“I fucked you because I wanted to see how well you used that perfect cock of yours,” Tatiana replies, a salacious grin spreading across her face, even as Mila gags again. “And I wasn’t disappointed. It caused me some problems, but I forgave you for it. Especially with how hard you’ve been searching for me.”
“And yet you came back. You’ve sent me notes. You stole my plane.” His lips pull up into a slow, smug smile. Desire shines in his eyes.
Am I seeing this right? Is this son of a bitch reallyflatteredandturned onby all this?
I glance at Zakhar, who is staring at his brother like he’s lost his mind. Alright, so I’m not the only one seeing this and finding it fucking weird.
“Get back to the point and do your weird eye-fucking shit later,” Rori snaps. “You fucked him, so it made you look into him more and, what?”
“That’s when I realized just how deep into trafficking dear old daddy over here is,” Tatiana says, never looking away from Ilya. “Considering I was part of that chain, and it now touched someone who was in my focus, I decided enough was enough. It’s also how I found out the plans to grab Mila again when it was found out which boarding school she was sent to.”
“You sent someone to watch over her,” Zakhar supplies. “Why? Because you wanted an in with my brother?”
Tatiana finally looks at him, her gaze sharp. “Because she’s a good kid, and she’s fucking strong. But also, yes, if she mattered to my Pet, then she was on my radar. Knowing that she might suffer again because I did nothing…it didn’t sit well with me. So I had people loyal to me work their way into the school for her protection.”
“I…I can’t process that yet,” Zakhar finally mutters. I can see the reality hitting him. That his daughter hadn’t been safe; how many times he might have lost her if this woman hadn’t stepped in. He doesn’t like the idea of owing anyone, and now he owes this woman more than he can ever repay.
Tatiana looks at Rori. “I’ve been tracing the routes and the major backers of the ring and pipelines your father was helping to run. His men, and some of us by extension, were in charge ofkeeping things off the radar by sending us out to conduct other, more attention-grabbing contracts. And the largest customer? Timur Belov. And he was gunning for Ilya’s entire operation.”
“That fucker Abrham, he was the plant from Timur,” Oleg muses. “That night we were attacked by Timur’s men and you took them out a couple years ago.”
“Smart boy,” Tatiana praises. He spears her with a glare that she ignores. She looks back at me. “You should take a few notes. Use that noggin’ of yours more.” She ignores my deep glare and adds to Oleg, “It’s exactly why I sent you Freya. An apt name, by the way.”
“You left her in the blizzard for me to find?” The barely restrained fury in his voice clear.
She rolls her eyes. “I didn’t spend months training her just to leave her to die. She was outside in it for maybe a minute before you opened the door and took her in. And I checked in on her when I could.”
“All those times she disappeared for a day or two at a time, that was you?”
“Couldn’t have her forgetting me, could I? She was my additional protection for Mila, and Ilya by extension. And also my way of making sure if Timur decided to try and invade with one of his beasts, you had one of your own.”
“You’re just a regular Mother Theresa,” Rori snarks sarcastically.
“I try,” Tatiana replies cheekily. “Though I can’t take all the credit. I kept track of you, and any time you brought in a pedophile, or you sent through notes to Timur about someone in the organization on the radar that I knew was part of it, I handled it. And Butcher here, he was none the wiser. I was always careful, but it pissed me off that he was trying to take out Ilya through Timur to try and expand his pipelines. So I just ensured that couldn’t happen.”
Rori looks up at me, and we share a look. This entire situation is a giant mind-fuck.
“Lisichka, come here,” Ilya orders, an unmistakable timber to his voice that makes me roll my eyes. “I think it’s time we sorted a few things out between us.”
“She’s not going anywhere until we figure out what the hell is going to happen next,” Rori snaps. She looks at Mishka. “And you. What you’re doing next too.”
I fight back the jealousy at the hint of longing in her voice.
Is Rori still in love with him? Does Mishka being alive mean she no longer wants to be mine?
I look at the man, this ghost from the past. A ghost that might just be returning to a fresh new grave if he thinks Rori will ever be his.
42
RORI
I want to scream.How can this all be happening? Every part of me is rioting in confusion, demanding that I find out what the hell my life has suddenly become. I’ve never been so angry, confused, elated, and panicked at once. And I’ve been through a hell of a lot in my life, even after such a short time.
“What happens is we dispose of your father, you go back to your life, and we handle the cleanup,” Tatiana says brightly, finally pulling her heated stare away from Ilya. “That school is done, and as we speak, I have a team clearing it out and dealing with the men still there.” She gives me a pointed stare. “And I’d be willing to send you a present to do with as you please if you wish. I want my turn, of course, but Valentin always found you to be his favorite, so it only seems fair you get to have the final kick at him.”
I absorb that. What she’s offering. The chance to have my revenge, to make that sick bastard pay for everything he did to me. “He wasn’t the only one,” I feel obligated to point out.
Her eyes go cold, hard. “I know, however, they will be dealt with, if they haven’t been already. My only instructions were to leave Valentin alive for you.”
