Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Tolya
Nico’s Office
The door shuts behind us with a thud. But the quiet inside the office presses in like a vise. I move close behind Nico, the two of us nearly shadows of the other at this point.
He reaches for a bottle from his desk drawer, pulls the cap off, and pours us both a shot of something dark and sharp. I take it eagerly at his offering and shoot it back. The burn of the liquor slides down my throat, numbing the rage but not the anger that’s still burning hot in my gut.
How could Yaro do this to me?! Even more, why? Why take Eva? And where?
Nico opens a thick file and spreads it across the desk with a purpose.
“This is everything we have on Yaro,” he says, voice low but sharp. “Movements, meetings, communications... every damn step he’s taken for months.”
I lean forward, eyes flicking over the pages—grainy surveillance images, phone logs, intercepted texts, lists of names. My lips curl in a half smile, bitter and dry.
“You keep files on us like we’re some kind of exhibit,” I mutter, the irritation sharp beneath the surface.
“And can you honestly say that you do not do the same?” Nico grins, and I can see he’s thinking the same. “It’s the nature of the game.”
I skim faster, looking for something concrete, something that ties it all together. And then, almost like a switch flips inside me, I see it—a pattern. Dots and dates that make no sense alone but when connected form a map in my mind.
“The map,” I say, my voice colder, sharper. I reach for the rolled-up map resting against the wall and hand it to him.
Nico unrolls the full-sized map of Chicago with a quick snap laying it flat on the table with a crackle of old paper. The harsh light from the lamp above casts long shadows over the surface, emphasizing every street, every alleyway, every district.
I grab a marker off the desk and start tracing points—safe houses, meeting spots, known hangouts—places Yaro had been caught on camera or reported visiting. Places I knew of and some I hadn’t until now. Two locations catch my eye—hubs of operation. I circle them thickly, tapping my finger on each.
Nico leans over the table on the other side, squinting at the marks I’ve left in my wake. His voice drops, almost a whisper, “God damn it... we should have seen this. How did we miss it?”
I throw the marker down, the sound sharp in the still room. “Because we weren’t looking for it. He covered his tracks well.”
We had been so busy hunting the Don and the fake rat that Yaro had provided us that we had failed to see the pattern between the two. Yaro had been the one feeding information to the Don all along.
Nico’s gaze lingers on the circles. “We need to split up. Each of us takes one location. We hit them both simultaneously hard and fast. If we are lucky she’ll be at one of these places.”
He turns to me, eyes searching. “Can we trust your men?”
I stare back, cold and unflinching. “Trust no one at this point.”
He nods, a grim smile tugging at the corner of his lips. “There is no room for error here. Any mistakes could cost Eva her life this time.”
“Don’t talk to me like I don’t know that already," I growl, irritation simmering beneath my voice. “I’ll mobilize my men. We’ll take the northern point, you take the southern. Keep in contact.”
The truth hangs heavy between us. We were blinded, chasing the obvious traitors and threats while the real venom spread quietly beneath our noses.
“Remember, trust no one right now. Not a soul. We don’t know who else could be working with him,” I say firmly, “Keep our destinations a secret until arrival. The longer the men are in the dark the less likely he is to get any good intel on our movements.”
He nods slowly, a grim smile flickering at the corner of his mouth. “Agreed.”
I glance at him then, knowing that we’re both carrying the same weight — the need for vindication, the thirst for control. And the fragile hope that we still have enough time to save the one person left in this world that means the most to us.
I turn away from the table, the weight in my chest shifting as I look out the window to the world beyond. The room feels colder now, stripped of all pretense. I reach for my phone and start tapping out orders, summoning my men — but only those who I believe I can still count on.
Nico moves as well, going back to the desk and folding the file with deliberate care.
I nod, voice a cold and completely devoid of emotion. “We move fast. No mercy. And he’s mine, no one but me touches him.”
He smirks, the ghost of that earlier grin flickering in his eyes. “And that’s why you’re the monster, Tolya.”
The faintest hint of a smile tugs at my lips, but I don’t reply. Nico meets my eyes, serious now. “Watch your back. There’s more betrayal in this game than bullets at the moment. Hopefully this is the last of it but…”
“But it may not be,” I finish, voice low and steady. “I know, right now you're the only person I can trust. And that’s only because we have a mutual interest in seeing Eva returned to us safe and sound.”
“Thanks for the unparalleled vote of confidence,” he says with an uneasy laugh, my words hanging heavy between us.
The past few days have taught me that the enemy isn’t always obvious — sometimes it’s the one standing beside you.
We head for the door, moving together with purpose once more. I pause in the doorway, glancing back at the map laid bare on the table, the circles mocking me.
Nico’s hand falls on my shoulder, firm and grounding. “Don’t worry, we’ll find her.”
I don’t say anything, just nod and step into the hall, feeling the weight of everything behind me. The streets outside wait — cold, unforgiving, and ready.