“Oh, I’ve been around.” She waves a hand in the air. Lucy’s an athletic woman, dark hair, tan skin, somewhere in her 40s but looks much younger. I’ve never met someone as ruthless andefficient as her, which makes sense. It’s not easy being the right hand of a Dragon.
“Did Mass send you?”
Her smile is enigmatic. “We can’t talk about him.”
I dip my chin grimly and pick up the drink. “Thanks for this at least.” I take a sip and let out a breath. “How’s my sister doing? How’s the island holding up?”
“Allie’s doing good. She’s got the whole compound under her thumb. It’s actually impressive, the way she drags Mass around.” She crosses her legs with a groan and a stretch. “But you know how things are.”
She’s right about that. Better than I like to admit. Back in the day, before I left for Russia, I spent months on Mass Cardone’s island with him and my sister recovering from a bad wound. I learned a lot of things in those days, about how the Dragons work, their networks, their weaknesses, and Lucy was a part of all that. At the time I thought I was being clever, but I suspect she was feeding me information on purpose.
Planting the seeds of the idea that would eventually turn into this nightmare.
“Glad Allie’s doing good at least.”
“Having some trouble landing the big fish?”
“Oh no, it’s going great. Only got ambushed by Artyom earlier today.”
“I saw.”
I turn to her, frowning. “Yousaw?”
“I’ve been following you around for the last few days.” She says it so casually I almost laugh. Typical Lucy, acting like tailing me is no big deal. I might not be a Dragon, but I have fairly good operational security. Despite what happened earlier.
She opens her phone and starts tapping at a message. I swear, it’s a nervous tic. She’s constantly fixed on that damn screen. I crane over trying to get a look, which earns me an elbow to the ribs.
“If you’re here to pass along a message, let’s get that out of the way.”
“I wouldn’t do that.” The look she gives me is flat and annoyed. “Could you imagine what would happen if Mass were to get caught helping you?”
“The other Dragons would be pissed.”
“Putting it mildly.” She watches me, considering. “But I can give you a little piece of advice. L.A. is littered with old filming locations. Warehouses, industrial space, places which were converted, re-converted, then forgotten. You might find something you need hiding out in one of those.”
My eyebrows raise. I watch her carefully, but she’s nonchalant as she turns back to her phone. My head’s racing though, and if she’s saying what I think she’s saying, it’s an enormous help.
And a sign that Mass is still in my corner.
“I’ve been meaning to shoot a new movie,” I say and take a long drink. “Looking forward to it.”
“I bet you are.” She sits forward and stops tapping. “Three weeks. That’s when the big guys are coming together.”
“I thought there was more time.”
“Sorry to say, but that was bad information. They’re getting impatient. You know how they are.”
“Which means I have to take care of my two problems?—“
“As fast as you can.” Lucy sits back and studies me. Her lips press into a thin line. “One more thing.”
“Don’t tell me. You have a truck filled with rocket launchers I can borrow?”
“Your wife. Veronika Kislyov.”
“She took my last name. Nika’s very traditional.”
Lucy’s not smiling. Any trace of humor and familiarity is gone. Now she’s the cold, powerful killer she’s always been.
