Chapter 22
RORI
If Ilya thinks he’s going to go around me to get whatever he’s planning done, or try to find another way to keep me under his thumb when this is over, he’s got another thing coming.
I’m equally pissed at Alonzo for allowing himself to be put in this situation.
I’m not angry enough to think that he’d come to talk to Ilya on his own to try and get around me.
That’s not Alonzo’s style. Still, Ilya’s playing him, trying to make things work to his advantage.
I heard that line of questioning before I burst in here.
I wouldn’t put it past Tatiana to be listening in and set off a bomb to kill us all if Alonzo screws up and says too much. Seriously, the man needs to be gagged. He’s going to end up in pieces before the end of all this.
“She’s right,” Zakhar agrees, winking at me. “Beauty and brains are always going to be my weaknesses.”
I ignore him—and Alonzo’s low growl behind me—and keep my focus on Ilya. “I want to talk to you. Alone.”
“What the fuck? No!” Alonzo barks.
“You have no fucking say over anything I do, Alonzo. You threw any chance of that away, so you and Zakhar can leave.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
“And I’m not about to leave my brother with an assassin,” Zakhar agrees, frowning at me.
“Both of you, leave,” Ilya orders. His tone brokers no argument.
“Over my fucking dead body.” Alonzo seethes.
“Alonzo, get out,” I snap. “You and me, we’ll go another round later, but right now, I have shit to figure out. Stand outside the door, I don’t care, but you and Zakhar are leaving.”
Zakhar opens his mouth to argue, but snaps it shut when Ilya pins him with a look. Zakhar gestures for Alonzo to follow him. I pin Alonzo with a scorching look, silently warning him to keep his mouth shut. I can practically hear his teeth grinding.
He starts to turn, then spins back, grips me by my upper arms, and yanks me up. I curse him, but then he plants his mouth hard on mine. The kiss is hard, brutal, and makes a point. My traitorous body reacts almost instantly, softening ever so slightly. Damn it.
Before I can yank my mouth away, he pulls back and murmurs, “I’ll kill him if he hurts you, orsetta. And don’t think you and I won’t be discussing you putting yourself in danger later.” Then he lets me go and stalks out, past a grinning Zakhar, who follows him out with a happy whistle.
My lips tingle from the kiss, even as I scowl and turn back around to face Ilya.
I’m going to kick Alonzo’s ass later for that little stunt.
I’m not his. He doesn’t get to do shit like that.
If he thinks he’s going to soften me by being all growly and protective, he can think again.
And damn it, I need to make sure he doesn’t grab me like that again. Especially not in front of Ilya.
Ilya sinks down into his chair, steepling his hands in front of him, watching me. “You say you do not want him, yet you do not kill him for putting his hands on you. Are you going soft, Rayea?”
I want to jump over that desk and show him just how dangerous I am, but he’ll be anticipating that.
Instead, I move to the chair in front of his desk, sit down, and prop my feet on the edge.
He glares at me. “Killing him isn’t beneficial, and I’ll handle Alonzo on my own.
What was between him and me is over, but he can’t seem to realize that. ”
“Of course not. A man sees what he wants, he takes it. He uses whatever means necessary to never let it slip from his fingers, even when he breaks it.”
I arch a brow. “Speaking from experience?” I haven’t heard of Ilya being married or in a long-term relationship of any kind, but that doesn’t mean shit. He’s notoriously private.
He doesn’t answer that, and instead he says, “Did you think that throwing the equipment at me was going to make a point?”
“I think it was a test, and one I passed, only because it also meant that I found the other ones that you didn’t know about.
Which tells me you know you have rats and moles in your organization, and you figured using me was a good use of my skills until you could figure out what you’re going to do about all these situations not turning out the way you thought they would. ”
His smile is sharp and cold. “And here I thought you were rusty being out of the game for so long. Or, rather, you were just very careful about not letting anyone see the real you, weren’t you, Rayea?”
“Enough with the Rayea bullshit. My name is Rori. Rayea died the day Mishka did. No, actually, she died long before that. You don’t know anything about me, Romanov. No matter what you think.”
