Dominic and I exchange a look.
Langley?
So that’s the game.
They shake her hand, quick and efficient.
“You said you had something important and that it was time-sensitive,” Glenn says.
“It is,” Skylar replies, pacing again, energy barely contained. “Things inside the Bratva are accelerating.”
Crow pulls out a small recorder and sets it on a crate. “Start from the beginning.”
Skylar doesn’t hesitate. “Alexi Stepanov was supposed to take over for his father. He disappeared weeks ago.”
“That isn’t new information,” Glenn says mildly.
“No,” Skylar agrees. “What’s new is that the men next in line to replace him are dead.”
That gets their attention.
“All three,” she continues. “Murdered in Pavel Nazarov’s nightclub. Clean executions. Professional.”
Crow leans forward. “That creates a vacuum.”
“Yes,” Skylar says. “And panic.”
I grip the edge of the vent harder than necessary.
She’s feeding them everything.
“And Alexi?” Glenn asks.
Skylar smiles. “Alexi is alive.”
The words hang in the air like a gunshot.
“He was taken out of Russia after his disappearance,” she says. “I know where he is now.”
Dominic goes very still beside me.
“Where?” Crow asks.
“Here,” Skylar replies. “The Grand Hotel. Under the protection of Vladimir Zoloth.”
That would be me.
My jaw tightens.
“He’s wounded,” Skylar continues. “Physically and… ideologically. He doesn’t want the Bratva. Especially not their human trafficking operations.”
Glenn nods slowly. “And his sister?”
Skylar’s expression softens, just enough to sell it. “Anya didn’t know the truth until recently. She’s struggling with it. She’s emotional. Idealistic.”
“Potential leverage,” Crow says.
“Potential asset,” Skylar corrects. “If we work it right.”
