Chapter Ten
After the longest day of my life, I finally lay my head on my pillow.My body melts into the bed. The silky sheets welcome me home with open arms. A twelve-hour flight from Vegas to Russia is grueling, even on a private plane. It didn’t help that Kaz growled anytime I neared our captive. He really didn’t like it when she woke up mid-flight, and I had to drug her again. I don’t know what his fucking problem is, but he needs to stop thinking with his dick. Vivienne is hot, but what difference does that make when she stole from us? Five million isn’t pocket change. For ordinary people, anyway.
Vivienne McBride isn’t normal by society”s standards either. Why would she need all that money? I’m sure her brother is involved. It’s the only thing that makes any sense. What’s his endgame? Why steal from us at all? He’s got more than enough product to sell to make five million. He wouldn’t need to steal it. Unless he’s just trying to start a war. Maybe he’s trying to gain more ground in his father”s absence?
An hour later, I’m still lying in the dark, and I’m no closer to figuring out why that little minx stole our money or what she and her brother are planning. A guttural groan breaks through the silent air. My eyes open just as a loud, thundering crash comes from upstairs.
“What the hell?” I mutter, tossing the covers off me and pulling on some sweatpants.
I glance at the gun on my nightstand, but I don’t grab it. It’s probably just another one of Lilianna’s tantrums. Throwing open my bedroom door, I step into the hallway. The yelling is louder out here. A chorus of curse words is coming from every corner of the house. I head towards the sound, finding Kaz and several of our men at the bottom of the stairs. My brother shouts orders and points to the front door, which is wide open. The freezing air and flakes of snow are blowing in. Goosebumps break out over my bare chest. The chill almost makes me miss Vegas’ dry climate. Even in January, it never snows there. It hardly gets cold as long as the sun is out.
Mikhail stomps in from his office. All the voices cease with his presence. “What the hell is going on?”
Kaz turns to look at Mikhail, who is beside me. As he does, I can see his lip is split open, and there’s a purple bruise forming on his jaw. “Vivienne got loose.”
“What?” I ask.
Rage immediately takes me over. How many times is he going to let her run all over him? Kaz is the strongest, most lethal man I know. But when it comes to Vivienne McBride, he acts like a fucking pussy.
“I let doc untie her to check the wounds around her wrist.”
“Are you fucking stupid?” I spit. “How many times are you going to fall for her tricks?”
Kaz’s eyes turn hard. “If you hadn’t tied her wrists so damn tightly, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”
I scoff. “Fuck you, Kaz. If you had let me take her to the warehouse instead of here, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”
“You don’t think she would’ve found a way out there too?” Kaz replies, his jaw clenching. Anger is like a flash of lightning in his eyes.
I grind my teeth together, frustrated at the truth in his words. Vivienne is like no other woman I’ve ever met. She’s cunning, resourceful, and dangerous. She’s managed to outsmart Kaz and me at every turn.
“Shut up,” Mikhail growls. “It doesn’t matter whose fault it is. We need to fucking find her before she causes any more damage.”
“Or before the wolves get her,” Kaz says.
The words barely leave his mouth before a wolf howl streams through the door. Thanks to the untouched wilderness left in our country, Russia has an impressive wolf population. The estate itself is between two patches of woods. Both have dozens of wolves living in them. Wolves we often feed with the bodies of our enemies. If Vivienne gets past our gate… we won’t be able to stop what comes next.
I sigh in defeat. “Let me get dressed. We’ll find go find her.”
Kaz pushes past me. “Go do what you need to. I’ll find her.”
I shake my head. Mikhail spits harsh orders to the men before the twelve take off out the door in all different directions. My brothers are going one way, and the men are going another. The chill pebbles my nipples. I push the door closed before turning back towards my room.
Pulling on a shirt and some sneakers doesn”t take me long. Grabbing the gun and phone from my bedside table, I return to the front door and slip my coat on. Stepping out the front door and into the bitter cold, I can hear the distance wolves howling. The sound is drowned out a second later by the engine of the ATV. The guys must’ve gotten them out to cover more ground.
