Page 22 of Heartless Sinner

Vincent

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Honestly, I’d been surprised the old man had put up so much of a fight. Russians were always hard sells, but then you could say that Italians were proud as shit, so we all had our flaws.

But c’mon, the guy could see that this was a hugely advantageous match for his daughter, and by default, his entire family. Was his pride really that important to him?

I noticed that Marla didn’t mention anything about the deal she’d negotiated with me about her brother’s murder, so I kept my mouth shut about that too. She probably didn’t want her father to know that I’d told her that the terms were being my wife, and he probably didn’t want to know that his daughter was looking for revenge herself. I got the impression that Andrei wasn’t into the idea of his daughter taking part of the family business even if he wouldn’t let her out of it, either.

When Andrei took her aside to talk to her privately, I was sure he was going to put his foot down and say no. Which wasn’t going to stop me, of course. Marla and I had a deal, and I’d keep my end of the bargain so long as she agreed to keep hers and marry me. But it would be a hell of a lot easier with her father onboard.

If he convinced Marla to change her mind, though… I shook myself out of those thoughts. I’d seen the determined look on Marla’s face. Neither hell nor high water was going to keep that woman from what she wanted, and she wanted vengeance.

I had to struggle to keep a smirk off my face. I’d sure picked a woman who could hold her own, but that was what I loved. I wanted her to fight when she needed to.

After a couple of minutes, Marla and her father returned. Toby seemed on edge, but I didn’t worry about it. Killing me would bring the entire wrath of my father and both of my brothers down on Preston’s head. His entire family and operation would be wiped out. He wasn’t quite that stupid.

When they returned, Marla gave me a small nod. I could see a triumphant glint in her blue eyes, and I had to resist the urge to say that’s my girl when she came to stand next to me. We might be getting married, but she wasn’t my girl. Not really. Not yet. But I would convince her that she wanted to be.

Preston sighed as he walked up to me. “It seems my daughter’s as stubborn as I am. You have my blessing.”

“I’ll have it put through the proper channels,” I said. “Everyone will know that your family is under my protection now. That should be enough to get whatever ambitious rat is trying to start something here to back off.”

I doubted that was the answer. Or maybe it was part of the answer. Lower level people who wanted a bigger piece of the pie could work themselves up the food chain by taking out smaller families and annexing their territory. A sniper attack sure fit the bill. But again, it didn’t fit with the murder of Dmitri.

Still, it wouldn’t do to share my suspicions without any solid proof, theory, or suspects. I’d just have to start digging. And now that my marriage to Marla was official, I could.

We talked security measures along with some basic plans. I noticed that Preston didn’t seem to want Marla to listen in, which was ridiculous. Sure, traditionally, the women weren’t a part of the business side of things but c’mon. Marla was clearly an asset. The days of keeping women in the kitchen or leaving them in ignorance of their husband’s business dealings were over and Marla had a good head on her shoulders. She should be kept in the loop.

I didn’t say all this to Preston, of course, because it would have pissed him off, but when we got back into the car, I told Marla so.

“Your father should listen to you.”

Marla snorted. She looked tired. Exhausted, really. “Yes, well, he hasn’t done that for twenty-five years, why would he start now?”

“You’re going to be my wife. That means you’ll be a Russo. And if you want to be a part of the meetings, you’re welcome to join in. If you want to know anything about what’s going on or my plans, and if I’m able to tell you, I will. I don’t believe in keeping my wife in the dark.”

Marla blinked a few times, surprised. “I wasn’t aware that was how the Russo’s did things.”

“I don’t care if it’s how we do things, it’s how I do things. And just because you don’t hear about something through the grapevine doesn’t mean it’s not real. I’m a private man.”

“I imagine with a brother like yours you’ve had to be,” she said, referencing Marco.

“And I imagine with a father like yours, you’ve had to be rather smart,” I replied.

Marla bit her lip. “Touché.”

The car took a left turn, and she frowned, staring out the front windshield. “This isn’t the way back to my place.”

“You’re not going back to your place. You’re coming back to mine. Someone’s after your family and you’re a weak spot. Until we figure out what’s going on, you’ll be safer with me.”

Marla looked like she might argue for a moment, then sat back in her seat like she realized it simply wasn’t worth disputing—she knew I was right.

I appreciated that. It meant she wouldn’t disagree with me just for the sake of defiance. She’d argue when there was something genuine to discuss.

We rode in silence. Marla seemed to have a lot on her mind, and I couldn’t blame her. In my head, I calculated what would need to be done in order for me to get the information to ferret out whoever had done this to her brother. It just bothered me that the two attacks were so different, in both method and tone. Something didn’t add up, and I had to find out what it was before this turned into an even bigger mess than it already was.

Marla was quiet as we walked into my apartment. There was a tiny part of me that was tempted to kiss her and see if she was still in the mood for a little fun, but the rest of me was too damn tired. This evening had been draining, and I had to get a lot of work done tomorrow.

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