Series: Series by Ker Dukey
Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 107407 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107407 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
Placing her hand over my rib, right above my heart, she whispers, “That’s what we do, we save each other.” My heart leaps in my chest at her words, wanting to jump right into her palm.
Rodion tips his face to look up at us. “Yuri is next. We need to make a real plan involving our father. Yuri’s more complicated than these assassins otherwise he would have been taken off the board years ago. We need to be smart.”
Alyona moves away from us, and my heart pounds.
“Where are you going?” My tone comes out firmer than I intend.
Smiling back at me over her shoulder, she bites the soft cushion of her bottom lip and says, “To shower before Roza wakes up from her nap.” Her ass sways, and both Rodion and I track the movement like hunters homing in on prey. “Want to join me?” she adds, and Rodion beats me out of the bed, snatching her up, making her squeal.
We’ve enjoyed five full days of bliss, tucked away in our secluded bubble, far from the chaos of the outside world. However, that bubble was bound to burst, and it has in the way of our private investigator, Abram. He sits across the table from us, his expression etched with frustration as he shakes his head slowly.
“Believe me,” he says, his voice taut. “I’ve examined every possible enemy and friend in Yuri Vasiliev’s circle. The truth is, no one dares to make a move against him. He is untouchable. And now, you’ve taken out all three of the Maiburovs, who were the only individuals who could have confirmed your story that Yuri ordered a hit on you…” He trails off. His eyes shift from me to something behind me or someone. My arm reaches out and snakes around Alyona’s waist as soon as she’s within reaching distance, and I pull her onto my lap, kissing her neck.
“You found her,” Abram says, rolling a coin across his fingers.
“Imagine our surprise when we discovered she’d been right here all along,” I say, narrowing my eyes at Abram.
He’s remarkable at his job, which is why he’s been a loyal employee for us all these years. Having been on the Vetrov’s payroll for over a decade, he earned a reputation for his expertise. Our father trusts him implicitly, and Ven shared that confidence as well. So, it irked me deeply when we found her here and Abram had not. I can’t shake the feeling that there’s more to this story, and I need to understand why he kept it from us.
“There’s not many people I can’t find.” He nods his head to Alyona in greeting.
“Exactly,” Rodion says as he straightens in his seat beside me, leaning forward and steepling his hands on the table. “So why is it that you struggled to locate Alyona here with not one, but two, Vasiliev offspring?”
The pulse flickers in Abram’s jaw. “When I looked into her disappearance, I found Diana’s signature all over it.” He snatches the coin when it slips from his knuckle and rolls across the table. “I brought my findings to Ven, and he instructed that it was best for both Alyona and the Vetrov name if she wasn’t found.”
Rising, Rodion slams his fist onto the table’s wooden surface, the sound reverberating through the room. “So, you actually knew where she was all along and chose to take Ven’s authority over ours?”
Abram remains composed, his expression unreadable. “Your father agreed with Ven,” he replies coolly, as if the matter were merely a business negotiation rather than a betrayal of our trust.
“I should break your fucking neck,” I seethe, slipping Alyona from my lap. I step in front of her making sure she’s safe behind me.
If the fucker is afraid, he doesn’t let on. Just keeps toying with his stupid coin. I’m about to make him swallow the damn thing.
“My main job is to do whatever I need to do for the best interests of the Vetrov name,” he defends. “I didn’t like it, going to your cousin and father, but with Diana involved, I had to.”
“And Diana…” I say, darting my eyes to Alyona who gives me a sheepish look.
Pushing her hands into the pockets of her jeans, she swallows and says, “I had two bodies in the bed of a truck and no money or ideas on what the hell to do. I needed Diana.”
“Two bodies?” Rodion and I say in unison.
“Your housekeeper.” Her brow furrows.
I shoot my eyes at Rodion, who jabs a finger at me and growls, “I fucking told you Betty wouldn’t have ghosted us.”
“Alexey killed her.” Alyona winces. “I’m sorry.”
Betty was good at her job, and her demise is unfortunate, but we won’t mourn her for fuck’s sake.
“No need to be sorry, Alyona. Come here,” I order, taking a seat and pulling her back down onto my lap.