The cold air slices through the fabric of my coat as the wind blows, my breath forming frosty clouds in front of me. The forest looms dark and menacing in the distance, the shadows dancing in the low moonlight. It makes the pristine snow shine like a diamond.
My footsteps crunch on the ground as I walk around the estate”s perimeter. Kaz and Mikhail’s ATVs are so far in the distance I can’t see them anymore. Fucking Vivienne. She better be inside these damn gates.
As I trudge through the snow, my thoughts churn with annoyance. At my brothers. Vivienne. I’m ankle-deep in the snow at four am when I should be trying to sleep this jet lag off. Kaz better hope he finds Vivienne before I do. I might not let him talk me out of dropping her at our nearest warehouse this time. She’s an enemy and should be treated as such. But here we are, searching for her in negative-degree weather. I’m half tempted to let the wolves have her, but that wouldn’t give me my money back.
Something moves in my peripheral eyesight. I freeze, slowly turning my head to look. I can make out Vivienne’s form in the dark shadows. She’s pressed up against the house as if that will protect her from my brothers and me. I don’t think she’s seen me yet. Her eyes are glued to the space where Kaz and Mikhail took off through the gate. Is she considering running? If she is, she’s got another thing coming.
Stomping my way over to her, I’m not quiet about it. I’m halfway to her when she turns and sees me. Her eyes widen. I watch with frustration and satisfaction as Vivienne pushes off the wall. She scrambles to flee, her heels sinking into the snow with every awkward step. I don’t speed up, knowing it won’t take long for me to catch her. With determined strides, I close the distance between us.
“Vivienne, stop,” I say, reaching out and grabbing her arm.
Sparks explode the moment my skin touches hers. The shock of them jolts through me, freezing me in place. Vivienne turns the tables on me before I can process what’s happening. Literally.
In a flash of movement, Vivienne hoists me over her shoulder. She struggles beneath my weight but still manages to toss my ass in the cold, unforgiving snow. The impact knocks the wind out of me. Vivienne’s long dark hair flips behind her shoulder as she turns to get away from me. Knowing I can’t let her slip away, I snatch her ankle. It wobbles in her unstable heels. Vivienne falls to the ground with an audible thud. I’d feel guilty if she weren’t trying to kick me in the face right now. Her stiletto misses me, barely.
I grab onto the hem of her short dress and pull myself up by it. The fabric gives way almost immediately. You’d think by the way Vivienne’s eyes widen that her dress would be in tatters. But it’s only a small rip. Making the silky dress a few inches shorter. Though any shorter, and I’d get to see her pussy.
Vivienne kicks and bucks, trying to get me off her. Her feeble attempts are adorable, really. She has to know she’s not getting away from me. I look down at her. Her blue eyes remind me of angry flames as she thrashes around. I can only imagine what I look like lying on top of her like this. It would probably resemble something like that Australian man who used to wrestle the alligators on the TV.
She lifts her head, trying to head-butt me. I pull back at the last second again.
“Enough,” I bellow. “Stop.”
Vivienne freezes, her body finally stilling beneath me. Her breath comes in pants. Each chopped breath she takes pushes her breasts against my chest. I can’t help but look at her. Admire her. She’s even more beautiful up close. Majestic.
Her eyes are blazing with fury. But that doesn’t deter the growing attraction stirring inside me. Something is captivating about her. Her spirit.
I reach up, pinching a strand of her long, shiny, dark hair and twisting it between two fingers. Vivienne’s throat bobs as she swallows. I have to give her credit. There’s not an ounce of fear in her eyes. Only hatred with a sprinkling of lust.
The moment is shattered by my phone. It vibrates against Vivienne’s hipbone from where it sits in my pocket.
Keeping my eyes on Vivienne, I slide my phone out of my pocket and answer it.
“What?”
“We haven’t found her yet. You?”
“I’ve got her,” I reply.
Vivienne squirms against me again.
“Thank god,” I hear Kaz whisper.
“What?”
“Nothing,” he replies quickly. “Hold her there. I’m coming for her.”
“It’s freezing,” I bark. “I’ll meet you back inside the estate.”
“Fine.”
With that, he hangs up.
