Page 74 of Shattered Cradle (Makarova Bratva Duet)

I nod. “And I know that was hard for you to do. Especially because you didn’t believe he was guilty.”

“I still don’t,” she admits.

I grit my teeth, but choose to ignore that. “I’m going to ask you for another favor now.”

She looks immediately wary. “What is it?”

“I need you to get back in touch with him.”

Shock washes across her face. “What?”

“You heard me,” I say. “Now that we’re fully embroiled in this, it makes sense to have someone on the inside.”

“So you want me tospyfor you?”

“Yes.”

“Aleksandr.”

“Mother,” I answer in kind. “You wanted to be part of the Bratva, correct? Truly part of it? Well, this is what that means.”

“This is different. He’s my friend.”

“And if it turns out he’s innocent, you can be the one to prove it.”

She frowns, considering that for a moment. “What exactly do you want me to do?”

“Insert yourself back into his life. Ask him leading questions. Try and earn his trust so that he’ll start confiding in you.”

“He’s going to be suspicious of the timing,” she points out. “You are the husband of his soon-to-be sister-in-law.”

“I think he’ll overlook that in order to gain information about me.”

Her eyes widen. “You want me to play double agent?”

“Give him just enough about me to keep him on the hook. But really, I need you to find out more about the evidence he has on these girls he claims I raped.”

“He would never let me near that kind of information,” she says.

“So convince him.” I lean forward. “Look, Mother: I don’t need you to be his lover. I need you to be his friend. His—what did you call it? Hisconfidante.”

“And if he doesn’t buy it?” she asks.

“We’ll find another way in.”

“What about your wife? She has a way in.”

I shake my head. “I’m not using her.”

“Oh, I get it,” she scoffs. “She’s not expendable, but I am. Is that right?”

“She’s pregnant,” I tell her.

Her eyes go wide with shock. “She’s… she’s pregnant? You mean I’m going to be a grandmother?”

I smile inwardly. I never imagined Yulia Makarova to be the kind of woman who would look forward to becoming a grandmother.

“That’s usually how that goes, yes.”

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