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“You really think the Italians will just agree to being framed for his death?” Hunter asks.

“Why do they need to know?” I smile coolly. “After all, a few well-placed words and suggestions will have them doing it for us. Let them think their men killed him, but we’re the ones who will ensure he’s paid for his sins.”

“So it’s decided, then? We’re going after him?” Enforcer asks, setting the picture down.

“I leave it to you. I have other business to handle. If I’m needed, then you know how to get in touch with me.” They all nod, no one daring to question that or what else I’ll be doing as I get to my feet and stalk away without another word.

This isn’t the “asking questions about what each other does” type of room. I’ve been very careful about that. If they fail, they know the consequences.

I glance at my watch. Just enough time to get showered and change in the small airplane bathroom on board. Private jets do make excellent meeting rooms. Especially since when it lands, you know those flying it will be dead. We don’t leave anything to chance. Ever.

I pause when my phone rings. The phone only a select few have the number for. I shut the door to the room, lock it, and ensure no one can overhear anything I’m about to say.

“To what do I owe the pleasure, Ms. O’Brien?”

A voice I haven’t heard in a long time echoes through the line. Quiet, as if afraid someone might overhear. “Ivan Morozov and Giovanni DeLuca in New York have mentioned you in a conversation. I don’t know if they plan to hire you, but I need you to know they are not on the right side of this.”

“How so?” My tone is bored. None of this surprises me, but it certainly is about to change my plans. A thrill spreads through me, but behind it is caution. If the pieces are starting to move, I need to be very careful.

“Your code name was written on a piece of paper found in Giovanni De Luca’s secret hideout. Shit is going down in New York between the different crime families. All of them want more power. As far as I know, Ivan has denied anything about you, but the De Lucas aren’t going to let this go. They were stupid enough to write it down. Now the Armani and Caruso families think you’re coming after their women or working with them. And they’ve found three of the girls snuck out.” She pauses, letting those words hang between us. “We are searching for the final girl, but I’m concerned Giovanni might want to hire you to find them or kill them.”

Well, isn’t that a pain in the ass. They couldn’t just leave well enough alone. It looks like my plans are going to be moving up a hell of a lot faster.

Out of all the people in the world who know who I am from my past, it’s Rori O’Brien. Or should I say, Rayea Antonova. Won’t the families in New York just love knowing they have a trained assassin in their midst? And not just any assassin, but the Bratva Butcher’s daughter.

Still, I don’t want them poking their noses into my business, and as for this Giovanni De Luca, well, he’s going to get a surprise when I show up.

Or maybe not. After all, dear old Dad doesn’t know I exist, does he? Or at least, he thinks I’m like my sister, hiding out away from him. When he has no idea I’m the one who will help crumble his world to the ground.

“I’ll see what I can find out. Do they know who I am?” My tone never changes, but the threat and warning behind the words aren’t lost. Rayea Antonova wants a peaceful life away from her past, but that’s never going to happen.

It’s time for her to remember it.

“No. I’ve never said anything, and from what I can see, Morozov didn’t reveal you to DeLuca either. But I can’t be certain.” There’s caution in her voice, like she’s trying to warn me. Does she really think I’ll allow them to find me so easily?

I want to stab her just for that alone.

“We’ll leave that for now. I have a few things in motion, then perhaps I’ll be along to pay a visit to the old stomping grounds. Until then, keep this to yourself, Rori. We wouldn’t want to have a problem, would we?”

“No, we wouldn’t.” There’s a slight edge to her tone, but no fear.

No, Rori O’Brien/Rayea Antonova will never show fear. She’s too strong for that.

I pull the SIM from my phone and stomp on it before inserting another one then scrambling and encrypting everything. Can’t be too careful.

Excitement buzzes through me. It’s finally time. All the plans I’ve been working on are falling into place.

I walk back to the table, making them all look up at me. I give them a gleeful smile. “We have a new set of plans to begin working on. We have a ring to shut down.”

The tension is instant. The folders in front of them are forgotten.

“Fucking finally,” Hunter says, leaning forward so their elbows are on the table. “What changed the plan?”

“The plan has not changed. We still take out Dubois quickly, but we also start working on this. Dubois will provide a distraction while we make our moves. We don’t have a lot of time, so we need to get to work.” I look at Enforcer. “Tell the plane to circle around and keep us in the air. We’re not leaving this plane until it falls out of the sky or until we have this done.”

Enforcer stands without a word.

It’s finally time to take down the parts of my past that shaped me into what I am so I can finally go after what I want.