Page 79 of Emperor of Havoc

Definitely him.

Whatever connection I thought we were developing, whatever fragile understanding had begun to form, it’s shattered now.

“Katarina—”

“Remember what I said,” I sign firmly. “Please don't react.”

“Yes, but?—”

“That’s an order.”

He eyes me coolly for a second before his loyalty kicks in. Ihatemyself for playing that card.

“Understood, Katarina-sama,” he growls.

“Thank you, Ryu,” I sign, putting my hand on his arm and squeezing. “Really. Thank you.”

As I head back to my room, the fury inside surges.

Takeshi.

He’s a psychopath. A manipulator. I was crazy to think I could trust him, even for a second.

I grab my phone, typing out a message to Nina. “We need to talk tomorrow. There’s something I have to handle.”

Whatever game Takeshi thinks he’s playing, I’m going to be the one who wins.

23

KATARINA

Okita hasthe car waiting in front of the house. I smile widely as he opens the back door for me.

“How’s your father, Okita?”

He bows very low. “Recovering nicely, thank you, Katarina-sama.”

I’ve had other chauffeurs and other personal guards. Okita acts as both these days, and has done since I was sixteen. The others, both drivers and guards, were always either too stiff orwaytoo familiar. There was one, Jason, who kept bringing me flowers every time he’d come pick me up. One time, he even brought melingerie.

I was fourteen.

I never saw him again, and although I have no idea what happened to him, Idoremember Papa being in an especially good mood the night after I told him about the mortifying lingerie incident. He had that glint in his eye he gets when he…fixes problems.

Okita is good people. He even knuckled down and learned some basic sign language within three weeks of becoming my driver. Major brownie points. I'm happy to hear his dad is doing well: he just had an operation for a prostate issue.

“And truly, thank you for the time off last month. I know he appreciated having me around.”

“Of course, Okita,” I sign. “You never even have to ask, it’s a given: family is always first.”

He smiles back, helping me into the back seat.

“Where are we headed today, Ms. Ishida?”

“Katagiri-kai headquarters. I’m sitting down with Baku Katagiri.”

Just one more ally to meet with and make sure we’re all on the same page concerning my husband—i.e., the page where no one talks to or even acknowledges him, because he’s a sneaky little fuckingspy.

The tinted windows shield me from the outside world as Okita heads down the driveway toward the front gates. The guards there nod, and the gates slide open to let us drive through.

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