Chapter 32
Nika
Max walks back into the main room carrying two trays of steaming food.
I didn’t even notice he was missing.
My mind has been so wrapped up in all the truths I’ve uncovered, in dismantling the pile of lies my life is built on.
The journals lie scattered across my lap and the coffee table. Leather and paper carry the weight of fifteen years of deception, all in beautiful handwriting.
I can’t stop trembling. “I trusted him with my life.”
Max sits beside me and uses his forearm to shove the journals to the floor with the same careless efficiency he ransacked my bookshelves with.
He sets one tray in front of me on the coffee table. “And he knows it. He thinks you still do. Let’s use that.”
The simple words shake me out of the angry loop I’ve been stuck in. “How?” I narrow my eyes, wondering if he’s going to try to take over now. Max has his own agenda, too, though I’m no longer sure what it is.
He was sent to collect me. He wanted to kill me.
But that was before, when he viewed me as a threat to his Pakhan. I no longer care about Roman, which I should probably clear up at some point.
Max doesn’t answer at first. Instead, he reaches into his pocket and sets the satellite phone next to his plate before picking up his fork and shoveling food into his mouth.
Leaving the decision up to me.
Plans form in my head, my mind spinning through possibilities and contingencies. “I know he’s nearby. He’s been waiting for the snow to melt and the roads to open. I need to see his face when I confront him, when I show him I have the locket and no longer have a reason to go after the Kozlovs.”
Max nods. “Then we make that happen. How should we go about it?”
We. The word settles in my chest, infusing me with warmth.
I pick up my food and start eating. I’ll need energy to do what I’m plotting.
“We don’t know if he’s monitoring the cameras. It’s possible he knows you’re still here. Knows we’ve been—” I nearly choke on my chicken as I realize the implications.
“Knows we fucked.” Max’s lips twist into a smirk he’s clearly trying to repress.
Asshole. “It’s not funny.”
At least his easy attitude eases some of my anxiety.
If Dimitri didn’t want to see me fuck anyone, he shouldn’t have installed cameras all over the place.
Max’s grin grows wider before he sobers. “If he knows, let’s use his knowledge to your advantage. Let him think you seduced me and turned me against Roman after relaying your version of events.”
That could work. Dimitri always told me I could weaponize my sexuality. That I had to be careful around men specifically because they would want me.
But using sex as a tool, using my body to gain an advantage? Dimitri would expect that and maybe even approve.
Max and I never manipulated each other. We were clear on what game we were playing from the start.
Still, Dimitri doesn’t need to know that. “I’ll call him. Tell him I’ve neutralized you, got the locket, and we need extraction before Roman’s men come to find you.”
Max nods and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand before reaching for my empty tray. “Sounds like you’ve got a plan.”
A strange little ache blooms in my chest as I realize he’s not trying to patronize or coerce me. “You’re not going to suggest a better one?”
He pushes his hair out of his eyes. “Not my job. Not my territory. You know him better anyway.”
Just like that?
That’s…new. Dimitri always…
But Max isn’t Dimitri. He’s not going to stick his nose where it doesn’t belong.
He wiggles his fingers at me until I hand over the bowl he’s been waiting for. “You make the call. I’ll do the dishes.”
I snort, breaking the tension building in my shoulders. “They’re plastic trays and forks, genius.”
“Exactly. Why do you think I offered?” He strolls into the kitchen, leaving me alone.
Proving he not only trusts me, but he also doesn’t intend to influence my decision.
I pick up the phone and dial the number I memorized as a kid.
The phone rings once. Twice.
“Kai.” Dimitri answers in a warm, concerned voice I’ve never doubted until now. “Are you all right?”
My stomach twists as rage flares beneath my ribs.
How dare he act so caring after exploiting me for most of my life?
Somehow, I succeed in forcing the fury down. Mostly.
I allow my discomfort to sharpen my voice with exactly the right amount of desperation.
“Dima.” The childhood nickname comes automatically.
It stings, and I use that fuel to feed my lie.
“Max is… Let’s say he’s been neutralized.
I have the locket, but I can’t stay here.
Before I convinced him to go rogue, he warned me that he’d let the location of the safe house slip.
I need you. We need to leave before anyone else finds us. ”
“Of course, Boss. Where are you? I’ll pick you up.”
Boss.
A word designed to make me believe I’m the one in control. The leader instead of the weapon.
All deceit and manipulation.
I swallow down the curse I want to fling at him, saving it for when we’re face-to-face. “You’ll never get up the mountain. The roads are impassable. Meet me at the North Ridge Lodge. I can be there in two days.”
I can almost hear the gears in his mind grinding before he answers. “All right. I’ll meet you there. Kai, you did great. I’m proud of you no matter how you got the job done.”
So he did see what Max and I did. I repress a shudder. How long has he been spying on me? “I’ll see you soon.”
I end the call just as Max saunters back in.
“We all set?” He drops on the couch next to me, kicking his feet up onto the coffee table.
“All set.” I join him, nudging my way under his arm so I can rest on his chest. “In two days, we’ll have all the answers we need.”
His heavy arm settles across my shoulders.
I might be heading toward the biggest confrontation of my life, but at least I won’t have to face it alone.