The house is still quiet, the only sounds some of the soldiers and staff moving through the hallways. No one speaks, no one glances my way, but I know they’re all keenly aware of who, and what, I am. Some of the women hunch themselves just enough, like they’re trying to protect themselves, while the soldiers stand taller, the grips on their guns tightening subtly, but enough I don’t miss it.
Hades is tight to my side, a deterrent for any of them thinking of getting too close. I head for Mila’s room, wanting to check on her, and also talk to her without her uncle or father getting in the way. When I reach her hallway, I see David and John standing directly outside her door, still alert. They have to be exhausted, but neither of them flinches when they see me approach.
“Any problems?” I ask quietly.
“It’s been quiet,” John finally admits. “She’s a good kid, mostly keeps to herself.” His lips quirk in amusement. “Other than when her uncle or father talk to her. Then she turns into a sarcastic little princess.”
“Those assholes don’t know what the hell to do with her, either,” David adds with a snicker. “Sent both of them storming out of here last night fit to be tied, and threatening bodily harm to everyone in their path. Including us.”
“Men tend to do that when their children are threatened. She awake?”
“Haven’t heard. You sure you should talk to her without them here?” John asks.
I arch a brow, deciding not to take offense to that. “I’m not about to string her up by her ankles and start slicing to get information out of her.”
John and David wince and share a look. “Not what we meant. Zakhar said you weren’t to talk to her without one of them present.”
“And when have I ever followed rules? Will you feel better if I leave Hades out here with you to keep them under control if they show up?”
They give the dog a wary glance. “Nah, we’ll be good. You might need him more than us.”
“From her or them?” I ask, unable to keep my smile from spreading.
They shrug. Yeah, that’s what I thought. I open the door, and when I walk inside, Titus and Ivano are both in front of me instantly from their positions by the door, guns to my temples. I don’t move, pleased that they’re taking their positions seriously.
I’d give anything to see them do that to Ilya and Zakhar though. Those two will have coronaries. Hades lets out a sharp snarl, but I quiet him with a wave of my hand, and both men drop their guns. Neither apologize and step back into place.
“Unless you’re going to let me pet the dog, get the hell out so I can go back to sleep,” Mila groans loudly. I look over to see her sitting up in bed, rubbing at her eyes, and with a wicked case of bedhead. I barely suppress a laugh, but I wave Hades over to her. He happily walks forward, nudging her hand for pets, and then climbs up into the bed with her when she invites him. He lets out a low groan of contentment as he lies beside her, accepting all scratches and pats. “You’re as big as Freya,” she groans, but it does nothing to dim the warm smile on her face.
“He’ll lay there forever as long as you do that,” I tell her with a smile. “I’m sorry to wake you, but I’m wondering if we can talk for a second.”
“Yeah, sure. I figured you’d be up here eventually and try to do it when ogre one and ogre two aren’t around to stop you.”
I snort out a laugh. “They can’t be that bad. They’re just protective.”
She gives me a bland stare. “My father threatened a Russian military bootcamp to keep me safe, and my uncle threatened to drug me and put trackers in my neck, scalp, and one more unknown location so he can find me at all times.”
I wince. “Damn, that’s next level. Alright, well, names are apt then.” I sit on the end of the bed, leaning back against her large footboard. I switch to French, since I know it’s a language that none of the Romanov men speak, but is one that Mila learned in school. “How likely is this room to be bugged?”
She grins wickedly, seemingly pleased at this little show of defiance. “My father and uncle slipped in a few when they thought I wasn’t looking. I left them, but there’s one in my bookcase, on the top of the old doll my mother gave me. I hate that thing, it’s so creepy, but I can’t get rid of it since it was hers. The other one is on the top of the sliding window by the window seat. I think they might have put one on the posts of my bed, but I didn’t bother getting close to look.”
“The rest of the room?”
“Searched as soon as the hot Italian guys showed up. They found a few, destroyed them, but I don’t know if they’ve searched while I was asleep. Also, it was creepy as shit to have to sleep knowing they were hiding in the shadows.”
“Better that than someone sneaking in while you were sleeping. We’ll leave the bugs for now. They’ll let your family feel they have some form of control while we’re talking. Keep in French so you can tell me what I need to know without worrying about them.” She nods. “How long ago were you contacted by your friend who said you needed to come home?”
“Two weeks ago. Told me to be careful and get a plan going.”
Two weeks? That fucking long? Even for Tatiana that seems excessive. But two weeks would be about the time when I called her the first time to warn her about the De Lucas motives. How long has she been planning this?
“How did they get a hold of you?”
“I got a letter that I thought was from my father, and it was in his handwriting, but there was a slip of paper just inside the letter with instructions. The handwriting was different, so I knew it wasn’t him.”
“What did you do with the letter?”
“Burned it. We had fireplaces in our rooms, and it was cool at night, so it wasn’t out of place.”
