Page 134 of Crimson Oath
“I don’t need the name.” He glanced at Danior and put a finger to his lips again. “Can you tell me the dates of the gold transfers again?”
“Give me a moment.”
There was a rustling sound on the other end of the line, and Oleg watched Danior, whose eyes were fixed on the phone with a most intense expression.
Danior was a Poshani vampire. He worked for Vano. If he was any kind of Poshani, he believed that whatever Vano had ordered him to do was in the service of his own people, not a Russian earth vampire who ran an organized crime network.
Torture wasn’t working, so it was time for the truth.
“There was a payment on the fifth of August last year. Then another on the seventh of November.” Polina listed off three more dates, and Danior’s eyes never wavered from the phone.
Oleg asked, “And you’re sure these transfers weren’t going to Poshani accounts?”
“The payments I make to Vano for construction or other contracts all go through a holding company in Poland so the Poshani workers can collect their government pension credits. These appear to have come from Ivan’s personal accounts going to Vano’s personal accounts. Though I have some questions about other gold I’m seeing transferred into Vano’s accounts when you have time to speak to Radu.”
“Oh?”
“I can’t say for certain,” Polina continued, “but I believe Vano may be skimming money from the clan. I’d have to have a bookkeeper look for it, but there are regular and significant amounts flowing into his personal gold stores in the days after we record transactions with our company.”
“I see.” So Tatyana was correct again. Oleg glanced at Danior. “Tatyana said that Vano has been accusing the human cooks of overfeeding the children in the kamvasa, so he may be trying to cover his tracks.”
The moment that Danior heard “overfeeding the children,” hiseyes went wide and Oleg felt his energy change. The air in the dungeon started to whip around the four stone walls.
“That’s despicable.” Polina added, “Let me know if you’d like me to fax this paperwork to you. You’re at the citadel?”
“I am.” Oleg angled himself toward Danior. “And yes, if you have records you can fax to me, do that. Omar will bring them to me.”
“Of course.”
“Have a good night.” Oleg hung up before Polina could mention her daughter or mate. He stared at Danior, who was glaring at him.
“Your boss betrayed his people by asking you to do Ivan’s dirty work,” Oleg said quietly. “What is more, Ivan paid you to kill his own men. His own drivers and guards. People whose families depend on them and who had pledged loyalty to Ivan.”
Danior remained silent, but Oleg could see his fangs were long, and the vampire swallowed visibly.
“Is it bitter?” Oleg whispered. “That taste on the back of your tongue when you learn that your own terrin is stealing so much that he would take food from the mouths of Poshani children to cover his deceit?”
Danior curled his lip and glared at Oleg. “What do you want?”
He spread his hands. “I am a reasonable man. All I want is the truth. Give me that, and I will hand you over to the terrin.”
The hollow look in the vampire’s eyes was enough to tell Oleg that he knew he would die no matter what.
“Your fate will be what the Kali demands,” Oleg continued. “But the manner in which you face that fate is entirely up to you.”
Chapter 30
Tatyana
Tatyana was shocked to find herself in an entirely new location when she opened her door that night. She hadn’t realized they were moving that day; they had only been in the previous location for one night.
The Vashana Zata is almost here.
She felt the tension in the air, and as she stepped down into the long grass of the meadow where the wagons had been circled, she looked around, trying to understand what felt so different.
The camp setup felt… hasty. The usually meticulous preparations of the darigan were not evident. Grass hadn’t been trimmed. Wagons were still in the process of setting up. It felt like the kamvasa had moved quickly, and she wasn’t sure why.
Security breach?
