Page 29 of His Ruthless Queen

“Where is Vladimir?” I ask again.

“I already told you I don’t know,” he says, the fire in his spirit dimming out.

“What’s the price on Saoirse Murphy’s head?” I ask, moving on to the next question.

“There’s no money. We’re just in it to get a piece of her before Vlad takes her for himself.”

Wrong. Fucking. Answer.

I pull the gun from my hip and place it against his knee cap. The sound of the gun firing pierces my ears, flaring up my already shitty bout of tinnitus. Corbin’s covered in as much blood as I am. He rolls his eyes as Usten screams.

“Zatknis’ na khren,” Corbin says.Shut the fuck up.

I pretend I can’t understand the conversation. Though, I am intrigued by how this man—a business major from Harvard—who worked at his father’s luxury designer company, knows fucking Russian. I did some digging on Mr. Governor. He got into politics only recently, with no military background. He has some gap years between CEO for Daddy doing overseas work. Some humanity bullshit that looks good on paper, but really means he did some spy shit.

And now, I know it’s all a cover. Corbin McClellan has dirty fucking secrets.

“Uznayete li vy svoikh posetiteley?” Corbin asks Usten.Do you recognize your visitors?

Usten groans, but forces himself to look up at the two strangers that have yet to be introduced to me. His eyes widen. “Brat i sestre pakhanskiy, Jericho and Yulia Vasiliev.”The pakhan’s brother and sister, Jericho and Yuliya Vasiliev.

Interesting. I force myself not to look at the two, not wanting to give away I know what’s being said in front of me. Callum lights a cigarette while the man steps forward.

Jericho pulls a flask from the inside of his pocket-lined jacket. “Who sent you to take the girl?” he asks, sipping from his flask. He hands it to Corbin who also takes a sip.

“Anton nazyvayet tebya predatelem.”Anton calls you a traitor. Do you think I will tell you his secrets?

Callum looks at me, inquisitive while he puffs his cigarette. He knows I speak Russian, but doesn’t ask for translation, catching on that I’m not sharing that secret.

“Here’s what I think,” Yuliya says in English, though her Russian accent is heavy. She swipes the flask from Corbin and takes a swig.

These three are old friends, I can sense it from the way they are with each other.

“Vlad came to you himself. He lied and said that Anton sanctioned the order. He knows the Boston pakhan is dead, so he wanted to step up. The Murphy girl gives him the alliance he needs to be backed. Anton found out what his son planned without him, and now he wants you dead for going behind his back,” she says between her drinks.

“What? No! I’d never go against the pakhan!” Usten squirms beneath his restraints.

I roll my eyes, pretending to be disinterested. I’m anything but. I’m ready to continue this torture for the marks they left on Saoirse, but I know I need to hold my composure. Especially in front of her boyfriend. Corbin can’t know how much she means to me.

“Another lie, Usten? I thought we were becoming old buddies.” I clap a hand on his shoulder. The other presses against his blown kneecap.

“Anton is angry, Usten,” Jericho says, circling around me and Usten. “He wants blood for the war this has created.” He turns to Callum.

“Posmotri na irlandtsev. Oni sumasshedshiye. YA by tozhe rasstroilsya, yesli by kto-to popytalsya prichinit’ vred moyey sestre,“ Jericho says.Look at the Irish. They’re mad. I would be too if someone tried to hurt my sister.

Corbin comes to the front of Usten. He pulls his own knife from his jacket and slices down Usten’s thigh until he reaches his knee. Usten screams at the pressure. When he’s finished, Corbin says, “How did they get into her home?”

“The guard,” Usten admits. “The guard left the back door unlocked. He was supposed to drug her, but he didn’t get a chance. She was supposed to be passed out when they went in.”

“Do you mean Hugh?” I ask. I shake my fingers out to keep from flipping the table where all of my torture weapons are spread out.

“Yes.”

“So why didn’t you kill him when he failed?” Callum asks.

Usten pants, spitting out more blood before he lifts his head. He glares at Callum. “He was supposed to take her himself when he went back onto her detail.”

“Anton would be so disappointed in how quickly you sang your sins,” Yuliya says, a smirk on her face. She steps forward, obviously upset she hadn’t been as included. Or maybe she’s upset she didn’t get to inflict her pain on him.

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