Chapter 22David
22
David
I ’m standing on my condo porch smoking a cigar, waiting for Vlad to arrive. A few seconds later, his headlights stream a cone across the building, putting me in a spotlight as if I’m on a stage.
Vlad parks, steps out of the car, slams the door, hits his key fob. The lights flash as the car locks. He struts over to me, tipping his chin up in greeting.
I blow smoke up to the sky and stub my cigar out in the ashtray perched on the wooden railing of my porch.
“Where’s Hazel?” he immediately asks.
I motion vaguely toward the house. “Upstairs. Sleeping.”
“How are things with the two of you?”
A vision pulses through my brain of her naked body pressing against mine, her moans and back arching as she climaxes when I bury myself inside her or slide my tongue across her swollen clit.
“We worked everything out,” I grunt, keeping the details private.
Vlad nods and doesn’t press me. “Where do you want to talk?”
“Inside.” I push the front door open, and we step into the foyer.
“Do you want something to drink?” I ask over my shoulder.
Vlad follows me into the kitchen. “Yes, god knows I need it.”
“Been a long day?” I arch my brows as I pour an aged Russian bourbon into two glasses, then drop two ice cubes into each.
Vlad sighs and rubs his jaw. “Well, yes, and I have some news you’re going to want to hear about.”
“About Oleg?”
He purses his lips and nods. “Yes.”
I pick up my glass and Vlad does the same. We step into the living room and sit on opposite ends of the couch, facing each other.
“Tell me what you know.” I take a sip from my glass.
The alcohol goes down smooth, cold from the ice, but warms almost immediately through my veins. I’m on edge. There’s no time to relax until I fix these problems within my bratva.
I missed out on a lot while I was locked inside. It frustrates me, but I know Vlad will give me all the information I need to know, and we will make a plan on how to react.
There was so much we couldn’t discuss over the monitored phones at the jail, and now I’m eager to get back on track with my business and bringing Oleg down once and for all.
Vlad settles into the couch and clears his throat. Then he takes a sip of his bourbon, swallowing it down with a wince.
“Well, we need to track him down, obviously, but that shouldn’t be difficult. He’s using bratva warehouses for this gun manufacturing he’s doing.”
I mull it over, craving another cigar but I don’t light one. I drink instead. “Any leads on where he might be?’
Vlad plants his elbows on his knees, leaning forward. “Yeah. One of my crew guys told me Oleg favors the warehouse furthest from town. He’s been spotted there several times within the last few days.”
“How the hell did he take them over?” I can’t wrap my head around it. But I’ve been inside, and a lot of things have been out of my control.
Vlad widens his eyes, staring at me. “Violence. His preferred method for getting anything done these days.”
I swirl the brown liquor around. The ice clinks against the glass. My blood pressure is skyrocketing. “I can’t believe he ever worked for me. How could I not see the warning signs from the very beginning?”
It’s in that moment I feel weak. Or Inferior. Like I’ll never be able to finish what my father started or measure up to the legacy he desperately tried to fulfill before he was killed.
A vein in Vlad’s forehead pulses. “Sometimes people don’t show their true colors until it’s too late. They only want to show you certain parts of themselves until they can use you to get what they want.”
I set my glass down and growl. “I will make sure he pays the price for betraying me.”
“The police will be watching your every move,” Oleg says. “I made sure to watch the house to make sure there are no wire taps, but we need to be very careful about how we approach this Oleg situation. The lawyer is working his magic to get the charges cleared, but until your next court date, we need to make sure you are on your best behavior, at least in law enforcements eyes.”
“I agree.” I absentmindedly scratch my chin. Pinning everything on Oleg is the best course of action. Working it behind the scenes so he has no idea it’s coming.”
“We can’t just take him out.” Oleg uses air quotes here. “A murder will just come back to you, especially since the guns have been traced back to our organization.”
I grind my teeth. “He has to go down. He’s getting too cocky, and cocky means sloppy. He’s bound to screw up at some point, and we have to be ready to strike when that happens. I can’t believe I ever trusted him or allowed him onto my crew.”
“Yes, but you need to be very careful,” Vlad reminds me. “Those warehouses he’s using are still in your name. If anything else happens at one of them, it will be traced back to you just like everything else.”
The gears start turning in my head. “I can’t go back to jail. I can’t be found guilty for something I didn’t do. You know me. You know how badly I’ve been trying to steer the business away from guns.”
Vlad gives me a solemn nod. “I know. You said make him pay, and I agree. Perhaps we just burn everything associated with the illegal weapons.”
A light clicks on in my head. I stand up and start pacing, getting the brainstorming juices flowing. “We need to destroy all the evidence, one way or another.”
Vlad’s eyes are like flint and steel. I’m not sure if it’s because he’s excited or he’s been drinking, or both. He snaps his fingers. “Exactly. It’s the best way to clear your name and frame Oleg while he’s working his own side hustle with the gun running.”
“Or, maybe he’s doing this as his main source of income now. He might have other side business’s he’s operating. We have to infiltrate it and destroy it all. Wiping out the guns eliminates the threat to me,” I add. “If the guns are gone, none of them can be used for violence. We need to hit him where it hurts and take his business’s down like dominos.”
Footsteps come from behind us. Vlad and I both turn our heads at the same time as Hazel walks into the living room.
She looks so beautiful it makes my breath catch. Her hair is falling over her right shoulder, and her cheeks are pink. She’s barefoot and wearing tiny shorts with a t-shirt that says Don’t sweat the small stuff. Run it off instead.
“I thought you were in bed,” I say, swallowing hard.
Hazel’s eyes pan between me and Vlad. She wastes no time pretending. “I overheard your conversation. I know a possible location for Oleg’s gun running. It’s somewhere you wouldn’t know about, wouldn’t even consider. He’s hiding more from you than you think.”
Vlad’s eyes narrow. “How would you possible know that information?”
I watch Hazel carefully, trying to understand that as well.
Hazel looks at Vlad, then at me. Her eyes are bright, and her expression is alert, as if she’s watching something exciting unfold in front of her. “It’s still tied to the bratva. It’s one of the places I considered going when I first started working on this story.”
I exchange an uncertain glance with Vlad. It’s clear that he’s waiting on me to make the decision. He shrugs. “Your call, boss.”
I lick my lips and rub my palms together. “Let’s go together. We need to burn all of it to the ground. And Oleg needs to be on his own turf when the coppers come plowing through, so none of it comes back to haunt me. He made his bed, he can lie in it and face the consequences that come along.”
Hazel’s lips spread into a conspiratory, eager grin. I’m incredibly turned on by her resilience. I admire and respect her. She’s carrying my child. I need to be around to protect her, and I can’t do that locked behind concrete bars.
“You want me to give you the information?” she asks.
I look at Vlad when I say. “I’m ready. Let’s put an end to this before it gets even more out of control.”