glasses, Oleg got up to go to sleep, remaining silent as he left the garden. We were at an impasse. No blessing, but no more threats, either.
I sat alone a good while longer, not wanting to face an empty bed when I’d grown used to having Evelina in it.
Chapter 27 - Evelina
Leo and I watched the last of the Novikoff’s offshore accounts transfer to our father’s anonymous Cayman Islands account, where I’d disperse it so the Russian government wouldn’t look too closely at the insane amount of money pouring in.
We’d been wreaking havoc most of the night, and it helped keep my mind off my father acting like a caveman or Mikhail just walking away like he did.
After we cracked into several members of the upper echelon’s phones, we faked dozens of conflicting messages, sowing distrust, sending them scurrying all over New York and generally causing mayhem within their organization. The final nail in their coffin was anonymously sending a massive packet of information to the NYC police that would shut down at least a few of their businesses.
