Page 99 of The Payback

“Hi, Bella,” I say, softening my usual tone. “You look just like your mama and papa.”

“Hold the fucking phone!” the godmother shouts.

Eleanor groans beside me, covering her face with her hands. Bella sees it and yells, “PEEKABOO!” at the top of her lungs, deafening us all. I don’t know much about kids, but Bella is about a year and a half old if I’ve got my maths right. She’s smart and has more words than I expected her to. Or maybe this is normal? Fuck, I need to do some Googling.

“It seems like I’ve stepped into something else I shouldn’t have today,” I murmur.

“It’s the same fucking thing,” Eleanor says, her words distorted as she still has her face covered. “Just a different audience.”

“Stop cussing in front of our girl!” Godmother shouts again. I don’t point out that she cussed earlier as well. “What do you mean, she looks like herpapa?”

“Well,” Eleanor begins, “now that he knows, I feel like it’s okay that I tell you. You remember my former partner?”

“The asshole who stole the diamond and almost got you fired from work because somehow that wasyourfault?”

“Yep. Well, um, he’s Bella’s father.”

“Biological father,” Godmother retorts.

Bella smooshes her face against the camera, babbling incessantly as Eleanor and the mystery woman hold their tense silence.

I understand their hesitation. As the leader of a Bratva chapter, I’m not exactly the type of person you’d want around children, nor the type to share secrets with. But I’m also Eleanor’s husband and want to be a part of Bella’s life, even if she’s not mine.

I take a deep breath and try to calm my nerves. Bella looks from her mother to me, her eyes zeroing in on my face, and my heart skips a beat. She’s so tiny, so fragile looking. But she’s also beautiful, with Nik’s nose, rosy-pink cheeks, and dark hair like Eleanor’s.

“Hey, princess,” I say softly, waving at her through the screen. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

Eleanor observes me, but Bella doesn’t care. She’s too busy gazing at me with those big innocent eyes. I can’t help but smile at her, and she returns it, sending a tendril of warmth through my chest.

I don’t know what to say to her, so I just talk. “You know your mum is a queen? That makes you a princess, little love. One day, we’re going to get you a big castle to play in,” I say, trying to make conversation.

I realise she’s probably too young to understand what I’m saying. But that doesn’t stop me from feeling a rush of love for her.

“Bounce!” Bella says, and I can’t quite figure out how that corresponds to castles.

Godmother groans. “We’ll bounce in your princess castle later, honey. It’s V’s turn with you.”

“V! V! V!” Bella cheers, obviously liking where this conversation is headed.

“You already have a castle?” I ask, racking my brain for other things I can give this sweet girl.

Godmother clears her throat, breaking the moment. “So, Dimitri Aslanov,Pakhanof the New York Bratva, are you keeping my girl safe?” she asks, her tone suspicious.

Eleanor chuckles at the surprise on my face. “Cool it with the interrogation, girl. And how do you know him? Have you met? Have you worked together?” My wife looks like she’s having some kind of internal panic, and without knowing who I’m speaking with, there’s no way to answer her questions.

“We have not,” Godmother says. “But I make it a point to know certain players. Dimitri’s sudden ascension didn’t go unnoticed. Hey, did you ever figure out who murdered your father?”

My breathing stalls. There’s only one way she knows. “You!?”

“Oh, God, no. I was lying topless on a beach; I have photos if you need the evidence.”

“You are not sending random strangers topless photos, Little Thief,” a man says off-camera.

“My tits, my choice.”

A growl sounds from the other side, and there’s anoofsound. “Okay, fine,” the woman chokes out.

“She didn’t kill your father. But how do you know about that?” Eleanor asks cheerfully, keeping Bella unaware of the tension brewing. It sounds unhinged.

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