31. Vuk
CHAPTER 31
Vuk
“I t could’ve been worse, all things considered.” Roman sat across from me, his expression bored. He’d healed from the bullet I put through his shoulder, but his movements were careful as we went over the events of the past week.
“Jordan is in a coma,” I said flatly.
“But he’s not dead.” The other man gave me a cool smile. “I held up my end of the deal. I gave you all the information I had at the time—which puts me in a dangerous position, by the way. If Shepherd so much as suspects I was the one who leaked advance notice of the hit, he’d put an unofficial bounty on my head. Again.”
He said it like that was my problem. I was grateful for his heads-up, but it was up to him to be careful.
It was Thursday, almost a week after the wedding disaster. Roman and I were meeting at the same warehouse where we’d kept Wentworth, who had since wisely disappeared to an island in the Caribbean.
My team was still hunting the escaped Brother, but we were getting close. Someone matching his description had been spotted on a traffic camera near Philadelphia.
“It’s time for you to put your money where your mouth is,” Roman said. “Move against Shepherd while my intel is still good. I can’t guarantee he won’t change tactics and hideouts if and when he finds out I’ve been double-crossing him.”
Between his “business” commitments and the wedding, I’d been playing defense since Roman and I struck our deal. He promised me info I could use for an ambush that would wipe out Shepherd and his inner circle, but I still didn’t fully trust him.
The wedding intel could’ve been a Trojan horse that he used to gain my trust before springing a trap. I needed more assurances.
“You’re going to find the last Brother from the church first,” I said. “Once you do, you’ll deliver him to me, alive and whole. After that, we can talk.”
Roman’s jaw hardened. “That’s bullshit and you know it. I don’t have time to play pet hunter for you when I’m also at risk of being hunted.”
“No?” I lifted a brow. “Perhaps I can strike a deal with Shepherd instead. My immunity and one member on the run in exchange for a traitor. I wonder who they’ll choose.”
If the Brotherhood worshiped money, they despised traitors. Internal warfare was one thing; conspiring with outsiders was another. Before Roman, only one person in the organization’s hundred-year history had been foolish enough to try the latter. His death had been so horrific, no one stepped out of line for decades.
Roman leaned forward. His eyes glittered in the dark. “Don’t threaten me, Markovic,” he said softly. “We may be on the same side when it comes to the Brothers, but that doesn’t mean I won’t gut you like a fucking fish if you try to double-cross me.”
The irony of him warning me against a double-cross.
My mouth curved. “You can try.”
The air stretched taut. Water from a leaky pipe dripped in the corner. Every thud of a droplet hitting concrete echoed in the vast warehouse, and the silence thrummed with the kind of stillness that only existed before a predator pounced.
Neither Roman nor I moved.
Finally, after several tense heartbeats, he blinked. He leaned back again. “You think you’re so damn clever, but you made a rookie mistake.” A vicious sort of satisfaction tinged his words. “Ayana.”
I wasn’t an impulsive person. I operated rationally, strategized every move, and considered all my options before I acted.
Ayana was the only exception. Hearing her name come out of his mouth, confirming he was aware of her existence and possibly how important she was to me, sent every fucking fiber of my being into fight mode.
It made sense that Roman knew who she was. She’d been the fucking bride at the wedding. But there was a difference between knowing something theoretically and hearing it out loud.
The only reason he brought her up was because he’d added her as a pawn in his game, and if he so much as touched a hair on her head…
Crimson splashed across my vision. My adrenaline spiked, and the taste of copper filled my mouth. I shot up from my seat, ready to lunge for Roman until his gloating smile stopped me in my tracks.
“That’s what I thought,” he said when I stilled. I fisted my hands on the table, my pulse pounding. “You gave yourself away when you saved her. Vuk Markovic almost taking a bullet for someone else? Please.” Dark humor laced his soft laugh. “You showed you cared, which means you’re vulnerable. You have a weakness. If you don’t think the Brotherhood will exploit that weakness any way they can, then you’ve grown naive.”
Ice snaked down my spine. “They don’t involve civilians in their business.”
It was a hollow reply. The hit at the wedding proved that wasn’t true. Hell, they’d already bent their rules when they killed my brother, though that’d been an ambiguous case since they’d already planned to kill him before I struck my deal with them.
