Chapter 39
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
SLOANE
The next day, while I’m playing hide-and-seek with Lev after school, I can’t get my sister’s words out of my head. They follow me from room to room, circling every thought no matter how hard I try to stay present with him.
And the more I turn them over, the more I start wondering if Mandy was right. Maybe I should tell Kirill everything. Maybe he really could help me get my son back.
But what if Eli finds out? What if he thinks I’m trying to pull something on him?
My stomach knots at the thought because if that happens, he won’t just come after me. He’ll go after my sister too. And as much as I hate her, as much as I still haven’t forgiven her for any of it, I don’t want her dead.
Eli would kill her without hesitation. A man who can threaten a child is capable of anything.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are…” I tiptoe across the backyard, scanning the trees and flower beds until I catch the sound of a giggle somewhere near the hedges. “Now, where could Lev be? Could he be over here?”
I dart behind a chair and gasp dramatically.
“No…not there. Maybe he’s hiding here.”
Hurrying toward a tree, I peek around the trunk before shaking my head.
“Still nothing. Wow. Where is that little guy?”
Another giggle slips out, louder this time, and I follow the sound straight to the bush he’s crouched behind. The second I spot him, I lunge.
“I got you,” I tell him, laughing as he squirms in my arms.
I tickle him until he laughs harder, and when we both tumble onto the grass, the sound of it all feels so easy and bright that everything else falls away. It’s good to laugh like this. Freeing in a way I haven’t felt in a long time.
Then my phone vibrates in my pocket. The second it does, my whole body goes tight.
“Give me one second, bud.” I try to keep my words light as I reach into my pocket and pull it out.
The moment I find Eli’s number on the screen, nausea climbs straight up my throat.
Lev is still staring at me, his head tilted slightly like he can already tell something’s wrong.
“It’s just my friend.” I feign a smile. “Give me a minute, okay?”
He pushes himself up from the grass and heads toward the swing set, and only once he’s a few steps away do I look back down at the phone and brace myself to see what Eli wants.
Eli
Have you found the safe yet?
Sloane
I looked at one area of the house today. Will look at more tomorrow. I have to wait until he goes to work.
That is the truth, not that he would know.
Eli
So you’ve done nothing. Do you not understand that if you don’t find the fucking ledger, your kid is dead? I would hurry the hell up if I were you, instead of playing house.
Sloane
I’m doing my best.
Eli
Do better. Or I will ruin you.
My pulse pounds so hard it’s lodged in my skull. I press my fingers to my temple, trying to ease the pain, but nothing helps.
I need Eli to disappear. I need him to take his threats and all of it with him, because he’s never going to leave me alone.
Even if I do this, even if I get him what he wants, I know it won’t end there. There will always be one more thing, one more demand, one more way to keep me trapped. He’s a vulture. Nothing is ever enough.
“Are you okay?”
Kirill’s voice from behind startles me so badly, I almost jump out of my skin. I whip around, my phone jerking, already halfway back into my pocket.
“What are you doing here?” I ask too quickly.
The second the words leave me, I see his gaze drop to the pocket where I shoved my phone. It remains there a beat too long.
“I thought you were going to be at work for a few more hours.”
“I was supposed to be.” He keeps walking toward me, sunlight catching on the gold, diamond-encrusted watch at his wrist. “But the meeting got canceled, so I came home.”
He watches too closely, like he’s trying to figure something out, and it terrifies me. Then he stops in front of me, reaching up to tuck a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
“Are you not happy to see me, detka?”
My eyes skim over the dark gray dress pants and the white shirt stretched over the hard lines of his body.
“Of course I am.” I fiddle with the hem of my shirt. “You just startled me, that’s all.”
Before he can say anything else, Lev jumps off the swing and runs straight toward him.
“Privet, synok.” Kirill bends and kisses the top of his head. “I hope you had a good day.”
Lev doesn’t answer. He just clings to his father, smiling so hard it softens Kirill’s features.
“How about we go inside and get a snack?” he asks.
Lev nods and reaches for both of our hands, tugging us toward the house. As we go, the phone burns in my pocket.
And I can’t stop wondering how much longer I can keep this up before it all comes crashing down on me.
KIRILL
I didn’t miss how she startled when she heard my voice, or how quickly she shoved her phone into her pocket like she was hiding something. I don’t like being made a fool of. And if it’s that man from the photographs calling her, I’ll end him.
Lev and Sloane are on the rug now, lining up puzzle pieces with quiet concentration, their heads bent close together. The sight almost pulls my attention away, until my phone vibrates in my hand.
I step toward the windows overlooking the yard before glancing down at the screen.
Jace Whitlock. What does he want?
“Yes?”
There’s a long pause on the other end, followed by a rough exhale that already sounds irritated with itself.
“So…” He clears his throat.
“What the hell do you need?”
Another breath, heavier this time.
“I’m calling because—” He stops, muttering something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like a curse. “Jesus. This is ridiculous.”
Dark amusement curls across my mouth. This should be good.
“Get to the point, Whitlock.”
There’s a scuffle on the other end of the line, followed by another voice I wasn’t expecting.
“Dad, give it to me!” Rue huffs, and then… “Hi! It’s Rue!”
“Hi, Rue.”
Lev’s head lifts instantly at the sound of her name. His whole body goes still, like she has all of his attention, and Sloane notices too, her lips pinching into a grin.
“Can me and Lev have a playdate today?” Rue asks in a rush. “Or maybe tomorrow if you’re busy, of course. It would just be really fun. Please?”
There’s something so openly hopeful about the way she asks, and for a moment, I forget who her father is.
My gaze drifts to Lev again. This is what I always wanted for him. Someone who wanted to spend time with him, someone who cared enough to ask. I just never imagined it would come from…that family.
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” I say, still watching my son.
Lev crosses the room in a few quick steps and grabs my sleeve, tugging once, then again, his eyes fixed on my face.
I cover the phone with my hand and lower myself a little so we’re closer to eye level. “You want to play with Rue?”
He nods immediately.
Oh, fuck. Of course he does.
I straighten and bring the phone back to my ear.
“I think…” I choose my words carefully. “We can arrange something. Let me talk to your father.”
“Oh God, Daddy, he said yes! Here!”
A sharp little gasp of victory bursts through the phone before Jace comes back on the line.
Across the room, Sloane laughs, having clearly heard Rue’s celebration.
“This is insane,” Jace says.
“Yet here we are.”
Silence settles between us, heavy with conflict that still remains between our families. Neither of us is stupid enough to think a couple of kids wanting to play together erases any of that.
“You can come to the ranch,” he finally says. “Plenty of open space. Your boy seemed to like the horse last time. Maybe he’d want to see him again.”
I glance down at Lev, who’s still clutching my sleeve. “I don’t know if I trust you enough for that. We should meet somewhere neutral.”
Jace scoffs. “I wouldn’t hurt a kid. Even if that kid is yours.”
A dry chuckle slips out of me. “Same.”
“Glad we have that in common. So, are we doing this or what?”
“I guess…”
“Tomorrow,” he cuts in. “Late morning. Eleven. Does that work? We leave for Texas in two days.”
I let the silence stretch another second before answering. “I’ll make it work.”
“Alright, then.”
When the call ends, Lev is staring at me like he’s trying to read the answer before I give it.
“We’re going to the ranch tomorrow,” I tell him. “You’re going to see Rue.”
The change in him is instant. His whole face lights up.
Sloane moves in beside me. “You did the right thing.”
“I hope so.”
“This is good for him.” Her arm slips around my back. “Rue is good for him.”
My gaze drops to where her fingers rest against me before lifting back to my son. “Maybe.”
But I’m not so sure.