Page 141 of Caged

One of his dark eyes close as he stares at me. “Sometimes the spiders keep the flies at bay. He was one of my few contacts who was close enough to my father that I could get reliable information from.”

Crap. “I didn’t know. He was heavily involved in weapons?—”

“Yes. But do you know his replacement deals in women? Something that should never be allowed.” Mikhail turns to his brother. “Can you really trust her? Someone who will kill so randomly without thinking of the repercussions?”

Nikolai doesn’t move his arm from across me. “Yes.”

I feel like I’m trapped in a battle of wills between the two of them.

“Nikolai, she killed your nanny over words she didn’t agree with.” Mikhail’s voice is deadly quiet.

That makes me mad.

Pushing Nikolai’s hand off of me, I stand up and get into Mikhail’s covered face. “You have no idea what that woman was doing to that little girl. When I had the opportunity, I didn’t pass it up. What she was doing to my Elena was evil.”

Mikhail doesn’t budge, but his stare softens. “Your Elena?” he asks.

I hadn’t thought of her like that before. But she is. “Yes,” I say firmly. “She’s special to me. Anyone who hurts her will pay.” I glance over my shoulder to Nikolai. “I’d kill her all over again. I’m half tempted to make Elena’s bitch of a teacher disappear, too.”

I cross my arms to match Mikhail’s and meet his glare.

He might be huge in comparison to me, but he’s no match for my stubbornness when it comes to protecting those I love.

Mikhail’s left eye twitches for a moment before his cheeks rise.

I can only guess he’s smiling.

“Good.” He sits back on the edge of his desk. “But, no more bodies without checking. Cleaning crews are busy in this town.”

Enzo clears his throat behind me, breaking the tension in the room. “Here’s a copy. I’ve removed only a few incidental files.”

I’m still amped up from the exchange with Mikhail, so I turn quickly around. “Why would you do that? She wants everything that was on the original.”

Enzo narrows those bright blue eyes. “No. I don’t want anyone else seeing those.”

Frustration sneaks into my tone. “Who cares? It’s not your neck on the line. Tatiana will come after me if things are missing.”

This time, it’s his turn to get worked up.

Standing quickly, his shoulders are still as he holds out his arm. “I care! I know who they’re about, and I’m not going to put her in danger, too.”

He holds out a USB drive.

Nikolai stands and moves between us, taking the device. “Enzo, I’ve never seen you get worked up over anything. What’s this about?”

How can he be so calm when it feels like everyone in here is attacking me?

Enzo takes a deep breath before falling back into his chair. “I never thought I’d see that girl again. It’s a shock, and a long story.” His gaze flicks between me and Nikolai. “And, not one for today.” Shaking his head, a lock of his dark hair falls forward over his forehead. “I wouldn’t even know where to start,” he whispers.

What the hell? Everyone has their secrets it seems.

The clear pain on Enzo’s face shows that there’s a much bigger history than he’s admitting. But, the set of his jaw says he’s done talking about it.

“Are we done here?” Nikolai asks Mikhail.

With his nod, Nikolai cups my elbow and leads me into the hall.

“That was pretty amazing,” he murmurs, pulling me closer. “Seeing you defend Elena like that.”

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