34. Cora
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
cora
I zipped up my puffer coat as I followed Maxim through the fortified entrance of Conall’s building in Vinegar Hill, Brooklyn. The industrial-modern space was a testament to my brother’s meticulous nature: wood floors polished to a gleam, glass walls reflecting warm, muted lighting, and the faint hum of a security system embedded in every inch of the structure. Armored guards flanked the hallways, their eyes sharp as they acknowledged Maxim with slight nods.
Nerves had skittered across my skin during the drive with the thought of what was supposed to happen at this meeting, but I wasn’t going to change my mind. If my husband was going to be some kind of bratva pakhan-thing, I would make sure I would be a match for him. Not one iota of my being ever wanted to be the kind of wife waiting at home making meatloaf, and I never wanted to be the one waiting to find out if my husband was dead.
I knew Maxim had a terrifying profession or calling—whatever he wanted to call it. Maybe if I were with him during some of his days, I wouldn’t have be so worried.
Finn was waiting as we entered the building, frowning at Maxim as if he’d personally insulted him.
“Hi, Finn.” I made sure to inject the right amount of cheer into my voice. “How’ve you been?” Even though I’d only known him briefly, I had still come to like him.
“Cora. Good to see you. How’s Clyde?” he asked.
“Growing and becoming more of a handful by the day. Still super cute.”
Maxim stalked next to me, a force, as much an immovable object as an unstoppable one. Today, bringing me into the heart of business felt like a test I had demanded to take. We headed to the fourth floor, where the offices and conference rooms were.
The room buzzed with low conversation until we strode in. Conversations halted. Conall, Angelo, and Ilias turned their heads, each man radiating their unique authority. The surprise on their faces was unmistakable when they saw me beside Maxim.
“Cora?” Conall’s voice was a mix of warmth and irritation. He crossed the room in a few strides, pulling me into a brief, firm hug. “You didn’t mention you’d be coming.”
“I asked to come,” I replied evenly, meeting his gaze with a determined tilt of my chin. “This involves our family. I have a right to be here.”
Maxim’s lips twitched in what might have been amusement. “Cora is here because she insisted,” he said simply, his voice leaving no room for argument. “And because she’s my wife, she can go where she wants. If she wants to be part of the business — she can.”
Angelo raised an eyebrow. “Family, maybe. But this isn’t exactly a family dinner, Maxim. This is business.”
“I don’t give a fuck,” Maxim answered. “She’ll go where I go if I say so.” Maxim looked like he could care less, but I knew he did. He squeezed my hand as if to say it was all right, which I appreciated — just like I appreciated him sticking up for me.
Ilias, with his usual Greek charm, chuckled. “We’re not questioning her presence, merely your unorthodox methods. It’s good to see you, Cora.”
“It’s good to see you too,” I replied, my voice steady despite the tension in the room.
Conall gestured for me to sit beside him on one of the leather sofas. I obliged, though I could feel the weight of everyone’s eyes on me. Maxim remained standing, a looming figure of authority as he addressed the room.
“Cosimo will arrive shortly,” Maxim began. “When he does, we’ll have answers about Caruso.”
Conall’s jaw tightened. “If Caruso was working against us, we need to know who else was involved.”
Conall looked at his phone for a minute. “He’s here. Down in the back bay.”
“I think you should stay here with Finn while I verify the body.” Max leaned close to me, ensuring his words were for my ears only. “I’m not sure Caruso’s body will be a pretty sight.”
My belly tightened and pitched. Was this really what I wanted to see? Some gangster with bodies that they were trading around like Pokémon cards? Still, what came out of my mouth was, “I’m going.” Maxim’s expression didn’t change, but his jaw clenched. I was going to guess that he hadn’t expected me to insist.
“Alright,” he said with resignation.
We trooped toward the elevator bank, with the others giving glances that ranged from hostile to disapproving. Finally, Conall leaned over and said, “I don’t think you should be involved. I specifically didn’t want you to be.” He was grinding his teeth so hard I could practically hear the enamel being worn down.
“Well, maybe you should have thought about that before you married me off.” I winked at him. “Too late now. You have no say.”
