Chapter Thirteen
“Vivienne,” Kaz says.
The dark rumble of his voice drapes over me, sending a long shiver down my spine. I spin around. My hand clutches the vase. Kaz’s gaze dips down to it momentarily before meeting mine again.
“I thought you were going to your room?” he asks.
I shrug. “Figured I might as well explore my prison.”
Kaz winces, a flash of regret in his eyes. It almost makes me feel guilty for searching for a phone while the brothers sat around and argued about me. But then again, Kaz is the very reason I’m here, isn’t he?
“And that?” Kaz says, pointing to the decorated porcelain in my hands. “Were you planning to find a way to break out with that?”
“Maybe,” I mutter, placing the delicate object back on its pedestal.
Kaz’s lips twitch. “Hate to break it to you, princess, but that vase is for decoration only,” he says. “Won’t be much use in your daring escape.”
He’s mocking me. Not to be mean but just to ease the tension between us.
“Guess I’ll have to find a plan B,” I reply.
“Why don’t you let me give you the grand tour?” he asks. “Maybe you’ll find something more useful than a vase.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to refuse. The wariness sitting in my gut practically begs me too. This man is my captor. One of them. I should do everything I can to avoid him. Even knowing that, something about Kaz just draws me in. My curiosity wins in the end. Who knows, maybe he is right, and I’ll find something that can help me get out of this mess. A phone would be nice. I plan to get out of here, but I need my brother’s help.
“Lead the way,” I reply.
With a nod, Kaz gestures for me to follow. As he points out every room in this labyrinth of an estate, we fall in step with one another. I saw most of the rooms on the way to the dining room earlier. When we reach the kitchen, my jaw drops. Having grown up where luxury is the norm, I’m used to chef kitchens. My mother had to have the best, and my father was too happy to give it to her. But this… this is on another level. If my mother saw this place, she’d rip out her kitchen at home and redo it completely.
The kitchen stretches out before me. A massive marble-topped island takes center stage. Stainless steel appliances line the back walls, their shiny, gleaming exteriors free of any smudges. The cabinets are as pristine as the undisturbed snow outside.
“I can’t imagine what it takes to clean this,” I mumble.
Kaz gives me a look of surprise.
“What?”
He shakes his head. “You’re just not what I expected, is all.”
I cock my head to the side. “What did you expect?”
“A spoiled rich princess whose only skill is shopping.”
“You wouldn’t be the first or the last,” I reply.
Everyone assumes that about me. I guess because I’m pretty and rich, I must be spoiled. And it’s not like my parents didn’t spoil us. They just taught us to work hard too. I just hate that everyone puts me in a box. Even people I don’t know, apparently.
Kaz cups my cheek with a coarse palm. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have assumed all the rumors would be true.”
The touch is soft and intimate. It sends a jolt through me that I fight to suppress. His gray eyes shine with adoration. They lock onto mine, and for a brief moment, I feel seen. Truly seen in a way that unnerves me. It’s as if he can see past the walls I built, past the fa?ade I present to the world, and still finds something worth wanting.
It’s a dangerous illusion, this game he’s playing with me. One I can’t afford to get lost in. Because the truth is, I’m not his dream, despite the longing in his eyes that says I am. I’m his worst nightmare. He just doesn’t know it yet.
Kaz’s gaze drops to my lips. I can feel the heat of his stare like a soothing caress. My feet move by themselves, shuffling closer to him. His magnetic pull lures me in despite my best judgment.
There’s a flutter of hope in my chest. One I hate. What the hell am I hoping for here? Kaz is nothing but a mark. A target in the grand scheme of things. A means to an end and soon-to-be-dead man. That’s all he is. All he can ever be.
Steeling myself against his charm, I pull my face from his hand. A coldness settles over me as I do. Pain streaks across Kaz’s face, but it’s gone almost as soon as it’s there. Was it really there, or are my eyes playing tricks on me?
I step away from him. “I’ve heard rumors about you too.”
“I’ll make you a deal,” Kaz croaks. “Let me feed you, and I’ll tell you which rumors are true.”
My nosiness perks up. There’s no way I’d ever pass up a deal to get valuable information on one of my enemies.
“What’s the catch?” I ask.
“The catch?”
“Yes, why would you knowingly hand over your secrets to a rival family?”
“Guess I just trust you.”
“You shouldn’t.”
