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Joy swells inside me as I look at him, loving him even more. I cup his face and kiss him. He’s everything I ever wanted, and he’s given me everything I ever dreamed of.
My name. My future. My freedom. I have it all. But most of all, I have him.
Epilogue- Lev
One month later
Itake a sip of my coffee. The bitter taste hits the back of my throat, and I almost spit it out. It’s not the pleasant kind of bitter I normally savor from an espresso. This is just bad coffee.
I push the cup aside.
The fucking stuff is as bad as this place.
We’re sitting outside the Black Rail Café on a gritty stretch of Bushwick, surrounded by old brick buildings and converted warehouses.
My glare shifts to Aleksandr across from me. When he suggested we meet here, I initially declined, but he insisted. He said he wanted to kill two birds with one stone. I just handed him a chip he needs for a meeting he’s attending later. That was one bird. Now I’m curious about the other.
His attention remains fixed on the building across the street, studying it with intense scrutiny.
“Why did you bring me here, Aleksandr?”
Without looking at me, he says, “I have an unobstructed view of that building.” He motions toward it with his chin.
I should’ve known something was up. This café is too loud to discuss serious business. This was never about talking.
“Why do we need a view of it?”
“Because someone inside interests me. Remember Julian Mercer?”
“I vaguely remember him. He’s one of our clients. What about him?”
“He stole something from me.”
My jaw clenches as I realize why we’re here. We’re hunting. “What did he take?”
Aleksandr glances at me. “A Russian imperial icon from my private collection. It was worth five million when he took it. It’s worth more now. I’ve been looking for him for weeks, but he’s vanished. This is where he lived. His sister still does.”
I look back at the building, understanding. “Do you think she knows where he is?”
“I don’t know, and I don’t care. Every man has a price. I’m going to find out whether she’s his.”
The building door opens, and a young woman steps onto the sidewalk.
“That’s her,” Aleksandr says.
Her long dark hair shifts in the breeze as she adjusts the strap of the bag on her shoulder, completely unaware that she’s being watched.
I notice the way Aleksandr’s attention locks onto her. There’s cold calculation in his eyes. Beneath it, there’s an interest that has nothing to do with Julian or the stolen object.
“What if Mercer doesn’t come for her?” I ask.
“Then I suppose I’ll have to decide what to do with her.” His gaze never leaves the woman.
It’s never wise to attract the attention of men like us. But my brother is a different breed of predator. He hunts relentlessly, savoring the chase as much as the kill.
Whatever he has in store for that poor girl, God help her.
