Page 52 of Filthy Lies

“Someone didn’t agree with my decision.” I take her free hand in mine. “There’s more. The financing for the CostaRica development has collapsed. All five banks pulled out simultaneously.”

“That’s not a coincidence.”

“No, it’s not.” I brush a strand of hair from her face. “Someone with detailed knowledge of our operations has been feeding information to our enemies.”

“You think it’s your father?”

“I’m not sure. But whoever it is, they’re trying to undermine everything we’re building.”

Rowan is quiet for a moment as she processes. “Kevin had a family,” she says finally. “A mother in that care facility.”

“I know. We’ll make sure she’s taken care of.”

Her eyes meet mine, and there’s a weight to her gaze I wasn’t expecting. Not disappointment, but something harder.Resolve.

“Find who did this, Vince.”

“I will.”

“No, you don’t understand.” Her voice turns to steel. “Find them and make an example of them. The kind that ensures no one ever thinks of crossing you again.”

I stare at her, surprised. This is not the reaction I anticipated.

“You once showed mercy for my sake,” she continues. “And someone threw that back in your face. Used it to make you look weak.” She glances down at our daughter. “We can’t afford to be seen as weak. Not anymore.”

My heart clenches with a savage kind of satisfaction mixed with grief. The innocent woman I vowed to protect is dead, murdered by circumstance and necessity. In her place stands a queen of darkness, drenched in blood and shadows, who sees the brutal truth of my empire with eyes every bit as cold as mine.

“I’ll handle it,” I promise.

My phone vibrates with a text. I check it, then look back at Rowan. “Arkady’s received some new information about Barkov’s movements. I need to deal with this.”

“Go.” She stands, adjusting Sofiya against her shoulder. “Just remember what I said.”

I kiss her forehead, then Sofiya’s, before heading to the door.

Arkady is waiting in the hallway, phone in hand.

“What have you got?” I ask.

“One of Barkov’s men was spotted meeting with someone at the Marina. Security cameras caught this.” He shows me a grainy image on his phone.

The figure meeting with Barkov’s associate is familiar—tall, thin, with a distinctive way of standing. I’ve seen him dozens of times over the years.

My father’s accountant.

Not my father directly, but close enough. Someone with access to all our financial records, all our business dealings, all our secrets.

“Get the car,” I tell Arkady. “And call Dimitri. Tell him to bring his special toolkit.”

“What about Rowan? Should we increase security here?”

I glance back at the closed study door. “Double the guard rotation. No one gets within a mile of this place without our knowledge.”

As we head for the door, my determination grows fangs. I’d attempted to become the merciful man Rowan thought I could be. But someone mistook my restraint for vulnerability.

That ends today.

22

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