Page 32 of Double or Nothing
“Are you any good?”
“I’m very good,” she says, perking up with a confident smile. “I can play cards on a professional level. The men are easy to distract at the poker table. There was a time in my life when I traveled across Europe playing card games.”
“By yourself?”
A shadow darkens her beautiful features. Her blue eyes grow troubled. “No, not by myself. They never allowed me to be alone.Ever.For years, I was never alone.”
Her words give me pause, and I frown at her. “Were you being held against your will? Who were you with?”
“Bad men,” she simply answers.
“Did the rich man who visited you at the orphanage adopt you? Is that legal? How old were you?”
“Adopt is perhaps not the correct word,” she replies. “He took me from the orphanage two years later, when I was fourteen. Money talks and rich men can do anything they want. Laws and rules do not apply to them.”
“Who was he?”
“A very powerful, dangerous man by the name of Dimitri. He’s a top man in the Russian mafia.”
“Does he know where you are now?”
“I’m still alive, aren’t I?” Her humorless laugh fills the air. “Proof enough that he didn’t know until his goons found me. Now, I’m certain Dimitri is aware. He’ll come for me.”
“And then what?” I dread hearing the answer.
Her answer comes out in a laugh, a sound as chilly as the sculptures around us. “He will either kill me or take me back to Russia, where he’ll keep me prisoner.”
“How would he get you out of the country? This is the United States, not Europe. You can’t kidnap someone and fly them out of the country.”
She regards me with raised eyebrows, a small incredulous smile playing on her lips. “You truly believe that?” she asks, her words echoing with a tint of mockery. “A man with unlimited resources can command the impossible. He has an arsenal of private jets, yachts, and an army of men. His influence reaches far and wide. Yes, even here in the United States. Taking me from here would be as simple for him as breathing.”
A nervous knot forms in my stomach, twisting and pulling tighter as I contemplate the implications. “There’s something I’ve been thinking about,” I confess, my voice wavering slightly. “I fear I might have led Ivan and Igor straight to you.”
She dismisses my worries with a flick of her hand, the diamonds in the ring on her finger catching the light before reaching for the bottle yet again. She pours a third shot for us both. “No need to worry,” she reassures me. “If you could find me, they certainly could too. Worrying won’t help us now. We have a bigger game to play.”
“Does this mean you’re willing to work together?”
“Only if you understand the risk. Dimitri will destroy anyone and anything in his way. Not only did I escape from him, I also stole from him. Are you willing to go up against the Russian mafia?”
“They tried to kill me, remember?” I remind her. “I didn’t choose this battle, they chose me. It’s not as if I have many options. I’m cornered unless I’m willing to tuck my tail between my legs and hide.”
Natasha doesn’t know the guys killed Ivan. If she did, she’d realize we’re all already in deep shit with the Russians. There’s only one path for us and that’s to move forward.
“Did Eva go through the files I downloaded to her computer?”
A smile tugs at her lips. “Yes, otherwise why would I agree to meet you today? We needed to verify your story. I translated anything important on them to her since she doesn’t speak Russian. Thank you for the files.”
“Has Igor shown back up at the club?”
Her expression turns grim. “No, but he will. And when he does, we’ll be ready for him. And for his brother, Ivan.”
I don’t correct her about Ivan being dead and no longer being a threat. It’s better to be guarded and cautious where she’s concerned, since the guys are involved. There’s more than only me to consider.
“You have a history with Ivan and Igor, too?”
“I’ve known them since I was a little girl,” she replies. “I want to hurt them and make them pay for what they did to me. I prefer not to dwell on the dark times.”
“And Dimitri?”
