Page 17 of The Umarova Crime Family

Now it’s the next morning, and Amelia hasn’t left to go back to her apartment yet. She wants to go get some more clothes, and I know she’ll be heading out shortly. If I’m going to talk to her about it, I need to catch her before she leaves.

“Amelia,” I call out in the suite, trying to figure out which room she’s in. I continue calling her name until she finally calls back.

“I’m in the study,” she says, and I head into the small office area within the suite. Sure enough, she’s sitting on the chaise lounge chair and has a book open in front of her.

“What’re you reading?”

She shrugs her shoulders and remains quiet.

“Is it some sort of secret or something?”

“Not quite. I’m just trying to understand more about identity theft victims and having some sort of hope. I’ve been so afraid my life is going to be ruined by this, so I’m just… reading this book about different people and their stories. Some of them made it through it and have amazing lives now.”

“I’m going to take care of you, Amelia. You don’t have to worry about your identity theft case. I’m handling everything, so you don’t need to worry about a thing.”

She releases a pent-up breath of air. “But don’t I? I mean, all I’ve been doing is worrying since yesterday. Things just seem so weird, and the timing of it all is just… odd, I guess. I don’t know. Maybe I’m looking into things too much.”

“Why are you saying that?” I question her, raising my brow as I walk closer and take a seat in the chair across from the chaise.

“I haven’t seen him in weeks. He was gone after that money was stolen from Illusion, then he just showed up at the park at the same time we were there. It’s odd. It’s weird. Then last night, when I was working, it felt like someone was watching me the entire time. Ruslan,” Amelia pauses, puts the book down, and rubs her hands over her shoulders. “It felt so violating. I don’t know how to describe it other than saying it this way, but I felt violated. I hated every bit of it, and I saw someone watching me. Then I tried to follow them through the crowd, but they disappeared. It… it makes me feel like someone’s actually watching me, and sometimes I worry something like what happened to you could happen to me.”

I rise from my seat and immediately move to the chaise, sitting alongside Amelia. I grab her hand and gently squeeze it, so she knows how serious I am. “Amelia, I will never let anything happen to you like that. It’s why Danill is always with you because your safety is more important than my own. I can’t focus if I don’t know you’re safe, so Danill being with you gives me that sense of security.”

Amelia nods, and tears come to her eyes. “The truth is if I were in your shoes when you were taken… I don’t know if I could’ve survived.”

“I know without a doubt that you would’ve made it through. You’re stronger than you realize, Amelia. So much stronger than you realize. But you’ll never have to go through something like that. This I promise you. It’s my job to keep you safe, and I take it very seriously.”

Amelia sucks in a deep breath and nods a couple of times like she’s trying to convince herself. I wrap my arms around her and pull her against my chest. She breathes in deep and slow, but they come out choppy and filled with emotion. “What if the person watching me is Carter?”

My muscles tighten hearing her ask me that. “Do you suspect it’s him?”

“It could be, but I’m not sure.”

Chances are, if Amelia thinks it’s Carter, it probably is. I’ll have Danill keep a closer eye on their surroundings. If it is Carter, it’ll be no time before he’s popping his head up again.

***

Amelia left with Danill, and they went to the apartment she shares with her cousin. I have been very busy over the last few hours speaking with my family’s allies. It’s been one call after the next with heads of families. I’ve spoken with Liam Mackenzie, who’s at the top of the Irish food chain, and Alejandro Ramirez, the head of the Mexican Cartel. This was followed by Katya, who runs the Russian Bratva; Bianca Petran, the head of the Romanian Clans; the McDougalls, who run Scotland; and many others.

Right now, I have to reach out and make sure there’s no question about who’s in charge of the Umarova family, and it isn’t my stepfather. All my allies have pledged their loyalty to me and not Anzor. At least, they’ve done so to my face. Who knows what they’ll do behind my back. As much as I want to blindly trust all of them, I know better than to do it right now, especially with everything that’s happened as of late.

Since everything’s handled with my allies, I make a call to my brother, Lom. After a few rings, he finally answers. “Brother!”

“Lom, you sound a bit joyous today,” I point out. In the background is the distinctive sound of city life. Cars whoosh by, and horns are being pressed left and right.

“I am, brother, that I am,” Lom tells me, and out of nowhere, it sounds like the outside noise is dying down. “I moved to a quieter spot so I can hear you better.”

“Perfect. How are things going with our old friend?”

“Well, actually. He told me Anzor’s hiding out in the United States.”

Really? I’ll be damned.

“Did he say where?” If the old man gave him any sort of location, this could mean I’d be able to locate my stepfather a lot sooner than I thought I would. There’s nothing more I want than to wrap my bare hands around his scrawny neck, not giving him an ounce of mercy. Then again, I don’t want to kill him so quickly. I want him to suffer, and I want him to suffer greatly.

“It took a while, but yes, I was able to get that answer from him quickly enough,” Lom’s answer causes me to smile, and I’m anxiously awaiting what he’s going to say. Though, I only wish I was the one to get the answers from him. He made my life hell for weeks, and in my opinion, he needs to suffer greatly for it.

“Don’t keep me waiting.” I lean back in my chair and stare at the ceiling while I wait for Lom to give me what I want. I notice a couple of spots on the ceiling where it looks like the water’s coming through. I’ll have to call the front desk and make them aware of it so they can send maintenance up to take a look. Hopefully, it’s nothing serious. I’ve grown quite attached to this suite.

---