Chapter 5 Fyodor #2
"I haven't hurt him," I grumble. "I've fed him, given him a room, left him alone when he asked for space. I don't know what else you expect from someone who's never had to care for a child before."
"I expect basic human decency." She positions herself slightly in front of Sasha protectively. "Has he had a bath? Have you read to him? Given him a hug? He needs nurturing."
"Which is exactly why you're here." My patience is wearing thin now, fraying around the edges. "I don't know how to provide those things. You do. That's the entire point of bringing you into this house."
She stares at me for a long moment, and I can see how frustrated she is about all of this. Finally, she looks down at Sasha, who's pressed against her side with his hands gripping her coat. "Are you hurt? Has he hurt you in any way?"
"No, ma'am. He's just not nice." Sasha's voice is still so tiny. His mother was so soft on him. He needs a man's hand to grow up strong.
"Not nice how?" She keeps her eyes on him, giving him her full attention.
"He doesn't smile. He gets mad when I cry. He brought me food but it wasn't very good." Sasha glances at me, then quickly looks away. "I just want Mamochka."
Noemi's expression softens even further, and she bends down to his level again, whispering softly, "I know, sweetheart. I know you do. But your mamochka can't be here right now, so I'm going to stay with you for a little while. Would that be alright?"
He nods quickly and sucks in a hard breath. "You're not leaving?"
"Not right now." She straightens and turns back to me.
"If I agree to help you with Sasha, you need to listen to what I tell you.
I can't care for a child without proper tools.
" Her eyes search my face and test me, but I don't actually give a single fuck what material goods I have to provide for her to do this job.
"You'll have what you need when you need it…" I tell her, and then I look down at my boy. If providing for his needs is the first step, I'm sure Noemi Dragunova will guide me through that.
"Thank you." The words are stiff, forced through gritted teeth. She crouches down and pulls Sasha into a proper embrace again, wrapping her arms around him and holding him close. "It's going to be alright. I promise."
I watch them for another moment, then turn to Lazar, who's been standing silently near the door this entire time. "Take them to the guest room. Make sure they have everything they need. Food, water, clean clothes if necessary."
"Yes, sir." Lazar moves forward and gestures toward the hallway. "This way."
Noemi stands and takes Sasha's hand, leading him toward the door. She pauses in the threshold and looks back at me. "We'll discuss the details of this arrangement later. Right now, I need to make sure Sasha is settled and comfortable."
Then she follows behind Lazar, and their footsteps fade as they move deeper into the house.
When the sound disappears completely, I sink into my desk chair and scrub a hand over my face.
Taking on a child is a nightmare of responsibility, but now that I have a suitable nanny-type to do the heavy lifting, I can get back to my work of finding Marat.
I'm hunched over my desk rubbing my eyes when Lazar returns and stands in the doorway waiting for my orders.
"Did the investigator find anything?" The exhaustion of the day settles into my bones.
"Three possible locations." Lazar pulls a folded paper from his jacket and spreads it across the desk. It's a map marked with red circles with three distinct areas highlighted in the western region of St Petersburg. "My contact says Koslov could be in any of them."
I study the map, tracing the routes between the three locations with my eyes. They're spread out enough that checking all of them in one night will require careful planning and precise timing. "How confident is your contact?"
"Seventy percent on the first two, fifty on the third." He taps each circle with his finger. "The third is a backup facility they use when the other locations are compromised. Less likely, but still possible."
"We'll check all three." I lean back and press my fingers against my temples, trying to ease the headache that's been building all afternoon. "Tomorrow night. We move fast, hit each location, and don't leave until we're certain he's not there."
"And if we find him?" Lazar's expression remains neutral, but there's a tension in his voice that suggests he already knows the answer.
"Then we finish what we should've finished months ago." I drop my hands and meet his gaze. "Yuri wants this handled before trial. We're running out of time."
"Understood." He folds the map and tucks it back into his jacket. "What about the woman?"
"What about her?" I'm already thinking ahead to tomorrow night, trying to search three facilities without getting caught.
"Who's going to watch her and the boy?"
"Vasili, maybe, or Vadim… We'll work it out," I say with a wave of the hand. I'll figure out how to balance this out or it'll be my head.
But I'm not letting Yuri down. Inessa killed that bitch Victoria in self-defense. I won't let Marat tell the whole world it was cold blood and let Victoria reach back from the grave to win. It won't happen on my watch.