Page 45 of Bratva Hostage

“Let’s get to work.”

Over the next few hours, Cecily absorbs every detail like she was made for this. She keeps up as Maksim and I go through the steps, pinpointing weak spots and dissecting the strategy from every angle. She doesn’t just listen—she contributes. She flips through documents, pulls up files, and pushes back on ideas when they don’t line up with how Thorne operates.

The more she speaks, the more I see it. This is instinct. She grew up in a world of deceit and manipulation, and unlike my men, she’s survived it firsthand without letting her turn her bitter or vile.

And she’s good.

Damn good.

We work deep into the night, hunched over maps and monitors in the operations center. Maksim takes the lead in setting up our bait, while Cecily and I review surveillance patterns and recent intelligence.

She doesn’t complain about the hours or the monotony of combing through data. She reads through reports with a dedication that makes it clear she’s committed to seeing this through. Every so often, she asks a question that makes Maksim pause, and it leads us to reconsider angles we might’ve overlooked.

When she’s like this—completely focused, entirely in her element—it’s impossible not to watch her.

“This informant,” she says, pointing to a name on a roster of Thorne’s known contacts. “You said he’s unreliable.”

Maksim leans back, rubbing the back of his neck. “He runs his mouth. Half the time, he’s just trying to get attention. The other half, he’s drunk.”

“That doesn’t mean he’s useless.” Cecily glances at me. “If he’s stupid enough to exaggerate his intel, he’s desperate enough to believe he’s onto something big. He could be the perfect leak.”

She’s not wrong. The best way to feed Thorne bad information is through someone who already struggles to be taken seriously. Someone he’ll want to verify before he acts on because some of the time, he does get it right.

I tip my head at Maksim. “Set up a meeting. Feed him just enough that Thorne gets curious.”

Maksim nods and steps out to make the call. The second he’s gone, Cecily reaches for another file and flips it open. She studies the route we’ve laid out for our fake shipment and traces a path along the map.

“This still feels too clean,” she comments.

I glance at the diagram. “How so?”

“You’ve covered all the obvious approaches, but my father doesn’t go for the obvious. If I were him, I wouldn’t hit the shipment directly.” She taps a location just outside the primary route. “I’d interfere at a secondary point. Force a detour. That’s where he’d strike.”

She’s right again.

I exhale and lean back, observing as she continues going over the data. Each time I push her away, she proves why I shouldn’t. She notices things I don’t, predicts moves my men wouldn’t anticipate.

I should be annoyed by that. Instead, I find it thrilling.

And that’s a problem.

I should step back and keep my focus on the mission, not on the way she leans in, the way her fingers move lightly over the pages as she considers possibilities, or the way her eyes flash with excitement every time she pieces something together.

Instead, I just watch her.

Cecily is completely engrossed in what she’s doing, but then, as if sensing my stare, she glances up. Her lips part, and there’s an energy in her gaze that wasn’t there before. She’s alive in a way I haven’t seen yet, like for the first time since she was dragged into my world, she’s in control of something.

“This,” she says, pressing a finger against the map. “This is where we should focus. We give my father the illusion of control while setting the trap before he even realizes it’s been laid.”

Maksim returns just in time to hear her last words. He sets his phone down on the table and says, “The contact agreed to meet. We’ll feed him the intel tomorrow night.”

I nod but don’t look away from Cecily. “You want to be involved? Then walk me through it.”

She doesn’t blink an eye before continuing. “If my father thinks there’s a weak point, he won’t act immediately. He’ll want to confirm the information before he makes a move. That’s our window.”

Maksim makes a sound of approval. “Makes sense. He’s been careful since Redwood Point. Probably hoping we’ll believe it was just Kovalev acting alone. If he sees an opportunity, he’ll send someone else in first. Just like he did with Kovalev.”

“Which is why we need to be ready before that happens,” Cecily continues. “We monitor every person who gets within a mile of that point. We make sure we’re in place before his men even realize what’s happening.”

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