The Heir: A Dark Mafia Romance (Sokolov Mafia Clan Book 1)

by Ivy Clyde

  He wanted me playing cop for him.

  I didn’t have a choice but to give him what he wanted. Squaring my shoulders, I gave a nod. “I’ll do that for you, Master Sokolov.”

  “Good,” he said, placing his hands back on my shoulders. To my surprise, he started giving me a gentle massage.

  There was only so much of this I could take. My body melted against the chair as I relaxed under his touch and the champagne’s effect. Victor Sokolov was a murderer but he was succeeding in making me feel oddly relaxed.

  Barely an hour had passed since Boris attacked me. He could have blown my cover, raped me anyway, and then shot me in the head. The mere memory of his erection prodding my ass was enough to make me go cold, but Victor’s presence kept me from freezing up in terror.

  I wondered if undercover cops went through such internal conflict between right and wrong on a daily basis. Did they ever feel like giving up control because something felt too good?

  There’s no rush, said a voice in my head. You’ve just entered the gang. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to find out if you’re one of the good guys.

  12

  Danica

  My eyes blinked open but screwed shut immediately. The light shining all around me was enough to send a shooting pain through my head. I groaned and forced myself to sit up.

  For a moment, I didn’t recognize the vast, well-lit luxurious suite stretching out before me. Another hard throb shot through my head, reminding me I was in the same place where Victor left me last night.

  The pillows were all over the bed and the sheets were bunched and wrinkled from where I’d tossed and turned the whole night. My fingers pressed against my temples as the nightmares I’d been having flashed before my eyes.

  I dreamt of Juan Lopez but in my dream, it was the drug dealer who’d been strangling me. As he did so, someone grabbed a fistful of my hair and slammed my head into the wall behind me. My ass felt the hard point of an erection and suddenly I was simultaneously being strangled and raped from behind.

  I squeezed my eyes shut, willing my mind to forget the nightmare while another part of me felt relieved I’d caught on some sleep despite the horrible dreams.

  My gaze fell on the empty champagne bottles littered around the room. Victor kept plying me with glass after glass of the sweet, bubbly alcoholic drink. He’d been warm and friendly, and I’d been all too happy to accept the delicious cool champagne.

  “Fuck!” I groaned, looking up at the ceiling. “What the f—” My reflection was staring back at me from the mirror covering the ceiling directly over the bed. My cheeks warmed immediately as I stared at my disheveled image.

  Fuck, I cursed a hundred times in my mind. I’d drank way too much last night. It could have put me in so much trouble if my tongue loosened on its own. The fact I was still alive was the only proof I’d kept my mouth shut.

  I climbed off the bed and looked toward the workstation in the far corner. Victor gave me the passwords to the computers last night. He’d asked me to go through the accounts and information stored in there to help him weed out the rats and snakes from his new empire.

  Excitement flared through me at once, diminishing the slight drunken haze still wrapped around my mind. Victor furnished me with inside information on the gang that no one outside could ever hope to learn.

  This was what I was here for. To gather proof and information on the Sokolov gang, its members and their business ventures.

  My mind went to Nolan at once. He expected me to report everything to him but the idea of talking about my attempted rape to the chief was mortifying.

  Maybe I could hide this particular fact? The team probably didn’t need to know what affected me as long as it didn’t involve gang activity…

  I exhaled a pent-up sigh and looked around the still, quiet room. There was no sign anyone else had been here this morning. Was this penthouse suite my new workplace from now onward?

  I stumbled over to the workstation and found one of the computers still switched on. My gaze took in the several documents displayed on the screen before me.

  For a moment, I wondered why Victor needed me sorting through these files. Wasn’t Alexei already taking care of this stuff? From the time at the meeting, I’d guessed him to be Victor’s right-hand man who took care of all his affairs for him.

  Thinking about Alexei sent warmth shooting through me as I remembered how his interference saved my life last night. I shuddered to think what might have happened if he ignored my struggles to free myself from Boris.

