Page 124 of Lethal Legacy

“Oh.” Nikolai looks relieved, and a bit shamefaced. “Well, Lance seemed to think your nanny knows something about it. He implied that the two of you are conspiring in some way. He hung around for a few days, working in one of the private rooms, asking all kinds of questions. At first I didn’t really care, since he was taking good pap shots and Pillars was getting good publicity out of it. But in the end I didn’t like some of the things he was saying, so I stopped answering his questions.” He looks at me hopefully, as if I’m going to give him some kind of fucking approval for doing the bare minimum to show me loyalty.

“You told me all this came about because Miguel said something,” I prompt.

“Oh. Yeah.” Nikolai wipes some of the blood from his nose. “The thing is, a few days after I kicked him out of Pillars, Lance just disappeared. I mean, I called him to ask if he wanted an exclusive on an event at the club, and his phone was disconnected. Nada. I asked Miguel where he went, and he said that Lance is running from you.” He glances at me. “Apparently, Lance told Miguel that your men were following him. Miguel said that Lance knows things about your business at the software facility, and things about your past, that you’d kill to keep secret. He doesn’t know what,” he adds hastily. “Miguel doesn’t know what Lance was chasing down, just that he said Miguel should warn me you aren’t to be trusted. That’s it, Roman. That’s all I know.” He eyes me warily. “I know I should have told you before now, but—”

I wave that off impatiently.

Nikolai is finished as far as I’m concerned.

I might stop short of putting a bullet through his brain, but he’ll be on such a short fucking leash for the rest of his life that he might begin to wish I had. That isn’t what interests me now.

“Did you end up finding out anything about this Naryshkin Treasure that Lance was so obsessed with?”

“The treasure?” Nikolai frowns in confusion. “Oh, no.” He shrugs, giving me a rather bemused look. “I mean, it’s obviously just one of those stories you hear, right? Journalists make them up all the time about Russians, especially rich ones.” Then his face takes on a shrewd expression. “Wait. Is that why you had men following him? Do you think he’s onto something?”

“Of course not.” Nikolai’s blatant greed is about as subtle as a fucking sledgehammer. Nonetheless, better I nip it in the bud. The last thing I need now is Nicky getting curious. “I’m just wondering why he thought I was involved. No,” I say, as if dismissing it. “I had Ryder followed because I knew he attended a meeting at Pillars, and I knew he was a journalist. I was worried he would damage us in some way.”

It isn’t entirely untrue.

“Oh.” Nikolai has the grace to look ashamed, and I don’t feel remotely fucking guilty about it. “Thank you for looking out for me, Roman.”

“Yep.” I nod curtly toward the main road. “Let’s get back to the parade. You’re going to say hello to your brother’s kids, then you’re going to get the fuck out of my sight. Are we clear?”

“Yes,pakhan.”He lowers his head sullenly. “Crystal.”

37

LUCIA

Roman has disappeared.

His presence is like some kind of magnetic field; I always know when he’s nearby. One moment he was there, barely a pace from Ofelia, and my world felt ordered and safe. The next, the air felt somehow loose, slightly chaotic, and when I looked at the place where he’d been, I found Dimitry instead.

“Da-da-da.” Masha dances dreamily in time to the music. Her performance is over for now, and she’s just singing randomly along to the music blaring from Mickey’s speakers. The crowd roars as a gymnast flips on the back of a truck, and I swing around, startled.

I really don’t like crowds.

I might have fought for the kids to do this, but that doesn’t mean I don’t find the entire thing nerve-wracking. A hundred phones are recording us. I can hear Russian accents from every part of the crowd. It makes sense, of course. Every Russian in the whole south of Spain has come to celebrate at the biggest Russian church in the region.

I’m really starting to question my sanity in thinking this was, in any way, a good idea.

And where the hell is Roman?

I raise my mask slightly and catch Dimitry’s eye.Where is Roman?I mouth.

Dimitry frowns and indicates that I should lower my mask. I do, but not before he sees how worried I am.

Nikolai, he mouths back.

Hm.So that was the thin-faced guy in the tracksuit with all the steroid-junkie bodyguards. It’s hard to believe that Nikolai belongs to the same family as Roman. He looks like some street thug who got lucky, a distant cry from Roman’s lethal elegance.

“Masha!” Ofelia is waving to her sister. “It’s time to do your dance again.”

I hear the familiar strains of the cactus song, a particularly grating tune created by Masha’s teacher that I hope never to hear again. The music rotates through each float, enabling each group to perform their particular piece for the crowds. This is the fourth time we’ve done the cactus dance during the procession. It’s possibly the thousandth time I’ve done it this week.

At least the lion mask hides my face.

But as I turn Masha to face the front yet again, I can’t help but smile as I watch a beaming Ofelia make exaggerated gestures beside the float and hear Masha giggle delightedly as she follows her sister’s lead. “Look, Luce,” she burbles happily. “’Felia dancing.”

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