Chapter 31
Ash
As I step into my study, Hunter and Killian are in the midst of a tug of war with a whiskey bottle.
Killian isn’t aware that the red label is not for sharing, and I see the look of panic in my brother’s eyes when he registers my arrival.
He knows that my patience has been stretched to breaking point in the last twenty-four hours, and this could be where it snaps.
I shrug. There’s only one thing that Belle and I made in that barrel room that’s precious to me now, and it isn’t the oak-aged whiskey.
“Help yourself,” I say to Killian. “And pour me one while you’re at it. But only a small one.”
Killian looks me up and down, noting my crumpled grey sweats and t-shirt. “You look like shit.”
“Thanks for the pep talk,” I say, slumping into a chair at the conference table.
Killian joins me, setting down three glasses and the whiskey. “How’s your missus?”
“A few fractures, a lot of bruises, and completely broken.”
I only left Belle’s side when I heard Killian had arrived. She hadn’t needed to be admitted to the hospital, but she’s been prescribed bedrest. Not that she’ll stay in bed unless I’m there to supervise. She’s been spending most of her time pacing our bedroom.
It’s not the dream homecoming I’d imagined for Belle. And Piper.
Killian’s features are grim as he pours our drinks. I know what his answer will be before I ask the question. “Do you have any intel that could help us?”
“Sorry, Ash. But when you’re ready to give the order, I have enough firepower to scorch the earth that sweaty little bastard ever dared to tread on. He’ll break cover eventually.”
“Waiting isn’t an option, but the only thing we have to go on so far is that Barrett told Belle they were going somewhere warm. They could have gone as far as Central or South America for all we know.”
Hunter pulls out the chair next to me. “We do have one lead,” he says.
My glass is almost to my lips when I turn. “We do?”
“We didn’t want to build your hopes up,” Hunter explains, “but Marina might be the weak link in all of this. Barrett was using Emerson HR to find a nanny for Piper, so Mace has been able to pull up Marina’s details and do a bit of online stalking.
She uses Instagram, but I don’t think Oleg is stupid enough to let her post selfies of where she is.
But, she’s also a gamer, and Strider’s been trying to make contact.
He and Mace have some sort of trap set.” He sees me shift, knowing I’m ready to move the discussion to our home office where Mace is currently working.
“He’ll shout as soon as they get a bite. ”
“You think she’ll give away their location?” asks Killian.
“It’s our best hope so far.”
When the door swings open a moment later, my heart jumps into my throat. No one enters without knocking unless it’s something urgent. Or as in this case, it’s someone who thinks rules don’t apply to her.
“What a lovely welcoming committee,” Katarina says, gliding into the room.
“I did try to stop her!” Lily shouts from the corridor.
Katarina pulls open her leather jacket. “Don’t worry, I’ve had most of my weapons removed by your security.”
“All her weapons,” Jake says, poking his head through the door.
“That’s what you think,” Katarina says with a wink. She’s dressed all in black and her tank and jeans are skin tight. If she’s concealing a weapon, I’d rather not imagine where she’s put it.
Killian shoots her a lascivious smile. “Is this another invitation for me to strip search you, beautiful?”
“Do I know you?” she sniffs.
Killian opens his mouth to answer before realizing he’s being played. “Don’t play hard to get, Katarina. Go on, admit it. You’ve been thinking of me ever since we met.”
She looks down her nose at him. “Get me a drink, shorty.”
He slides a glass to her. “Here, have Hunter’s.”
As entertaining as their reunion is, I’m not in the mood for playful banter between members of two warring crime families. “Katarina, why are you here? Has your uncle got wind of what’s happening?”
If Vasili finds out that I have a daughter, and that she’s missing, the race to find Piper will take on a whole new level of urgency. He claims not to be interested in seeking retribution for Ilya’s death, but I’d rather not put that to the test.
“He doesn’t have the eyes and ears in the US he once had. And before you ask, I haven’t told him about your daughter. Even if you have let me down.”
“Our plans are on hold, that’s all,” I say, choosing my words carefully. I trust Killian, but Katarina’s impending disappearance is not something the Irish mafia need to know about. “As you’ll appreciate, we’re rather busy right now.”
“Oh, it’s fine. The more I think about it, the less appealing a boring, civilian life sounds,” she says.
She admires the diamond ring on her finger.
It’s the same one she’s had for three potential suitors now.
She’s seemingly more interested in the stone than she is about who she’ll eventually marry. “And Marmaduke is growing on me.”
Killian’s jaw drops. “As in Moncrief?”
“He’s quite the man. Tall,” she adds for Killian’s benefit.
