Chapter 34
RORI
Simeon’s room has two men guarding it, and when they see me and Hades coming, they bark at me in Russian to stop where I am.
That I’m not welcome. “And what would your boss say when you tell him that his fiancée can’t come to visit him?
” I sneer back in Russian. Both of them lift their guns, pointing them at me, but it doesn’t slow my steps. They don’t have the guts to shoot me.
The unease, the slight tremble of their hands holding them. They’re more likely to hit nothing vital.
The door behind them flies open and Simeon stands in the doorway. “Put down your guns you idiots,” Simeon barks in English. “Are you fucking stupid? You know we need her or this entire plan is fucked.”
“She doesn’t look like she did yesterday. How do we know she is who she says she is?” one of them demands.
“Do you know any other assassins with a big fucking dog like that?” Simeon sneers. He slaps the man upside the back of his head, and the man flinches, but he lowers his gun. The other one does the same, but I see the anger in their eyes. They don’t respect Simeon at all. They’re playing a roll.
I’d bet my left boob that both of these men work for Timur and report back to him on every move his son makes. Good. Let them report what I’m about to say to his son. He made a huge fucking mistake putting Simeon in charge of anything.
“Move,” I order both guards, and they step aside, giving Hades a wary look.
Hades gives them a low growl of warning, and when the idiot who got slapped, brings his gun up again, I move fast. I disarm him, knocking him out cold in a quick move that has him falling to the floor with a loud thud.
I have his gun to the other guard’s head before he can raise his.
“Gun down, now. And if you dare to threaten my dog like your idiot friend, I’ll ensure the staff are cleaning your brains off the ceiling and walls. ”
“For fuck’s sakes, put the gun down,” Simeon yells furiously. “Fuck, it’s too fucking early for this bullshit.” The guard lowers his gun to the floor and stands to full attention.
I pocket the idiot’s gun, along with the one I’m holding.
“Let’s talk,” I tell Simeon. I send Hades in ahead of me, and get him searching.
I’m taking no chances. I shut the door behind me, locking it, then I put my gun to the back of Simeon’s head the moment he turns to see what Hades is doing.
He stiffens. “You never turn your back on an assassin, Simeon, that’s the first rule.
And you definitely don’t answer your own fucking door.
How are you still so damn naive after all this time? ”
“I knew it was you. Now put your gun down and I won’t kill you for your disrespect.”
“Kill me?” I laugh at him, digging my gun into the back of his head for good measure, watching Hades signal multiple times out of the corner of my eye. There are bugs everywhere in this room. Which ones are Ilya’s and which are his own or his father’s?
I make quick work of walking him over to one of the chairs, search him, and order him to sit. “Move, and I’ll start taking out parts that will make it hard for you to walk, let alone function,” I warn him. He gives me a murderous glare, but he folds his arms over his chest and nods stiffly.
I don’t trust him, but I get to work on grabbing all the bugs.
With each one, he stiffens more and more.
His only real tell that he really doesn’t want me to find something is when I get to his phone, which he left on his nightstand.
“What the fuck are you doing?” he demands, jumping to his feet.
Hades lunges, snarling, and he lets out a screech, falling back into the chair, curling himself up on it like he’s a kid afraid of being bit.
And this is who thinks he’s going to be running his father’s empire? The idea is laughable. And if he’s like this with me so openly, then his father knows it too. So whoever my father is bringing in to replace him is going to be someone even better.
I look at the phone, opening simply by inputting his birthday as the password. He really is an idiot. “What the fuck? How did you get into that?” he screeches, furious.
“You really should pick a better password, Belov.” I scroll through his apps, finding ridiculous games and a few porn sites scattered in. I arch a brow. “Does your Daddy know that you swing for the other team? Explains a lot, really.”
“I do not! I didn’t…I don’t fucking look at that. You planted that.” His face flushes with anger and embarrassment. “Get the hell out of my phone. Give it back!”
I ignore him and keep scrolling. I find nothing else until I find the unencrypted messages.
Simeon: She’s a bitch but she has no idea.
Timur: Don’t fuck this up. Get her back here. There’s too much fucking riding on this.
Simeon: She’s on to us.
Timur: Of course she fucking is. She’s been trained by the Butcher. That’s why we need her here. Get her on the plane by noon. We’ll meet you.