  Something flashed in the corner of my eye, followed by an electronic ringing sound. I turned toward the large flatscreen TV placed in the central part of the suite. The screen was lit up like a beacon.

  Leaving the workstation, I went to the sitting area and looked closely at the TV screen. Someone was calling here. Hesitatingly, I pressed one of the buttons on the side.

  At once, the screen cleared away to show me a livefeed of another room. Whoever made the call seemed to have shifted away from the corner.

  Muffled voices came in from the background. Next second, Victor stepped before the camera. He was already dressed in a fresh navy suit that made his eyes shine like diamonds.

  “I’m glad to see you awake so early,” said Victor with a smile.

  My gaze moved to the corner of the screen. A large red-furred wolf was sitting on a silken settee and licking at his/her massive paws. The urge to point at it was overwhelming but Victor seemed quite nonchalant about the massive creature in the room with him.

  “Morning, Master Sokolov,” I said, wondering how horrible I looked at the moment. Was there drool on my mouth? Were my eyes puffy and red? “Do you want me to do something for you?” I asked awkwardly.

  “Did you check the files I left you?”

  “Uhh… I checked some of them,” I said, pausing to lick at my dry, chapped lips.

  Victor smirked at my hesitation. He knew exactly how drunk he got me last night. There was no way to forget how many bottles of the delicious champagne I quaffed just to please him.

  “I’m planning on reading them all as soon as I can,” I said, clearing my throat. “Do you have any paper files for me as well, Master Sokolov?”

  “Yes, many.” Glancing up at me, he lifted an eyebrow at me. Curving his lips in a smile that made my heart pound, he said, “What do you think of the information you went through?”

  “I need to go through them all to find a pattern.”

  “Will you be able to do what I want?”

  “I think so?”

  “Think or know?” His smile suddenly vanished. “Don’t play with me by being modest. I don’t like people wasting my time. Tell me whether you can or not.”

  “I can, Master Sokolov.”

  Victor’s face lit up with a smile again. It made him seem younger, almost sweet. Suddenly, I remembered his grin when he’d watched Juan Lopez being strangled. It had been the same smile.

  A shiver crawled down my spine. Had I lost my mind? Victor Sokolov could be a lot of things but never sweet…

  “I’m going to test you,” he said, bringing my attention back on him. “I want dirt on someone you saw at the meeting the other day.”

  “Sure. Who is it, Master Sokolov?”

  “Boris Pavlov.”

  A lump grew in my throat, making it hard for me to swallow. Out of all the people he could choose, Victor chose the man I’d wanted to avoid.

  “Why do you look like that?” asked Victor, staring closely at me through the screen.

  “Can I be honest with you, sir?”

  He chuckled. “Not something the gang is famous for but go on. I want you to be honest with me about everything, Danny.”

  “I don’t like Boris.”

  An amused look came over him. “I’m not a fan either.”

  “He’s always on profit,” I said, recalling the details I’d grasped from the meeting. “But Boris Pavlov doesn’t seem to like you either. He’s disrespectful wh
en he speaks of you.” He’d said enough shit about Victor last night in front of the new recruits.

  I watched a figure walking across the room behind Victor. It looked like a male body draped in a silken black robe. My mind went back to what Boris said yesterday.

  Was Victor really into men?

  I ignored the sliver of disappointment that shot through me and met Victor’s gaze.

  “I have high expectations from you, Danny,” said Victor in a grim tone.

  “I’ll work hard, Master Sokolov.”

  “Good.” Victor reached toward something at his side and the screen switched off. My frazzled appearance was reflected on its smooth, black surface.

  My hangover seemed to have lifted during my conversation with Victor. Energy surged through me as I anticipated finding all the information on the files Victor was going to send me next.

  Victor didn’t spell it out for me but this suite was going to be my workstation and home from now on. He’d already let me sleep here and guessed he wouldn’t mind me using the bathroom either.

