Page 63 of Emerald

“Oh,” Zima says. “I mean, I totally thought he was going to. But I told him I’d get the flash drive back.”

“What flash drive?”

“Well, it was bullshit. I don’t actually know where it is. But you probably do?” Zima asks hopefully.

I’m staring at him in total confusion. Until I remember the flash drive I took off Yozhin at the Raketa strip club.

“Wait,” I say, “are you talking about that job with Yozhin?”

“Yeah,” Zima says, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

“How does Remizov know about the flash drive?”

“He knows about it,” Zima says, slowly and distinctly like I’m a total idiot, “because it’s his drive.”

A whole lot of things are flipping position in my head right now.

“Pull up Remizov’s file,” I say to Zima.

Zima types on his computer and Remizov’s file pops up, complete with a color headshot of a sickly-looking man with pale blue eyes and extraordinarily thin lips.

The man in the black suit.

The one from the club.

I’m shaking my head, agreeing with Zima that I am, indeed, an idiot. This whole time I assumed Remizov was after me because of the botched hit on Ivan. But that’s not it at all. He’s pissed that I stole his files.

“What’s this flash drive?” Ivan asks me.

“Hang on,” I say to him. “I’ll explain after.”

I turn back to Zima.

“Who hired me to kill Ivan?”

Zima searches through his files once more and pulls up a fresh dossier.

“This guy,” he says, pointing one long, skinny finger at the screen.

I see an old man with thinning hair and a suit that doesn’t fit on the shoulders.

“Who the fuck is Lyosha Egorov?” I say in bewilderment.

I’ve never seen this guy in my life. But Ivan seems to recognize him.

He’s almost . . . blushing?

“He’s the husband of a woman I used to . . . date,” Ivan admits.

I can’t help letting out a snort of laughter.

“Are you serious?”

“Yes,” Ivan says.

“That was a big contract,” I say. “That chick must have been really hot. Because her husband ispissedat you.”

“How much was the contract?” Ivan asks curiously.

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