He glared, but there wasn’t any rebuke he could offer since he was the one who set the wheels in motion for the whole arranged marriage situation. I glared back at him for good measure. The poor girl who ended up with my grumpy brother would need all the help she could get to deal with him.
We rode down together in the elevator, and additional security filed in behind us. Maxim spoke in Russian to Lev and Kolya, who tightened up beside me, and I made a mental note to download a language app to start learning. If I was going to be married to a Russian and be around men who spoke a foreign language, then it was going to be something I would need to learn.
The back bay led to the alleyway behind the building, so it was obvious why they’d asked Oliveto to meet them at this specific spot. It was essentially a concrete box with a few drains that you could drive several vehicles into. I was in no doubt that some unsavory things happened here.
One of the men by the doors spoke into his walkie-talkie and looked to my brother for his approval. At his nod, they opened the double steel doors to admit an SUV that rolled forward into the space.
“Stay close to me, zayka.”
The room fell into a tense silence until the SUV doors opened, and men exited. I picked out Oliveto immediately. He was about Maxim’s age, handsome with a Mediterranean look, his hair swept back from his face. Three other men accompanied him, who, between them, unloaded a large, bloodied tarp from the back of the SUV. The metallic tang of blood filled the air as they set it down with a heavy thud.
Oliveto’s sharp eyes scanned the room, pausing for a minute on me with speculation as I hovered between Kolya and Lev before settling on Maxim at my side.
“Caruso didn’t go quietly,” he said, “Shall we?”
“By all means.” Maxim made a lazy motion as if this was an everyday occurrence.
Watching them as Oliveto pulled back the tarp to reveal the battered body made me believe that I wasn’t wrong. This was normal for them — looking at dead bodies. Not a single one of them flinched — as opposed to me. My belly twisted, and my gorge rose.
I inhaled sharply, almost turning my face away, but Lev touched the back of my arm, gripping it hard enough to ground me. I straightened my shoulders. The reality of our world was brutal, and I had asked to be here. This was what I wanted—to be part of the ‘business.’
“What did you get out of him?” Maxim asked, his tone devoid of emotion.
Cosimo’s gaze flicked to the corpse, then back to Maxim. “Caruso was working for Vallone. He’s been feeding them information about our operations for months. The leak is bigger than we thought,” he admitted. “He was also the one to put the hit on your wife.”
Maxim clenched his fist, and tendons stood out in his neck. His fury was unmistakable, but I breathed a sigh of relief.
Angelo cursed under his breath. “Vallone has been a constant issue for years, but this?” He gestured to the body. “Planting a mole in your organization this high up? Putting a hit on Cora?”
Ilias’s expression darkened. “We’re all vulnerable.”
I wasn’t sure why that would be, but I kept quiet and kept my eyes off the corpse on the tarp. He was hardly recognizable as a man anymore, and Maxim had been right — he was missing his hands. How had he known?
“Vallone was responsible for burning down Fortune . Dante had some sort of very specific vendetta against you, Volkov. He had some kind of relative who was caught up in your father’s organization years ago. He blamed you.”
Maxim’s jaw tightened. “We’re going to need to come up with a plan to eliminate the threat. No half-measures.”
“And how do you propose we do that?” Conall asked, his tone wary.
“We take out Vallone and anyone loyal to him,” Maxim said. His gaze swept over the room, landing on me for a moment longer than necessary. “No one betrays the Commission and lives to tell the tale. We can probably get a few of the other families to side with us.”
Oliveto nodded. “I figured you’d all feel that way. I’ll work with you on this if you’re interested. If you’re not, then I’ll still be going down the list on Vallone’s network because they came after me. Caruso’s confession gave us enough to pinpoint key players in Vallone’s network.”
“Might as well work together,” Angelo shrugged. “Boys?”
“I agree,” Ilias said, sounding bored. “Conall? Maxim?”
“The men exchanged glances, unspoken agreements passing between them. Finally, Conall nodded. “Fine.”
“I agree. No reason not to work together,” Maxim stuck his hand out to Oliveto. “Let’s go to war.”