"In position, Pakhan." Boris's voice is steady, professional. He's my best marksman, a former Spetsnaz operator who can put a bullet through a keyhole at five hundred meters. "I have eyes on the target. Multiple hostiles visible through the windows. No sign of the girl yet."
Katya. Alina's sixteen-year-old sister who wants to study art and travel the world. If Viktor has hurt her, if he's used her as baitand then discarded her, I'll make him suffer in ways that will redefine the meaning of pain.
Through the binoculars, I watch Alina walk toward the factory entrance. Her steps are measured, confident, but I can see the slight tremor in her hands. She's terrified. Of course she is. She's walking into her father's trap with nothing but a wire and a prayer.
The wire. I touch the receiver clipped to my tactical vest, making sure the connection is solid. The tech assured me the range was good, that we'd hear everything. But technology fails. There are equipment malfunctions. And if that wire cuts out, if I lose contact with her, I'll have no way of knowing if she's in danger until it's too late.
My finger hovers over the comm button, ready to call this off, to order my men to storm the factory and extract her by force. But I stop myself. Alina needs to do this. She needs to face her father, to try to save her sister. And I need to let her, even though it's killing me.
She reaches the entrance, and two of Viktor's men step out to meet her. I recognize them from the intelligence photos. Popov soldiers, loyal to Viktor, probably the same ones who helped drug Alina and hand her over to the Kozlovs.
They pat her down, their hands rough and invasive, and I have to close my eyes for a moment to control the fury that threatens to overwhelm me. When I open them again, they're leading her inside.
I lose visual.
My heart pounds against my ribs as I wait for the wire to activate, for Alina's voice to come through the receiver. Seconds stretch into an eternity. Then I hear it.
"Papa." Alina's voice, steady and clear despite the fear I know she's feeling. "I'm here. Where's Katya?"
"Alina." Viktor's voice makes my skin crawl. Smooth and paternal, like he's greeting a beloved daughter instead of the woman he tried to have killed. "I'm glad you came. I wasn't sure you would."
"You didn't give me much choice." There's steel in her voice now. "You're holding my sister hostage."
"Hostage is such an ugly word." I hear footsteps, the echo of voices in a large space. The factory floor, probably. "I prefer to think of it as insurance. Making sure you'd honor your word."
Through the binoculars, I scan the factory windows, looking for any sign of movement. I catch glimpses of figures moving inside, shadows against the dim interior. Too many. Far too many for a simple meeting.
"I'm here now," Alina says. "So let her go. That was the deal."
"The deal was that you'd give me information about Morozov's operations in exchange for your sister's freedom." Viktor's voice hardens slightly. "So let's hear it. What do you have for me?"
I shift position slightly, my muscles tense and ready. This is the critical moment. If Alina can sell the performance, if she can make Viktor believe she's really here to betray me, we might have a chance.
"Dimitri has alliances with three of the neutral families," Alina says, and I'm impressed by how convincing she sounds. “He'sbeen meeting with them secretly, offering them better terms than what you and the Kozlovs proposed."
It's true, actually. Information we fed her specifically for this moment. Nothing that would compromise our actual operations, but enough to sound valuable.
"Interesting." Viktor's voice is thoughtful. "What else?"
"He has a weapons shipment coming in next week. Through the port. Container number 4782, registered to a shell company called Baltic Imports."
Also true. Also something we're prepared to sacrifice if necessary.
"And his weaknesses?" Viktor asks. "What vulnerabilities can we exploit?"
There's a pause, and I can almost see Alina's face, the way she's probably biting her lip, pretending to struggle with the betrayal.
"He cares about me," she says finally, and the words hit me like a physical blow even though I know they're part of the act. "More than he should. More than is smart for a man in his position. If you threaten me, he'll make mistakes. He'll act on emotion instead of strategy."
Viktor laughs, and the sound makes my blood run cold. "I already know that, daughter. Why do you think I arranged this meeting? Dimitri Morozov, the ruthless Pakhan who's survived every challenge to his power, has finally found a weakness. You."
Through the binoculars, I see more movement. Men taking positions around the factory, weapons visible. My count is up to twenty now.
"Alexei," I say quietly into the comm. "How many do you count?"
"At least twenty-five from my position. This is bigger than we anticipated, Pakhan."
Much bigger. Viktor isn't just planning to capture Alina. He's planning to use her as bait to draw me in, then eliminate both of us in one move. It's actually a decent strategy. If I were in his position, I might do the same.
