Page 34 of Ruthless Daddies

She wasn’t fine. I could see it in the way her hands trembled slightly, in the tightness around her eyes. I should have stopped her, pushed harder, but I didn’t. I let her brush me off, let her walk out that door.

She didn’t take the kids to her parents’ house. She changed her mind at the last second, and a few hours later, she was gone. A car crash, they said. An accident. But something about it has never sat right with me. And the fact that she was upset, that I saw it and did nothing…

The guilt is suffocating.

I haven’t told anyone how upset she seemed that day, how I could have stopped her, made her stay. It wouldn’t change anything now.

But the doubts linger. And now, with that text—I know what happened to her—those doubts are louder than ever.

I shake the thought away, refocusing on the screen. Clicking through the images my men have been gathering, I study the faces of our enemies, the ones we know are watching, waiting. The Solonovs. The Kovals. Andhim.

Vadim.

Elena’s younger brother.

My jaw tightens as I stare at his image, his face sharp and cold, his eyes filled with the same calculating hostility I’ve come to expect from him.

I’ve heard rumors of him taking over from his father in the coming months. And now with the text…the timing can’t be a coincidence. Even if it isn’t him trying to play somekind of twisted games, there’s someone out there who knows something.

What if Vadim had something to do with Elena’s death? It’s a question I’ve been asking myself for years, one that’s become harder to ignore the more hostile he’s become. Ivan doesn’t agree, of course. He’s always been reluctant to point fingers at Vadim, too tied up in old allegiances and the complexities of family politics.

But I don’t have the same reservations. If Vadim was involved, I’ll find out. And when I do, I’ll make him pay.

I turn back to the computer, pulling up another file, my fingers flying across the keyboard as I cross-reference the number Ivan received with recent movement in Manhattan and Brooklyn.

The phone buzzes on my desk, interrupting my train of thought. I glance at the screen to see a number I recognize, one of Ivan’s latest recruits—a nervous little bastard who has no business calling me directly.

Normally, I’d ignore it. Whatever he wants, it’s likely trivial. But something about the timing makes me pick up.

“Dmitri,” I say, my tone clipped.

“Uh, Mr. Morozov,” Anton stammers, his voice shaky. “I…I was supposed to pick up Miss Parker from the city, but I’m…tied up. Something came up, and I can’t get to her in time.”

I sit up straighter, the name catching my attention immediately. Alice.

“And you’re calling mewhy?” I ask, my voice cold.

“Well, I—I didn’t want to call Mr. Morozov, I mean Ivan. He’d…you know, I didn’t want to bother him with something so?—”

“Thought I’d be less terrifying?” I interrupt, smirking. “You thought wrong.”

“No, no! I just—she’s waiting, and I didn’t know who else to?—”

“Send me the address,” I snap, already pulling my jacket off the back of my chair.

“Thank you, sir, I?—”

I hang up before he can finish, irritation flickering in my chest. Normally, I’d leave something like this for someone else to handle. But this isn’t just anyone. This is Alice.

The address Anton sent isn’t far, tucked in a quieter corner of Manhattan. The ride doesn’t take long, but as I pull up to the sidewalk, I spot her immediately. She’s standing near a lamppost, arms crossed, her tiny frame almost swallowed by the oversized jacket she’s wearing. Her face is a mix of irritation and confusion, her gaze darting toward me as I pull to a stop.

“A bike?” she says, loud enough for me to hear over the rumble of the engine. “Really? How cliché.”

I chuckle, pulling off my helmet and running a hand through my hair. “What can I say? I aim to please.”

She narrows her eyes at me, but there’s a flicker of amusement there, one that makes me grin. “You’re not even supposed to be here. Where’s—what’s-his-name?”

“Terrified,” I reply smoothly, leaning casually against the bike. “He called me because he couldn’t handle the pressure. Lucky for you, I decided to be generous today.”

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