Chapter 20 #2
The Hazar checked the room, offered her a curt nod, and Tatyana and Grimace walked into a spacious room lined with cabinets and smelling of fresh tobacco.
Grimace was looking around the wood-paneled room. “Oh wow, are those walk-in humidors?”
“Probably. I don’t smoke.” She didn’t want to rush him, but others would notice if she was gone too long. “Grim… I feel silly calling you Grimace. What do you want me to call you now that we’re meeting in real life?”
The young man smiled. “How about Kostya?”
Tatyana nodded. “Yes. Good. I can get used to that. What did you want to talk to me about, Kostya?”
“I’ve been doing a kind of cybersecurity audit for Oleg over the past month.”
“Which is not something I should know about.”
“Agreed,” Kostya said. “However, I spoke to Mika after I learned this particular piece of information last night, and he agreed that I should share it with you.”
Mika might not have been Tatyana’s favorite person, but she trusted his judgment. “Go on.”
“During my monitoring of certain phone lines over the past two weeks, I encountered a surprising connection between yours and Oleg’s organization.”
She nodded but said nothing.
“I have been tracing Ivan’s calls for Oleg.” Kostya quickly raised both hands. “Mika said that this would not be a surprise to you.”
“No, it’s not.”
“Good, good.” Kostya’s heartbeat picked up, and Tatyana could smell his stress. “During that time, I noticed a call to what appeared to be an unlisted number. A burner phone.”
“Yes.” Again, this was not surprising.
“So to be thorough, I did some digging and I traced the serial number back to a store in Budapest, which was where the big vampire summit was, correct?”
Tatyana wished that Kostya would get to the point, but he was young and she could tell he was showing off a little. “Yes, it was.”
“Yes.” He smiled. “It’s a burner phone, so a human must have bought it because vampires fry burner phones like that.” He snapped his fingers with a smile. “And I was right, because it was purchased from an electronics store during the day.”
She nodded, hoping he would just continue.
“So I obtained the security footage from the store.” He pulled out his phone. “And I saw someone who looked vaguely familiar, but I wasn’t sure. When I showed the picture to Mika, he identified her immediately, so I wanted to show you as well.”
He held up his phone, and Tatyana kept her distance as she peered at the small screen.
It was black and white, but the woman who walked in and walked to the counter wearing sunglasses and obviously trying to hide her face was instantly recognizable, if not by her features by the distinct Hermès bag she wore on her elbow.
“I just thought you should know,” Kostya said quietly. “Is there a reason your stylist might be taking calls from Ivan Sokholov?”
Hours later, when Tatyana was mentally exhausted and felt the creep of dawn in her blood, she sat in her office, staring at the computer screen and the spreadsheet she’d been trying to check over.
The problem was, she could not stop thinking about that image of Diana in the shop.
And she was missing her husband.
She’d been angry about his outburst the night before, but honestly more concerned. There were things he wasn’t telling her, and his uncharacteristic bravado in his day chamber following the scene at Pavel’s house was itching in her mind.
He usually didn’t conceal his thoughts from her, at least not strategically, but she knew in her blood that there was more to his outburst than purely creating uncertainty for those who might have become complacent.
Oleg’s amnis had been carefully controlled the night before, from the moment he woke—which she felt every night—to the moment she fell into day rest. It was a constant awareness when they were in the same vicinity, like a familiar voice in a distant room.
And now, with him so far away, that voice was gone and she felt nothing.
Was this how it would be? Is this what she wanted? To be so closely linked with another that his absence felt like a missing piece of her mind?
What were his plans for Ivan, and why wouldn’t he share them with her?
I could ask you the same thing.
She closed her eyes, imagining his voice. He would be angry if he knew that she and Kezia were plotting to kill his brother, but it needed to happen.
Perhaps not as soon as they had planned—she didn’t want Ivan’s men to blame Oleg—but Ivan needed to go.
Just the other day, Radu had reported that two Poshani vampires visiting friends in Moscow had been held up and shaken down for cash by immortal thugs who claimed to be working for “the boss of Moscow.”
Were they Ivan’s men? Possibly. But even if they were not, it was clear to Tatyana that the immortal governance of Moscow was not sufficient. There was no reason a couple visiting friends in an allied state should have their money stolen and their lives threatened.
Ivan needed to go.
And she needed to find out why he was calling Diana.
She heard a knock at her study door. “Yes?”
Sándor poked his head in. “You wanted to see me?”
