Page 65 of Scorch

Mikhail walks over to us and shows me his phone. “Interesting development. You have a minute?”

I glance at Lydia, then back at him. “Yeah, let's talk.”

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Lydia

“I’ve spoken with the Ivanov captain. He’s got some interesting data, but it’s all encrypted, and there’s foreign language embedded I don’t know.”

Hope surges in my chest.

This. This is something I can do. Finally, instead of being a damn wallflower waiting to be protected or rescued, I can actually help.

“Let me look? I’m good at this.”

Mikhail’s eyes widen in surprise. He looks to Viktor, who nods.

“She is. Let her look.”

Back in Mikhail’s office here at headquarters, with a few of the brothers present, they’ve laid out a series of maps, surveillance photos, and weapons. Mikhail opens up the largest iPad I’ve ever seen and flips the brightness up.

“Here. Take a look.”

I’ve always been good at deciphering patterns and intricate puzzles. This one takes me a moment as I look at the notes they’ve used.

“Dmitri,” I say, my heart beating faster as I start piecing things together. “It’s his middle name. Super original to use that as his screen name, isn’t it?” I shake my head. “It looks like they’re not far from here, planning to take over a warehouse in Manhattan, but there’s no telling when.”

“Mmm.” Viktor nods. “Of course they don’t divulge the when in case their intel was intercepted.”

“How much do you trust the Ivanov captain?” I ask, frowning as I look things over. “This sort of looks like a trap.”

“Fuck,” Lev mutters. “Let me see.”

I hand him the map, and after a moment of perusing it, he nods, frowning.

“She’s right. The timing is off. If I were setting up an ambush… well, this is how I would do it. The routes they’ve highlighted funnel us into a choke point, perfect for an attack. It’s too convenient.”

I shake my head.

Viktor’s eyes narrow as he scrutinizes the details. “You’re right. If we take his word for it, this could be a setup. We can’t take that risk.”

“I would suspect that either he’s in on this with them, or they know he’s going to report to you. In any event, it’s dangerous, and I’d be careful.”

Aleks curses under his breath, running a hand through his hair. “So we just let him do his thing? Don’t pursue it?”

“We will absolutely fucking pursue when the time is right.”

“Right. Agreed. And when the time is right, we can create a diversion. Let them think we’re falling into their trap.”

“I have an idea,” I tell them. “Maybe send a decoy team through the highlighted route while backup circles in from behind. Catch them off guard.”

Viktor nods appreciatively. “I like how you think, doll.”

I grin and pop a cocoa-dusted truffle in my mouth.

“Oh God, get a room,” a tall blonde who must be Viktor’s sister says from the doorway. She winks at me. “I’m Polina. I kid, I kid. Any friend of chocolate is a friend of mine.”

Viktor’s arm snakes around my waist. “When we do counter, we’ll show them who we’re dealing with when we’re paired together.”

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