Kaz shrugs. “Unlike everyone else, I don’t believe you’re the villain you pretend to be.”
“Pretend? Should I remind you of your friend’s blood that’s on my hands?”
“Which you killed because he came after you,”
“You mean because you sent him after me.”
Kaz steps into my space again. The same intense look burns in his eyes. “Sorry about that, princess. Had to know what kind of woman you are…”
I lift my chin. “And what kind of woman would that be?”
“Dangerous and beautiful. You don’t take innocent lives. Only the ones who deserve it, and almost always men. Am I right?”
I don’t grace him with a response. He’s right. I don’t kill the innocent ones. Why would I?
Kaz chuckles. “Thought so,” he says as he turns his back and heads towards the fridge.
I watch him pull out eggs, fruit, and butter from the corner of my eye. He sets the ingredients on the island and motions for me to sit on one of the stools.
“You’re going to cook?” I ask.
Kaz nods. “And you’re going to sit.”
I slide onto a stool and watch him. The skillet clangs as he sets it on the gas stovetop. He’s quiet as he cracks the eggs and tosses a dab of butter in the pan.
“Where did you learn to cook?” I ask.
“That’s your first question?”
“Yeah, I guess it is.”
His suit rustles when he reaches up to grab a bowl. Kaz fills the bowl with strawberries and blueberries. He plates the eggs next before pushing the bowl and plate across the island toward me.
“My mother,” he answers.
“She taught you and your brothers or just you?”
“Just me. Their mothers taught them. I assume anyway.”
I furrow my eyebrows. “Their mothers? You don’t all share the same mother?”
Kaz shakes his head. I can tell by his eyes that he doesn’t want to talk about it.
“Okay then,” I reply. “Time for a change in subject. Did you really kill your father?”
“I didn’t.”
“Your brothers?”
“That’s their story to tell, princess. I only promised to answer the questions about me.”
I spear a juicy strawberry with my fork and take a bite, savoring the burst of flavor. I’m starved after skipping dinner last night and breakfast. I finish off the strawberry before asking my next question.
“Is it true that your own people call you the boogeyman?”
Kaz nods.
“Why do they call you that?”
“What else would you call a man who has killed more people than cancer has?”
“Fair enough.”
I try to think back to all the rumors I’ve heard about the Volkovs. There weren’t many. The brothers weren’t in Vegas enough for there to be. But there is one I remember. A brutal one.
“Is it true that you fed one of your victims to their own dog?”
Kaz smiles, his chest puffing with pride. “Rocco Smith. I remember it well. He was working for us and got a little greedy. Fucker probably didn’t think we’d notice, but Dmitri never misses a thing.”
So, it was Dmitri who noticed Thomas Taylor’s disappearance. Interesting.
“Why his dog, though? Isn’t that overkill?”
“He was hungry. Rocco was worthless alive. At least his death had some meaning.”
“I’m not sure if I’d call being eaten by his own pet a meaningful death.”
“What would you call it?”
“Violent.”
“Says the woman who murdered hundreds of men with her bare hands.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I use gloves… sometimes.”
Kaz laughs. A genuine laugh from him. Butterflies break loose in my belly. Something that hasn’t happened to me in ten years. Something I hoped would never happen again.
“Did you use gloves when you tortured and murdered a senator?”
My face hardens. “How do you know about that?”
A lazy smile breaks on his face. “I didn’t. But you just told me.”
Fuck. This whole thing was supposed to be about me getting information from him. Not the other way around.
“He’s not the only man I’ve killed, and he won’t be the last.”
“I know. I’d be disappointed otherwise.”
I tilt my head, trying to figure him out. He’s a puzzle to me. All the brothers are, and that’s not something I’m used to.
“Just so you know, your brothers and you are at the very top of my list now. Your time is coming.”
Kaz leans close. “Can’t wait, princess.”
The door to the kitchen swings open. I look up from my plate to see a girl standing there. She’s young. Like underage young. Her gray eyes are strikingly similar to the brothers. She stares at me with interest and apprehension. I don’t think they have a little sister or anything. Who is she? A captive like me?
“Uncle Kaz?” she says.
“It’s alright, Lilianna. Come here. Meet Vivienne.”
I glare up at Kaz, gripping my fork. If she’s being kept here unwillingly, I’m going to stab him in the eye. “Who is she?”
“Mikhail’s daughter.”