Ilya’s eyes sparkle as if the ice in them is melting. “Yours, and now your sisters, moya lyubov.”My love.“I’ll see you very soon.” He ends the call.
“Can I have her number?” I ask, looking longingly at his phone as he slips it back into his pocket. “You said if Jason left town, I’d get an extra call.”
Ilya gestures for me to sit at the table. We take up the same positions as last night. “I don’t want you tiring Blake out, but I’m a man of my word. You can speak to her again, but we’ve yet to establish if that particular conversation will be to say goodbye, or for her to welcome you into our little family. Your next decision is going to be an important one.”
“What decision?”
“Whether you choose to complete my next task or not.”
I wait for him to say more, which of course, he doesn’t. It’s like he wants me to beg him for the chance to do his bidding. “What is it?”
“All in good time,” he says softly. “You’ve had an eventful day, and you’re looking tired. I wouldn’t want to overstimulate you.”
The way he says ‘overstimulate’ gives me the creeps. “For pity’s sake, Ilya. Just tell me.”
“I wish that were possible,” he says with a smile that contradicts his contrived remorse. Leaving me to slowly unravel is exactly what he wants, and my impatience only enhances his pleasure. “But I need to test your loyalty just a little further before I issue my instructions.”
I want to scream, but instead I take a long draw from mywater bottle. I need a moment to process my conversation with Blake. She’s alive. After all these months of worry, my worst fears haven’t been realized. Isn’t that more than I could have hoped for? I know I said I’d do anything to keep her in my life, but there are lines I can’t allow myself to cross. I don’t have to become Ilya’s mindless puppet.
I swipe my mouth with the back of my hand. “You’re right, I am tired. I’m tired of this game. I’m not sure it’s for me.”
Ilya doesn’t look the least bit perturbed. “You need a period of adjustment. I understand,” he says. “Which is why you’re going to take a sabbatical.”
I cock my head. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
His blue eyes flicker with shards of ice. “Leave.”
“I’m sorry?”
Ilya stands up, marking the end of the discussion. “Hand in your resignation and leave. I’ll give you two days to make the necessary arrangements. It’s more than Jason had. I’d say it’s quite generous.”
“But if I go…” I shake my head. There’s a part of me, a very large part, that wants to get up and walk out, but I don’t understand why Ilya would want the same. “Why the hell did you want Jason fired if you were just going to get rid of me too?”
Ilya strolls towards the door that leads back through the house. “Because, my dear Quinn, it was fun to watch, and I’ve decided your purpose is best served elsewhere.” He looks back over his shoulder, and the fucker smirks. “I’m sure you didn’t get nearly enough time with Reid this morning. Go enjoy yourself. I’ll be in touch.”
I was right to panic earlier in the woods. I’d tried to block the world out and concentrate only on Reid’s arms around me, but I couldn’t shake the fear that a high-powered zoom lens was trained on us, waiting for our next sex show to start.
I clench my hands into fists and shake with fury as I stare at Ilya’s retreating form. A raging fire burns in my belly and I’d spew flames from my mouth if I could. I want to destroy him and everything he stands for. And I will. He’s going to regret ever thinking he could recruit me.
Chapter 19
Reid
Ishould have been able to rest easier once I knew Ilya had left, but I haven’t heard from Quinn in two days. And thanks to the Poulton Springs’ grapevine, I now know why she’d been so agitated and upset the other morning.
"He’s in that one,” Jake says, tipping his head to the door at the furthest end of the motel block. The place is a hundred miles north of Poulton Springs and looks like it’s stuck in the fifties. “I’ll go in first to make sure it’s clear.”
“No, I’ll do it,” I insist, sliding my cell into a pocket in my black combat pants and taking the Glock from my holster. The significance isn’t lost on me that it’s the same gun Quinn used to shoot out my tire. What is it about that woman that has me dropping my defenses like a lovesick teen?
“Reid, your brothers would never forgive me if I let anything happen to you.”
“I’m done hiding behind their shirttails,” I mutter as I stride ahead. “And the guy’s a gardener. What’s he going to do? Threaten to prune me?”
“Don’t underestimate your mark,” Jake says through gritted teeth. “There’s always the chance he’s armed.”
“Then I’ll shoot him,” I reply coldly as I glance through the window of Jason’s room.
The gap in the tattered blinds offers a glimpse of a man sprawled on the bed, back against the headboard and a controller in his hands. He’s wearing headphones and he doesn’t immediately react when I shoot the lock and step inside. I’m aiming at his head when his widening eyes meet mine.
