Gedeon agreed with her. “Then we do this the way we always have, Lotus. We treat him as a hostile enemy. His leopard will dismiss yours and rage over mine. Slip inside and set up to take him out. I’ll keep his attention focused on me. Hopefully this interview will be legitimate, and we won’t have to go after every one of his cousins. He has the kind of family that if you kill one of them, they don’t stop coming after you until you’re dead.”
“If we kill him, Gedeon, we’ll have to go after the others immediately and then disappear.”
That was Meiling. Practical. With him. She didn’t like their lifestyle, especially if it involved killing, but she would stand with him.
“Self-preservation, baby. Let’s hope Drake Donovan is a good judge of character.”
There was no sense in putting off the meeting once they decided to go. Gedeon entered the room first, careful when he pushed the door open that the heavy frame partially blocked the opening. As he did, his large body filling the entrance, Meiling slipped inside behind him, moving along the wall. The moment Gedeon opened the door, Slayer reacted, snarling and clawing, despite Meiling and Whisper, his mate, being close.
Across the room, Gorya sat behind a desk, rolling a bullet between his fingers, a gun in front of him. He glanced at Meiling, and then his gaze fixed on Gedeon. Gorya’s leopard had to have reacted to the aggression in Gedeon’s leopard, yet the man didn’t so much as blink. That was a huge red flag to Gedeon.
Gedeon stopped close to the door, keeping Slayer under control when the leopard fought him for supremacy, clearly feeling a threat to Gedeon and Meiling.
“Gorya,” Gedeon opened the conversation. “You came without any backup. Do you think that wise?”
“The things I have to say to you require complete privacy. I did my research. You will keep what is said confidential whether you take the job or not.”
Gorya was soft-spoken. His voice mesmerizing. Gedeon had to resist glancing at Meiling to see her reaction. The quality in that voice edged on compelling. A gift.
Gorya turned his attention once again to Meiling. “We haven’t met officially, Meiling. I’m Gorya Amurov. I hope I didn’t offend you when I first asked Drake to speak with your husband about working for me. I knew the two of you were partners. It wasn’t that I didn’t know how competent you are; I do my research very thoroughly.”
Gedeon found that low voice so compelling it was impossible not to focus on it. Instinctively, he knew that leopards could inch closer without listeners being aware. That voice, although low, was powerful, embedding the need to hear every word. It was an amazing weapon.
“Knowing that we work together and that you were risking offending me, why would you have Drake only approach my husband?” Meiling asked.
Gedeon wanted to smile. Those long lashes of hers fanned her cheeks, making her look so innocent and demure, not at all calculating and brilliant as he knew her to be. She wasn’t getting trapped in Gorya’s voice.
“You are very, very good at what you do, Meiling. You won’t hesitate to kill if necessary, but unlike Gedeon, it weighs on you. I didn’t want to put you in that position.”
He spun the bullet over and over between his fingers when he turned his gaze back to Gedeon. “I saw you in San Antonio at Evangeline’s bakery the night Elijah Lospostos came with his men to speak with you. One of his trainees put a gun to Meiling’s head as she was going out the door. I happened to be watching you. Everyone elsewas talking together, but I had my eyes on you. I saw you signal her to leave.”
He glanced again at Meiling, the faintest of smiles on his face. The charm showed through, but Gedeon noted there was no smile in his eyes.
“She disappears easily into the shadows. No one saw her until she had to go through the doorway. I kept watching you and I saw you move. The speed and your ability to leap over the men in that room were incredible. Later, my cousins discussed it, but because it didn’t seem possible, they eventually dismissed the idea that you really were able to leap that far and fast. They convinced themselves that you were closer than you had been.”
Gedeon remained silent. Waiting. Giving nothing away. Gorya hadn’t dismissed what he saw, that much was clear. The bullet between his fingers continued to spin. Gedeon was certain the man hadn’t blinked once.
“I need someone fast. I need someone who won’t hesitate to kill. And I need his leopard to be experienced and ferocious in a fight. He must be able to shift fast and kill faster.”
Gedeon kept his gaze steady on Gorya’s. “Drake told me many of the problems with this particular territory.”
Gorya shook his head slowly. “I haven’t explained myself. I do need you for help there as well, but your main purpose will be to kill me when the time comes—and it will come.”
That was the last thing Gedeon expected him to say. Those eyes didn’t move from his, assessing how he took the request.
“Perhaps you could sit down and we can discuss this,” Gorya invited.
He is very sincere,Meiling said.He means exactly what he says. Whisper also cannot detect deceit. He is being very honest. He wants a commitment from you.
Slayer agrees with you and Whisper.
“Gorya, why would you ask this of me?”
“Because I believe you are the only man who has a chance of killing me.”
Again, Gedeon heard only the truth.
“When the time comes, I hope I won’t be so far gone that I couldn’t spare you.” Gorya held up the bullet. “I’ve found the idea of killing my leopard nearly impossible. Every time I’ve tried, I’ve been unable to go through with it. I thought that by taking on this territory it would help relieve some of the pressure on us, but it made it so much worse.”
