Page 2 of Savage Surrender

Eva smiled and stroked her hand down Lev’s chest. On her finger, a large diamond ring glittered as it caught the light from the chandelier.

“A lot,” Lev answered with a wry laugh. “Since you’ve been in Moscow,a lothas happened. “Eva and I are engaged.”

My jaw hung open even more. “Are you serious? You two? How in the hell did that happen?”

“That’s a story better told with the Boss,” Lev replied.

Eva nodded. “They’ll fill you in.” Then with another kiss, she began to slip out of his hold. “Welcome back.”

“Yeah, sure. Thanks.” I ran my hand through my hair and tried to figure out how in the hell Oleg’s favorite assassin would be with Eva. She would’ve been arranged to marry an ally or something, but Lev? There had to be a story there. “And hey, um, congratulations,” I said, gesturing at the massive ring on her finger. It had to have been from him, because if this was legit and they were together, she wouldn’t cheat on a lethal and seriously dark man like Lev.

“I’ll see you later,” Lev told Eva as she walked away. He smiled at me, patting my back and shaking my hand as he led the way into Oleg’s office. “It’s been a busy few months here.”

I laughed once. “I was only gone foronemonth.”

“And you’re always busy at the establishments you supervise.”

“Establishments?” I shook my head, grinning. “There’s no need to exaggerate.”

“Viktor. It is good to see you,” Oleg greeted, standing to come welcome me back, cutting off any more talk with Lev.

I shook his hand and accepted his hug, then we moved straight to business. He’d already read through the texts and emails I’d sent him, and the first matter was a little more explanation on my part about why I hadn’t received any answers about Sonya in Moscow.

He wasn’t disappointed, almost seeming resigned like he accepted that Sonya and her mother were gone from the family. It appeared as though he knew there was nothing we could do about that. It wouldn’t prevent him from sending someone to follow supposedly reputable clues and leads, but maybe he only did that out of obligation to never give up on those who were lost.

Instead of moving on to the next topic of business, my expected return to supervising the whore houses, he filled me in on what had happened with Lev and Eva. Lev was assigned as Eva’s bodyguard at the huge university, but drama and danger quickly threatened them. Drugs. Rapes. Attacks. All kinds of bad news. It seemed to have all culminated in Eva being taken as bait for the Ilyins to get to Lev.

Between the Petrov Family and the Ilyin Family, someone was vying to have control over the university.

“Rurik is still on campus,” Lev said. “But since I was injured?—”

“And will soon be marrying Eva,” Oleg interjected with a smile, “you, Viktor, are just the man I need to move into position there at the university campus.”

“Me?” I didn’t point at myself, but I couldn’t mask the shock in my one-word reply. Right when I was secretly hoping for a reassignment to anywhere else than the brothels I’d managed for twenty years.

“Yes. You.” Oleg nodded, matter-of-fact about it as he folded his hands on top of his desk behind which he sat. “Rurik can stay there and keep up the surveillance. But I can’t hold off on following up with the role Irina Petrov plays in this drug war.”

Holding back so I wouldn’t show too much excitement about not having to go right back to the brothels, I nodded. All business. “Yes, sir. I can do that.”

The Boss smiled. “And in order to incorporate you into this project, I think you could very easily fit in on campus.”

Lev faced me. “As a professor.”

“What?” I laughed once, incredulously. He couldn’t be serious. But the sober expression both men wore suggested they meant it. “You want me to…”

“To step in as a temporary professor.” Oleg held his hands out as though to implywhy not. “ After all, you do have that degree you never use…”

A degree I’d only obtained through fraud for another case. “That is true.” I volleyed my gaze back and forth between them, trying to come up with something else to say.

“I appreciate your flexibility to investigate that slight lead on Sonya in Moscow,” Oleg said.

“And we’re aware that your place is back at the houses, supervision business as usual,” Lev said, sounding more and more like the Boss’s right-hand man.

“That’s fine, though,” I hurried to add. “I don’t mind leaving the brothels for someone else to supervise for a while. Honestly, it’s been getting old. Wearing on me. The same old, over and over.”

Oleg shrugged. “Then it sounds like this is an ideal situation for you,Professor.”

I smiled, looking forward to this chance to not have to go back to those whorehouses yet. While I had no clue how playing professor would turn out, I was curious to find out.

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