“I need to get into the computer system before the auction,” she says.
“The office is on the lower deck. Two guards, rotating shifts, keypad entry.”
“Then we need a diversion—”
“No diversion.” I catch her chin when she tries to argue. “A diversion draws security. You go in silent.”
She blinks, surprised I’m letting her do this. “The keypad code—”
“Is 7-4-9-2. And the guard rotation isn’t fifteen minutes, it’s twelve. I bought the shift commander an hour ago.” I hold hergaze, watching the fury in her eyes battle with respect. “You know the formula, Anya. I know the violence. You handle the computer, I handle the path. You don’t move until I give the signal. Understood?”
“You’ve already planned this.”
“I didn’t bring you here to die, Anya. I brought you here to win. The shift commander is bought. The path is clear. Do your job.”
She stares at me for a long moment. Then something softens in her expression, just a fraction, just enough to tell me she’s accepting that I’m not just her husband or her protector but her partner in whatever bloody work needs doing.
“What about the server backups?” she asks. “If I change the formula on the main system, but they have copies stored somewhere else—”
“Luka’s handling the server room. By the time you’re done with the computer, there won’t be a single intact copy of your formula anywhere on this yacht.”
“And Vadim’s personal files?”
“I have a separate plan for those. You focus on the formula. I focus on getting us both off this yacht alive.”
The string quartet starts up again. A waltz, something Russian and mournful that fits the occasion better than they could possibly know.
I pull Anya into my arms and lead her onto the dance floor. Vadim thinks he’s the Pakhan, but he’s forgotten that a king who eats his own wolves eventually gets bitten.
Tonight, we bite back.
“When I’m inside the office,” Anya says against my shoulder, “don’t come looking for me. If I’m not out in ten minutes, assume I’m compromised and get yourself to the helicopter.”
“Absolutely fucking not.”
“Roman—”
“I said no.” I pull her closer, tighter, until there’s no space between us and she can feel exactly how serious I am. “If something goes wrong, I’m coming for you. Every guard between me and that office dies. Every lock gets blown off its hinges. You don’t get to tell me to leave you behind, Anya. That’s not how this works.”
“How does it work, then?”
“Together.” The word comes out rougher than I intended. “We do this together, or we don’t do it at all.”
She’s quiet for a long moment.
“If you get yourself killed being heroic, I’m going to be fucking furious.”
“Noted.”
My phone buzzes.
Luka.Guards rotating in 7 min. Window opens at 23:45. Shift commander confirmed.
I show Anya the screen.
She nods once, decisive. Her eyes find mine with sapphires catching light at her throat and fury banked to embers that will reignite the moment we walk into that office.
“Seven minutes.” Her eyes are cold. “Let’s put on a show.”
