Page 32 of Knocked Up by the Bratva

Her name feels foreign on my tongue now, not the sweet distraction it was before. She’s the only one outside the inner circle who knew. She’s the only one who could have betrayed me.

“She wouldn’t—” I start to say, but the look Oleg gives me shuts me down. It doesn’t matter what I think. The facts are right in front of me. Jennifer had access, and now the Italians know everything.

The memories flash through my mind—how she left without a word, how she slipped away the morning after our night together. At first, I thought she was just scared, maybe embarrassed. Now it all makes sense. She was running, but not from me. She was running because she’d already betrayed me.

“She didn’t just leave,” Oleg says, shaking his head, his voice dark and sharp. “She played you.”

I grit my teeth, the weight of betrayal heavy on my chest. “She’s smarter than I gave her credit for,” I mutter, my fists clenching at my sides. “Not smart enough.”

“She left despite your warning,” Oleg continues, fueling the fire. “Now this. She had the information, and she leaked it. She knew the risks. She knew what would happen.”

“And she still did it,” I finish, my voice cold. It’s hard to believe she’d be so bold, but the evidence is there, staring mein the face. She’s no innocent woman caught up in something bigger than her. She knew exactly what she was doing.

“She also witnessed you kill Russel,” Oleg adds, his tone grim.

I don’t need the reminder. That moment replays in my head like a broken record, but hearing it from Oleg solidifies the severity of the situation.

“You know what that means,” Oleg says, his eyes steady on mine. “According to our rules….”

I know exactly what it means. She’s a witness. A liability. Loose ends aren’t tolerated in our world. I warned her, I gave her a chance, and she still chose to cross me.

“I’ll deal with her,” I say, standing up. My anger is cold and controlled now, simmering just beneath the surface. “I’ll find her, no matter how long it takes.”

Oleg nods, the unspoken agreement clear between us. She’s no longer just the woman I slept with. She’s a threat. A traitor. And there’s only one way this ends.

“I want every resource we have on this,” I order, my voice as sharp as the edge of a blade. “No one betrays me and gets away with it.”

Oleg leaves the room, his phone already buzzing as he starts the manhunt. I stay where I am, staring at the crumpled resignation letter in front of me. Jennifer’s neat handwriting now feels like a mockery, a taunt. She thought she could just walk away from me. That she could betray me, and start a new life.

She doesn’t understand who she’s dealing with.

I toss the letter into the trash, the rage that’s been simmering beneath my skin now boiling over. No matter whereshe runs, no matter how far she goes, I will find her. I will make her pay.

Jennifer Jewels is about to learn what happens when you play with fire. There’s no escape. Not from me.

Oleg returns just as I expected. “Everything’s in motion,” he says, glancing at me. “You’ll have her location soon.”

I nod once, my mind already racing with the possibilities of what I’ll do when I have her back in my grasp.

“She can’t hide forever,” I murmur to myself. Then louder, “When I catch up to her, she’ll regret ever crossing me.”

Oleg watches me closely, probably wondering how I’m holding up after this betrayal. It’s rare for someone to slip past my radar, let alone someone who managed to get this close to me. Jennifer played me, and that fact hits harder than I care to admit.

“She’s a loose end,” Oleg says, breaking the silence. “We don’t leave loose ends.”

I nod, but my mind is already elsewhere. Jennifer isn’t like the others I’ve dealt with. She’s clever. She hid in plain sight, charmed her way through the company, and vanished without a trace. I underestimated her once. I won’t make that mistake again.

“Do whatever it takes,” I tell Oleg, my voice low but firm. “I don’t care how far she’s gone. Bring her back.”

Oleg gives a nod, turning to leave. I watch him go, knowing he’ll get the job done. He always does. Still, something about this situation bothers me in a way that I can’t quite shake.

Jennifer wasn’t just a one-night distraction. She wasn’t just an employee who got too close. There’s something more, something beneath the surface that I didn’t want to see before. The thought of her out there, hiding from me—betraying me—doesn’t just spark anger. It fuels something darker, something more possessive.

I push those thoughts aside for now. I can’t let my emotions cloud my judgment. Not when she’s made a fool of me, and certainly not when she’s become a threat to everything I’ve built.

Chapter Fifteen – Jennifer

Eighteen Months Later

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