He tilts his head slightly, but the condescending glint in his eyes is unmistakable.
I really want to slap it off. “I know far more than will make you comfortable, Rori.” The slight sneer of my name sets my teeth on edge.
I really want to know what the hell he’s trying to hint at, but whatever it is, it can’t be important.
“But that’s neither here nor there,” he continues as he watches me.
“The only thing I care about is that you get the job I want done. After that, I never want to see you again.”
“You really think that I don’t know that all the shit you promised earlier is nothing but lip service? You have no intention of letting me leave this alive.”
He doesn’t deny it. “I considered it.”
“You more than considered it, don’t try to bullshit me.” I sit back in the chair, crossing my arms over my chest. “Look, all I want is to be out of this bullshit. Free and clear. What do I need to do to make that happen?”
He holds my stare. I know he’s going to try and double cross me, but let him think for now that I’ll believe him. “Kill your father and Timur Belov.”
He says it so matter-of-factly, but we both know the weight of those words is monumental. “And if I make it happen, you let me walk away and never contact me or whisper my name again. You kill Rayea Antonova off, and she ceases to exist.”
He studies me, and I can see him weighing his options. “She dies, but if I need—”
“No.”
A dark scowl. “You never leave the Bratva, Rori. Not even in death.”
“Then I’ll be the first.” Time to lay some of my cards on the table. “Once I kill them, there will be a war if I’m not dead. And I mean, you need to make it believable, Ilya. There will be people who will check.”
“Who? The only people that care will be—”
“You really think that the Pakhans around the world, especially back in Russia, aren’t going to be very pissed off when they find out their top hitman and school operator is dead?
The one that they are counting on to pump out and train assassins as often as possible.
” I can see the implications of that hit him when he frowns.
Yeah, he never considered the full ramifications of this plan.
Typical. “So, you see that I need to die, and you need to make it believable.”
“And how are we going to do that?”
“We need to make it believable that you want to get rid of me, and you send the pictures of my body to your networks, that you let them know that you took me down. It will be enough to keep people away.”
“And what, you’re going to get plastic surgery so people don’t recognize you after all of this?”
I’ve already thought of that, and I pull out the list I quickly scrawled before making my grand entrance down here.
“Get me this and make sure whoever you send is fucking quiet and careful about it. Go to different stores, use different towns and cities, I don’t care.
Get it all and make sure it’s those specific ones. ”
He stares at the list with a scowl. “Do I look like a fucking beauty salon? Why the fuck do I need to get you hair dye and all this other bullshit?”
I don’t answer that. He doesn’t need to know the pain that it’s going to cause when I get it all. That’s for later when I’m alone. “Just get it if you want this to fucking work. Do we have a deal?”
He looks at the list, sighs, mutters something under his breath, and then finally gives a curt nod.
Relief. I’m almost out. I just have to try and get through the hell I’m about to walk into first.
“Fine. Now, what are you planning on using Alonzo for?”
“Why do you care?”
“Because I’m not about to do all of this and then have his death on my hands and have to answer to my best friend and his family.”
His lips pull up into a mocking smirk. “Is that all? It has nothing to do with the fact that you’re not over him, no matter how much you tell yourself you are?”
I’m not doing this with him. I get to my feet, Hades moving quickly to my side. “Get me the things I want, and get them fast. The sooner we get this done, the faster we never have to see each other again.”
“Didn’t you want to go over our plans to get this done? Or do you plan on just going in, guns blazing? Or aren’t you afraid of the animals like everyone else that will take you out the moment you set foot on the estate?”
“You really think that I haven’t thought of all of that?” In reality, it is a worry, but not impossible. “Fine, if you want to go over everything, we will, but bring in everyone that you want involved in this planning. I’m not explaining shit multiple times.”
Knowing that includes Alonzo sets me on edge again, but I push that aside.
Before long, Simeon, Alonzo, Zakhar, Oleg, Ivano, and Titus are all in the room with us, though I notice the tension as soon as Alonzo’s men are included.
Outright hostility spreads across the massive space.
Especially from Simeon, who looks like he wants to spew shit about it, but he wisely holds his tongue.
