Chapter 25 Fyodor
FYODOR
The motel is nicer than the last one, which isn't saying much, but at least the sheets look clean and there's a small kitchenette where Lazar made coffee that doesn't taste like potting soil in water.
After three hours Sasha has finally stopped shaking and the color's come back to his face.
Noemi got him settled on one of the beds with a blanket wrapped around his shoulders.
She sits with Sasha on the bed across the room telling him a story to calm him and I wish I could sit with them and learn from her. But we've got work to do, and I can't afford to get distracted by how much I want to be over there.
"The safehouse is here," Lazar says, tapping a spot on the map he's spread across the table.
"Two guards on rotation outside, another two inside from what our contact says.
Of course it's state security, not Koslov's people, so they're gonna be better trained than the idiots who've been chasing you around the city. "
"But they won't be expecting an attack," Vasili adds, leaning over to study the layout. "They have no clue someone's coming for him here. Koslov's men have kept you busy so long the cops with Marat think they've dodged the bullet."
I study the map, tracing the streets around the safehouse with my finger.
It's in a residential area, which means neighbors who might hear gunshots—civilians who might get caught in the crossfire if things go wrong.
We'll have to be surgical about this, get in and get out before anyone knows what's happening.
"We'll go after midnight, when the guards are tired and the streets are empty. Hit 'em hard and fast, take out Marat, and disappear before they can call for backup."
Lazar nods. "I can get us what we need—weapons, vehicle, the works. Just tell me when."
"I'm not sure about weapons yet… But I want this finished by tomorrow," I tell them, and I mean it. We can't keep dragging this out and I want to go home.
My phone buzzes, and I pull it out to see Yuri's name on the screen.
It's been long enough without an update, so I'm not surprised that he's calling me.
He's probably wondering where we're at on this mission he gave me months ago.
Standing as I answer, I step away from the table and answer and keep my voice low so Sasha won't hear anything he shouldn't.
"Tell me you have good news," Yuri says without greeting me. His voice is wound up with tension. I can tell immediately that means things are getting worse on his end and he's running out of patience. "I'm getting tired of waiting, Fyodor."
"We had some hurdles, but it will be done by tomorrow when you wake up." I hope he thinks I sound as confident as I project. If Marat slips my fingers again tonight, I'll have hell to pay.
"It needs to be done yesterday, but I'll take tomorrow.
" There's a pause on the line, and when he speaks again, his voice is even harder.
"Inessa's attorney just called me. The investigator's going to issue a warrant any day now, maybe even by the end of the week.
She's pregnant, Fyodor. I can't let them put her in handcuffs and drag her off. "
"That's not going to happen, Boss. You have my word on that."
"Your word is all that's keeping me calm right now," he growls, but he doesn’t sound calm to me. Especially when the line goes dead.
I shove the phone back in my pocket and feel the press of his expectation on my already stressed body. He's counting on me to get this done the right way now. I can't let him down.
I walk back to the table and sit down with Lazar and Vasili. They've followed me into hell more than once and never asked for anything except their paycheck. Loyalty like this can't be bought. Without them, I don't think I could pull this off, and when this is over, I'll owe them massively.
"We gotta finish this in twenty-four hours, boys," I tell them. "That's what I told Yuri and that's what's going to happen, one way or another."
"We'll be ready," Lazar says, folding up the map. "I'll work on clean transportation for you."
"Good. Make the call."
I glance over at the bed where Noemi is still telling her story. She looks exhausted. Dark circles ring her eyes. She's been strong for Sasha all day, holding him together, but I see how much strain she's under and I know she needs a break from this, which is exactly what I'm going to give her.
"I need you two to stay with Sasha for a few hours," I say, turning back to my men. "I'm going to take Noemi out and give her a chance to breathe. Do you think you can handle that? Take turns sitting up and keeping watch?"
Vasili raises an eyebrow. "You're leaving in the middle of planning an operation?"
"The planning's done. We know what we need to do and when we're doing it. Right now, she needs me more than you do."
Neither of them argues, which is another of the things I appreciate about these two.
They know when to push back and when to keep their mouths shut.
Lazar grunts at me and glances at my son, now fully calm, but probably really bored.
We didn't stop to get his game system, but by the looks of it he'll be asleep as soon as they put food in his belly.
"Order pizza or something, then put him to bed," I tell them, then I cross the room to where Noemi is sitting, Sasha now fully in her lap. She looks up at me wearily as I stand over her.
"Come with me," I say quietly. "Lazar and Vasili are going to stay with Sasha. You and I are going out." I reach for her hand as she starts to shift Sasha off her lap.
"Out where?" he asks sleepily. The adrenaline from this morning's events has worn on him. He's napped three times and he looks like he could nap again now.
"Dinner," I say. "I'm going to take Ms. Dragunova for something nice to eat. Would you mind staying here with Lazar and Vasili? They can teach you to play cards."
