Page 67 of Lethal Alliance

“Where was Orlov holding you?” I snarl. None of the camera feeds, underground or above, showed any sign of Nikolai or Inger. “Where does he have Inger hidden?” I rap the questions out hard and fast.

I need to know everything Nikolai can tell me before I put a bullet in his head.

He eyes me resentfully. “At first they took us all to the compound. Vilnus made me take a good look at it, showed me how he’d wired it up to blow. That’s where they did... that.” He nods at Inger’s finger on the floor without looking at it, his face pasty. “It was that psychotic fucker Alexei Petrovsky who did it.” Nikolai’s mouth tightens. “He’s a sadistic bastard. The other guards call him Vilnus’s rabid dog. The madmudakbeat me unconscious.”

For the first time, I almost feel kindly disposed toward Darya’s brother.

“You saidat first.What happened after the compound?”

“Vilnus took Inger and me away, to some house out by the Everglades. He left the girls in the underground bunker, guarded by Alexei Petrovsky and an entire fucking army.”

“What house out by the Everglades? Who owns it?”

His face screws up in confusion. “How should I fucking know? It was big, that’s all I remember, at the end of a long driveway.” He scowls at me. “We weren’t exactly making small talk while I was getting beaten half to death. You need to get me to a doctor, Roman.”

Dimitry and I exchange an incredulous look.

Does Nikolai actually think he’s getting out of here alive?

It beggars belief.

I fold my arms. “Then why don’t you tell us what youdoknow, Nikolai?”

“Orlov knows Ofelia is your daughter. There was some DNA test that got flagged.”

“I’m aware.” I fold my arms, glaring at him.

He spits again and gives me a spiteful look. “Did my brother know he wasn’t Ofelia’s father?”

Oh, I’m going to enjoy killing you, Nikolai.

“Of course he didn’t fucking know. None of us did until Mickey ran those damned tests.”

His mouth twists. “Not that Mikhail would have cared anyway. He always loved you more than he did Inger. No wonder she ran to me.” A spasm of something contorts his face. “I thought Masha was my daughter, right up until they showed me that test. Inger... told me she was.”

“Bullshit.” I stare him down. “Mickey told me that you and Inger argued about her being at parties with Orlov. And you’ve been taking photos of Masha for months. You clearly suspected she wasn’t yours.”

“Inger promised me she was.” He looks as pathetic as he sounds. “And she wouldn’t get a paternity test. She said it would only cause problems if people knew. It was only after... what happened at the compound that she told me the truth.”

“I don’t give a fuck about your love life, Nikolai.” I’m getting impatient.

But he seems intent on finishing his sorry tale. The only reason I don’t stop him is because there might be something helpful amid the bullshit.

“Orlov raped her.”

I roll my eyes. “Sure, he did, Nikolai. Jesus.” I shake my head. “Even you can’t be stupid enough to believe that.”

“It’s true.” He shoots me a resentful look. “She was flirting with Orlov that summer, true enough, and we did argue about it. But you know what Inger is like. She flirts with everyone. Apparently one night Orlov wouldn’t take no for an answer. She told me that he slipped something in her drink. When she woke up the next morning, she was too embarrassed to make a fuss, so she never told anyone, even when she found out she was pregnant with Masha.”

Sadly, I can actually believe that. Inger has never known when to back off. And I vaguely recall her being extra hysterical that year. I put it down to her trying to screw a bigger settlement out of Mikhail.

Fuck it.I don’t want to feel sorry for Inger.

“Even if that story is true, then why the fuck would Inger ever trust him? Why would she think he’d buy her a yacht?”

Nikolai’s swollen eyes meet mine. “That’s exactly why she believed him. Orlov claimed he’d always felt bad about what happened, that he’d always regretted that night. He said that buying theGuapa, helping Inger and me run away together with Masha, was his way of making good. He even offered me a place in his organization.” The hint of defiance in his voice almost makes me laugh.

Almost.

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