Page 5 of The Payback

I shove that mental image out of my head and clear my throat to prepare for the rundown I need to give Olivia. I couldn’t give her many details when I called her last month, nor can I now. But she needs to know the gravity of the situation for her protection—and Bella’s.

“So, where are you going?” Olivia asks. “Can I come? Are we travelling? Do we get to wear costumes? Is there espionage?” Her voice ratchets up with excitement after every question. She’s gripping my arms, and her nails dig into my soft bits. “It’s been weeks since I did a job.”

Of course, my bestie wants to go on a mission with me. “I mean, yeah, it’s espionage. And no, you can’t come. You agreed to watch my child, remember?” I point to said child, just in case she’s forgotten.

She looks like I stole her lucky pen but recovers when V hands Bella to her.

Olivia holds her arms out like Bella’s a ticking bomb, and my sweet girl kicks her feet excitedly.

“She won’t bite you,” I tell my best friend, then think better of it. “Actually, she might. She’s been in a teething thing, but we’re at the tail end of it.”

Olivia slowly brings Bella closer, giving her the stink-eye and still holding her oddly, but it’s better than it was ten seconds ago.

“Anyway,” I say with a bit of hesitation. She needs to know this next part, and as much as I hate bringing my responsibilities to her doorstep, I would do the same for her if our roles were reversed. “This is the safest place for her. The people I’ll be dealing with are dangerous, and I’m afraid if it goes sideways, they’ll come looking for her.”

“Say no more,” Olivia responds. “We’re covered on that front, and no one is getting to my goddaughter. Not unless they’re willing to go through all of us.”

I smooth one of Bella’s dark locks behind her ear as she smooshes Olivia’s face between two chubby palms and giggles.

“When does the job start again?” Olivia asks.

“In six weeks. But I’ll be working doubles until it starts, getting briefed, and working with the team to ensure everything is ready. I don’t know how long this might last, but I don’t expect it to be over six months.”

“I closed our intake form on the app, so we’re committed to this. Plus, we have Zach in case of an emergency. He knows what he’s doing.”

Yeah, sure, Zach is a paediatrician, but he’s also a psychopath—sociopath?—I never did grasp criminal psych. I don’t ask much about Olivia and the guys’ work, but I don’t think Zach’s just patching up boo-boos and handing out lollipops.

I look over at my sweet child, conceived from a one-night stand and a parting gift from a partner who betrayed not just Interpol but also me. Even just thinking about Nikita Lenkov—or, as I once knew him, Nicolas Stephenson—gets me all riled up again.

But as I look at Bella’s face—half mine, half his, my eyes, his nose, somehow a combination of our lips, my top, his bottom—some anger melts away.

“Can you tell us anything about your mission?”

“Mission makes it sound very double-oh-seven. I approve,” I say. “But let’s call it an assignment. I can’t say much, but I’ll be in New York.”

“Why isn’t the CIA, NSA, FBI, or any of those other acronym clusterfucks handling this, then?”

“It’s a joint effort, but because the crimes that link it involve Interpol, and there’s a bunch of jurisdiction bullshit, it’s spiralled into a collaboration. I’ll have a counterpart from one of the US branches since it’s on their soil.”

When the files came across my desk, I jumped at the chance to go undercover for this. It’s been a red-tape nightmare since I have a child. But thankfully, after organising her care in case the worst happens and legalising all the documentation, I was given the all-clear—especially since I came up with the cover story requiring an Asian woman with a British accent, familiar with organised crime. More than that, it was necessary becauseNikis part of that chapter, hiding in plain sight.

And while I might not know where exactly he lands in the hierarchy, I do know that I want revenge—both for stealing a diamond encrypted with sensitive information for the head of the Bratva and for betraying me in the worst way possible.

I also need to prove myself after he made me look like an incompetent asshole.

Thankfully, I contracted Olivia to get it back, but still, the brass are not too pleased with me.

When I get back to HQ, all that’s left to do is go over everything a hundred times, see the therapist to ensure I’m ready for the role, study the setup and briefs, and account for every scenario. While I’m gutted about leaving Bella here, I know it’s for the best. Because even if I wasn’t the one going undercover, there is always a chance for blowback, and I want her safe and cared for no matter what happens.

After all, when Dimitri Aslanov, Bratva boss andpakhanof the New York chapter, approaches your agency and offers to turn on his entire organisation, we sit up and listen.

CHAPTERTHREE

Dimitri - Present

Nikita showingup at my wedding to the Interpol agent was unexpected. He had a job that should have kept him busy for months. Long enough for me to get things settled at home before his involvement.

Instead, he’s back mere weeks after leaving, which will throw an uncomfortable wrench into the plans. But it’s too late to change anything now.

---