Chapter 8
CHAPTER EIGHT
Drago
When Declan calls an emergency family meeting, and Enzo is flying in, you know shit’s gone south.
Reggie and Rowan barrel through the door.
Rowan’s laughing to himself, probably at his own joke.
It’s funny, for identical twins, their personalities really differentiate them.
Reggie’s the grump, Rowan the joker. They drop into the seats on either side of me, but I don’t look up from my laptop, quickly minimizing Lily’s tracker.
It’s pretty much an hourly ritual for me. Seeing that red dot flicker settles something inside of me. Knowing that right now, she’s in her gallery. It means I can concentrate.
“Dragon,” Rowan says, nodding at me as he bites down on his lip.
I arch a brow at him. “You really aren’t letting that one go, are you?” I mutter.
“It suits you. I really think a huge dragon tattoo across your back would look sick,” Rowan replies.
I nod slowly, pretending to consider it, while resting my hand on my chin as I look at him. “You think I should ink my whole back based on an autocorrect of my name?” I ask.
Rowan shrugs. “Dragons are cool.”
“Correct. Alas, I am not a dragon,” I reply dryly.
“We need to talk after this,” Reggie says under his breath, leaning slightly toward me.
I nod once in response.
They were at Lily’s showing last night. When Declan has men on site, I don’t need to hide in the shadows.
I trust them. What I don’t trust is how close I came to blowing everything at their wedding.
I’d been listening in through Lily’s phone when they mentioned a Drago her dad once knew.
I stepped in before they connected the dots.
She cannot know I’m here. Or that I’m tied to her father.
Distance keeps her safer. It’s better for her sake and my own.
Because even if there was some kind of real connection between us, I couldn’t betray my best friend.
And I’m not sure Lily would ever forgive me if she knew just how far I’ve gone to keep her safe.
Declan clears his throat as Enzo arrives with Romeo behind him.
Enzo’s face is thunderous as he takes the seat at the head of the table, tattooed hands clenched into fists against the wood.
Usually, time mellows a man out, but not Enzo.
Every time I see him, he becomes more coiled.
Like there’s something clawing at him from the inside, a ticking time bomb, waiting to explode.
And no matter what we achieve for him, it’s never his endgame.
“Let’s not fuck around. We have to make our moves. Fast,” Enzo says, his Italian accent cutting through the room.
I respect Enzo’s leadership. Ruthless. Efficient. Strategic. His empire grows while others rot. This is his world. We just operate inside it.
Declan nods toward me, signaling for me to speak.
“We’ve got Madame Eve,” I begin. “We believe she’s high up in the chain of command in relation to facilitating the trafficking.
None of the Russians we have taken, both here and with my partner, Lev, in Russia, have spoken.
They’re too far down the line to know. Madame Eve is our best bet, but we need to find her breaking point. ”
Enzo takes a slow gulp of whiskey.
“That, I might have,” Enzo says, a smirk tugging at his mouth.
I lean back in my chair, eyes fixed on him.
“What have you got? I couldn’t find shit on her,” I ask.
“She has a son,” Enzo explains. “Thanks to the fingerprints you sent me, I got a positive ID on an arrest for dealing back ten years ago. Susan Fry is Madame Eve’s real name.
An ex-junkie who looks like she found solace in a cult.
Abandoned her kid, and he was put in foster care.
And he lives… right under our noses in Vegas. And Mikhail now has him.”
The room tightens.
“What do we do with her son?” Conan asks warily.
The brothers have rules. Even when they were hosting their Decadence Games in Inferno.
To those on the outside, it seemed sick and twisted, inviting mafia families to sacrifice their wives or daughters for a space inside Enzo’s organization.
A golden ticket to Inferno, the most influential sex club in the mafia world.
But really, it was all smoke and mirrors. They saved those women, they made it look real, made it feel real, all so they could hunt the real predators. The ones willing to sell the women. And that’s where Finn steps in. The serial killing heart surgeon, who hunted them in their sleep.
Let the world believe they’re villains so they can hunt the real evil. That’s what the Quinns believe in. But these men, they’re ones I’d trust with my kids, with my future wife.
“Nothing,” Enzo says calmly. “We will keep him safe. But, we don’t let Susan know that.”
“You think that bitch will care about her kid? She already gave him up once,” Finn mutters.
Enzo shrugs, “Worth a shot.”
The answer clicks into place instantly. This is the way I can get Charlotte what she wanted when she came to me recently, but I do honestly believe she’s the best woman for the job.
“Charlotte,” I say, looking at Declan. “Let her in there with Madame Eve. She will psychologically fuck her better than any of us could.”
Charlotte wants in. And I’ll fight beside her without hesitation.
Declan frowns, “My wife will be thrilled about this.”
I bite back a smile. She never backs down when she wants something. I taught her that.
“And we have no more contact in Russia?” Enzo asks me.
“Lev is in a safe house at the moment; he’s back in contact with me,” I reply. “We’re working on a plan to get him out. He doesn’t think there is anyone there left to torture; they’re all here in the States.”
Enzo taps his rings against the table.
“There are no other contacts you have in Russia, Drago?” Enzo presses.
He doesn’t need to say her name.
Tatiana.
“Not anyone I can make contact with, Enzo,” I say evenly. “She’s a ghost of my past.”
