Chapter 18
Roman
“What if he freaks out?”
“He won’t. Even if he did, he wouldn’t show it.”
“He’s worse than you?” Nala asks, naked and kneeling on the bed while I get dressed.
“Maybe.” I glance at her. “Remind me to ask him if he’s ever had a girl who asks as many questions as you.”
“You love my questions,” she says, letting out a sigh. “I’m nervous. I’m not used to being around people. I don’t want to do something weird and make you look bad.”
Nala and bad don’t belong in the same sentence. I gesture to her body. “As long as you’re not naked when I get back and showing him what’s mine, there’s nothing you can do wrong.”
I squeeze her breast and drop a kiss on her lips. “Thirty minutes. I’ll be back.”
I leave to meet Lev at the spot we agreed on. He’s already confused about why I dragged him out here, in the middle of nowhere near the countryside. I trust Lev, but I’m not stupid. I’ll only tell him what I have to about Nala.
I pull into the gas station and spot Lev’s Maybach with one blacked-out window rolled down.
“Are you going to tell me why all the secrecy?” he asks as I approach. “I had to wait on the road for cows to pass. Why here?”
“I needed to be out of the city. Leave your car here.”
He looks at me with a raised brow but steps out, locking it. “Does this have anything to do with tomorrow?” Lev asks once he’s in my car.
“Yes. It’s the most important reason why I need everything to go as planned.”
“What does this have to do with me? I’ll be right beside you.”
“I know. I need something else. A favor. I’ll owe you one.”
“No favors,” Lev says. “Just tell me what you need.”
“I need a passport for someone.” I shoot him a quick look. “By the end of the day.”
Lev looks at me out of the corner of his eye. “For who?”
“Can you do it?”
“I can,” he says, “but that’s not what I asked.”
“I know.”
Lev snorts and turns his head to the window. “You realize when I’m your sovietnik you’ll have to give me answers sometimes.”
“Who says I’m making you my councilor?”
“I do,” Lev replies, smirking.
“Fuck you.”
He’s quiet for a moment before saying, “Your woman. Why would she need a fake passport? Anyone can get a passport. Why fake?”
Of course Lev would know this is about a woman.
“You’ll see. We’re almost there.”
I pull up to the cottage and cut the engine. I open the door first, making sure Lev stays behind me.
“Nala.”
She comes out, and for a second, I regret bringing him at all. She’s too fucking beautiful. Her shirt clings to her chest, showing how full her breasts are. Jeans hug her small waist, clinging to her round ass. Her curls bounce with every step toward me.
I hear the exact moment Lev gets a full view of her, his low intake of breath. My jaw tightens as I keep moving forward. Her gaze darts past me to Lev. I crook my finger and she comes to my side.
“This is Lev.”
I turn to Lev. “She’s American. She’s just learning Russian.”
Lev doesn’t speak right away. His eyes move between me and Nala, studying us. “How is she American and here without a passport? It can’t be lost. She could easily get one at her embassy. What aren’t you telling me?”
“Is he angry?” Nala asks under her breath.
“No,” I whisper. “He just loves asking questions. Like you.”
Her lips spread as she holds back a smile.
I turn my attention to Lev, getting straight to it. “My father isn’t looking for a prostitute. He’s looking for Nala.”
Lev stares at me, looks away, then back, at me, then her. “This is the girl the Pakhan’s been ranting about? Accusing us over. Accusing you.” His jaw hardens. “All this time you had her—your father’s whore.”
“Let’s get one thing straight,” I say, my voice firm. “Nala was never my father’s or anyone’s whore. I claimed her first. Don’t call her that again.
“Alright. Fuck.” He scrubs a hand over his face. “What is this? Why all the secrecy? Why the drama? How’d you even find her if she’s some kind of secret he keeps talking in riddles about.”
“Doesn’t matter how I found her. It’s where I found her that counts. He was keeping her in a basement under the brothel. Had her trafficked from London to Moscow.”
Lev shakes his head. “That can’t be true. Why her? Why not put her to work with his other girls?”
“Ask the Pakhan.”
“Bullshit, Roman. You know more than you’re saying.”
“I’m supposed to understand why a fifty-seven-year-old man kidnapped a little girl, locked her away for years all because he thought she brought him luck. How am I supposed to rationalize that?”
“That’s what she told you? He kept her for luck.”
“That’s what I said.”
“You actually believe that?”
I hold his gaze. “My girl doesn’t lie to me.”
Lev studies me, brows narrowing, then lifts his hands in surrender. “I get it.” He backs off, knowing he’s not getting anything else out of me. “The passport… I need more details. She looks young. What about her parents? Is anyone else looking for her?”
