Page 94 of Goodnight, Sinners

To wake him up or not, that was the question. She loved the way he looked while he slept. Boyish, innocent, the implacable lines that played about his eyes and mouth gone.

When he didn’t stir, she got a little closer, tracing her fingers across the rippling muscles of his stomach. Still no response.

“I’m going to have tea with the man you told me is responsible for the entire Bratva. I’m really hoping he won’t try to kill me. You did say it was unlikely they’d murder us in this lovely palace.” Still no movement. She strode into the washroom, filled a glass with cold water and set it on his bedside table. She leaned over and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. “Wish me luck.”

Philip was waiting in the corridor for her, his frowning gaze fixed to the smart watch on his wrist.

“Nice watch,” she said with an innocent smile. “We should probably hurry. I would guess Mr. Siberia doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”

Philip’s gaze became even chillier. “No.”

He turned on his heel and marched ahead of Shaun. She would have loved to take out her newly discovered badass mafia wife persona and knock this guy down a few pegs, but she wasn’t entirely sure where he stood in the Bratva regard. She should probably hold off on pissing off the servants until she had more information.

Philip showed her into a suite with a surprisingly warm atmosphere. The pomp and lavishness of her suite was discarded in favour of a cluttered, bright and comfortable group of rooms.

Shaun was surprised, the place looked lived in. Like really lived in. She thought the palace was for weekend getaways and hosting. Or at least, that was the impression that Jozef had given her. But Ivan’s suite was more like an elderly retiree’s home.

A walker sat next to a well-worn armchair, a TV opposite, and a stack of books was laying haphazardly across a table on the other side of the chair. She watched in amazement as a man, using a cane, walked painfully into the room, moving slowly and with some difficulty.

Shaun immediately broke into a cold sweat. It didn’t matter that this man wasn’t personally capable of swatting a fly, he could have someone swat her if she became a nuisance to him.

“Please, sit down, Mrs. Koba.” Ivan’s voice was strong as he turned around and carefully sat in the armchair.

Shaun hesitantly approached the couch adjacent to Ivan’s chair. It was covered in newspapers, magazines, cat toys and a cat bed. She glanced around for the cat but didn’t see one. Moving a few items out of the way, she sat on the couch.

Philip wheeled in a tray seemingly from nowhere, set the tea service on the coffee table in front of Shaun, then left the room.

“Would you mind pouring?” Ivan asked, hooking his cane on the walker next to his chair.

“Of course.” Shaun leaned forward and poured a rich dark liquid into the two teacups. “Cream or sugar?”

“Both, spasibo.”

His English was so flawless, his Russian ‘thank you’ almost took her by surprise.

She handed him his cup, which he set on the table next to him.

Shaun settled into her chair and held her cup, watching him carefully. She wouldn’t take a sip until he drank from his cup. As if noticing her discomfort, he picked up his cup and took a long sip, his dark brown eyes on her face.

She smiled her relief and sipped her own tea.

“How are you settling in, Mrs. Koba?” he asked, pushing his chair into a reclining position.

It felt strange to be in the presence of such a top Vor, but without the formal accoutrements that seemed to surround his fellow Bratva.

“The palace is lovely,” she said, unsure if that was what he meant.

He shook his head and studied her. “Let’s speak plainly, Mrs. Koba. I don’t have a lot of time left and I dislike wasting minutes on pointless speech.”

There wasn’t a lot that Shaun could say to that, except, “Of course. Please say whatever you like to me.”

She didn’t entirely mean it. She sincerely hoped he wouldn’t tell her there was a pit of hungry alligators underneath his living room floor, ready to feast on her flesh.

“Two years ago, Jozef picked you up in a hospital in Luhansk, Ukraine. You were meant to die that day, but you didn’t.”

Chapter Forty-Two

Shaun sucked in a breath as images from that day slammed through her. She had worked with her counsellor on mitigating their impact, but when the head of the Vor told her she was meant to be dead, it was like a fresh wound being ripped open again.

---