Chapter 20 - Alyssa #2
Troy is standing about ten feet away with his hands in his pockets, and he’s wearing the kind of smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. He looks completely normal, like any other mall shopper, which somehow makes his presence more frightening than if he’d been obviously threatening.
“Troy.” His name comes out steady despite the panic clawing up my throat. “What are you doing here?”
“Shopping, same as you.” He takes a step closer, and I resist the urge to run screaming through the food court. “Mind if I sit?”
“Yes, I mind. I don’t want to talk to you.”
I glance around, searching for one of Maksim’s men, but I don’t see anyone who looks like they might be from his team. Of course, the one time he respects my request for time alone would be this one.
“Come on, Alyssa. We have history. Surely we can have a civilized conversation.”
“We have nothing to talk about.”
But he sits anyway, settling into the chair across from me like we’re old friends catching up. The presumption makes my skin crawl, but I don’t want to cause a scene, so I take in a steadying breath.
“You look good,” he comments, letting his gaze travel over me with such scrutiny that it makes me feel violated. “Living with your new boyfriend agrees with you.”
The mention of Maksim sends ice through my veins. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Sure you do. Maksim Barkov, right? Nice house, by the way. Very impressive security system.”
“How do you—”
“Know where you’ve been staying? Baby, I’ve known since the day you moved in. Did you really think you could hide from me?”
The pet name makes my stomach churn with revulsion. “Don’t call me that.”
“What should I call you then? Traitor? Whore? Those seem more accurate, considering you’re sleeping with the enemy.”
“Maksim isn’t my enemy.”
“He’s mine, which makes him yours, too. You’ve picked the wrong side, Alyssa.”
“I haven’t picked any side. I just want to be left alone.”
Troy leans forward across the small table and lowers his voice to barely above a whisper. “That’s not how this works anymore. You’ve seen too much, know too much. And now you’re fucking a Barkov, which makes you a security risk.”
“I’m not a risk to anyone.”
“Pillow talk has a way of revealing secrets, doesn’t it? How much have you told him about our relationship? About what you saw in my apartment?”
“Nothing. I haven’t told him anything,” I lie with a squeak in my voice. I sound like a damn mouse, and I hate it.
“I don’t believe you. And neither will my associates.”
The implied threat in his words makes my mouth go dry. “What do you want?”
“Information. Details about Barkov operations, security protocols, anything that might be useful.”
“I won’t spy on Maksim.”
“Even if refusing puts other people at risk?”
“What other people?”
Troy pulls out his phone and shows me a photo that makes me gasp. It’s Diane, Aleksei’s artistic cousin, leaving what appears to be her studio late at night.
“Pretty girl,” Troy muses. “Very talented, from what I hear. Shame if something happened to her.”
“You wouldn’t.”
“I know where she lives, where she works, and what route she takes to the grocery store. Accidents happen all the time in this city.”
“Leave her alone,” I demand through gritted teeth. “She has nothing to do with this.”
He chuckles, low and menacing, before he replies, “She’s leverage, thanks to you deciding to betray me.”
I clench my hands into fists on the table as rage fights with terror for control of my emotions. “I never betrayed you. I left an abusive relationship.”
“You left me for him. That’s betrayal in my book.”
“I left you before I ever met Maksim.”
“Details,” he scoffs, waving me off. “The point is, you’re going to help me, or people you care about are going to get hurt.”
“And if I do help you? What then?”
“Then everyone stays safe and happy. You feed me information, I use it to protect my interests, and nobody has to get hurt.”
“For how long?”
“As long as necessary.”
The open-ended nature of his demand makes it clear that this would never end. Once I start giving him information, I’d be trapped forever, betraying the man I’m falling for to protect people I’ve grown to care about.
“I need time to think.”
“You have one week. I’ll be in touch about how to contact me.” He stands and straightens his jacket like we’ve just concluded a pleasant business meeting. “Don’t do anything stupid, Alyssa. Too many people are counting on you to make the right choice.”
He walks away without looking back, disappearing into the crowd like he was never there. I sit frozen at the food court table with my mind replaying everything that just happened.
Troy knows where I live, who I’m with, and enough about Maksim’s family to target innocent people. Worse, he’s made it clear that my presence in Maksim’s life has put everyone at risk.
I’ve brought danger to people I care about, which makes me feel sick. Diane, sweet Diane who welcomed me like a sister, is now a target because of my choices. The triplets who now call me Aunt Alyssa could be next.
I can’t tell Maksim about this. He’d want to handle it his way, which would mean violence and escalation and probably more danger for everyone involved. But I can’t cooperate with Troy either, not when it means betraying the man who’s shown me what real protection looks like.
There has to be another solution. Some way to end this threat without destroying everything I’ve found with Maksim and his family.
As I sit in the mall surrounded by normal people living normal lives, I realize that the peaceful afternoon on the hillside might have been the last truly happy moment I’ll have for a very long time.
Unless I can find a way to solve this myself.