Chapter 19
Dmitri
Barely a breeze cuts the stale air as I stand on my rooftop, a pitch-black sky pressing down on me.
Vegas drowns the stars, but the moon and the city’s neon glare are enough. I’ll take anything.
With Cara gone, it doesn’t feel like I have much left.
Most of my men won’t support this search. Communication has iced over.
It shouldn’t surprise me, but it still does. Without my loyal men and a couple of allies, I’d be alone in this.
A heavy weight settles on my chest as I approach the edge of the rooftop and glance over the side, staring down at the busy street below.
If she’s gone, there’s no peace left for me.
I can already feel it, my thoughts circling, biting, refusing to stop.
I drag in a breath and pull out my phone. My thumb finds her photos before I can stop it.
The first ones are of her working during lunch.
I don’t even know what compelled me to take the photo, but with her eyes narrowed in concentration and her lips parted, she looks beautiful.
She caught me and didn’t flinch. She posed like she already knew I’d keep those pictures like evidence.
I need the motivation now more than ever because the phone call that I’m about to make could break me.
After gazing at her pictures for a few more seconds, I swipe out of my photos and scroll through my contacts until I find Victor’s number. He could already be sleeping since it’s nearing midnight, but I couldn’t care less. He’ll talk to me tonight whether he likes it or not.
I tap the call button and press the phone against my ear, my heart racing faster with each ring. My heart rate spikes when Victor’s voice fills my ear.
“What do you want, Dmitri?”
“Do you have her?” I say. “Did the Council take Cara?”
Victor sighs. “Why would you think that?”
“She’s missing. You ordered me to kill her! Did you take matters into your own hands?” I grit out, fury already burning its way through me just from picturing them laying a finger on her.
“She is a threat,” Victor replies in a firm voice. “She’s one of the many enemies that the Bratva face, and you fell into her trap like a fool.”
My face heats up as I stare out at the city, wishing that I could have this conversation face to face with the son of a bitch. “If you touched her, I’ll burn every last one of you alive. She is mine!”
“Do you have no loyalty?” Victor questions me.
I don’t want to hear anything about loyalty. I’ve already had some of my men and allies turn against me, and I’m tired of trying to please assholes who don’t give a shit about me.
“Answer me. Do you have her?”
“No, we don’t have her,” Victor tells me. “You’d be wise not to make such accusations in the future.”
“I don’t believe you. Not for a second.”
If they don’t have her, it must be the Albanians or possibly someone else, someone we haven’t considered. Whoever it is, they know how to hit me hard and deep. They know how to hurt me.
This is personal. Whoever took her knows exactly where to cut me.
It could be anyone. I could’ve shared a drink with him and shook his hand for all I know.
Artur Suyunov? Annika’s father would absolutely go to these lengths to punish me for refusing to marry Annika.
The uncertainty is the thing that’s killing me the most.
“If you don’t want to believe the truth, that’s on you,” Victor replies in a calm voice. “We do need to talk about your behavior since the Irish spy infiltrated your life.”
I grind my teeth together when he speaks to me like I’m a child. I heard that tone enough growing up. “The Ivanovs are still standing strong in the face of our enemies.”
Victor lets out a dry laugh. “Men have died. Property has been destroyed. Deals have been canceled. Worst of all, alliances have been lost!”
Because that’s what matters most. Power and who holds it in their hands.
“New alliances can be formed,” I assure him.
“No! The Ivanov-Suyunov alliance needs to happen,” Victor tells me, his words punching through his teeth. “You need to forget that stupid Irish girl and marry Annika. You will do this to get back into our good graces.”
His words infuriate me so much that my ears ring.
“You’re overvaluing the Suyunovs,” I reply. “They’re only one family. There are countless more that we can ally ourselves with!”
“The Bratva are focused on a Vegas expansion right now. We need strong alliances in place to secure our presence. We’re not the only organization in town,” Victor bitterly reminds me.
Ah, yes. We’ve got the Irish and the Italians and the Albanians and whoever the fuck else wants to set up shop in this city.
“So, yes. The Suyunovs are important. You need Artur’s casinos and nightclubs. They’re essential for secondary business dealings,” Victor continues.
Drug deals. Weapons deals. And whatever else that’s profitable and illegal that we can get our hands on.
“The Suyunovs aren’t the only way,” I say again as my fingers slowly curl and uncurl, tension digging into my muscles. I can’t relax, no matter what.
“They are our way. We have chosen them, and we have chosen you to ally with them,” Victor reminds me. “There will be consequences if you do not obey.”
Obey.
A shudder of anger makes me tic, and I have to suck in a deep breath to keep my voice from shaking.
“Enlighten me,” I say, my voice bordering on a hiss.
A moment of silence follows my words, full of fury on both ends.
“Keep this up, and you will be removed from Pakhan consideration and as the head of your own family sooner rather than later,” Victor warns me.
Pressure winds around my lungs and pulls tight, making my next inhale faint. That title holds so much weight in our world, but the more that I think about it, the less I give a shit.
I used to want the power and respect that came with it, but what good does slapping a fancy title on me do if I can’t even save the ones I love?
“None of that shit matters to me anymore,” I sneer at him.
Victor lets out a scoff. “You’ve lost your mind, Dmitri. You were born for this. Raised to lead.”
And where did that get me? Fucking nowhere.
“For once, I’m doing what I want. I’m finding Cara,” I tell him.
Victor is silent for a few seconds before eventually sighing. “You’re making a grave mistake. You might not see it now, but your actions will be the downfall of your entire family.”
His words carry the weight and warning of a bad omen, but that doesn’t scare me as much as losing Cara forever. I didn’t even get a chance to apologize to her. Much less tell her how I feel about her.
“You and the Council should stay out of my way if you know what’s good for you. You’re all dead if I find out you hurt a hair on her head,” I warn him before ending the call, the sounds of the city rising from the background.
My eyes slowly sweep over the tiny dots moving on the sidewalk below. They’re all just people living their lives, not knowing of the monsters lurking in the shadows. Not knowing of the corruption and chaos happening around them, right in front of their faces.
It must be nice to be so unaware of how dark the world truly is.
I suppose I can’t complain. I’m one of the many shadows turning this city into a bloody hellscape.
By the time that I’m done ripping every inch of this place apart and questioning every person in my path, everyone will know who I’m looking for. Everyone will know who I am.
They can have their councils and alliances. I have one purpose now: Cara.
And whoever stands between me and the woman I love will be buried.