An argument could be made that Jordan was an obvious target because we had an established friendship. My public attachment to Ayana was much looser.
But Roman was right. I’d shown my hand when I saved her, and with the escaped Brother on the loose, I had a witness. Even if I didn’t, my reaction just now proved Roman’s suspicions were correct.
My heart crashed against my ribcage. Fuck .
“In the olden days, they didn’t,” Roman said. “As you might’ve guessed, we’re in a new era. It’s chaos. The old rules no longer apply, so you can threaten me if you want. But if you lose me, you lose your only in. Even out in the cold, I can do more for you than you can do on your own.” He smiled. “Think about that the next time you threaten me.”
I unclenched my fists and retook my seat. The urge to shoot that smile off his face consumed me, but I couldn’t afford to lose my cool again.
“Like I said, I’ll take care of your problem after you take care of mine,” I said. “I’m not going to spread my team thin by ambushing Shepherd when we have a wild card on the streets. That’s a sure way to fail.”
Roman’s mouth tightened. A moment later, he inclined his head in silent acceptance.
“One more thing.” Something about this situation had been nagging at me for weeks. “How are the factions financing their ops? Rumors of the civil war have made their way through the underworld. Business is down, but weapons and logistics on the scale they’re operating at cost money. They must’ve gone through most, if not all, of the organization’s coffers by now. So where is the cash flowing in from?”
“I don’t know the details. I’m not their fucking CFO,” Roman said. “Don’t underestimate the ability of professional killers to find money and clients when they need them. Someone somewhere always wants someone else dead.”
“You seem to always be light on the details.”
“You seem to always be heavy on the asks without giving anything in return.”
We glared at each other, but a rustle of noise quickly snuffed out the tension.
Less than a second later, we were out of our seats, our guns drawn and aimed in the direction of the noise. Our reaction was so swift, we didn’t even have time to blink.
A furry gray creature slithered out of the shadows.
What the fuck?
I watched, stunned, as Shadow stretched and yawned. He appeared unfazed by our guns as he padded over, jumped onto an empty chair, and curled up lazily on the seat like it was his throne. A silver collar with the serpentine Markovic crest gleamed around his neck.
Most Serbian families didn’t have crests, but I’d had it designed years ago as a symbol of legacy. In hindsight, I shouldn’t have put it on a pet collar.
“You brought your fucking cat?” Roman asked with disbelief.
“He’s not my cat, and I didn’t bring him,” I growled.
I glowered at the insufferable creature. I’d had every intention of tossing him back on the street after the rainstorm, but my staff had cried and protested until I gave in. Apparently, petting a fluffy little monster was soothing to some people. God knew why.
Much to my displeasure, everyone had insisted I give said monster a name. He had an uncanny ability to sneak around and blend into the shadows, hence his new moniker. If Shadow were a person, he’d make a killer CIA agent, as evidenced by how he’d managed to follow me here without me knowing. He must’ve hidden in the back of my car.
As it was, he was a huge pain in my ass. I couldn’t wait for the day when everyone tired of him so I could drop him off at the nearest shelter.
Shadow flicked his tail back and forth as if to taunt me. They’ll never tire of me , I imagined him saying. That’s why they bought me this collar.
Bastard.
I’d bought him that collar. Quite unwillingly, I might add. The staff had huffed and sighed until I had the collar made just to shut them up.
Roman lowered his gun. He stared at Shadow for an extra beat like he expected the Egyptian Mau to morph into a human assassin. When he didn’t, he lowered his gun and shook his head.
“We’ve wasted enough time,” he said. “I’ll see what I can find out about the last Brother. You start putting together a strategy for the ambush. And Markovic? Remember. If Shepherd finds out what we’ve been up to, we’re both fucked.”
* * *
I didn’t linger at the warehouse after Roman left.
I was tempted to leave Shadow there, but at the last minute, I grabbed his smug ass from the chair and took him home. I suppose Jeremiah and the rest of the staff wouldn’t believe me if I told them Shadow “ran off” on his own. He’d gotten a little too used to his comfy new surroundings and fancy tuna. My butler was waiting for me in the foyer when I returned.
“Good afternoon, sir. You have a guest,” he said. “Ms. Kidane is waiting for you in the living room.”
