“Of course not,” Arseni says. “I just wonder if the ex-fiancée of your enemy is someone you would be able to trust not to betray you to your enemies. When this is over, you will need her loyalty more than any of us.”
“Do you hear yourself? She is hisex. She’s probably the number-one person to want to see him fall. I don’t think I have to worry about her ‘loyalty’.”
Is he talking about Katerina? Gross.Why on earth would my father have sex with Anton’s ex?”
“Besides,” my father says with a leer. “I had to give her something for her trouble. If not for her, I wouldn’t have my second chance at this.”
Of course she was the one who sold me out. If I didn’t see it before, I certainly see why Anton hates her now.
“She won’t betray my confidence,” my father goes on. “Trust me.”
Arseni nods. Then he says, “Well, then, there’s nothing left to do but… what needs to be done.”
My father narrows his eyes at him skeptically. “You don’t have a problem with this, do you? I know you and Natalya grew up together.”
“I don’t have a problem with doing my job,” Arseni says. “I didn’t have a problem taking care of Maksim or with sending Anton a message through hissovietnik.”
“They aren’t your blood,” he says. “I told you long ago that in this world, you trust no one. Not even your family. You do understand that this needs to be done, don’t you?”
He takes a big breath and answers, “I won’t have a problem with slitting your daughter’s throat, sir.”
I have to cover my mouth to keep from gasping. Arseni, under my father’s orders, caused all this?
And that’s what my father meant earlier. He is actually trying to get Anton’s Bratva and Nikolai Novikoff’s Bratva to destroy one another. And whatever Anton thinks about the Amur right now, he’ll have no doubts about anything once he finds me dead, presumably at Novikoff’s hands.
I’d say it was a brilliant plan if I weren’t the linchpin to the whole thing. I’ve got to get out of here. I have to warn Anton.
I creep away from the door, moving as quickly and as silently as I can to the kitchen. Only a few steps around the corner to the sliding doors and hopefully, that much closer to freedom.
As soon as I put my hand on the handle, the kitchen lights come on. Standing at the entrance to the kitchen are my father and Arseni. Shit.
I pull on the handle but it doesn’t give. Locked. My fingers touch the lock and I manage to pull it down, but suddenly, I’m grabbed from behind and lifted off my feet.
“Where are you going, little cousin?” Arseni says in my ear. “We’re not done with you yet.”
“Let me go!” I scream, kicking my legs and digging my nails into his arm, which is tight around my waist. I’m being carried away from the door and my only shot at getting out of this.
“Bring her here.”
He turns me around just as my father grabs one of the knifes from the block by the sink. I fight harder, kicking Arseni. One of my kicks connects with his shin. He yelps and his grip loosens on me. I manage to free myself for a second, but I’m brought back when Arseni grab me by the hair and yanks me back.
He takes the knife from my father and puts it to my neck. “Enough, little lamb,” he says in my ear. “It’s time to do your part for the brotherhood?—”
A loud bang from somewhere outside freezes them both. Gunshots. Lots of them outside. My father points past us to the living room and says, “Get her out of sight.”
I’m dragged away as the bullets break through the glass of the front door…
28
ANTON
The war that I planned to bring to Nikolai’s doorstep, I’m bringing here.
After Mikki left, I called my soldiers. The time has come. We’re launching an attack. None of them questioned my orders or why the location had changed, and that was fine. It wasn’t for them to know. All they needed to do tonight was follow my orders. Especially when I only had one target and everyone understood that Vladimir Petrov was mine.
By the time he got back, we were arming ourselves. Mikki grabbed an AR-15, a handgun, and a Bowie knife. All I needed was my handgun. I was never a big fan of automatic weapons. As we got prepared, Mikki said to me, “When this is all over, I sincerely hope you propose to that woman.”
I smirked at him. “Don’t you think it’s a little soon for marriage? I’ve only known her for a couple of months.”