“And he’s currently hiding out in a mountain lodge until the coast is clear,” Hunter says with a snigger as he reaches across to steal the drink Killian had poured for himself.
“I’m good at tracking my prey,” Katarina preens. “Speaking of which, I want in on the hunt. I have a score to settle with Oleg.”
“You know him?” I ask.
“Unfortunately, yes,” she says, her eyes darkening. “He was an instructor at one of my uncle’s training camps. The one I was sent to. He’s low ranking for a man in his forties, and he puts his failures down to nepotism rather than the simple fact he’s never been good enough to command.”
“His weaknesses?”
“His temper and his ego,” she tells me. She takes a sip of her drink. “Oh, and me.”
Before I can ask for more details, the door to my study swings open.
“They’re in Georgia!” Mace says, setting down his open laptop in front of me. “It’s not precise, but they’re in an unpopulated area somewhere between Atlanta and the Blue Ridge Mountains.”
I grip the laptop screen as I scour the satellite image showing a rugged landscape of forestry and mountains. An area has been marked, but it’s hundreds of square miles.
“Strider managed to get Marina to click a download so we have spyware on her phone,” says Reid.
“And the more she uses it,” comes Strider’s voice from the cell Reid places on the table, “the more we’ll be able to pinpoint her location.”
Katarina pulls the laptop from me, and she and Killian scrutinize the image.
“Is there any way we can encourage her to use her phone more?” I ask, impatient to strap into my tactical gear and go get my daughter.
“I’m already working on it,” Strider says.
“Thank you. You’ve done well,” I say, tamping down my frustration. It’s progress.
“It was a team effort,” Strider says. “It’s Mace’s spyware.”
“Credit where it’s due,” Mace replies. “You were the one who came up with the idea.”
“Jesus, does Lily know you have a crush on Strider?” Reid asks his brother, although it sounds very much like he’s the one who’s jealous. “You’ll be moving into his mom’s basement with him next.”
“How many times do I have to say this?” Strider cuts in. “I haven’t lived in my mom’s basement for years.”
As they continue to argue, Katarina turns the laptop to face me. She taps a long, pointed fingernail against the screen, her eyes shining. “I know where they are.”
Her voice is soft and low, but everyone shuts up.
My throat constricts. “Where?”
“Ilya had a hideout nestled at the foot of a mountain. My guess is Oleg has taken it over while my uncle works on other key locations to replace the ones that were destroyed,” she says.
She glances at Killian and winks. “Not that my uncle has any plans to take back his territory from you. Obviously.”
Killian shrugs. “He’s welcome to try,” he says. His eyes stay on Katarina as he takes her drink and licks the lipstick stain from the glass before taking a sip.
She arches her eyebrow, then returns her attention to me. “I went to that particular hideout once. There’s only one road in, unless you’re prepared to take the mountain route.”
“Can you remember the layout of the buildings?” Hunter asks.
“It was a couple of years ago, so it may have changed. But yes, I could map it out for you,” she says. “On one condition.”
My legs have started to jiggle. The rational side of me knows we need to plan, but I just want to get moving. “Spit it out, Katarina.”
“I want to be there. Ideally, I’d like to be the one to take out Oleg.”
“Katarina, I know you’re more than capable of handling yourself,” I say, cutting down what will be her first argument, “but my men work as a team. They’re focused.
They know each other’s moves, and they know how to take orders.
Killian’s men are the same. You, on the other hand…
” I pause, trying to think of words less offensive than calling her crazy.
“You’re a mad, psycho bitch,” Killian offers. “But I like your chaos. You can tag along with me.”
“No. I want to go with the Griffins.”
I stand up from the table. “Take the offer, Katarina,” I say. “I need to tell Belle we’re preparing to leave. Can we be ready to move in an hour?”
“Leave it with us,” Hunter says. “Mace can map out a floor plan with Katarina. Killian and I will decide on the plan of attack.” Killian nods. “And Reid and Jake will sort out the logistics to get everyone and everything in the right place at the right time.”
“We’re a couple of hours away by plane,” Mace says. “We’ll be there by nightfall.”
Killian stands and puts his phone to his ear. “My lads flight will take longer so I’ll get them in the air now.”
“And I’ll keep working on Marina,” says Strider. “I’ll start up a chat with her during gameplay, and just drop into the conversation how to plan an escape route in case of attack.”
I stand there like an idiot, too many emotions squeezing the air from my lungs.
“We’re going to get your daughter back,” Killian says.
And suddenly everyone is moving, and I can’t get to Belle fast enough.