Page 33 of Ruling Scar
“Because apparently putting a hit out against Leopold Stuart amounts to starting an international incident.”
Leopold Stuart. I roll the name around. “I assume he deserves to die, though, right?”
Conflicted feelings cross her face. The spark of fire in her eyes, says yes, but a second later her morals kick in.
“No.” Her fingers fidget, but she sits up. “No, killing.”
I frown. “Then why did you come here?”
“I’m not asking you to kill him.” She pauses to think, her brow quirking like it always does. “Just. . . well, you know how to get people to back off.”
“Why exactly does he need to back off?”
“He wants to get married,” she mumbles.
Then it’s not a matter ofifI’ll kill him butwhen.
I stare blankly at the amber liquid in my glass. There’s no need to alarm her with details and there’s a few more worth knowing.
“Why?” I ask.
She shrugs, a shadow crossing her face. “I knew he was loaded, but I had no idea his family was looking for a seat at the table here. He made it seem like the marriage was a done thing.”
Proof the Stuarts have no idea what they’re doing. “Everyone on this planet knows Gia Akatov will never allow her daughters to be married off.”
It’s why she scoffed at Max’s marriage. She’s remained adamant her daughters won’t be used as bargaining chips.
If Lennie went to her mother and fessed up about the night’s events, all Gia would need to do is snap her fingers. Boris might not like it, but he’d get it taken care of. Leonora’s right in knowing it’d cause a scene, but the Akatovs put family above everyone else.
It’s why, despite Boris’s relationship with my dad, I found myself on the chopping block after the accident. Eighteen years later there’s still only fire in Gia’s eyes when she looks at me. Naturally, I always smile back.
“What do you want me to do?” I cross my ankle over a knee. She’s doing everything she can not to wiggle in her seat so I have the decency to bite back my smirk.
“I don’t know,” she admits. “I just. . .”
“You want me to take care of him?” I ask, leaning my head to the side. She nods. “How?”
She nibbles on her bottom lip, my eyes trailing the movement. My beast stirs, coiling deep in my chest. Leopold is wrong if he thinks those lips will belong to him.
“Well, could you talk to him?” she asks, her dark eyes pleading.
“And say what?”
She stares at me.
“That’ll just start a fight.” I scratch behind Albert’s ears.
Lennie’s knee starts to bounce. “Okay, war strategist, why don’t you tell me what you think will work.”
I lean back, considering. “It’ll take nuance.”
“Nuance?”
“Like you said, you don’t want dead bodies floating around. Times are rough as it is. No need for a war when the enemy hasn’t even declared itself.”
Because as far as I’m aware the Stuarts are playing nice overseas. They’ve made no overture of expanding into New York.
“And I suspect the real reason you’re here is because you don’t want to upset your dearmamma.”
