Page 103 of Blood Mosaic

“It will draw her out.”

“It will provoke her.”

His daughter Zara truly had no idea how luxurious her life had been. Oleg had indulged her because Luana had loved her. He’d never subjected her to the harsh discipline his own sire had demanded of his children.

Truvor’s clan was made up of the hardest and smartest warriors he could gather from the human populations he conquered during his reign. The humans who fell under his violent hand probably had no idea the barbaric Norseman was something other than human, though Truvor acted like a vengeful god.

He demanded tributes of young men and women from every city he passed, and he used those humans to hunt, feed, and train his army.

That was the crucible that had birthed Oleg, and when he had woken as a fire vampire, his sire had been more than pleased.

For a time.

A note slid under Oleg’s door, and he swung his legs over the bed, letting the sheets fall away while the cool night air kissed his bare skin.

Walking over to the door, he captured the scent of Elene on the folded paper.

He opened the note and saw his CFO’s neat script.

Tatyanaand I had a productive week. Another ten million recovered from bank accounts with the help of her hacker friend. I think she’s made some agreement to split her commission with him, but since it’s her money, it’s none of our business. Our own tech people have looked into this mysterious contact and can’t find any trace of him.

Oleg grunted.If his technology wizards couldn’t find Tatyana’s friend, Zara’s people were unlikely to find him either. Elene’s note continued.

I gaveher the night off but told her to stay near the hotel. Mika’s people told me this afternoon that Zara’s Albanian allies were spotted in Malinovsky, and the delivery arrived from Saint Petersburg, so it’s likely Zara is somewhere close. Tatyana doesn’t need to be wandering around, even with security.

Neither do you!Oleg wanted to scream at Elene, but he knew she wouldn’t listen, and the moment he got high-handed, she would quit. She’d done it before when she married Dmytro, and Oleg had stubbornly survived for all of three weeks before he begged her to come back to work.

I’m headed home,and yes, Mika put extra guards around our place, so calm down. Have a good night and don’t bother the girl. She needs a break from you.

Oleg tossedElene’s note to the side and walked to his closet, tossing another flame at the lamp near the door. Once he was in his closet, he picked out some casual clothing that would beappropriate for the club at the Admiral because he had no intention of taking Elene’s advice. He’d already given Tatyana a week alone.

He was hungry.

She was talkingwith a bartender who wanted to have sex with her. Of course the stupid human bartender wanted to have sex with her—half the men in the club probably wanted to have sex with his bookkeeper, but this bartender should have known better.

The human said something to her, and her response was a pure laugh. Nothing rueful or sarcastic. There was no edge to it; it was happiness and delight.

The sudden jolt of jealous anger caught Oleg by surprise. His fangs dropped, a low flame burned along the back of his hand, and a muscle in his jaw twitched.

He quickly pulled his anger back, remembering where he was.

Admiral staff was off-limits, but the man should have known better. He was flirting with Oleg’s woman. Worse, she was responding to him. Encouraging him.

Tatyana’s cheeks were flushed, and she appeared to be in a celebratory mood. She should be. If he’d made a cool million dollars just by tracking down somebody else’s money, he’d feel celebratory too.

“Mr. Sokolov.” The hostess greeted him. “Shall I prepare your usual table?”

“Thank you.”

“For one?”

“Two.” Tatyana would be eating with him.

Or he might be eating her, but that wouldn’t be in the club.

“Very good.” She hustled away to herd her staff, and Oleg approached the bar.

Tatyana sensed him before he even got close. Her shoulders froze, and the laugh that she’d been sharing with the bartender died.

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