Chapter 41
Nikolai
Road Trip
Several Days Later
Alek had stumbled in drunk one night last week, then spent the next four nights staying at the club. He was avoiding us.
“What did he say again?”
I asked Ivan as we sparred.
“Just that he wasn’t into Kinsley anymore. I’ve got Charles on her. Alek wanted me to tell you to get Jason out to her house and install an alarm system.”
“Okay, and do we know if she asked for one?”
“Hell if I know, isn’t he your twin? If you’re so worried about him, why don’t you ask him yourself?”
“I tried already, sent him four text messages and left two voicemails,”
I mumbled, dodging Ivan’s right hook. “She was something else, though, don’t you think?”
I went in for a jab, and he blocked it.
“Entertaining, for sure. But naive, and entirely too vulnerable.”
He shrugged his shoulders.
“That’s all you’ve got to say about her?”
I asked, annoyed by his lack of response. The girl blew me away, honestly. From the minute she turned around and I saw her in that dress at the gala event, I was intrigued.
Her little show during game night and the way she rubbed her tits against my chest had me wanting to know more. Then, fuck me, on game night two, when she rode my cock, I was gone.
I hadn’t been able to get her off my mind since. I wanted to lay her out right there and kiss, lick, and suck every square inch of her beautiful body. She was so striking. Her petite frame, coupled with that heady mixture of innocence and boldness, drove me mad.
Despite the amount of shit I’d been giving Alek, I understood now the appeal she held for him. Ivan and I liked to razz him because we’d never seen him this worked up over a girl.
But I was dying to know more about her and was frustrated that every avenue was coming up empty. Our investigation was hitting dead end after dead end.
“But while you’re at it, when you drop in for the alarm installation, tell her, her ass better be down at the gym on Monday. She needs some self-defense training. She’s too damn naive,”
he stated.
I wasn’t going to get anything else from him; he guarded his emotions to the extreme. Not that it mattered, because all of us were close. So close that I knew he was just as blown away by her.
The intensity in their exchanges as she handled his blade, licked, and kissed his tattoo—his ass was interested. So much so, he’d canceled his follow-up date with her friend Sarah.
Ivan and I finished sparring, and I decided to drop in at Kinsley’s to both check on her and see about installing the alarm system. I thought again about her warm, small body pressed into mine. She was distracting, so much so, it was easy to forget the reason we were even involved in her life.
It was frustrating, the lack of information coming in on her case. I’d resorted to giving the photo Pavel Lenkov gave me to a specialist in age-progression technology. Aside from the nevus in her right eye, the progression image was spot on. I’d spoken with an ophthalmologist, who confirmed that it could have developed later in life.
In my gut, I knew she was Mischa Natalya Dmitrieva. Maybe that made her more intriguing to me. I’d always loved to solve things, riddles, and puzzles. Mystery novels and movies were my favorites. I was fascinated with people and their behaviors, and Kinsley absolutely enticed me.
“Marcus, take me by Kinsley’s, please,”
I told him as I stared at her location. She was still at home. I had almost turned Alek down for the tracker but relented to give him at least some peace. The fool was probably staring at it too.
“No problem, Boss. Charles said she hasn’t left.”
We drove the thirty minutes to Woodinville and pulled into her driveway. I got out and knocked on her door. After ringing the bell several times, I pulled out a pen and one of my cards.
Kinsley, checking in with you. I’d love for you to call me so I know you’re okay.
I signed and tucked it into the doorframe so it wouldn’t blow away and then left. I dialed Darren, one of my top surveillance guys, and asked him if he’d mind a stakeout. She’d have to leave eventually, and Charles needed a break.
“Not a problem. I’ll let the wife know, and I can be there in two hours.”
“Perfect. Marcus and I will hang out here until you’re set up.”
Two days later, I checked with Darren, and there had been no movement at all at Kinsley’s house. I was getting worried at this point.
“Hey, Ivan, you have Sarah’s number?”
“Yeah, why?” he asked.
“There’s been no movement at Kinsley’s. I’ve texted her a few times, and she’s not even reading them. Something feels off. Not like it’s-time-to-panic off, but just off,”
I said, seeing his shoulders tense.
“I’ll call her now.”
He pulled out his phone. Several minutes later, we had an answer.
Kinsley had called her the Monday after the event, letting her know she was going to take a few days off. Sarah readily gave up the information to Ivan. The ease with which she did unnerved me. I was grateful, but at the same time, did she have no loyalty to Kinsley?
“Maybe we should take another drive over to her house,”
Ivan suggested, unbuckling and re-buckling the snap on his sheath. It was a habit he had when he was nervous. My innocently spoken words had brought out his demons.
We drove ourselves over, telling Marcus not to bother Alek with the information. These days, you couldn’t even mention her name without him losing his shit.
After several attempts to get her to open the door, the annoyance turned into concern. With one look at Ivan, I knew what was going through his mind. He backed away, the color draining from his face.
I quickly made up my mind and took out my pick. Making quick work of her lock, I rushed inside to find she wasn’t there. Then I remembered Ivan.
When I walked outside, he was on his phone. I knew immediately he was talking with Marcel. He always knew the right words to calm Ivan when he got overwhelmed by his emotions.
His eyes flew to mine, and I said, “She’s not home.”
He relayed the message and then barked, “Then where the hell is she? Your man said she hasn’t left. How is that possible? She didn’t vanish into thin air.”
“Don’t know, but I say we investigate. Are you coming in to help or what?” I asked.
I wouldn’t lie. The relief of not finding her inside alleviated my initial concern. However, now we had a bigger problem. Where the hell was she? After thoroughly combing through her house, we managed to locate a locked safe and, by fluke, a small room.
“What the fuck?”
Ivan asked. There was a hatch door that led to an underground passageway.
“Only one way to find out,”
I answered quietly. Pulling up the flashlights on our phones, we stepped inside. The tunnel led about half a mile out and opened to what looked like a small garage, minus a car.
“Skagit County?”
Ivan asked. I nodded. We made our way back through the tunnel and locked up. “Should we tell Alek?”
he asked as we got into the car.
“No. He’s been like a fucking beast since that night. You saw how he was with our last target,”
I said, shuddering at the memory. “If we’re going to go, it should be now,”
I added, looking at the map. It would take us almost two hours to get there.