Sergei:He’s dead. When we arrived at the meeting location, we found him on the ground with his throat cut.
CHAPTER14
Alexei
The morning meetings go well, and we’re all in good spirits when we head to the dining room. My brother’s wife comes down with his little daughter, and the three of them sit at a small table near the windows. Callahan and I stand together, and Trick waves us over to have lunch with him and McCann.
I think about Natalia alone in the hotel room. She’s the one I really want to have lunch with, but it doesn’t seem the right time to have her come down since Zoe and Laurelyn haven’t.
I have the lobster tail for lunch and order the same to be sent up to the room for her. As soon as I’ve eaten and put my time in, I excuse myself. I want to see Natalia for a few minutes before the next round of meetings.
Upstairs though, the untouched lunch tray is resting on the table, and our room’s empty.
Fuck.
She bolted.
I should not have left her alone all morning after that punishment.
The room’s been cleaned by the maid, but when I check, I find that Natalia’s clothes and luggage are still in the closet. She’d never take off without them.
Her purse is gone, and, looking around, I can’t find her phone.
Scowling, I send her a text message.
When I don’t get a response in return, I call to see whether it’s activated. The call goes directly to voicemail, so I know her phone’s operational again.
“Natalia, it’s Alexei.” After a beat, I ask her in Russian where she is and tell her to call me back.
After ending the call, I go back downstairs. I’ve still got the keys for the car in my pocket, so even if she could drive, which I doubt, she couldn’t have taken it. Still, I go out to the parking lot to check. My car is still there.
I notice though that the tight formation of C Crue cars has changed. There’s a Range Rover missing. One of the crue member bodyguards is standing watch not too far from the cars, so I walk over to him.
“There’s a truck missing. Who went out?”
He doesn’t answer.
“McCann, Patrick, and Stroviak are still inside. So is Stroviak’s wife. Who went out? Patrick’s wife? Or McCann’s fiancée?”
“Talk to the boss,” he says.
“Which one?”
“C’s the boss.”
“Did another girl go with whoever left? She’s about five-eight with blue eyes and light brown hair. Her name is Natalia.”
He stands at attention with a neutral expression. “For information, talk to C McCann.”
Useless, I think with a frown.
I head back inside and find our group standing outside the room where we’ve been having our meetings. My brother’s not with McCann, Patrick, and Callahan, but I think I might get farther with him, so I go back into the dining room. He’s still there, feeding fruit to his daughter and talking with his wife.
I approach them and say I’m looking for Natalia. “She’s not upstairs in our hotel room.”
The two of them exchange looks, and Rachel says, “I don’t know if Natalia’s with her, but Zoe went to some antique shops in town.”
“Will you text and find out?”