She hesitates, her hand still resting on Sasha's head. "I don't know if I should leave him. After today—"
"He's safe here," I interrupt. "These men would die before they let anything happen to him, and I think you know that." I reach down and brush a strand of hair from her face. "You've been taking care of everyone else all day. Let me take care of you for a few hours."
She sighs and looks back down at Sasha, who looks ambivalent. I know how attached he is to her because he knew her much longer than he's known me. But even he nods.
"Okay, I like Lazar." His mood switches easily and he curls up against the headboard. "I already know how to play cards," he says proudly, surprising me.
I chuckle as Noemi slinks away to grab her coat. "Yeah? What game?" I ask him.
"Go fish, or Crazy Eights… And I’m pretty good." Sasha sits more confidently as Lazar pulls up a chair and straddles it, pulling a deck of cards out of the bedside drawer.
"Yeah? Well he cheats," Vasili chimes in. Then he winks at me and pats my arm. "We'll be fine, Boss. Go."
As I turn I see Noemi standing by the door ready to leave.
Even as tired as she appears, she's radiant to me.
There's something about her beauty that seems to outshine the sun.
Maybe it's her smile, but I have a feeling it's because her heart is just as beautiful as her outer appearance.
She sees and knows the real me and still treats me with the same care and compassion.
We take the car and drive into town, chatting about how much I trust my men. She seems uncertain and I wish I could put her heart at ease, but that uncertainty is born of fear, and until I prove myself and my men prove themselves, she will always feel it.
I pull over in front of a small boutique that's still open, its windows displaying dresses and coats that look expensive even from outside.
But this is a small price to pay to care for the woman who cares for my son.
After her request the other day, I realized I've been only mission minded and not thinking about their wellbeing. Tonight I rectify that.
"What are we doing here?" Noemi asks. She glances at me with high eyebrows and confusion scrawled across her face.
"You've been wearing the same clothes for three days. So has Sasha. I'm buying you something new."
"Fyodor, you don't have to—"
"I know I don't have to. I want to."
She sighs and stares at me for a few seconds but then she gets out of the car without arguing.
I follow her into the shop and watch her weave through the racks of clothing.
She picks out a simple dress for herself while I grab a few things for Sasha too, pants and shirts and a warm jacket that'll actually fit him, and I pay for all of it while she changes into her new clothing.
It's uneventful and yet it brings a smile to her face that lights up the whole room. I wish I'd have done this days ago before that blow-up. But I'm a slow learner, apparently, and I need her to remind me how to be human sometimes.
The restaurant I take her to is small and quiet, tucked away on a side street where nobody will bother us.
We get a table in the back corner and place our order with the waitress who zips away, leaving us to ourselves.
I sit quietly, admiring how beautiful Noemi looks in her new dress, but it’s awkward.
I'm not the sort of man who goes on dates with women. The women I've been with in the past were nothing more than passing flings picked up in a bar or after a job. Not at all the sort of woman Noemi is. She's professional and elegant, and she deserves something better out of me.
"Is this what your life is usually like?" she asks finally as she traces the rim of her wine glass. "The running and the shooting and the hiding in motel rooms?"
"No." I take a sip of my own wine and try to figure out how to explain it.
"Usually it's quieter than this. Most of my work is just making sure people pay what they owe.
The Gravitch family has interests in a lot of businesses, legitimate and otherwise, and my job is to make sure the money flows the way it's supposed to. "
"And when it doesn't?"
"Then I have conversations with people. Usually that's enough.
" I won't bring up what happens when those conversations go pear-shaped or turn out heated.
I think I'm learning how much my role is shifting now and how my primary focus is going to be protecting my family as Gravitch business takes a backseat, and when I tell Yuri about all of this, I know he'll agree.
"Do you think Sasha will be…." Her lips press into a firm line and she sighs and tries again. "Will Sasha be exposed to violence?" she asks, and I reach across the table to take her hand gently.
"Neither you, nor Sasha, will be exposed to violence ever again if I can help it."
Her shoulders rise as she sucks in a breath and widens her eyes at me. I don't have to explain in detail what I mean. She seems to understand the point—that I want her to be in my life for good now and that I hope to create an atmosphere in my home that she feels safe in.
She opens her mouth to speak and then shuts it again without saying a word. But a soft smile forms on her lips and her face relaxes just as the waitress walks up with a tray loaded with our plates of food.
Noemi's eyes never leave mine as the server places our food in front of us, and even as she walks away, again leaving us in privacy, the only response I get from her is sparkling eyes and a half smile.
More than anything else I want to show her that I can be everything she hopes I can be. Reading that part in her journal was eye opening and it made me want to be a better man, all because she can see that in me.
"Let's eat," I nudge gently, but still her eyes don't shift from my face. She's exquisite when she's speechless like this. I wonder if I can make that sensation last all night for her.