Or never.
Ivo couldn’t leave the VIP lounge fast enough. He wanted out of there. The air had suddenly become thick and cloying. “Can we go now?” Ivo asked Vitki. “It’s kind of stuffy in here.”
Vitki frowned as he looked at Ivo. “Yes, of course. Fresh air will do you good.”
Ivo wasn’t sure stepping outside the airport would give him the fresh air he seemed to need. They were in the city, after all. In his experience—and he had grown up in New York City—the air quality was an issue.
A man in an airport uniform was waiting for them with their luggage when they exited the lounge. Ivo stopped to grab them, only to come up short when Vitki gripped his arm.
“The porter will get the bags, Ivo.”
“Oh.” Ivo coughed to hide his embarrassment. He wondered if he would ever get used to all of these new rules.
“You no longer carry your own bags, Ivo,” Vitki explained as they walked through the airport. “You have people to do that for you.”
“Yeah, but…” Ivo was perfectly capable of carrying his own bags. He’d been taking care of himself for years.
“When we reach the car, I will tip your porter. The money I give him will allow him to feed his family for a week. You wouldn’t want to take that away from him, would you?”
Ivo felt like shit. “No, of course not.”
“Not to worry, you’ll get used to it.”
Ivo seriously doubted it.
“Where’s Max?” The entire reason Ivo had come to Prague was to return Max to his family estate. It would make sense to actually know where the man’s body was.
“He’s being loaded into a car at the airplane. It will go directly to the family estate. We will meet it there.”
“Okay.” Ivo drew in a breath to try and calm himself. Before it could take effect, he heard a series of loud popping noises. Ivo cried out when he was thrown to the concrete, Vitki’s body coming down hard on top of him. The man had to weigh a ton.
When it grew dark, Ivo glanced up. He was surprised to find his four bodyguards surrounding him and Vitki, their guns drawn. The men didn’t duck or anything. They just stood there on guard.
They obviously needed raises.
“Vitki?” He knew there was a desperate tone to his voice when the man patted him on the back.
“I’ll protect you, Ivo. You’re safe.”
From what?
“What’s going on?”
“I would suspect word has gotten out that you have arrived.”
“And?” Ivo couldn’t understand how that would induce someone to shoot at him.
“Some may want to prevent you from reaching the estate.”
Ivo mulled that over in his mind. Any way he turned it, it didn’t sound right. “Why would someone have an issue with me returning Max to where he was born?”
“That is better discussed once we reach the estate.”
Assuming they reached the estate. Ivo wasn’t sure they would make it, not if someone was shooting at them. The knotted ball returned to Ivo’s stomach as he wondered if his life would always be like this now that he was rich. Before he met with the lawyer, Ivo’s life hadn’t been stellar, but at least he hadn’t worried about a bullet hitting its mark.
When Vitki climbed off of Ivo and pulled him to his feet, Ivo couldn’t keep from shaking as a freezing-cold shiver slid up his back. He could see the bullet holes in the round concrete pillars behind them. Knowing he had come so close to dying made his stomach churn.
“Come, Ivo.” Vitki pulled on his arm. “We must go.”