“Hate to break this up,” I say. “But it’s time to go back to your cage.”
“Go to hell.”
I push off her and stand. Pulling up by her forearms, I toss her over my shoulder fireman style.
“Put me down,” she hisses, hitting my back with her fists.
“No.”
I march towards the estate. By the time I reach the door, Kaz is parking his ATV. He jumps off and heads straight for me with a scowl. I take a sharp right and walk inside the estate before he can reach me.
Kaz follows me in, and Mikhail trails behind him. “Put her down,” he growls at me.
Rolling my eyes, I let Vivienne go, dropping her onto the hardwood floor of the foyer.
She grunts at the impact.
“What the hell is your problem?” Kaz asks.
“My problem? What the fuck is your problem? She’s not a guest, Kaz. She’s a fucking thief.”
“Watch it,” Kaz spits, getting right up in my face.
I narrow my eyes on my little brother. “I don’t know what it is about her, but this needs to stop, Kaz. She’s going to the warehouse in the morning.”
“The fuck she is.”
Kaz pushes me. The force of his push catches me off guard, and I stumble back a step. The tension crackles between us, a silent battle of wills raging beneath the surface. I square my shoulders, refusing to back down.
“She stole from us, Kaz. She doesn’t belong here.”
Kaz’s jaw clenches. His gaze flickers with frustration and anger. I can see the conflict warring within him, torn between loyalty to his family and whatever feelings he has for Vivienne. I thought it was just lust, if I’m honest. But looking at him now, he really feels something for her. How is that possible? They had only just met. I didn’t even think my brother had a heart, much less one capable of feeling for another person. We’re fucking killers, made men, not hopeless romantics.
Mikhail steps forward. As always, he interjects between Kaz and me. “Let’s not do this right now.” His voice is calm, but I can hear the note of subtle aggravation in his tone.
“What is all this noise?” a voice shrieks.
The four of us whip our heads around to see Mama Volkov at the top of the stairs. Her robes flow all the way to the floor. The fur edges sweep along the stairs as she walks down. Her soft eyes bounce between my brothers, me, and Vivienne.
“What is going on?” She asks again as she nears the bottom step.
“Mama,” Kaz says. “We didn’t mean to wake you. Go back to bed.”
Yvonne raises an eyebrow. “I tell you when to sleep, not the other way around. Answer my question, Kazimir. What is going on? Who is she?”
“She’s no one,” I answer. “She’ll be gone in the morning, Mama. There’s no reason to concern yourself.”
She mutters to herself in Russian. A surefire sign that she isn’t going to listen to me. Sure enough, she stomps past me and goes right to Vivienne, who slumps further down, practically begging for sympathy from Kaz’s mom.
“Are you okay, dear?”
Vivienne nods. “I’m fine. Just a little cold.”
“Of course you are. We need to get you out of your soaked clothes. Come with me.”
Mama Volkov helps her stand, pulling her to the staircase. She turns back to look at us over her shoulder. Her short gray hair rustles with the movement.
“I want an explanation in the morning.”
“Yes, Mama Volkov.”
My brothers and I say it together. Kaz sighs.
“I’ll keep an eye on them.”
“Good luck with that,” Mikhail answers, but Kaz is already jogging up the stairs.
“We need to get ahead of this thing with Kaz. His judgment is clouded,” I tell Mikhail. “Vivienne has to go.”
“She’s staying.”
“Excuse me?”
“Kaz is right. The best place to keep an eye on her is right here. She can’t escape. She has no choice but to help us get our money back.”
Yeah, I don’t think it’s going to be that easy. If anything, Vivienne has already proved she’s not to be underestimated.
“Fine. But if she causes any more trouble, it’s on you,” I growl, relenting even though every bone in my body cries for me to stand my ground.
Vivienne McBride has to leave. She’s dangerous. A siren leading men with souls as black as mine to their deaths. I have no doubt she’d happily lure my brothers and me there if we let her. At this point, Kaz just might. But I won’t let that happen. I won’t let her come in here and start disrupting things. She’s done enough of that. It will only get worse if I let it continue. It’s decided. I have to get rid of Vivienne McBride.