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The cooler door swung open after a moment. “—time to kill her is now. The Dom won’t know it’s us, and we can cash out.”
“She’s not fucking here,” the other snarled as they passed me by again. This time, I shifted just enough to see over the boxes. I watched through the metal grates of the kitchen as they strode back toward the cook’s line and paused by the chef. “Have you seen Gilroy?” one man asked.
I winced, wishing that Chef would have given me a little more attention when I’d been talking to him. Did he hear the unease in my tone when I asked about these men, or would he admit that I’d just been here?
Chef looked around the kitchen. He briefly met my eyes through the grate, and I shook my head. The glance wasn’t long enough to draw the attention of the other men.
He met their eyes and nodded. “Yeah, she wasn’t feeling well. She just told me that she has someone picking her up out back. She just left a couple of minutes ago. You might be able to catch her.”
If I hadn’t been standing here and listening to him lie through his teeth, I might have believed him. He was convincing enough that they both turned and bolted through the back door. When the door slammed, I stood on shaking limbs and strode back toward the bar. Chef stopped me. “Are you okay, Ciara? Who were those men?”
I only shook my head and continued walking. I could feel the chef’s eyes on me until the door slammed closed behind me, and my chest tightened uncomfortably as I considered what could have happened. This had been why Viktor had been so adamant about my quitting my job, and I had ignored him. I’d thought he was paranoid, but if I hadn’t gone pee when I did, I could have been killed.
I couldn’t let that happen. Not when Sean depended on me. I was his only parent, and if something happened to me, he’d have nobody.
That thought only deepened the ache in my chest.
“Are you okay?” Andrei asked as I rounded the back of the bar and grabbed my things.
I glanced around one time before nodding. I loved this job, and leaving it was the last thing I wanted to do, but I had no choice. Viktor had been right. People knew where I lived, and they knew that they could target me here. The thought made me sick, but there was little that could be done.
“Ciara,” Andrei pushed.
“We need to leave,” I told him, shooting my panicked gaze in his direction.
He didn’t question me further as he stood and strode toward the opening that led to behind the bar. I met him there, and he placed a palm on my lower back and guided me out the door. I’d call my boss later and tell him that I felt too threatened at work to stay, and hopefully, he would understand. It didn’t matter either way, though. I didn’t know when it would be safe for me to return.
I didn’t know if it ever would.
The only thought that continued running through my mind was Sean. If something happened to me, what would happen to my boy? He had no other family and nobody to call his if I were to pass, and I didn’t even want to consider the path in life he’d decide to take to avenge my death. If there was one thing he got from his father, it was an undiluted urge to protect.
There was only one alternative. I could do only one thing to guarantee he’d always have a place to go, and I knew it was a risk. It was bold and could have horrible consequences, but it was theonlyoption.
“Are you going to explain what happened?” Andrei asked, “Or would you rather wait and tell Viktor when we get home?”
Home.Would it be my home after I tell him the truth—that I’d been hiding his child from him for years? What I feared most was him throwing both of us to the curb for my betrayal, but I wasn’t convinced that’s what he’d do. He said he wouldn’t let me go, and I was beginning to believe him.
“I’ll talk to him about it,” I told Andrei, and he nodded patiently, turning down the long stretch that would lead to Brighton Beach.
I had a lot to discuss with him, and I hoped it wouldn’t end horribly.
Chapter Nine
Viktor Nikolaev
I had three lieutenants and a few trusted advisors in the office where I tried to contain all my work dealings. The view overlooked the private beach that I owned, and I ground my teeth as the conversations continued taking a turn for the worst.
All I wanted was a temporary alliance with the Irish mob—a meeting with the boss to discuss his goal of killing Ciara. I would have offered him a million dollars to call off the hit. I could have guaranteed several rewards, but the fucker wouldn’t take my call, and I was growing impatient.
Every day, I risked losing Ciara, and every day, I wanted to bash the mobster’s head through the wall and demand he takes back the reward for her execution. But he didn’t seem to care that he had a hit out on my wife, and I knew I’d have to act irrationally to convince him it was a poor idea.
Unexpectedly, Andrei strode into my office, and Ciara followed behind him. Her typically sunny demeanor had shifted into a morose one that clouded all my thoughts. I watched as she stared at the floor and approached me, biting her lower lip as if trying to contain her words.
“What happened?” I demanded, looking toward Andrei.
He shook his head, indicating that he had no idea, and I immediately regretted allowing her to go to work this afternoon. I knew the danger, but I’d allowed her to convince me otherwise with her sex appeal. It had been a stupid miscalculation.
“It doesn’t matter. I’m not going back,” she said in a soft tone. “But I do have something I need to discuss with you.”
