Page 34 of Sergei
“Thought you had good sense. Clearly, I was wrong.”
“Relax, Boss.” His grin grew wider as he looked over at Alina. “If I wanted to crash your date, I would’ve brought flowers. Would’ve brought you an extra dessert, too. I know how you like their cheesecake.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose and grumbled, “You’re lucky I haven’t killed you yet.”
“Ah, come on. You know you love me.”
“Time for you to go.”
“Sure thing.”
He gave me a salute, then turned and started for the door. Before he walked out, I called out, “Hold up.”
I grabbed my wallet from my back pocket and started over to him. I pulled out my credit card and placed it in his hand. “I need you to do some shopping tomorrow. Grab some jeans, some sweaters, a warm coat, and anything else you can think of.”
“They for her?” he asked as he nodded his head toward Alina.
“Yeah. Bring them by here in the morning and leave them with Bog.”
“You got it, Boss.” He took the card and shoved it in his pocket before heading out the door. “You two have a good night.”
As soon as the door closed behind him, I started back over to Alina, and she gave me a warm smile. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“You need clothes.”
“I do. Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet.” I cocked my brow. “I have no idea what the kid will show up with. It could be all pajamas and flipflops. You never know.”
“Whatever it is, I’ll make do.”
And just like that, the tension I’d been carrying started to fade.
Alina joined me at the table, and I unboxed our dinner. We talked a little more about Mother and her horses, and Alina asked a few questions about the casino. But mostly, we just sat there in silence, enjoying our meal. I didn’t mind. After the day I’d had, I actually enjoyed it.
When the plates were empty, Alina helped me clear the table and offered a smile as she muttered, “Thank you.”
“Sorry it took me so long to get you fed. I’ll do better tomorrow.”
“You were great. You’ve done more than enough.”
She held my gaze for a moment, then turned and made her way out of the kitchen toward the guest bedroom. I waited until the door clicked behind her before pulling out my phone. I hadn’t had a chance to check my messages, and I was eager to see if there was any word from Conrad.
I had a few random texts from Viktor, Mom, and Nikolai, and there were two voicemails from Shep and Conrad. I started with Shep. I clicked on his message, and he got right to the point. “Hey, man. Just letting you know that the camera footage has been cleared at all locations. No one’s gonna find anything they shouldn’t. Give me a shout if you need anything else.”
I felt like a small weight was lifted, but there was still more to come. I had no idea what news Conrad might have, so I scrolled down to his message and hit play. His voice came through steady as he said, “Looks like our buddy has fallen on hard times.”
Conrad chuckled at his own sarcasm before adding, “His brother and their lieutenant were murdered two nights ago, and it wasn’t pretty. Damn near beheaded them both.”
Two nights ago. That would’ve been the night Alek beat the hell out of Alina. The same night that she packed her things and ran. That explained the angry phone call and the reason Alekhadn’t chased her down. He was too busy trying to pick up the pieces of his falling empire.
Conrad sounded pleased with himself as he said, “I told you the Albanians were done playing. Hell, they hit them hard this time. Stole a shipment that was worth millions and torched two of their main warehouses. They’re in a full-blown war now.”
War would mean lockdowns across the board. All eyes would be on a counterattack. Not Alina. Hell, I wouldn’t have been surprised if they didn’t even know Alina was gone. I let out a deep breath and let the relief settle in my chest.
We weren’t in the clear.
Not even close, but at least it gave us some time.
