Page 172 of Toxic Salvation
As Osip disappears into the house, Vesper appears in the doorway. She’s wearing a black and white slip with a neckline so deep the tops of her breasts peek out at me. I should give her a dress code, especially when the boys are here.
I would do it, too—if I weren’t worried she’d bite my head clean off.
“Everything alright out here?” she asks. She’s been chipper ever since I supposedly reduced security by half.
At least that’s what she thinks I did. The security is exactly the same as before. But now, half the men are stationed outside the grounds, which means she doesn’t see them. I don’t actually have to compromise, but I still get the credit.
Which translates to sex. Lots and lots of thank-you sex.
A better man would feel guilty about duping her. Too bad I’m not a better man.
“Everything’s fine. Just running some recon on a few of my men. We might have to step out for a bit.”
Her lips purse. “All three of you?”
“Shouldn’t take long.”
“That’s what you said yesterday when you left for that ‘business meeting.’”
“Why is business meeting in air quotes?” I ask. “Itwasa business meeting.”
She steps onto the verandah, hands on her hips so I know she’s serious. “No one has a business meeting at eleven at night, Kovan. What do you take me for?”
I hook an arm around her hip and pull her toward me. “Beautiful?”
“Nice try.” Despite the glare she’s giving me, she laughs.
I’m about to kiss her when I notice Osip appear in the background. He holds up his phone to show me the location.
I give Vesper a distracted peck and release her. “Duty calls.”
She sighs heavily. “I really hope you catch this bastard soon. I want my husband back.”
“You have him. He’s just gonna be a little late coming home tonight. But don’t worry—” I nip the edge of her ear before kissing the nape of her neck. “—I’ll give you a series of mind-numbing orgasms to make up for it.”
She turns beet red and swivels around to see if Pavel or Osip caught that. But the two of them have discreetly left already.
Satisfied that we’re not being overheard, she smiles. “I’ll hold you to that.”
The abandoned apartment building sits in the worst part of the city—the kind of neighborhood where streetlights stay broken and sirens wail all night. The city’s scheduled to tear this place down in two weeks.
That’s too late for Denis.
We find him lying in a puddle of his own blood outside the front steps.
One look at him and I know we’ve found him with only minutes to spare. Long enough to get some information out of him. Not long enough to actually save his life.
“Denis.” I balance on one knee as I look down at him.
He’s been stabbed multiple times. A dozen bright red wounds gleam from his abdomen. His eyes struggle to focus on mine in the darkness. The whites are bright, a sharp contrast to the red staining the rest of his face. When he opens his mouth, more blood gushes out.
“It’s okay,” I tell him. “The pain will stop soon.”
Denis chokes on his own blood, but there’s a gargling sound coming from the back of his throat.
“He’s trying to speak.” I grab him gently by the shoulders and haul him upright.
He clings to the front of my shirt. His grip is strong for a man who’s going to be dead soon.
