Page 65 of Kings of Cruelty

Vanessa’s eyes snap back to mine, and her expression goes cold. “Don’t. You can hate him for what he does, you can hate me for having to look the other way, but don’t bring our children into this.”

I want to push, to see how far I can take this before she cracks, but… This is Giulio fucking Pavone’s wife I’m talking to. Everyone knows what happened when he set his sights on destroying another mafia group.

It didn’t go well for them, considering there are none of them left.

“I’m sorry,” I mumble. “I’m just…”

“Blindsided?” she suggests.

“Konstantin called him a business associate,” I say, the words coming slowly as I start to put the pieces together. It’s not even that we’re having adatewith a sex trafficker. Konstantin is doingbusinesswith him.

Yuri and Nikolai’s behavior suddenly makes a lot more sense.

Vanessa shakes her head. “I don’t know anything about their business relationship, Sierra,” she says, but the pity in her voice has me wanting to lash out at her all over again. “But I’m sorry, for what it’s worth.”

“Yeah,” I say. “Me too.”

We stand in silence, then she gently touches my shoulder. “As far as they know, you’re just nauseated from the pregnancy. I won’t tell them otherwise.”

“No?” I let out a bitter laugh. “Thanks, I guess. You think there’s a back way out of here?” Not that I have my phone with me to call for someone to come get me. It doesn’t matter. Right now, I’d rather walk to Silvano Cresci’s home than even look Konstantin Voronkov in the eye.

I wish I could give Konstantin the benefit of the doubt, but too many things have slotted into place for me to ignore.

I’m not pissed.

I amraging.

“I’ll give them your excuses and have Konstantin meet you in the lobby,” she offers.

“Won’t your husband be pissed?” I ask, steeling myself.

Vanessa offers a strained smile. “No. If there’s one thing he knows about, it’s pregnancy. He’ll understand.”

I highly doubt that, but I’ll take it anyway. “Look, I’m…”

She shakes her head. “No. Don’t apologize. I understand.”

I doubt that, too, but I nod anyway. “Thanks. I’ll go wait in the lobby.”

Konstantin and I are going to have one hell of a conversation when we get home.

SEVENTEEN

Sierra

Konstantin keeps givingme worried glances, and I hate him for it.

“You should have told me this would be too strenuous,” he says.

The car is pulling up to the mansion’s front gate, and the driver uses the remote tucked on the dash to open it.

“Too strenuous?” I repeat, the first words I’ve uttered since telling him to shut up when we’d gotten into the car. “No, a marathon would’ve been too strenuous. Having a quaint little dinner date with a sex trafficker isn’t fuckingstrenuous,Konstantin. I cannot believe— Did you really—” I sputter, throwing my hands up in the air when the appropriate words refuse to come out.

Konstantin’s expression turns darker. “What? You said you were feeling yourself sick because of the pregnancy.”

I let out a bitter laugh. “Yeah. That was so Giulio Pavone didn’t rain chaos down on your entire enterprise when I insulted him by running out on a date with him. You’re welcome for that, by the way.”

The car comes to a stop, and I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the driver hops out immediately.

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