Page 74 of Velvet Chains
I nod, my own smile just as vicious. “Exactly. Rats don’t die easily, but they do die. And when we’re done with Dave, there won’t be enough left of him to fill a fucking thimble.”
“So, why am I here, brother?”my sister asks.
I pull out the red ledger, the leather cover worn and faded.
I slide it across the table to Ksenia, my eyes never leaving her face.
“This is why I asked you to come today.”
Ksenia leans forward, her eyes widening with a predatory gleam. She reaches over, plucking a cigarette from the pack sitting in front of Misha. He’s already got his lighter out, the flame flicking to life as she leans in, casting shadows across her sharp features. Her gaze is locked on the pages, scanning each line with a hunger I recognize all too well.
“Well, well, well,” she murmurs, her lips curving into a smirk. “Looks like our dear friend Vasiliev has been a busy boy.”
I lean back in my chair. “He’s got half the fucking city in his pocket. Judges, politicians, even the goddamn chief of police.”
Misha whistles lowly. “With that kind of firepower, he could make our lives very difficult.”
Ksenia nods, her eyes still glued to the ledger. “He’s been funneling money through shell companies, using them to buy off anyone who might stand in his way.”
I watch her as she takes a drag of her cigarette, the smoke curling from her lungs. “And now we know exactly who those people are.”
“We could use this, boss. Squeeze them until they fucking squeal.” Misha grins, flipping his knife in the air and catching it by the handle.
I smile, my mind already racing with possibilities. “We’ll start with the judges. Find out which ones are on his payroll and make them an offer they can’t refuse.”
Ksenia looks up, her eyes glinting with malice. “And the ones who refuse?”
I shrug,absently tapping the phone against my hand, waiting for that damn message to finally show up.
Suka, don’t get distracted!
I tilt my head, eyes locking on him, already thinking through my next steps. “Accidents happen. It would be a shame if something were to happen to their pretty little families.”
Misha chuckles darkly. “I like the way you think, boss.”
I steeple my fingers, my mind whirring with plans and contingencies. “We hit him where it hurts. His supply lines, his distribution centers. We choke off his revenue streams until he has no choice but to come crawling to us.”
Misha nods, flicking ash from his cigarette. “And then we take him out, once and for all.”
I meet his gaze, my resolve hardening. “No more games, no more dancing around each other. We end this, and we end it now.”
Ksenia sits back, a slow smile spreading across her face. She takes one last drag of her cigarette before stubbing it out, the embers dying with a final hiss.
“I have a better idea.”
She pulls out her phone, her fingers flying across the screen. She brings it to her ear, her expression turning cold and calculating.
“It’s me,” she says, her voice like ice. “I have something you want. The red ledger. Every dirty little secret your boss has been hiding.”
There’s a pause, and then she laughs, the sound sharp and brittle. “Oh, I’m sure you would. But I’m not in the habit of giving things away for free.”
She listens for a moment, her smile turning predatory. “Here’s the deal. You give us back our cargo, and we’ll consider not using this ledger to burn your entire operation to the ground.”
Another pause, longer this time. Ksenia’s fingers tap impatiently against the table.
“And a hundred million in cash, delivered to a location of our choosing. You have five days to comply, or we start making calls. I’m sure the feds would be very interested in what we have to say.”
Chapter 31