Simeon: She has an Italian fucker with her. He won’t let her out of his sight. She’s fucking him too.
Timur: What do you expect? A whore will take any cock they can get. No more excuses. Get her here by the end of the day or I’ll be coming to get her myself.
I look up at Simeon, gaze cold, detached.
“You’re too stupid to live, and I hope you know that your father is going to kill you the moment you’re in front of him again.
And I hope you know that the moment Ilya finds out about this conversation, he might be the one to kill you.
Or Zakhar. Especially now that his daughter is here. ”
Simeon pales, but I’ll give it to him that he doesn’t try to run off. Or that might be his fear of Hades. Either way, things are about to change, and we have to make plans. Fast.
I swipe out of the text exchange and pull up the one with Ilya. It’s nothing of interest, and one where Simeon does all the talking.
Simeon: He can’t be trusted. You need to get rid of him and those sons of bitches with him.
Simeon: Ilya, you know I’m right. Besides, she’s my fiancée, and he can’t fuck this up.
Simeon: I demand you get rid of them, Ilya.
Simeon: I don’t trust Rayea. She’s clearly lost her mind and is thinking with her cunt and not her head. Why would she allow him to come here?
Simeon: I need you to help me convince Rayea to do this. She has to play her role. This whole assassin shit? It’s wrong. She wasn’t like this with my brother.
Simeon: What, you want to fuck her? That’s all this is?
It just goes on and on. If it wouldn’t piss Ilya off, I’d kill him now and be done with it. Instead of saying that aloud, I call Ilya, who answers with a sharp, “What?”
“Bring Zakhar and Oleg to Simeon’s room. Now. We have a problem.”
I hang up without answering the barrage of questions, then I start searching more of Simeon’s texts. There’s more here, I know there is.
“Get the fuck out of my phone,” he continues to rage. “And calling Ilya up here is fucking stupid. I’m stringing my father along, he knows that. You’re wasting time. What the hell is wrong with you, Rayea? You were never this—”
“My name is Rori, and that is the only name you will use, Simeon,” I interrupt coldly. “And you knew nothing about me when I was married to Mishka. You were out of the house doing whatever bullshit it was you were into at the time, and you left your brother to do all your dirty work.”
“And you were the one to get him killed,” he sneers coldly.
A small flash of guilt hits me at that, but I quickly push it aside.
It was a long time ago, and I know what happened wasn’t my fault.
“He died being an excellent husband, and something tells me that he’s alright with that wherever he is now.
Now, though, we both know he’s rolling over in his grave knowing what his own brother has done.
What he’s doing. What a mockery he’s making of his life. ”
His face twists with rage. “You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about, bitch.” He angrily swipes his foot out at Hades who jumps back and lets out a low, vicious snarl and snap of his teeth.
“Do that again, and I’ll let him take a chunk out of you,” I warn him.
“You’re not in charge anymore, Simeon. You never were.
All this bullshit about running your own men?
They work for your father. They report to him what you’re doing, and they’ll manipulate you into doing what your father wants.
All of this? You’ve done nothing more than give him an in to Ilya’s inner sanctum, but even that won’t be enough. ”
“You don’t know shit. I want my rightful spot, and I’m going to take it.”
Simeon’s door opens with a sharp bang as the door slams into the wall, and in stalks both Romanovs, Oleg, and a stoic Alonzo.
I signal Hades to fall back to my side, and Simeon stupidly bursts to his feet.
“Someone needs to teach this cunt a lesson,” he seethes, his body vibrating.
“She comes barging in here—Ahhhh, fuck!” he cries as he cups his bloody nose, falling back into the chair.
Alonzo wastes no time, grabbing him by the throat and hauling him up so they’re face level, making him choke and gasp for air.
“Speak about her like that again, and the only lesson you’ll be learning is how to speak with no tongue.
” The words aren’t loud, but the violence in them have Simeon struggling harder.
Then he drops him back onto the seat, making him land with a thud and slide to the floor.
I look at Alonzo in exasperation, but I can feel my lips twitching. Damn, that’s so hot. Why do I want him to do that again?
No, Aurora, focus.
I hold out Simeon’s phone to Ilya. His gaze turns murderous when he looks at Simeon. “You’re a dead man.”