Page 17 of Pregnant Bratva Virgin

A verdict that punishes him for treating me like a second-class hooker and leaving money on the nightstand.You lost your cool, Wilson… and you can’t do that. Not with him.

Fidgeting in my seat, I keep searching through the police database at his records and convicted misdemeanors spanning back to twenty years prior. He’s never been inside the prison system for longer than ten days. Ryurik’s an untouchable monster, and now I’m obsessed with the case. William didn’tdeserve to die at his hands, and it’s likely he was onto something that would have broken the case wide open like a split acorn.

“Whatcha doing?” Jumping in my seat with my eye twitching, Milton catches me in obsessive thought.

“Fuck you, Milton. Don’t sneak up on me like that!” I hiss, currently petrified of my own shadow.

“Hey, hey. You okay?” His face ripples with concern.

“No. I interviewed an Utkin yesterday.”

“And?”

“He’s a fucking jerk with a superiority complex. What’s new,” I reply glumly, looking over my notes again, wanting to find a way to pin him. But it’s more than that. This is personal. And I hate that I can’t tell anyone about that part, and it’s killing me inside.

I don’t want to think about him, but all I see is us tangling under the sheets, his rock-solid abs touching mine, the softness of his touch, the hotel shower soap sliding down my body, the scent—

“Hmm. Did he rattle your cage a little? You seem off about it.”

“Sure. He gave it a shake, but I gave it back some. I need to find out about this hearing. I don’t want him being able to post bail.”

“What’s it set to?”

“Two mil.”

Milton whistles. “If that was a petty crime, his ass would be in jail. I wouldn’t even be able to put my house on the market to raise that type of collateral.”

“Right?” Frustrated, I tap my fingers on the side of my Styrofoam coffee cup. I have other cases to sink my teeth intoand provide my preliminary findings for, but Ryurik’s case is a priority. To both me and the department.

“Hey. You’re going to win some and you’re going to lose some. Keep chipping away and you’ll get the big fish. You might need to work at taking all the small fish around him. You know… take the legs from under him.”

I nod at Milton’s wisdom because I know he’s right. Chip, chip, chip away.

“Yeah, you’re probably right. See you Friday night for drinks?”

“You bet.” Milton walks off, and I make a beeline for Jackson’s office, taking advantage of his open-door policy. “Knock, knock.”

“Come in.”

Sighing, I sit down rubbing my knees. “Any news on Ryurik?”

“He’s in the hearing as we speak, but I gotta tell you, it’s not looking good. The evidence is circumstantial at best. He’s going to shake this one off again,” Jackson says in a disappointed tone. “Keep working on the case. We’re not giving up.”

“No. We’re not. Let me know?” Lingering in the door, Jackson puts his head down.

“Will do.”

But I hear nothing and go home starved—both for information and in general. By the time I get home, I’ve already pre-ordered enough Thai food to last me for three or four days. I need time to decompress myself from my disjointed thoughts and Ryurik creeping up on me.

As soon as I get to the door, I let my feet out of my shoes and take off my socks, shaking my head at the strange day. Andto top it off, I still don’t know if Ryurik was sentenced for a court hearing, bail, or anything. It’s been crickets all day from my boss.

Pouring myself a drink, I fling myself on the couch, not knowing how to feel, and that’s when I get the text message from Jackson.

JACKSON:Alert. Ryurik found not guilty. He’s out.

Shocked, I shoot up on the couch, my heartrate cranking up to explosive levels. “What? Fucking no!” I stare at the text flabbergasted at the result.

ME:On what grounds?

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