“Oh, I know. I just don’t let bullies force me into poor business decisions. Besides, if we get this contract, you’ll find that the Russians will no longer be this city’s problem.”
His ears perk up at that. “Do I have time to think about it?”
“Unfortunately, no. My offer expires in” — I check my watch — “five minutes.”
His nostrils flare, but he focuses back on the papers before him. I did the math myself, meaning he won’t be finding any mistakes. Four minutes pass before he leans back in the chair, letting out a loud sigh.
“Fine. But this is the first and the last time I’ll let you strongarm me into anything.” He wags his finger at me.
I hand him the brand-new contract and a pen, and watch him sign the dotted line.
We shake hands, and the three of us enter the elevator with our shoulders held high. Part one is done.
“That’s it? That’s the end of the plan?” Luka asks as he realizes Dom is parking in my garage. “Sorry, but that was deeply anticlimactic.”
I let out a dry laugh. “Not quite. But there’s no room for your violence in this plan, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“How dull,” he comments, making me chuckle. There’s violence to be done, but it doesn’t belong to him. It doesn’t even belong to me.
I lead him to one of the three prison cells I have here in the building. The only one that is currently occupied. I knew there was a reason not to kill him right away, but it took some time for the plan to crystalize in my mind. The room is dire, with nothing more than a metal desk in one corner, some shelving on the walls and a single chair in the middle of it.
“Luka, meet Robert Welding. He might not look like it now, but he’s actually the deputy chief of the police.” The man’s sunken face is bloodied, his shoulder drooping on the chair he’s tied to. The floor is covered in fluids, making the stench even worse than last time.
Luka lets out a low whistle. “You really lost it after I left.” I know exactly what he means. Kidnapping and torturing high-level police officers isn’t our style. But this had to be done. It was a lucky coincidence that the motherfucker would turn out to be useful in the end.
“Well,Robbiehere is actually the inside man for the Russians, did you know that?” Luka’s eyebrows raise to his forehead. “And he’s going to help us deal with them, aren’t you, Robbie?”
He shakes his head, muted muffles exiting the gag in his mouth.
“Seems like he doesn’t want to help us,” Luka stalks him, coming to stand behind him.
“That’s okay. I wasn’t actually asking.” I check the shelving on the wall behind me. Most of it is filled with different torture devices, knives, hammers, and pliers. But I’m looking for something else. A phone. I spot it on the top shelf. Dominik got strict instructions to charge it, and I’m glad to see it’s fully charged. The screen is cracked but that won’t make a difference for what I had in mind. “Wipe his finger.”
Luka grabs a rag from the desk and starts cleaning his hand. The blood has crusted on his skin, making it impossible to wipe off with a dry rag, but we just need it clean enough for the biometric fingerprint reader. Robbie struggles to get out of the chair as Luka grips his index finger tightly and I close the distance with the phone. The screen unlocks, letting me into his contacts. It takes a minute, but I find the contact I’m looking for and start the call.
As soon as the dialed number answers, I’m buried in a barrage of Russian profanities. “…where the fuck have you been?”
“Robbie can’t come to the phone right now.” The voice quiets. “He’s rather busy.” I glance at the man in question. “But I’m not. I’m here to tell you to cut your losses and get the hell out of the city. Your distillery is gone; the guy who was giving away our secrets is gone, too. Your liqueur licence was revoked, you lost your vodka contracts; and tomorrow, you will be the leading suspects in the murder of the deputy chief of police. Without your inside man to protect you.”
“Who the hell do you think you are?” the voice spits out.
“I think you know who I am. I’m the man whose father you killed. You should consider yourself lucky that most of you are still alive to tuck your tails and run away.”
“You can’t threaten us like this.”
A dark chuckle escapes me. “Oh, I can. Because you’re done. Without contacts in the police and most of your sources of revenue, you have no business being here. So you can either leave by tomorrow, on your own. Or we can let the real fun begin. Tick-tock.”
I end the call, dropping the phone to the floor, just out of Robbie’s reach.
“Thank you for your help. I’ll be back soon.” I flash him a blinding smile, leaving the room.
Luka follows behind. “Do I get to have my fun now?”
“I told you; he isn’t yours to have fun with.”
He rocks back on his heels as we step into the elevator. “I don’t understand why you couldn’t have done this yourself.”
A surprised laugh bubbles out of me. “Of course, I could.” I glance at him. “But I wanted us to do this together.”
