Chapter 19
19
Booker
W ith all this information to process, I leave Anya in Chance’s and Nico’s care the next morning as I head out to handle some of our more pressing errands. The sheriff knows Leo Sokolov is in town, and I trust him to deal with him accordingly—within the law. I walk up the steps of Breonna’s cabin, take a deep breath, and look around before I knock on the front door. There’s not a soul in sight.
“Booker,” Breonna says as she opens the door.
I give her a polite smile. “Good morning, Breonna. Apologies for the impromptu visit. Can we talk?”
“Sure. Come on in, I was just about to make some more coffee. Would you like some?”
“That would be nice, thank you.”
I follow her inside and straight to the kitchen, temporarily distracted by the sound of her furry slippers slapping the hardwood floor. I’m not sure why, but everything about Breonna now irritates me.
“How is Anya? Is she feeling any better?” Breonna asks as she finishes setting up the coffee machine.
I take a seat at the counter island. “She’s good, thank you. You knew about the pregnancy, huh?” I ask, and Breonna gives me a terrified look, making me hold up a hand. “Relax, we’re not upset or anything. If anything, I appreciate your discretion. She asked you to keep her secret, and you did.”
“Thank you, I guess.”
“Anya is fine, and so is the baby. But I want to apologize for sending you away yesterday.”
“And in such a brusque manner, too,” she says and rolls her eyes at me.
In the meantime, the coffee machine gurgles furiously, pouring two shots of espresso into two ceramic mugs. I try to carefully analyze the woman before me. Her past behavior makes me suspicious. Not that she isn’t trustworthy, but her emotions tend to get the better of her. Breonna took it hard when Nico didn’t want a long-term thing with her. Spite and bitterness triggered unpleasant reactions and harsh words, and her initial behavior toward Anya wasn’t pleasant either. But she’s come a long way since, and she did help Anya keep Leo Sokolov at bay.
So I owe it to Anya to at least try to keep Breonna out of future trouble. “That guy you ran into yesterday,” I tell her, “he’s bad news, Breonna.”
“I figured as much when Anya started running,” she says as she brings the coffees over. “I didn’t know what else to do other than threaten him with the police.”
“You gave Anya time to get away from him, and I want to thank you for that. She’s a good woman, but still young and green on so many levels,” he says and chuckles dryly. “But she’ll see for herself soon enough.”
“What do you mean?”
Breonna shakes her head at me. “You three are delusional, if you think the so-called relationship of yours is ever going to work. I mean, I get it. It works great in the sack. You satisfy a fetish, you gain complete dominance over a woman, but a relationship, a real relationship… that takes work. You three—and don’t get me wrong—you’re great guys, but you’re not cut out for Anya. She needs stability, protection, love. You can’t have that in your type of situation, not really.”
“I beg to differ.”
“Differ all you want. It just doesn’t happen. We’re monogamous by nature, and you’re asking Anya to be the opposite so the three of you can satisfy a whim.”
I take offense at that. “I’m sorry, Breonna, but Anya isn’t a whim. She’s someone we care about deeply. Maybe that’s just your bitterness talking.”
“Maybe,” he shrugs and takes a seat on the other side of the counter island. “But it doesn’t change the facts here. The world will never accept you together. You’ll never be able to go out in the open with your relationship. Only one of you will be able to marry her, and in time, it will drive a wedge between you and your brothers.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.”
“I’m just looking out for Anya, okay? I may not know her for as long as you have, and I may have the occasional foot-in-mouth syndrome, but I do know she deserves better. You do what you want with my opinion. I’m only sharing it with you because you’re clearly at a critical point here.”
“I didn’t come here to talk to you about our relationship with Anya.”
But she waves my concerns away. “Yeah, yeah, I heard you the first time about Leo Sokolov. I learned my lesson from my first encounter with his brother. The psycho gene runs in that family, so I’ll keep my distance.”
“I need you to call me if you see him anywhere up here, or anywhere in town, for that matter,” I warn her. “If you have a taser or pepper spray—”
“I have one of each.”
“Good, keep them with you at all times. You still have that shotgun in the living room, right?”
She gives me a worried look. “Are you serious?”
“Make sure it’s loaded and ready. I’m not kidding. Leo Sokolov runs a major Russian mob syndicate in New York, and he will stop at nothing to get what he wants.”
Breonna exhales sharply, then takes a sip of her coffee and walks to the kitchen window, briefly lost in thought. She’s mature enough to understand real trouble when it’s headed her way. I just hope she’s genuine about her concern for Anya.
“How did the Russian mob end up in the heart of Montana?” she asks, her voice low.
“It’s a long story.”
“I think I deserve to hear it, given that my life and safety seem to be at risk now.”
I can’t give her all the details, but I do my best to summarize some of Anya’s past in a short, coherent story. By the time I’m done, tears well in Breonna’s eyes as she turns around to face me. “That poor girl,” she mumbles. “Tragedy after tragedy… never having control over her life.”
“Trust me, we had no idea she was betrothed to this psycho. Otherwise, we would’ve stepped in, come hell or high water. We would’ve gotten her away from New York, with or without her father’s permission.”
“And to lose everyone she ever loved like that.”
“Yes, Anya was dealt a terrible hand.”
“Pregnant, on top of everything else,” she scoffs and points a finger at me. “That’s your responsibility, by the way. The three of you need to do right by her.”
“I fully intend to do precisely that, and so do my brothers. Breonna… Anya is loved, and she is safe with us. What comes next, however, will bring trouble to this town and this mountain. It could get nasty and bloody really fast. And I just want you to be ready for it when it comes.”
“I appreciate that,” she mutters, biting her lower lip.
“Actually, why don’t you head back to Denver for a while?” I ask. “The roads are cleared all the way up to Missoula. You could just hop on a plane and spend the rest of the winter there, or at least until we resolve this Bratva issue.”
“Well, it’s not the worst idea. I’ll think about it.”
“Please, do. It’s for your own sake.”
Breonna gives me a gentle smile. “Thank you, Booker. I honestly appreciate your concern.”
The truth is, we don’t know what Leo is planning. We do know that he needs Anya alive, at least for now.
One way or another, my brothers and I will have to get our hands dirty in order to destroy Leo and possibly his entire syndicate. It could be the only way for us to keep Anya safe and free.