Chapter 31
RUSLAN
Twelve hours later, I stand in front of Kraven Sidorov, daring him to lie to my face once again.
“Your good gesture to the Italians was to keep them quiet, wasn’t it?
They still suspect you a little, but you knew they had nothing to do with that plane coming down.
They knew because it was you. It was you all along and you were growing tired of keeping up the charade because for some reason, you were equally shitty at hiding your involvement. ”
An official visit from the Suit isn’t like when we dropped by for a chat beforehand.
When the Suit pays an official visit, everyone knows about it.
News spreads like wildfire, minus the details of why a visit is happening, but over the years, the Suit has learned that the most effective way to stop people running when they’re cornered is to give them nowhere to run.
While it’s tempting to flee, letting other families in the area know puts them on high alert since most are eager to get in good with the Suit.
Other than Kraven, apparently.
“It was clever, I’ll admit. The last time I was here, you told me the tattoos I’d find on those dead men would be fresh which would prove the Italians were trying to frame you, and you were right.
Those tattoos were fresh, but they weren’t your men or the Italians.
A couple of them were mercenaries for hire.
The one who shot Cassian? His mug was all over L.A.
on a wanted bounty. Not the smartest choice you’ve ever made. ”
Kraven’s jaw tics back and forth as he sits behind his desk, glaring at me with hatred that pales in comparison to the anger simmering hot under my own skin. Ivy was so ready to die for this fucker, so ready to end her life so she would stop being a problem.
She was never the problem to begin with.
“So I have a theory.” I begin pacing back and forth in front of the desk.
“You can tell me if I’m on the right track.
That drug deal between you and the Italians was huge.
The work you both put into it was enough to tell me and the rest of the Suit that both you and Nico were serious about peace.
So why blow up the plane? Why put such an important deal in jeopardy?
” Stopping at one end of the desk, I turn back. “It was an accident.”
Kraven’s brow twitches ever so slightly.
“The drugs weren’t the target, were they? It was Ivy all along.”
Kraven’s lips purse slightly.
“Digging a little deeper, I found that Camden, Ivy’s father, was about to flee the country with a wonderful woman called Florence Marino.
Do you know her?” I laugh humorlessly. “Of course you do. She was engaged to your son a few years ago. Now granted, at a glance, having your son engaged to a woman like that and then to cut the engagement off could have been an insult to the Italians. Are their women not good enough for your son? I could see them wanting revenge for that.”
Again, I pause at the opposite end of the desk and turn to face Kraven.
“But where does Ivy fit into that? And the attack against my own life and Cassian’s, where does that tie to the drugs?
We were running in circles for weeks trying to make the connection until Ivy herself suggested that it was never about the drugs.
It was about her.” Stopping in the middle of his desk, I place my hands on the smooth wood and lean toward Kraven. “Where’s your son? Where’s Alexei?”
Kraven fixes me with a furious glare but to my surprise, it quickly melts into tired defeat. Suddenly, he’s not Kraven the Pakhan in charge of an empire, but an exhausted father. “I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
“I lost contact with him a few days ago. I…” He shakes his head slowly and closes his eyes. “I have been trying to protect him for so long, you have to understand that.”
My fingers curl until my nails catch on the surface of the desk. “Tell me what he did.”
“I don’t know, exactly. All I know is that he blew up the plane to try and kill that girl.
But he didn’t know it was our plane. The drugs were never part of his plan, and ever since, I’ve been trying to keep this mess from spiraling into a never-ending war.
I was furious at him, believe me. He’s the stupidest man I have ever known, but he is my son.
Whatever is going on with him, it’s my job to protect him, and I will. ”
“He tried to kill me,” I reply tightly. “He tried to kill the Jack. That can’t go unanswered.”
“He knows better!” Kraven snaps. “There will be an explanation for that.”
“Then I want to hear it. I want to know every detail from his own mouth.”
“I won’t hand over my son,” Kraven snaps, his resolve steadfast. “He is my boy, no matter what he’s done.”
