Chapter 1 - Misha #2
“Yes.” I leaned back slightly in my chair, my gaze drifting toward the screen again. “I need to see this in person, Sera. I need to know if he’s lying before he even opens his mouth.”
“You can do that from a distance.”
“Not well enough.”
Another pause.
“You’re taking a risk.”
“I’m taking control.”
I ended the call before the conversation could turn into something else.
My gaze went back to the symbol flickering on my screen.
While the men in my world continued to fight wars over territory and power, this was all happening quietly.
Efficiently. Systematically. Girls were disappearing every day as if their lives meant nothing, and no one was stopping it.
Not because they couldn’t. But because they simply were refusing to see the problem for how big it was.
That was the part that unsettled me. But not anymore. I would burn this entire network to the ground even if I had to do it alone. I reached for my primary phone and powered it off, leaving it on the desk. It was time to get going. My burner phone buzzed in my hand, and I picked it up.
“Tell me you’re not already outside,” I said, pressing it to my ear.
A pause. Then a quiet laugh.
“I would never insult you like that,” Sera replied.
I allowed myself the faintest hint of a smile. “Good. That means you’re learning.”
“Or that I enjoy not being fired,” she countered. “Which, given your standards, feels like a daily achievement.”
I moved toward my desk, opening the concealed drawer beneath it. Inside, neatly arranged, were items no one in my family knew existed. A second set of keys. Cash. A compact firearm. I ignored the last one for now.
“Status,” I said.
“Warehouse is clear,” Sera replied immediately, the humor gone just as quickly as it had appeared. “Your contact arrived twenty minutes ago. He’s nervous.”
“He should be.”
There was a brief pause on the other end.
“You’re certain you want to do this alone?”
“I’m not doing it alone,” I said calmly. “I have you.”
“That’s not the same thing.”
“It’s enough.”
Then, softer this time, “You know if this ties back to what you think it does—”
“It will,” I interrupted.
I did not raise my voice. She did not need to. Certainty carried its own weight.
“Then you’re walking into something much bigger than a mid-level logistics coordinator.”
“I know.”
“And if your brothers find out—”
“They won’t.”
“You say that like it’s a fact.”
“It is a fact.”
“You’re terrifying when you’re like this.”
My lips curved faintly. “Only when I’m right.”
“You’re always right.”
“Exactly.”
"The car is ready three blocks east,” Sera said. “Same setup as last time. Clean plates. No traceable link.”
“Good.”
“And Misha?”
I paused, fingers resting lightly against the edge of the desk.
“Yes?”
“Be careful.”
Something in Sera’s tone made me still for half a second. It was not fear or doubt. Just a concern.
“I’m always careful, Sera,” I said.
I ended the call before anything else could be said.
For a moment, I stood there in the quiet.
Then I reached for the keys. Getting out of the house was easy, but staying unnoticed was the part that required effort.
I stepped outside with the same calm composure that I confidently carried everywhere, my expression neutral and posture relaxed.
The guards did not question me. They never did. The car was already waiting.
“Where to, ma’am?” the driver asked as I slid into the back seat.
“Design district,” I said without hesitation. “I have an appointment.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
The car pulled away smoothly, and I leaned back, my gaze drifting to the window, but my focus remained sharp. I tracked the route in my head, measuring every turn and every stop. Five minutes in, I leaned forward slightly.
“Actually, take Biscayne,” I said. “I need to stop somewhere first.”
The driver nodded, adjusting the route without question. Another five minutes passed.
“Stop here,” I said curtly.
He hesitated briefly. “This isn’t the district, ma’am.”
“I am well aware of that.”
The tone was enough to force him to pull over. After all, there were not a lot of people who would make the mistake of questioning Misha Chernykh.
“Wait here,” I said, already walking away.
“Yes, ma’am.”
I did not look back as I turned the corner into a side street and kept walking. The first switch was simple. A rideshare I had arranged under a different name pulled up exactly where it was supposed to. Without looking left or right, I slid into the back seat as quickly as I could.
“Where to?” the driver asked.
“Keep driving,” I said. “I’ll tell you.”
Confusion flickered across his face in the mirror, but he did not argue.
I let him take two turns before giving him a location.
Once we were halfway there, I changed it and then changed it again.
All of it was necessary in case we were getting followed.
By the time I stepped out, any pattern was long gone.
The second car was parked in an empty lot three blocks down.
It was a simple black Honda, completely unremarkable and easy to miss.
I retrieved the keys from my pockets, and the engine turned over smoothly.
I exhaled slowly as I pulled into traffic, and for a moment, everything felt controlled again.
Just then, I checked the rearview mirror, noticing a dark SUV lingering behind.
It was not close and did not seem too obvious, but it was there.
My grip on the steering wheel tightened just slightly, and I took a turn, noticing how it followed.
It was not one of the Chernykh cars, and I did not recognize the number, which made it all the more concerning.
Despite that, my mind adjusted instantly.
It could just be paranoia, but I still needed confirmation.
I did not panic or speed up. Instead, I slowed down slightly, forcing the car behind me to either pass or reveal itself. But the car stayed.
Interesting.
I took a sharp turn into a narrow street without signaling, and the SUV hesitated but continued to follow. My pulse remained steady.
Good. Now I knew.
I drove another block before abruptly pulling into a crowded side street, weaving through parked cars and forcing a break in the line of sight.
When I checked again, there was nothing.
The SUV was gone, but I still could not find it in me to relax.
I kept driving and changed directions two more times.
Only when I was certain I had lost it did I continue toward the docks at last. I was rather close to my destination, and it took me less than 10 minutes to finally get there.
The air changed as I approached the waterfront.
I could smell the familiar scent of salt, rust, and decay.
The warehouse stood exactly where Sera said it would be, looming against the water like something forgotten.
I parked at a distance and cut the engine.
For a moment, I sat there, my gaze fixed on the structure ahead.
Then I reached for my burner phone. Opened the window.
And dropped it onto the street. It shattered quietly on impact.
It was already untraceable, but I did not keep one burner for too long.
Not since I started this journey. My very own mission.
I stepped out of the car, pulling my jacket tighter as the wind shifted around me.
My posture remained steady, but my mind was already moving ahead.
I knew someone was running a network in my city.
Someone was trafficking girls and women, rather bravely and clearly had no fear of getting caught.
Whoever it was was certainly not scared of the Maslows or the Chernykhs or any other bratva family in the city.
But I was not going to sit and do nothing.
I was very close to finding it all out. Everything about them.
Now, I only had to make sure I ended it.
Once and for all.
No matter what I had to do to make it happen.