  Spotting the door to the bathroom, I hurried toward it. The place was stocked with soaps, shaving creams, deodorant sprays, and everything else a male could need. Borrowing some shampoo and body wash, I headed into the glass-walled shower.

  The hot water flooding from four different showers heads felt wonderful on my sore body. My hands rubbed along my arms and neck, determined to wash off Boris’s touches and breaths from my skin.

  Victor wanted me to find dirt on him and I was determined to do a good job to impress him despite the irrational fear spreading in my gut.

  You’re safe here, I told myself. He can’t get you here.

  I was already working for Victor and that meant automatic protection from lower-ranking members of the gang. Boris wouldn’t be able to touch me again without seriously pissing off Victor.

  I didn’t have any of my stuff here, so I was forced to put on my wrinkled, dirty clothes. All things considered, it was a minor inconvenience at the moment. At least, I wasn’t dead and lying in a ditch.

  My stomach groaned.

  Stepping out of the bathroom, I checked out the cabinets of the kitchen. They were fully stocked with everything I’d need. Boxes of cereal, cookies, pancake mix, and even jars of coffee and sugar were stacked inside them.

  A smile lifted the corners of my mouth at the sight of them. I started with making coffee and fixed myself a bowl of cereal.

  Victor left me fully equipped with everything I could need to get the job done. The location of my workstation changed from the department’s office to this luxurious penthouse suite, but my actual job remained the same.

  I would be data hunting for Victor Sokolov too.

  13

  Victor

  I stared at the blacked-out screen and wondered about the change coming over Danny as soon as I mentioned Boris Pavlov.

  The young man looked slightly disoriented when he first came on the screen but his cheeks had a healthy color. His luscious straw-gold strands were messed up in a just-fucked manner, flaring an urge inside me to run my fingers through them. His soft-brown eyes were bright despite him looking so disheveled.

  Danny’s expression changed as soon as I mentioned Boris. His face paled before my eyes as a frightened look flitted through his eyes.

  As far as I was aware, Danny hadn’t worked for Boris before. He’d been sent to us by a low-ranking property shark in Bronx. Did Boris say something to him on the day of the meeting? What could have happened between them to cause such a strong reaction?

  I already disliked the skin dealer. This was only worsening my distaste for the man.

  Loud whines sounded from behind me. Turning around, I found Ginger spread out on the settee by the window. The sun was warm on her belly, making her stretch and croon leisurely.

  Ginger was a female wolfdog hybrid I bought for River four months ago. I’d agreed to get him a dog but was surprised by what he had in mind. The massive wolfdog was impressive to look at but astonishingly mellow and sweet.

  A clattering sound from the corner caught my attention. Turning toward it, I found River on his knees with his head under the bed.

  “What are you doing, babe?” I asked, admiring his pert, shapely ass. He was in his favorite black satin nightgown that didn’t stretch below his knees. My gaze took in his long, muscular legs as he struggled to clean under the bed.

  “There are champagne bottles under the bed,” he said. “And I need to get those chocolate wrappers out of there too.”

  I moved toward him. “The maids will be coming in to clean later. Let them handle it.”

  “It’s fine,” he said, his head still under the bed. “I don’t mind cleaning up the bedroom.”

  “Let them do it.”

  “I like doing it,” he insisted, wriggling deeper under the bed.

  I studied him for a moment before bending down and grabbing his ankles. It only took a single tug to pull him out.

  A squeaky gasp escaped him as I dragged him along the marble floor. His robe rode up, the black silk bunching around his hips as he tried to kick his legs.

  “Stop, Victor!” he complained. “Let go!”

  I freed his ankles and allowed him to sit up on the floor. Through the gap in the robe, I spotted a slightly pink mark where his stomach had rubbed against the marble. My finger traced the mark, liking the feel of his smooth skin.

  “What a start to the day,” I said with a fake frown. “What if you hit your head against the bed or something? All this cleaning shit is bad for you.”

