Page 71 of Macon

Mistress whispers to someone and then moves to stand next to me as our guest is escorted in.

When I look up, I see it’s Viktoriya, followed by two enormous men.

Mistress greets her, “Aw, printsessa, thank you for coming.”

Printsessa? Peshkov called her that too. She must be a Russian princess or something.

Viktoriya gives Mistress a welcoming nod but keeps her eyes on me.

“So, she asked for me?” Viktoriya announces to the room, looking straight at me.

I try to keep my head high to keep eye contact with her.

Mistress stutters, sounding nervous, “Yes, she’s been asking for you.”

Viktoriya stops right in front of me.

She’s beautiful, but her eyes are pure evil. You can feel the power radiate off of her.

Viktoriya gives me a nod. “What do you want, suka?”

“How is Dexter?” I spit out.

Viktoriya throws her head back with an evil laugh.

“You called me here to ask how your boyfriend is?” Viktoriya’s face goes from laughing to deadly. “He was a good fuck. Is that what you want to hear?”

Was?

Viktoriya circles me, eyeing me up and down. “You don’t look so good. You being hard to deal with, yeah?”

Mistress begins to speak, but Viktoriya snaps her finger, silencing her. Mistress shuts her mouth and steps back, bowing her head.

Fuck.

“What do you really want with me?” Viktoriya asks once she’s back in front of me.

“Is Dexter dead?” I whisper.

Instantly, she answers, “Yes.”

No. Oh God. Please.

I close my eyes briefly so I can try to control myself.

She continues, “He was a rat and the reason why you and his sisters were found. He was the link to the FBI. I just found all this out.” Her thick Russian accent cuts through the air. “So, what to do with you?”

She moves close to my face so we’re inches apart. “Are you a rat?”

Oh God. Please.

I shake my head, not trusting my voice.

She stares at me a beat before saying, “I believe you. He was a piece of shit. Bad boyfriend. Yeah?”

I nod.

Viktoriya nods, steps back, still eyeing me, and asks, “So, again. What do you want with me?”

---