And likely his, too. Tatiana is a woman with many enemies, a woman I once thought of as a friend. It turns out, she was just a pretty face hiding the evil beneath it. The woman I thought she was was never true. I wanted to see the good in her, and that nearly got me killed.
To her, nothing comes in the way of her obtaining power over Russia. Even if it means killing her friends. I’ll never make that mistake again.
She’s dead to me.
“You don’t find Tatiana, Enzo. She finds you,” I continue. “We don’t need her. And we certainly can’t trust her. I have the scars to prove it.”
“Keep her the fuck out of this country, or I will kill her myself,” Declan seethes.
His rage is raw. Five years stolen from his family. Tatiana's brother kept Charlotte prisoner. He abused her for years.
I thought Tatiana didn’t know the truth. I thought Vlad kept it a secret from her, because the Tatiana I thought I knew had the power to stop it.
But she knew. She knew and did nothing to help Charlotte and Isabella escape.
And then she punished me for doing that. For saving them from the hell her family created.
Enzo says nothing. His jaw tightens. “Nice touch with the heads,” Enzo finally remarks.
Rowan chuckles beside me. “That’s this sick fucks idea.”
I turn slowly toward Rowan. “Would you like to meet the same fate?” I ask, keeping my tone serious. I’m not. Far from it. I just like to fuck with them, remind them that I’m still a player at this table.
His eyes widen. “No thank you.”
“It got the message across,” Enzo says. “We aren’t to be fucked with. Good work, Drago.”
He pauses before adding, “I’ll be staying close for a few weeks. Things are going to escalate. Keep security tight. Inferno shut. And let’s see what we can get from Madame Eve.”
“Got it,” Declan replies. “Drago and I will keep our cyberspace clear. We need our guards up until we find him.”
I chew the inside of my cheek.
“I need an extraction set up in Russia,” I say.
Enzo lifts a brow.
“For Lev,” I explain. “I can’t leave the old guy there. Not on his own. And after what happened to save Charlotte from Vlad, it’s not safe for me to go back by myself.”
Reggie clears his throat. As if he is holding back a comment about the situation.
“My team will arrange it,” Enzo confirms. “Give Romeo the details and contacts.”
“Thank you,” I say.
Relief loosens something tight in my chest.
As the room clears, I remain behind with the twins.
“Spit it out,” I tell them.
Reggie exhales. “So, we know you have some sort of link to Lily.”
My eyes snap to his. “Keep talking,” I say.
“We did security at her event last night,” Reggie continues, “and Conan asked us to keep an eye on this guy.”
Rowan pulls up his phone and shows me a still from the cameras.
“He told Lily his name was Alek. Con confirmed he was Russian. Apparently, Lily was jumpy as fuck around him. Thought you might want to know… for your extracurricular stalking or whatever.”
I stay still. Could this be one of Tatiana’s men? I know her empire has grown since the demise of Ivan Volkov. There will be new players whose faces I don’t know instantly.
But why? Lev is low-hanging fruit for Tatiana in the scheme of things. It means I really need to get the old man out of Russia, now.
“He didn’t touch her, threaten her?” I ask.
They shake their heads. “Nah. Bought a fuck ton of art. Then left.”
“And he was Russian?” I press.
I need to fucking know. Because coincidences don’t happen in this life. Tatiana plays mind fuck games. Could this be her making her first play? Her revenge for me going against her family?
Fuck.
“She’s out with Bella tonight for some girl time and a celebration. She’ll be safe, as we are going with them,” Reggie says.
“I appreciate you telling me,” I reply. “Send me that image, I’ll do some searches. Keep an extra eye on her for me, and if you see me anywhere near her, don’t fucking react, just let me do my job.”
Reggie runs a hand through his hair. “What job is this exactly? One from Declan? Why the secrecy if she’s Hallie’s friend?” he asks.
“She’s Lev’s daughter,” I say. “I’ve been watching out for her since we were kids.”
Rowan blinks. “You came here… wait, what?”
“Charlotte bringing me here with Declan was coincidental,” I explain. “I didn’t intend to nearly get tortured to death. But, I’d been here various times over the last eighteen years, right under your noses, and you had no idea.”
Reggie drags a hand down his face. “I need to tell Declan, Drago. And we probably need to tell Lily about everything soon,” he says.
“No. You don’t,” I reply firmly. “I will. Lev is arriving soon. My protection of Lily is no matter of the Quinns. It is personal, and I keep her safe for my friend. That’s all.”
“Does Lily know anything?” Reggie asks.
“No,” I say. “And it stays that way. Okay? I owe that man my fucking life, and I repay that by keeping Lily safe and letting her live a normal life. Don’t ruin that. Telling Lily is a last resort.”
I can’t tell her. Because the moment I do is the moment she’s propelled into my life. Which will only end in destruction, and I can’t let myself be the reason.
I can’t risk Lev finding out just how obsessively I’ve watched his daughter. Nor the true feelings I have for her. The reasons I can’t stay away. I don’t trust myself near her. I don’t trust myself not to ruin her.
Reggie exhales slowly. “Fine. But tell Declan. I ain’t keeping secrets. You’re my friend, but they’re my family.”
Smart. Loyal. That’s why they survive.
My phone vibrates in my pocket to let me know that Lily’s marker has shifted.
“You two head to the bar with the girls,” I tell them. “I’ll join later.”