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Some of the tension leaves my shoulders, and I open the door for Damien as he walks up to it. He smiles like we were never on bad terms, opening his arms to me and going for a hug.
If I get shanked, I’m never going to forgive him.
But there aren’t any hidden blades in his coat, no secret knives to spring out and spill my blood across the doorway. It’s just a hug. Maybe I’m still traumatized from the twenty-five years in prison.
“I’m really glad to see you,” Damien says with a warm smile. I feel like this is an act to put Kimberly at ease, but I appreciate it. She was so worried about him coming over. Perhaps more than I was.
“It’s good to see you too. The table is already set, if you’d like something to eat.”
“I wouldn’t mind.”
I take him to the dining room with Kimberly. She’s staring at him like she can’t believe he looks so much like me, like she’s about to have dinner with my clone. It’s a bit funny now that I’m past the jealousy. She’s just so baffled by it.
“Surprised you didn’t bring a date,” I say, testing Damien as he sits down across from me. Kimberly hurries away to get the food. We haven’t hired help around the house yet, but that’s coming. I don’t want her lifting a finger once her pregnancy begins to show. Even now, I feel a bit guilty, but she insists on helping.
Damien smooths down his short beard. “I assumed this was purely a business meeting.”
“Or you couldn’t get a date,” I suggest with a laugh.
He smiles, shaking his head. “I could’ve brought half a dozen dates if I wanted, but we’re here to talk about a cold-blooded killer. Women don’t like hearing about that sort of thing.”
I shrug. “Some of them are awfully obsessed with serial killers.”
“Well, this guy isn’t exactly serial. He’s more interested in you than anyone else. I’m actually surprised he didn’t try to have someone put a hit on you in prison, but maybe he didn’t want it traced back to him. People tend to run their mouths for a chance at a lighter sentence.”
He’s right. The criminal code of conduct vanishes the second someone is looking down the barrel of a life sentence. I’ve seen dozens of inmates fold when offered reduced sentences or pardons.
“So, someone with something to lose,” I reply, leaning across the table toward Damien. “Sounds familiar…”
He laughs. “Oh, brother, you’re so suspicious of me, but that’s alright. I hope I can make things up to you with what I’m about to say. All of this, all the violence and danger, you brought on yourself, but I’m helping you get rid of it. That’s my way of saying I’m sorry.”
I settle back into my seat, folding my arms across my chest and waiting for his explanation.
“Alright, I see you’re not going to let up until I tell you what I know. I feel like this should be obvious, but you were, what,twentywhen you went to jail?”
I nod. “Young and dumb.”
“Dumb enough not to cover your bases, perhaps, but your impact on the Bratva was nothing less than brilliant,” he says with palpable admiration.
I entertain a brief smile before lacing my fingers together on the bone-white tablecloth. “So, who is the motherfucker that thinks they can go against me and survive?”
“It wasn’t hard to find him, honestly, so I don’t think he’s that clever. Just angry at you, and that’s enough to make him act recklessly,” Damien begins. “A man named Leo. Does that ring a bell?”
I think for a moment. It’s a Russian name, but there’s nobody I know who goes by Leo. I’m drawing a blank.
I shake my head. “No, are you sure this is someone I should know.”
“No, I suppose not, since he’s kept himself off the radar his entire life until now. You may have heard about his brother, though… Markov.”
My entire body freezes, and I suddenly realize that my past really has come back to haunt me. The prison sentence that stole half my life wasn’t enough. Markov, the man I killed in cold blood, has a brother named Leo, and Leo is out to make sure I don’t get a second chance at life.
“Bastard,” I mutter, shaking my head. “Some things should be left alone.”
“It’s a long grudge to hold, but if someone were to do the same to me, would you not feel the same?” he asks.
“They’d be doing me a favor,” I reply with a grin.
Damien laughs. “You motherfucker. I always knew you were a piece of shit.”