I stopped short. I dumped an indignant Shadow on the ground before responding. How long has she been here?
“About ten minutes.”
Why didn’t you call me?
“Well, sir,” Jeremiah said, his face placid. “I assumed a phone call wouldn’t magically evaporate traffic.” He reached down to pick up Shadow. “However, you’ll be pleased to know we’ve taken excellent care of Ms. Kidane. We served her the custom-blended tea you like so much. She’s a big fan.”
I ignored his pointed tone. Any other day, I would’ve called him out for giving me lip, but I’d kept Ayana waiting long enough.
I strode across the house to the living room. The initial knot in my throat gradually unraveled into a tangle of anticipation.
I’d respected her wishes and given her space after our talk in Westchester. The bodyguard I’d stationed at her building told me she hadn’t left her apartment since returning home, so the fact she was here meant she’d made up her mind about something.
If she didn’t want anything to do with me, she wouldn’t be here. She could’ve texted to say my past was too much for her and she never wanted to see me again, or she could’ve ghosted me altogether.
Her presence was a good sign. Right?
Ayana stood when I entered the room. Gone were the sweats and old T-shirt; in their place was an orange silk top, jeans, and heels. Gold earrings peeked out from behind lush curls.
A smile ghosted my mouth. I didn’t care what she wore; she could throw on a potato sack and still blow every woman in the city out of the water. But she loved fashion, and it was nice to see her back in fighting form.
“Hi.” She tucked a curl behind her ear. “I hope you don’t mind me dropping by. I should’ve called first, but it was a, um, last-minute thing.”
You can come by any time you want. I paused, my mind flashing to Roman’s warning. Fuck . If the Brotherhood was watching, Ayana’s visit would bolster the notion that she was my weakness. It was too late to change that, so I shelved the worry for later. I didn’t expect to hear from you so soon.
“Because of what you told me?”
I pressed my lips together and nodded.
Ayana opened her mouth. Then her gaze slid past me, and her eyes widened. “I didn’t know you had a cat.”
I whipped around in time to see Shadow trot into the room like he owned it. He ignored me and went straight to Ayana. He rubbed his head against her leg and purred when she bent to scratch him behind the ears.
“He’s not my cat.” I was getting tired of repeating myself.
Ayana picked him up and cuddled him close to her chest. “What’s his name?”
“Shadow,” I said, my tone sour.
Shadow stared straight at me while he nuzzled her breast. He let out a small meow, which she interpreted as a sign of affection and I interpreted as a big, fat fuck you .
My molars ground together, but Ayana’s next words pushed my thoughts of animal murder to the back burner.
“I’ve had time to think about what you said.” Her expression sobered. “I’ll be honest. I was…taken aback at first. And afraid. Not of you, but of the situation and the world I suddenly found myself in. I’ve seen plenty of questionable things in the fashion industry, but they’re nothing compared to hitmen and murder and torture.” She took a deep breath. “I can’t say those things don’t make me uneasy, but you had a good reason for doing what you did. If I’d been in your shoes, and joining the Brotherhood was the only way I could save my family, I would’ve done the same.”
The knot in my throat untangled fully, but it still took a moment to find my words. “Meaning?”
I didn’t care what other people thought about me, but Ayana wasn’t “other people.” She was the only one whose opinion mattered.
“Meaning if you think you’ve scared me off, you haven’t.” Ayana gave me a half-shy, half-mischievous smile. “You’re stuck with me, Markovic.”
That foreign warmth prickled my chest again. A weight slid off my shoulders, and the ensuing lightness was so disorienting I almost stumbled.
“Strong words, srce ,” I said softly.
Shadow yowled, but even he couldn’t ruin this moment.
It was the closest to happiness I’d ever been.
“They’re the truth.” Ayana hugged Shadow closer to her chest and bit her lip. “But I have a confession. That’s not the only reason I’m here.”
I raised my eyebrows.
“I want to learn how to protect myself,” she said. “I’ve taken self-defense classes, but they’re not much use against guns. If I find myself in danger again, I don’t want to rely on someone else to save me.”
“When you say ‘protect yourself’…what do you have in mind?”
Ayana met my wary gaze with a sure one of her own. “I want you to teach me how to shoot.”