  He chuckled softly as he threw his arms around my neck, holding me close to him. “Bad? How can cleaning be bad, darling?”

  “Crawling on the floor will scrape and bruise your knees,” I said, massaging his knee caps. “Look at this bruise right here,” I said, lightly brushing a hand over the pink stain on the side of his stomach.

  “I don’t know what you’re complaining about,” he said with another chuckle. “You started your day with my lips around your cock.”

  That got me laughing. “You’re the best alarm clock, Sugar.”

  “I’m best at a lot of things,” he said with a kiss on my lips. “But you’ve got to let me clean up a little. Alexei will be here in an hour. That’s just enough time for you to go through your emails and make breakfast while I clean up the boxers still lying on the couch. One look at them and he’ll know what we were doing there. He might never want to sit on that couch again, darling! There are also some stains on the dining table I need to wipe away. Alexei won’t be pleased by any of it.”

  “Not like you can please the fucker anyway,” I muttered but knew River was right about getting started with breakfast. Squeezing his upper thigh, I got to my feet and headed toward the kitchen.

  Going to the fridge, I took out eggs, milk, cheese, and bread and got started on making us some breakfast.

  “Try not to make a mess, darling,” River’s voice floated toward me from the bedroom.

  I spilled a little orange juice on the countertop just to piss him off.

  At breakfast, River did his best to annoy me by knocking at my ankles with his. My growls of displeasure only seemed to spur him on. He started bumping my knees under the table each time I looked down at my phone.

  I indulged River’s playfulness. His extra-ordinary violet-hued eyes sparkled as he grinned mischievously at me. He was astonishingly sweet even though he’d been a prostitute and pornstar for most of his life.

  Something about him reminded me of Danny.

  The guy could take on men twice his size but there was an innocence in his large, dark eyes that I wanted to play with and break...

  The sound of shoes hitting the marble floor made both me and River look up. Alexei was steadily striding toward us, looking unusually grim.

  Putting the cup of coffee down, I met his steely gaze. “Want some coffee, Cuz? River, could you get him a cup, please?”

  “Yes, Master,” he replied in a s
ultry, husky voice. Grinning at Alexei, he got up to head toward the kitchen.

  Alexei’s expression didn’t shift one bit as he came to sit at the table. Surprise flitted through me. He rarely accepted my invitation, preferring to brief me on whatever we had to deal with for the day and then leaving to wait for me downstairs.

  “What’s up?” I asked, observing him closely.

  “I’m surprised you haven’t done anything about Boris Pavlov.”

  My eyebrow rose on my forehead. He knew about my dislike for the man but he wasn’t supposed to know I was already in the process of finding a way to remove Boris from the gang.

  “What am I supposed to do, Cuz?” I asked, deciding to play ignorant.

  “One of his warehouses was busted by the cops yesterday and they found at least twenty children hidden there. He disobeyed you about dealing with kids below the age of fifteen.” From the corner of my eye, I spotted River looking at us. His hand hovered over the sugar bowl but his focus was on us.

  “If that weren’t enough,” continued Alexei. “The events of last night should have put him into trouble with you before the sun rose this morning. I am wondering what grand plan you’ve concocted for the bastard.”

  “Events of last night?” I asked, furrowing my brows. I’d already heard the news of one of his warehouses being busted by the cops. They rescued a number of smuggled and kidnapped children hidden there and gathered enough incriminating evidence against Boris and his lackeys. That was the reason I asked Danny to find dirt on him so I could get rid of him effectively and have a good enough charge sheet against him to present to my father when the time came.

  Alexei frowned. “Didn’t Danny tell you what happened last night?”

  River came back to the table and placed a cup of coffee before Alexei. He moved away to the couch where Ginger climbed up beside him and placed her head on his thigh.

  “What happened last night?” I asked in a tight voice.

  Danny had looked scared when he came into the apartment last night. He’d been pale and anxious, but I’d assumed he was nervous about being alone with me. Thinking about it now, he’d appeared rather shaken up.