“Please.” She pointed to the door and put her finger to her lips.
Sándor closed it carefully and walked to the chair on the other side of her desk, keeping his voice low. “What is it? The young man at the concert tonight?”
“The Hazar told you that I met with Oleg’s cybersecurity contractor.”
Sándor nodded. “I didn’t know he was a security contractor. And they said you kept your voice low. Is there a problem?”
“Not with Grimace. Kostya.” She corrected herself. “His name is Konstantyn, and he’s actually an old friend from my hacker days. He’s working for Gavin Wallace but on contract to Oleg right now.”
“I understand.”
“He received permission from Mika to share that Ivan has been in regular contact with Diana.”
He frowned. “Your Diana?”
Tatyana nodded. “Did we do a background check before we hired her?”
“Of course. Yes.”
“Do another one.”
Sándor nodded. “When did he start calling her?”
“It sounds like Budapest.”
Sándor nodded slowly. “He could be trying to seduce her. She’s an objectively beautiful human, and we have not been open about the fact that Ivan is an antagonist. I am sure if he wants something from her, he can be quite charming.”
“True, and I am hoping that is all this is about,” Tatyana said. “But we need to know if she’s compromised, and if she is, how long she has been so.”
He nodded again. “In retrospect, it’s very wise that you did not share with her the true nature of your relationship with Oleg.”
“Exactly,” Tatyana said. “Once we’ve been married publicly for some time, no one in the clan will question my loyalty should our marriage grow into a genuine relationship, but to find out that I have been concealing it from the beginning?” She shook her head slowly. “It would shatter their trust.”
Sándor frowned. “I don’t know that it would be as bad as you’re imagining, but it would not be good. Oleg’s scheme is much better.”
She kept her eyes locked with his. “You were amused last night when he attacked Ivan.”
Sándor smiled. “I would hardly call that an attack. An attack would have left Ivan much more charred.”
“What would you call it then?”
“A correction.” Sándor snapped his teeth. “Like a bitch correcting a puppy, no? Just a little snap to remind Ivan who is boss.”
Tatyana narrowed her eyes. “Did you just call my husband a bitch?”
Sándor laughed, and the sound was such a rarity it immediately brightened Tatyana’s mood.
“He has been their leader for hundreds of years,” Sándor said. “There is a history there that we cannot comprehend, just as he cannot comprehend the dynamics of the Poshani clan.”
“I know you’re right.”
“Yes, I’m usually correct.”
Tatyana rolled her eyes. “My god, who will save me from the humility of the men around me?”
She woke at dusk to the knowledge that Oleg was still out of range of her amnis, which meant he was likely still out of the city. She would be going to another event alone and fielding questions about where her groom was.
How delightful.
Luckily, when she left her day chamber and walked into her dressing room, there was a note from Oksana, who had arrived in Saint Petersburg and wanted to meet Tatyana for one of her favorite activities.
Axe throwing.
Tatyana couldn’t stop her smile. “Rumi, what is my schedule tonight?”
Her secretary walked into the dressing room with a fat notebook in her hand. “You have another dress fitting at ten, and after that, Rudov has invited you and Kezia for a small party at his home in the city.”
“Lots of people?”
Rumi shook her head. “Other than Kezia, I believe it’s only Oleg’s family and a few close friends.”
“That will be a relief,” she muttered. At least if it was only Oleg’s family, they would understand how obstinate their knyaz was and wouldn’t have many questions.
Diana walked in with a garment bag draped over her arm. “I have a new dress for you to try on, and I want you to keep an open—”
“No.” Tatyana cut her off.
She stared at her stylist, trying not to let the knowledge of Diana’s phone habits color her expression or her reaction. Was she a victim in this? Was Ivan using her? Blackmailing her? Or had she been lying to Tatyana all along?
She made an effort to soften her voice when she saw Diana’s wide eyes. “I’ll try it on later. An old friend has just left me a note to meet her, and I’d like to spend some time with her before the party tonight. I have not seen her in some time, so this is a priority for me.”
“Of… of course!” Diana’s cheeks were a little red. “Of course. I am happy to serve, Terrin Tatyana.”
“Thank you. Please reschedule my dress fitting and retrieve some clothing that will be suitable for axe throwing.”
The stylist blinked her eyes. “I don’t know what you wear to throw axes. Is there a dress code?”
Rumi chuckled. “Come along; I’ll show you. Anything comfortable will work. Think of it as athleisure. For vampires.”