Page 64 of Kidnapped Bratva Toy

“You’ve got this,” I muttered to myself, and then I was at the front door.

I rang the after-hours bell, and then a buzz sounded from inside the building, signaling that the door was now unlocked. Pushing it in, I stepped inside. The lights were kept dim, only half the bulbs illuminated. Nicholas’s office was at the back, and I had to assume that’s where he was.

So, I proceeded down the maze-like corridors until I reached his familiar door. It was cracked, and the light from a single lamp shone out of it. I rapped my knuckles against the fogged glass with his name on it.

“Nicholas?”

As I stepped inside, I saw him sitting at his desk. His computer was open but off going by the lack of monitor glow on his skin, and the chair in front of his desk was placed there alone without the matching one that usually sat next to it. My stomach clenched.

“There she is. Billie Pearce returned from the clutches of a thug.” He smiled easily enough. Those years of court performances really worked for him. “Have a seat.”

I did, sitting down in the stylish, if uncomfortable, chair and crossing one leg over the other. It took everything I had to remain outwardly calm as my heart slammed against my ribs. I offered Nicholas a relieved smile, sighing like I was just so glad to be back.

“Hi. Man, that was…Well, I’m not really sure how to describe it. It’s not every day you’re kidnapped by a mobster.”

Nicholas chuckled, but neither his smile nor his laugh reached his eyes. He leaned back in his desk chair, which squeaked loudly.

“No, I imagine not. How’d you get out?” Nicholas cocked a brow, and I nodded, calling up that fabricated lie.

“Pietor likes to gamble. Took me to the horse races and I slipped away in the crowd when there was a scuffle over who won.”

The races had just taken place a few days ago and there was a massive upset about the winner.

“Clever.” His face was still stoic. “So, what did you learn?”

My boss sounded like he always did—bored with a side of menace. Still, knowing what I did now, it felt different. Every syllable out of his mouth was a veiled threat.

“Well, I heard him mention this guy, Lev? I think that’s how he said it.” I volunteered information I knew he already had. “Apparently, he’s the one who’s actually in charge of whatever it is they do. But, umm…I had a question.”

Narrowing his stare at me, Nicholas crossed his arms over his chest. “What?”

“Well, I heard some…upsetting things about our client, Emiliano.”

My voice was quieter than I wanted, but I couldn’t make the adjustment now that I started. I just drove forward with the plan Pietor and I had come up with. Offering Nicholas the chance to either hang himself or get suspiciously defensive as I pressed him about Emiliano’s “career.”

“Mr. Vadim, Pietor, said that he’s a…competitor of his, as it were. Did you…did you know? Is Emiliano really mafia? I mean, he’s your friend, right?”

Nicholas sucked in a deep breath, exhaling long and hard as he gestured with his hand at me.

“Look, our job is just to defend the client. Emiliano is a work friend. It’s not like I barbeque with the guy.”

The answer was too good, and my pulse ticked up higher. Nicholas was damn good at covering his tracks when he was with an employee, and this wasn’t enough. Panic flared in my gut. I didn’t want to push him too hard. I knew he’d snap if I did.

“What else did you find out about the Vadim family? Did they mention any jobs or targets?”

And there it was.

None of that information would matter to the case. That was all a ploy to learn about an enemy family for Emiliano or Teddy. Nicholas was playing every angle, and he’d sell information about Pietor and his family to the highest bidder.

I furrowed my brow, shaking my head. “Not much. I was kept away most of the time. But why would that matter to the case? It’s unrelated. Information like that could be thrown out for irrelevancy.”

Nicholas glared, and he stood up from his desk. As he circled around the wood surface, he approached me, towering over where I sat in the small chair.

“Irrelevancy? Seriously, Billie? Criminals are criminals, and I want all the information I can get about them. Giving it to the cops could get the guy arrested while Emiliano moves forward with the suit.”

I shrunk back. “Wouldn’t it be unethical to use illegally gained material?”

“You were put in his house, Billie. What you learned there is information you rightfully acquired.”

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