CHAPTER ONE: VLADIMIR
After checking into my hotel room, I still have time before my death. Taking out my phone, I call my second-in-command, Dominic, who is with my father, Maxim Zoloth. Maxim is a mid-level member of the Bratva. His territory covers the southern region of the United States. He isn’t content with his lot, so he’s taking steps to increase his power. One of those steps involves shipping several unique automobiles from the US to Russia as a gift to the Bratva Kingmaker, Alexandr Stepanov.
“Any changes?” I ask Dom.
“No. He’s on board the Roman Rule and set to sail in two hours. He’s checked the cargo and seems satisfied with the accommodations,” Dom replies. “Everything ready on your end?”
“Yeah, Dixie should be here soon to kill me,” I reply.
“You sure you can trust this guy? He could kill you for real instead of just setting up a fake assassination.”
“He’s in love with my mother, and my brother, Hex, trusts him completely,” I reply. “Not saying this couldn’t be a setup, but I don’t think it is. Hex and his club have had other opportunities to kill me. Neither Hex nor Dixie would risk Delphine’s wrath by killing her long-lost son. I’ll be fine. Stop fretting.” I chuckle at Dom’s disgruntled grumble. “The team’smeeting with Hex and the other Demon Dawgs about now, then they’ll meet me at the yacht. Our guest is on his way to the yacht.”
“This is a good plan,” Dominic says. “If you can pull it off.”
“Thanks,” I say wryly. “Call me if anything changes on your end. I’ll call when I’m on my way to the yacht.”
Ending the call, I move toward the window and stare into the French Quarter. This is the section of New Orleans where my mother, Delphine, plied her trade as a fortune teller. Seeing as she has a genuine gift of sight, she could have fame and fortune, but she uses her gift to help others make the right choices for themselves. I’ve met a few of her customers, and every one of them sings her praises. Having finally met her after almost two decades apart, I can see how she enthralled them. Finally, getting to know my mother has me despising my father more than I did before. He stole me away from the hospital while my twin brother and mother were still under care. The predetermined knock on the door has me shaking the past off my shoulders and facing the future.
“Let’s get everything set up,” Dixie says, putting the duffel bag he’s carrying on the bed. “You know how to get out of here?”
I relate the path through the back door of the hotel. Once Dixie ‘kills’ me, I’ll need to remain invisible, not only to protect Dixie from repercussions, but because I need the anonymity of death to achieve my plans. Dixie methodically prepares my makeup and sets the stage for my death. After he takes the photo that will provide the proof of my murder, I get cleaned up and change into casual clothes. A pair of jeans, tennis shoes, and a hoodie replace my $4,000 suit and $8,000 loafers. I shave my beard off, mess up my hair, and put on a baseball cap. None of my acquaintances would give me a second look. The disguise is simple, but I only need to keep from being recognized until afterI board my yacht. Once I reach Russia, I’ll no longer need the anonymity.
I exit the bathroom to find Dixie has cleaned up the room. He shows me the image of my dead body. “Shit, that’s an image I never want to see again,” I say before handing him back his phone. He’ll send the image to Sigil, the organization that orchestrates a lucrative assassination-for-hire business out of Ireland. Dixie, my mother’s lover and brother’s closest friend, is one of their top assassins. Dixie had one of his MC brothers add the embedded code to the image so they can trace who receives the confirmation Sigil sends.
As we head to the door, Dixie’s phone buzzes. I can see Hex on the display as Dixie accepts the call. I pause at the door because Hex and the rest of the Demon Dawgs were supposed to be infiltrating a building containing several women. Worried that something went wrong, I reach for my phone to call the man I lent to Hex. However, before I can place the call, my phone buzzes with an incoming call. I hear Dixie update Hex, but seeing Dominic’s name on the screen raises my concern. He wouldn’t be calling me unless something changed on his end.
At first, I think he’s butt-dialed me, but then I can hear Delphine’s voice coming over the line. I glance at Dixie but say nothing. I don’t want anyone else on the other end of the line hearing our voices through Dom’s phone and blowing his cover. However, the sound of a gunshot has me biting my tongue to keep from shouting for an update. Dom’s voice comes over the line, and I know he’s waiting for my orders.
“Do what you can to get them off the ship. We’re on our way,” I tell him before ending the call and turning to Dixie. “I have a guy on the inside who is close to my father, Maxim. He confirmed Maxim has Delphine, Sasha, and Shayna on a ship headed to Russia. We need to get over there and get them offthat ship before it sails.” My bastard of a father has my mother and my half-sisters.
“You’re taking a risk,” he reminds me. “If someone sees you…”
“No one will see me who shouldn’t,” I say. “Besides, this may work out better than my original plan.”
We rush out of the hotel, and I jump into my car. Dixie follows on his motorcycle. As I lead the way to the pier, I call Ben, the head of my extraction team.
“Ben. Change of plans. Grab our guest and get to the Roman Rule,” I instruct him before ending the call and focusing on the road. Too many minutes later, we’re pulling up near the ship. I slide out of the car just as Dixie catches up to me.
“Should we wait for the others?” Dixie asks, but before I can respond, we hear and then see four Harleys and three SUVs arrive.
“What’s the plan?” Dixie asks.
“I’ll go on board and get the women,” I answer. “If he sees anyone else, he may kill them and the women before we can rescue them.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be dead?” Hex asks. “Why did Dixie go through with faking your murder if you’re just going to expose the lie a few minutes later? I thought you needed to drop out of sight?”
Before I can respond, one of Hex’s men points toward the ship. Turning, I see Dom, along with five women, my mother, and my half-sisters, Shayna and Sasha, along with Hex’s woman, Cleo. While Hex’s men attend to the women, we argue over who will eliminate Maxim. “I’ll do it,” I say. Killing Maxim has been on my to-do list ever since I realized he was using me to torture my mother.
“I can’t believe I have to keep reminding you, but you’re supposed to be dead,” Hex says. “If the person who hired the hitdiscovers you’re still alive, they’ll contact Sigil. If Sigil finds out Dixie lied, you’ll put him in danger.”
“I’ll need to tell them eventually, but I’d rather do it in person. But if they discover I faked your death, they won’t wait for an explanation,” Dixie says.
“Maxim ordered the hit,” Delphine says. We all turn to look at her. She nods quickly. “He admitted it to me. Showed me the image of you lying dead on the floor. Even though I knew it was fake, it was hard to see. He knew you helped us escape before and considers you a traitor.”
“Good. I’ll take care of Maxim, so he can’t contact Sigil. I’ll remain on the ship and out of sight so no one will discover I’m still alive. Will you have enough time to straighten things out with Sigil before we dock in Russia?”
“Yeah, I should have enough time,” Dixie says.
