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Thinking of Eve as goods for sale makes me sick.
Rick gave me the address of the auction location: a small inn upstate. Based on satellite view, it is in a rural area, and based on the website of the Crooked Tree Inn, the rooms are luxurious.
Otherwise, nothing.
No blueprints or layouts—those are mysteriously absent from the file depository of the county’s architectural commission. Not a surprise, really. Men who succeed in businesses like this rarely let such vulnerabilities linger unaddressed. As far as I can tell, I’ll be going in blind, with nothing that could help me plan a good exit strategy should I find myself in a position where Eve and I can make a break for it.
I let my head fall forward on my arms and take a deep breath. I just finished in the gym an hour ago, but I can already feel my anxiety elbowing its way back to the forefront.
I check the time. I have another hour before I need to leave for the inn. I would spend the time packing, but Rick told me not to bother. They won’t allow me to take any luggage inside, anyway. So, I’m about to stand up and head back to the gym for one last run when there is a knock on the door.
“Come in.”
Grigory Kamarov steps inside.
He is my right-hand man, but since Eve disappeared, he has kept his distance. It is what I told him to do. I don’t want to see anyone. Definitely not anyone from the Bratva. Admitting that I’ve lost my family is too shameful. Seeing the faces of men who trusted me makes it even worse. It makes me feel unworthy.
“I’ve been calling you,” Grigory says, folding his hands in front of him. His head is bowed forward, shoulders shrugging inward. He is trying to make himself appear smaller, probably to avoid the rage that has been leaking out of me like water from a cracked glass.
“I haven’t been taking any calls.” I didn’t turn my phone off because I didn’t want to miss a call from Eve, but I avoided calls from known numbers. Even Grigory’s. I knew if he had anything dire to tell me, he’d show up at the house. “Do you have something to tell me?”
“No good news, if that is what you mean,” he says, looking down at the floor. “But the men wanted me to come check on you.”
“Well, you did.” I gesture towards the door. “Thanks.”
On instinct, he moves towards the door to follow my order, but then he stops. “I’m sorry, but I can’t go without asking what the plan is.”
“The plan is my concern.”
Like the commenter on the detective forum said, any attempt to infiltrate the LeClerc operation has to be undercover. The fewer people who know about it, the better my chances are. It’s like the old saying: three men can keep a secret, if two of them are dead. I won’t run the risk of a mole turning me in before I can rescue Eve.
Grigory nods. “I respect that, but we all just want to do what we can to help. We love them too. Eve and Milaya are our family.”
“No, they aren’t,” I snap, standing up, pent-up energy bursting out of me like a bomb. “They aremyfamily.Myresponsibility. Not yours.”
Grigory keeps his eyes on the floor, accepting my rage even though he doesn’t deserve it. “Respectfully, I have to tell you that your family is our family.”
I take a deep breath, calming myself down, and collapse in the chair. I want to thank Grigory. The outburst saved me another trip to the gym. Suddenly, I feel drained. Physically and emotionally. Like my very soul is tired.
“We just need to know that you aren’t going to get yourself killed,” Grigory says. “The men are worried that we are in the dark. We will follow your orders. Whatever you want us to do, we will do. Is there anything you can tell us?”
I think through my plan—what little of it there is—and sigh.
Grigory needs to know.
So I tell him about the Cartel and the auction. I tell him what Rick told me and pull the mask he gave me out of the top drawer.
“I want to do this on my own. Not because I’m proud, but because it is the safest option. We can’t attack the Cartel the way we would a rival family. They are too secretive and there are too many unknowns. So, I’m going in alone. This mask will act as a ticket, and I’ll get inside and try to get Eve out.”
“Are you going to bid on her?” Grigory asks.
“I’m not sure,” I admit. “I will have to get inside and formulate a plan.”
He looks unsure, but he nods. “So what do we do?”
“The auction starts tonight and ends in five days,” I say. I grab a piece of paper and scribble down the address of the inn. “If you don’t hear from me then, get as many men as you can and come to this address. Be ready for a fight.”
Grigory studies the address for a moment like he is memorizing it and then looks up at me. “If we don’t hear from you in five days, we’ll come ready to save the three of you. Or die trying.”
