Page 113 of Emerald Vices

“I’m no hooker,” she hisses. “I haven’t been for over a decade now. I’m your father’s woman. His wife in everything but name.”

This time, it’s my turn to laugh. “Cut the shit. You may use Kuznetsov as your last name whenever you can get away with it, but you’re no longer Slavik’s number one. In fact, you’re not his at all anymore, are you?”

Her heavily lined eyes pinch together. “He still provides for?—”

“He gives you a small stipend monthly in exchange for what?” I ask. “Your silence?”

She lets out a panicked breath. Then she clears her throat, runs a hand through her long blonde locks, and rises to her feet. Two steps and she’s forced herself between my legs, her hand draping through the open collar of my shirt.

“You know, I always found you incredibly attractive, Andrey,” she purrs. “Sometimes, when your father was on top of me, I used to close my eyes and imagine it was you instead.”

She starts to slide her hand lower, but I grab her wrist and twist until she cries out. “I thought I made myself clear,” I growl, staring directly into her wide, terrified eyes. “I’m married. Touch me again and you’ll regret it. Try giving your clients a handjob with no fingers.”

I push her away, causing her to stumble back. She sinks back down without a word, still massaging her wrist.

“Now, let’s skip the bullshit and cut straight to the chase, shall we?”

Glowering, Ola drops the whole seductress routine altogether. Her shoulders hunch and her legs and hands hang limply at her sides. “If I tell you anything, he’ll know it was me. He’ll hunt me down and kill me for betraying him.”

“And your alternative is what? Refusing me now and dying on the spot?”

“I thought you were a different man than your father.”

“I am. In purpose, if not in methods. I will do whatever it takes to protect my family. But I will do whatever it takes. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

The flush on her chest rises to her cheeks. “I’ll tell you anything you want to know,” she agrees. “But I have conditions.”

“I never expected anything less. What do you want?”

“Freedom, money, and safety,” she ticks off on her fingers. “I want to disappear from Slavik’s radar. If he finds me, he’ll?—”

“You have my word. Tell me what you know and you’ll have all three.”

She raises her eyebrows. “Just like that?”

“I didn’t build my reputation on nothing. The question is, do you have any information that’s worth my while?”

She crosses her legs. “Nikolai and Slavik are working together.”

It takes some effort to keep my face from betraying any emotion. “Since when?”

“Years now. Around the time Slavik started to grow restless.” Her face pinches. “Around the time he started to get bored with me.”

“Life in Russia wasn’t what he expected?”

“Russia had changed since Slavik was last there. He was no longer the top dog and he hated it. He used to be—I wouldn’t call him a gentleman… but charming, maybe? But those last few years with him…” She pulls up the large gold cuff on her wrist and shows me a thin, winding scar. “He got pretty brutal.”

“I have to admit, I was surprised to learn that you were still alive.”

“I may have lost my appeal to him, but I didn’t lose my wits. I convinced him I was in love with him, that my loyalty was absolute. He believed me.”

“Stroking his ego is always a good idea.”

“Among other things.” Her brows jump suggestively. “He started monitoring the situation over here, following your movements. When he realized how far you’d expanded on Kuznetsov territory, he was livid. Then he sensed an opportunity.”

“He wanted to take what I’d built. Is that when he contacted Nikolai?”

She nods. “He was careful about how he approached the Rostov boy. But eventually, the two had a meeting. He flew Nikolai into Moscow on a private jet. He really rolled out the red carpet.”

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