Pyotr steps past me into the tiny space, and his bulk fills the doorway so completely that I have to flatten myself against the wall to avoid touching him.
This close, I catch his scent—something clean and masculine beneath the faint smell of winter air. No cologne, just soap and skin and something underneath that makes my stomach do things it shouldn’t.
He surveys the room with those assessing eyes, taking in the small bed, the minimal dresser, and the single window overlooking the alley.
“This will be fine,” he says.
“Good.” I step back from the doorway. “Then I’ll leave you to settle in.”
I retreat to my bedroom and close the door, pressing my back against it and breathing through the panic clawing at my throat. My hands are shaking. Mybodyis shaking. I wrap my arms around myself and squeeze until the trembling subsides.
Then, my phone vibrates in my pocket, and it starts all over again.
I pull it out and see the words that make my blood run cold. Blocked number. I don’t even know why he bothers trying to mask it anymore.
I slip into my bathroom and lock the door before answering in a whisper. “Hello?”
“Darling.” Bogdan’s voice is smooth and pleasant, and it sets my heart racing. This is the way it always sounds when he’s about to hurt me. “I hear your houseguest has arrived.”
“How do you know about that?”
“I know everything about you, Daria. I thought you’d learned that by now. Did you really think I wouldn’t find out that Dmitri sent one of his dogs to sniff around? I have eyes everywhere, minus one little camera in Kira’s room, thanks to that stupid mutt.”
I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose. “What do you want, Bogdan?”
“The same thing I’ve always wanted. Cooperation.” His tone hardens beneath the silk. “Your cousin suspects something, and that’s inconvenient for both of us. Especially for you. All those accounts in your name, all that money I’ve moved through your identity over the years. How do you think it will look when Dmitri’s man starts digging?”
“I haven’t done anything wrong.”
“The evidence says otherwise, and evidence is all people like Dmitri care about.” A pause stretches between us, heavy with unspoken threats. “But there’s a way out of this. A way to protect yourself and our daughter.”
“You lost the right to claim her as your daughter when you started using her as a weapon against me.”
He tsks and replies, “Careful, darling. I’m trying to help you.”
“What do you want?”
“Information. Your new roommate works for Dmitri, which means he has access to things I need to know. Government meetings. Business dealings. Strategic plans. Find out what Dmitri is planning and report back to me.”
“You want me to spy on my cousin.”
“If Dmitri decides you’re guilty, you’ll disappear, and Kira will be all mine.” His voice drops to something almost tender, which is worse than his cruelty. “Is that what you want for her? Growing up without a mother, wondering why you abandoned her?”
“I would never abandon her.”
“Then do what I’m asking.” I hear him settle back on the other end of the line, preparing to deliver his final blow. “Bring me something useful about Dmitri’s plans, and do it quickly. If you don’t, Kira will be spending a lot more time with her father. I’m sure the courts will be very interested in your family’s criminal connections when I file for custody.”
The threat lands where he intended. I grab the edge of the sink to keep myself upright so hard that my knuckles go white against the beige porcelain.
“Don’t disappoint me, Daria.”
The call ends, and I stand there in my tiny bathroom, staring at my reflection in the mirror above the sink. The woman looking back at me has fear carved into every line of her face. She looks like someone who’s been running for so long she’s forgotten what it feels like to stand still.
Pyotr is searching for evidence that will get me killed. Bogdan is demanding that I pass along information on Pyotr that could also get me killed.
If I refuse Bogdan, I lose Kira to a man who sees her only as leverage.
If I help Bogdan, I am guilty of everything Dmitri suspects.