I roll my eyes and sit at the conference table, pulling all the blueprints and sheets Zakhar dumped on it. I’ve seen most of them before, and the memories filter back quickly as I take them in.
Alonzo moves to sit beside me, his chair as close as it can be so that his body brushes mine. I glare at him, which he ignores, watching me. “Are you alright, orsetta?” he murmurs.
“Stop calling me that. I’m not your anything, Alonzo.” I don’t know how many times I’m going to have to say it to get it through his thick head.
The scent of his aftershave wraps around my senses as he leans closer.
To anyone watching, they’d think he was looking at the blueprints.
Damn him. My entire body stands at attention, not understanding why my brain won’t cooperate in jumping him again.
My vagina clearly didn’t get the message that we’re never giving him admission again.
“You’re my everything, Rori. And we both know that you love it when I call you that. It makes you melt, and makes you think of what it was like to hear me tell it to you when I was deep inside you.”
His words are barely above a whisper, but to my head, he’s using a fucking megaphone. There’s no unhearing what he said. I barely manage to suppress the shiver of arousal at his reminder.
Damn him.
I want to scream at him to get the hell away, that he’s lying to make himself feel better. He doesn’t want me. He doesn’t even trust me. Whatever ideas he’s built up in his head are never going to happen. I won’t allow them to.
“Flirt with her later,” Ilya snaps, sitting down on the other side of me and glaring at Alonzo. “We have shit to see to.”
“You can always come and sit by me, krasotka,” Zakhar offers, sitting directly across from me and patting the chair next to me. “I’m much better looking anyway.”
“Or you could all stop and remember that she’s supposed to be marrying me,” Simeon snipes, sitting down beside Ilya and shooting me a disgruntled look. “Look, I know that you hate me, but we have a role to play.”
“I already told you, asshole, she’s not marrying you,” Alonzo snaps, the jealousy burning on his face.
“Jesus Christ, all of you shut the hell up,” I bark, glaring.
“I’m not marrying anyone. Now, we have shit to plan, and if you want this to work, you will put aside whatever bullshit you have with each other.
There is no Russians versus Italians at this table.
There is only the mission to get this fucking done.
And if any of you try to tell me that I can’t do something because I don’t have a dick between my legs, I’ll make sure Hades sees to it that you join the club.
” To demonstrate, I give a quick command, and Alonzo lets out an angry yelp, jumping back from the table, sending the chair and himself toppling backward to the ground.
There’s silence, only the low sounds of Hades’ growls filling the space, until Zakhar starts laughing, which makes Oleg, Titus, and Ivano do it too.
Ilya and Simeon stare at me, but with differing expressions.
Ilya’s a warning, while Simeon’s face has gone pale.
Guess the thought of his balls turning into a chew toy isn’t one he wants to see become reality.
“Hades, enough,” I say mildly, giving Hades a quick pat when he emerges from the table, and adds insult to injury by moving to the prone Alonzo, steps on his junk, and licks him in the face.
Alonzo curses, shoving him off and getting to his feet. He shoots me a look that promises retribution. I smirk. Well, doesn’t this feel familiar?
“I really want to keep her,” Zakhar snickers, finally getting himself under control. “Just don’t send him after my goods, krasotka. There would be riots.”
“Or parades.” Ilya scoffs. “Keep your dick in your pants. We have shit to do.”
As everyone starts talking, Alonzo rights his chair, placing it squarely beside mine again, and if possible, he’s managed to get himself closer than before. I glare at him, but still when I see the look in his eyes.
He’s pissed, but there’s no missing the hunger.
My stomach flips, and I look away, keeping my expression neutral.
It’s going to be a long fucking night. Especially when he suddenly leans forward and whispers, “I think we need to start figuring out if what you said the first time we met is true, orsetta. After that, I’ll need a little TLC, don’t you think? ”
At first, I’m unsure what the hell he means, then I remember and manage not to shiver, but can feel the heat building.
Do you even need a woman to get on her knees for a blowjob with you being this tall? Most women probably just need to bend over.
I need to get the hell away from him and make him understand that we are done. I’m not going to trust him, and I won’t allow him to hurt me a second time.