“Her parents are dead. She’s eighteen. Free to be anyone, go anywhere, as long as the Bratva can never find her.”
Nala moves closer to me, confused and sensing the tension without understanding a word.
Lev lowers his voice. “How far ahead are you thinking? When she doesn’t need the passport anymore, what then? Are you keeping her?” He scoffs. “I can’t see that. That’s not you.”
His gaze flickers over her again, pissing me off.
“I get it,” he continues. “She looks good. She’s beautiful, but come on, Roman.
How’s she going to fit in? Can you imagine her spending time with Pasha’s wife?
Dimitri’s? She looks too soft. Too innocent.
” His gaze lingers. “You won’t stop the others from looking at her the way you do. She’s different. Even you know that.”
“Are you done?”
“It’s not what you want to hear,” Lev says, raising one shoulder. “But it's the truth.”
“I hear you.” I keep my voice calm, my tone firm, controlled. “I do. Me keeping her was never a question. As long as I’m alive, she stays with me. I found her. I’m keeping her.” My gaze hardens. “I’ll deal with anyone who makes it a problem.”
Wandering eyes. Comments about her not being Russian. Not white. I’ll shut it down. The first one who tries it, will never forget their mistake.
Lev clears his throat and steps toward Nala, stopping in front of her, not too close. In English, he says, “I’ll have your papers ready, Roman’s girl. Let’s hope you won’t need them.”
“Thank you.” She gives him a shy smile, adding softly, “Spasíbo.”
Lev smiles back, nodding, before heading for the door.
I give her a quick kiss, letting her know I’ll be back after I drop Lev off and check in on business.
Lev settles into the passenger seat. “She knows Volchya business?”
“Some of it.”
He lets out a low breath. “She’s in love with you. It’s obvious.” He snorts, staring out the window. “How the fuck did you manage that? How does a girl go from being locked up by your father to looking at you like that? Let me guess, she thinks you’re the good guy because you found her?”
“She doesn’t. Nala knows how I am.”
“But she loves you. And you keep her secrets.”
I say nothing. I don’t need to. Lev knows I’ve drawn a line. What’s between me and my girl stays between us. Bratva is who I am, but Nala is my life. Her secret dies with me.
After I drop Lev at his car, I head to the warehouse, ready to give the go-ahead on a shipment of old Soviet ammunition, worth just under a million euros. Once it leaves this place, it’s out of my mind. I don’t care where it’s headed or what it’s used for.
Anton and Vasili are moving crates near the loading dock when I arrive. Anton looks up, his mouth already moving like he’s about to start running it again.
“Don’t,” I tell him, shaking my head. “Yes or no. Is everything on schedule?”
“Yes. We’re almost finished with—”
The door swings open behind me.
There’s a sharp intake of breath. Someone pushing in a chair so fast, it topples and hits the floor.
Fuck.
Like a goddamn plague.
The Pakhan walks in, his mercenary bodyguards stomping behind him. I can’t remember the last time he bothered checking on shipments. All he’s ever cared about is his cut.
Anton straightens, trying to look serious. “Pakhan, sir. We weren’t expecting you.”
“Who the fuck are you,” he snaps, “and why would I tell you I’m coming?” He waves him off like a dog. “Get back to work.”
Anton runs off while Andre and Vasili don’t even bother looking up. They’re smart enough to stay invisible.
“I wasn’t sure if I’d see you here,” he says, already glaring at me. “I know how spread thin you are these days.”
“No more than usual.”
He opens a crate, sifting through it. “You’ve been getting a lot of deals through that broker in Belgium.”
“It’s been steady.”
“Of course it has.” He slaps my shoulder. “My son. Always calm. Never breaking a sweat while being my best brigadier. Roman…bringing in almost twice what the others do. You really are something.”
I don’t flinch, don’t show a reaction to his hand on my shoulder. I stay quiet, waiting for the drop that’s coming after his fake compliments.
“I’ve been making rounds today,” he continues smoothly. “Talking to people. As boss, I need to stay informed, especially when it concerns my own… personal interests.”
“I don’t doubt that.”
“You’re admired. That’s quite a change from when people questioned your authority.” His eyes gleam. “You know, being my bastard and all. Your name comes up often these days. Interestingly enough, someone mentioned seeing you at my brothel the night the girl disappeared.”
Now I have to react.
“Yeah? Did this person also see me talking to the whore that disappeared? Did they see me take her?”
“You don’t deny being there?”
“I wasn’t there.” I shrug. “You won’t believe me, so it doesn’t matter if I deny it or not. I’m starting to think you want it to be me who took this girl.”