“I know.” Slowly, I stand. Part of me sympathizes with Kraven. His plan was simple and peace was on the table until his son barreled in with some other agenda and fucked everything up. “Tell me where he is.”
“I’m telling you I don’t know,” Kraven insists.
“Would you even tell me if you did?”
Kraven sighs deeply, his eyes darting back and forth as he considers his thoughts. “I love my son. He is a reckless, jealous man, but I love my son.”
“No one said you didn’t.”
“I never thought he would risk my business like this. I thought we were past this.”
“Let me talk to him. Maybe there’s something going on that he can’t share with you for the same reason you keep him in the dark about your dealings. Father and son only go so far.”
“Will you kill him?”
My lips part briefly, then I shake my head. “That’s not my decision to make. We need to know the truth, and then the Suit will punish accordingly.”
Pain flashes in Kraven’s eyes and he stands abruptly. A ripple of movement runs through his guards. “I will call him.”
“Good.”
As soon as I leave the Sidorov Estate, I call Bradley, who puts me on a three-way call with himself and Cassian.
“Did he tell you anything?” Bradley asks.
“I should have done an official visit from the start,” I say as I hurry down the long steps to my black car parked at the curb. Ivy sits inside, eager to visit Moira as soon as I’m wrapped up here.
“You know the rules,” Bradley reminds me. “An official visit only works if we have proof.”
“Did he admit it?” Cassian asks.
“He shifted blame to his son, Alexei. He admits Alexei was trying to kill Ivy and blew up the plane without knowing the drugs were on board. Kraven’s been trying to cover for him, blaming the Italians and likely hoping we would find a culprit so he could then work out a better deal with them that benefits him more. ”
“Trying to make good of a bad situation,” Cassian murmurs.
“Exactly. But each attempt on our lives puts him a step back, so I figure Kraven’s using his contacts to free up the Italian airline was his attempt to push through the peace before Alexei could make anything worse.”
“But why?” Bradley’s deep voice vibrates in my ear.
“He claims not to know, but he did mention that Alexei is jealous and reckless. He told me he’ll make contact and set up a meeting.”
“Jealous,” Cassian murmurs. “Does this have something to do with Florence? Ivy was right?”
“I think so. But why he’s still trying to kill her is beyond me.”
“Keep me updated,” Bradley says. “Cassian, I want you at Kraven’s side until we have Alexei. Don’t need him giving us the slip.”
“Understood,” Cassian replies.
“I have to go,” I interject. “I need to do something with Ivy, but keep me updated on how things go with Valentina and the Romas.”
“They’re off the table, no?” Cassian asks. “If Kraven has admitted his son is the perpetrator?”
“Yes,” Bradley says, and a soft chuckle emits from him. “But it can’t hurt to press them a little.”
I hang up as I reach the car and slip inside.
“How did it go?” Ivy looks at me with wide eyes while drumming her fingers against her thigh. “Is it over?”
“Not quite,” I reply. “But you were right.”
“I was?”
Reaching over, I take her hand in mine and she immediately squeezes tightly. “It was Kraven’s son with a vendetta. The cause is technically unknown, but we have some ideas. Either way, the call is out to find him and we’ll have him in custody before the day’s out.”
“And then…” She slowly licks her lower lip. “It’ll be over?”
“It’ll be over.”
“Oh, thank God.” She sags slightly in her seat and puffs out her cheeks. “It suddenly… suddenly feels like my life might actually return to some semblance of normal. Or, not normal but like… a life.”
“If it’s in my power to do so, then I guarantee it.”
Ivy chats lightly to me as we drive to Moira’s house, rehearsing what she wants to say to her best friend depending on the level of apology she gives her.
Given the loss of her parents, it’s understandable that she wants to cling to Moira despite the pain she caused.
If she can salvage their friendship, then it’s one score finally in Ivy’s court.
I pull up outside Moira’s house and lean over, kissing Ivy’s cheek. “Do you want me to come in with you?”
