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“He’s the man whokidnappedyou!”
“It’s complicated.”
She rolls her eyes. “Yes, because it’s always complicated when it comes to love.”
“We’re not—”
“Oh,please, Juliet. I saw the whole damn thing.Be safe.You, too. God! That was so romantic I think I’m going to puke.”
“Keep this to yourself for now, Cee. I’m begging you. We’ve… got a lot to work out.”
Charlotte stares at me for a long minute, her expression impossible to read. “Fine, I’ll keep your secret. But on one condition.”
“What?”
She smiled mischievously. “You have to tell meeverything.”
Chapter 29
Andrei
For a man who works in law enforcement, Gregor Ivanovich sure knows how to hide like a criminal.
I’ve scoured every inch of Moscow for even a whisper of the man’s whereabouts. There’s a chance he might have left the city altogether, but my gut tells me he hasn’t. Ivanovich was so determined to see the Bratva shred itself to pieces. Wouldn’t he want to be nearby to watch the madness unfold? He has to be here somewhere; it’s just a matter of narrowing down possible hideouts.
If I were a disgraced detective hellbent on avenging my dead wife and daughter, where would I be?
There has been relative peace on the warfront, a temporary lull I’m taking full advantage of. It was a massive risk trying to get to Sandra, but it was worth it. Getting to see her beautiful face again was all the motivation I needed to keep going. The sooner I find Ivanovich, the sooner we can put all this behind us.
And maybe—just maybe—Sandra and I can turn over a new leaf.
“Anything?” I ask Leo as I pace around the office.
My brother shakes his head. He’s been pouring over his laptop, reaching out to all his street-level contacts. “Not yet.”
“What about you two?” I ask Samuil and Roman.
They both shake their heads. I try not to take my frustration out on my brothers. Without any leads, we’re dead in the water. This entire plot must have been years in the working, so I frankly wouldn’t be surprised if Ivanovich was holed up in a safe house somewhere that only he knows about. From what we can tell, he’s had no contact with any of his colleagues within the police department. At this rate, I’m prepared to burn all of Moscow to the ground just for the chance to smoke him out.
I try to put myself in his shoes. He set himself down this path of revenge after the loss of his wife and child. It’s difficult for me to imagine the pain he’s been in.
His wife and child…
A lightbulb goes off in my head. It’s a longshot, but at this point, I’m willing to give it a shot. I pull out my new burner phone, thumbs flying over the screen.
I might have something.
Sandra’s response is almost immediate.
Talk to me.
The sooner I bring Ivanovich in, the sooner things will go back to normal. As normal as theycanbe. Because the fact of the matter is we’re still enemies. People will expect us to be at each other’s throats, regardless of Ivanovich’s confession. Things between us will go from an all-out freeze to a mild chill.
It’s too dangerous to eventhinkabout the possibility of a future for us. Hope is a self-inflicted weapon. And yet…
It’s getting harder and harder to imagine my life without her. I don’t want to be at each other’s throats all the time. I’m starting to crave the quiet moments, those rare pockets of time where it’s just us. Screw the Bratva, forget this war, and fuck the rest of the world. All I want is a day, a week, a month with Sandra without having to worry about alliances, hostile takeovers, and threats on our lives. Is it useless to pray for something like that? Would she even want it?
I text her.
