Page 156 of Golden Atonement

“And I met Nina a few years later,” Vladmir muttered.

“Yes. And when Petrovitch learned Nina was in the city, he sent Sergio Pavlov to kill her.”

“Do you know anything about who Nina’s father was?” Maxim asked.

“No. I don’t even think Baranov or Petrovitch knew,” Aksana replied. “But I know why they wanted Remi. When Charles died, he left everything to Nina, which she passed down to her unborn child. Remi is worth millions. Baranov and Petrovitch wanted the money Remi was to inherit to fund their war against you, Mr. Fedorov.”

“How do I know what you said is true?” Maxim clipped.

“Because before my father forced me to marry Steele, I took something of immense value to him. This.” Aksana smiled, holding up a thumb drive. “Everything my father had on every Bratva member. Every alliance. Every deal. Every death is all on this. Konstantin Baranov was a sick son of a bitch, but hewas also meticulous with his records. He saved everything, and I mean everything.”

“Is it just me or are files dropping out of the sky like rain? First Montana and his ghost file. Ace and the missing files from the Trick Pony, and now you?” I groaned. “I swear, if Sypher comes to me and says he found something too, I’m going to lose my shit.”

“It pains me to say this, boss, but I agree with Reaper.”

“Well, don’t choke on the words.” I chuckled.

Flipping me off, my father-in-law added, “This is too big of a coincidence.”

“If I may,” Aksana interrupted. “You need to look at the broader picture. Three major players recently died: Baranov, Stone, and the latest, Devlin Scott, if my information is correct.”

She was right.

Woman was smart. That was good because she was going to need to be to survive this shit.

“How do you know that Devlin Scott is dead?” Maxim asked.

“Reaper just said files are missing from the Trick Pony. Devlin Scott owns that club.”

I narrowed my eyes. “And how do you know that?”

“Because my father was a member,” she replied confidently. “You all just said information regarding each man’s dealings has come to light. You need to ask yourself, what do all those men have in common? Figure that out and then you will know what you’re facing.”

“My God,” Vladmir groaned, shaking his head. “That’s it. It has to be. Baranov, Petrovitch, Stone, and I’m betting even Steele, were all members of the Trick Pony. What do you want to bet Devlin Scott was blackmailing each one of them?”

“To what end?” Maxim asked.

“Who the fuck cares?” I clipped. “If that motherfucker has information on my club, then I fucking want to know what it is and who he was fucking blackmailing.”

The second the meeting was over, the Russian Bratva didn’t waste time leaving, taking Anne—or Aksana—with them.

As for me, well, I wasn’t leaving until I got what I came for.

Sitting on the front porch, I asked, “How long do you need before you can be back in California?”

“I still haven’t decided, Reaper.”

“The second you put that cut on, you made your decision.”

Ghost groaned and slowly shook his head.

“Won’t go through that shit again, brother. Not even for you.”

“Not asking you to. Besides, I’m reformed.”

Ghost let out a hearty laugh. “That will be the fucking day.”

“I’m serious, Balthazar. I do nothing without Remi’s okay. She knows everything. No more secrets.”

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