“No… it’s okay. I need to do this by myself. Thank you, Ruslan.” She affectionately squeezes my hand, then climbs out of the car and hurries up the gravel driveway to the door. I don’t take my eyes off her, half-tempted to do a perimeter sweep just in case.
The front door opens but instead of Moira, a smiling man stands there looking somewhat confused. After a short conversation, Ivy nods and turns around, then she hurries back down the driveway to my car.
“Everything okay?” I ask as Ivy slides back inside.
“Moira isn’t here,” she murmurs, pulling her phone from her jeans pocket. “That was her fiancé, but he said she’d nipped out and never mentioned I was coming over.”
“Maybe she thought she’d be back in time?” I suggest.
“Maybe.” She presses her phone to her ear, chewing slightly on her cheek judging by how it indents at her jaw.
“Moira? Hi, I’m at your place. Where did you go?
” She pauses, nodding slightly as Moira’s voice buzzes in the air.
“Okay sure, where are you?” Ivy hums to herself and then hangs up.
“She got waylaid with a call from work and wants to meet for a late lunch instead,” she says, leaning toward my GPS.
She taps in an address and glances at me. “Can we go there?”
After checking the address of the cafe, I nod and we drive off once more.
“Not to be that guy,” I tease gently. “But does this mean you’ll eat something?”
Ivy chuckles softly. “I will. I’m actually kind of hungry.”
“Good, because I was not looking forward to trying to come up with cool things for you to eat. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely would. But my cooking is uhm…” Wrinkling my nose, I wink at her. “Raven is much better.”
“Noted.” Ivy laughs and then her face softens. “Do you think… I don’t know if this is weird.”
“What is?”
“Well… if this is nearly over, if you nearly have the guy who caused all this…” She sighs and her breath trembles. “Do you think you’d want to go on a real date with me?”
Her question is so soft and it catches me off guard. Warmth spreads through my chest until I’m smiling wildly. “After everything we did last night, are you really worried that my answer would be anything other than yes?”
“I dunno.” She laughs, her own cheeks turning red. “Maybe I’m only attractive when someone is trying to kill me.”
“Trust me, I would love to date you without the threat of assassination hanging over your head, so yes. Yes, I would love to.”
“Wow,” Ivy teases to cover her sweet embarrassment. “You were such a dick when we first met and now look at you. You don’t even have to drug me this time.”
“Hey!” Reaching across, I jab her lightly in the ribs. “That was necessary.”
“Sure,” she groans, laughing. “Sure it was.”
Ten minutes later, we pull up outside the cafe Ivy entered into the GPS and we climb out together. Leaving Ivy alone in her friend’s home is fine, but not in a public place. As I lock the car, Ivy hurries toward the cafe as Moira steps out through the door with a watery smile on her face.
“Ivy!”
I follow Ivy at a slightly slower pace as my phone rings. As I press it to the ear, I catch my reflection in the glass of the cafe window.
It’s empty.
There isn’t even anyone behind the counter.
“Hello?”
“Ruslan, we’ve got a situation,” comes Cassian’s strained voice in my ear.
“Tell me.”
“It’s Alexei. Kraven was trying to get him here, but then the bastard warned him that the Suit were looking for him. I tried to stop them but I don’t think I cut the call in time. Raven was tracking Alexei via the call, but he tossed his phone maybe twenty minutes ago, and it’s gone cold.”
“Shit.”
“Kraven said his son comes first and he’s sorry.”
“I’m going to kill him,” I growl. “Ivy!”
In the midst of hugging Moira, she glances at me over her shoulder.
“We have to go!”
Just as the words leave my lips, a screech of tires rips through the air of the quiet street and several cars spill around the corner at top speed.
“Ivy! Now!”
As she tries to run back to me, Moira suddenly grabs her arm and hangs onto her, trying to drag her back into the cafe.
“Moira? What are you doing?” Ivy yells as I sprint toward her.
“I’m sorry,” Moira sobs. “I’m so sorry! They said they’d kill me if I didn’t. I had no choice!”