by Faith Gibson
“Do you…” Lucy cleared here throat. “Is it possible he’s helping Digger? Would my rebuke make him turn against all of you?”
“If you had asked me that yesterday, I would’ve said no. But I didn’t think Digger could do something like this either. Monk was supposed to have packed up his house and taken everything with him to New Mexico. I never thought to make sure that happened. Why don’t you ask Hawk to drive by and take a look?”
Lucy nodded and picked up her phone. They waited while she made the call. When she hung up, she asked, “Did you tell them about your contact at Nexus?”
“Not yet. She, uh,” Ryker glanced over at Maveryck and Natalia.
“What?” Maveryck said. “Wait. You said ‘she.’ I thought y’all didn’t know if your contacts were male or female.” Ryker leaned forward in his seat and clasped his hands together. “Something you need to share, Brother?”
Ryker stared at the top of the plane when he responded. “I know my contact. Before she took that position within the company, she was an operative. We worked a couple jobs together.”
“And?”
Ryker blew out a breath. “And she’s the one who recruited Natalia.”
“She told you that?”
“It doesn’t matter how I found out. What matters is I’m pretty sure she’s the one who sent Mikael the information of who to contact to put the contracts out on the two of you.”
Mav clenched his fists against his thighs. Natalia reached over and covered one of his hands with hers. He released his fist and turned his hand so their palms met. “I think it matters. Mikael admitted to taking out the contract on Natalia, but he said he contacted someone called Oz. If that’s the case, Oz and your contact are working together. Natalia was recruited days after I took out Anatoly. Someone had to know Natalia’s background. She wasn’t already an assassin for hire. She only took out other mafia heads.”
Natalia had never put much thought into how Nexus found her. She had been focused on how she was going to get away from Mikael. How she was going to survive.
“If she recruited me, she knew me somehow. Knew what I did for the family.”
Maveryck squeezed Natalia’s hand. To Ryker, he said, “And if she knows you, worked jobs with you, she knows me. She… what’s her name? I can’t keep saying she.”
“Fuck!” Ryker stood and carded his fingers through his hair. “Her code name is Proxy. Her real name is Cassandra. Cassandra Valentino.”
Natalia gasped. “Oh my god.” Natalia lurched from the seat and ran to the lavatory. As soon as her knees hit the floor, she threw up.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Maveryck
“What the fuck?” Maveryck followed Natalia. When he reached the small bathroom, he dropped to his knees behind his Princess. She hadn’t eaten anything since yesterday afternoon, so she was vomiting bile. Maveryck wet a paper towel and pressed it to Natalia’s nape. When she stopped heaving, he helped her stand and waited while she rinsed her mouth with water.
“Are you okay?” She obviously wasn’t, but he asked anyway.
“No. Let’s go sit back down. I don’t want to explain this twice.”
Mav followed her back to the front of the jet. Ryker looked pissed while Hayden looked worried. Mav sat next to her and took Natalia’s hand in case she needed his strength.
“Cassandra Valentino is Marta’s daughter. When we were younger, she lived with us. This was after my mother died. She’s a couple years older than me. When my father took me out of school, I wanted to hang out with her, but my father wouldn’t allow it. As we got older, my father did let her train with me, but it was so I had someone my size to spar with. She was bigger than me, so I had to learn to be tougher. Quicker. Anatoly wouldn’t allow her near the guns or knives, and that pissed her off. He didn’t hesitate to remind her she wasn’t a Volkov but the daughter of the hired help.” Natalia looked around. “I need something to drink.”
Hayden jumped up. “Do you want water or something stronger?”
“Water’s fine. Thank you.”
Hayden went to the galley and returned with a bottle of water. “Here you go, Lolly.” Maveryck smiled to himself. His baby brother had also fallen under Natalia’s spell.
After taking a few sips, Natalia continued. “I was good at being invisible. I knew where to hide so I could eavesdrop on Anatoly’s conversations. I listened in on his phone calls, his meetings, and most importantly, his arguments with Marta. When I was younger, some of those arguments didn’t make sense, but as I got older, I understood what was going on. Not only was Marta the housekeeper and cook, but she was also his mistress. Cassandra was his child. He didn’t deny it, but he didn’t – wouldn’t – claim her. Marta wanted her daughter to have equal treatment. He claimed she did, and other than the training, I agreed. The two of them lived in our big house, he paid Marta handsomely, so she had plenty of money for her daughter. Most of the time, I was jealous of the girl. She still had her mother, and she wasn’t being trained to become a killer. Those were the two things I wanted more than anything.”
Natalia drank more water, and Mav rubbed small circles on her back. She gave him a tired smile. “Cassandra tried at every turn to get me into trouble, but my father never believed her lies. I overheard him tell Marta if Cassandra didn’t change, they both could find somewhere else to live. That worked for a while, until my cousins came to live with us. Anatoly made it clear to them that Cassandra was off limits without telling them why. Viktor was always a stubborn shit, and being a Volkov, he felt he should be able to do as he pleased. He hated me immediately because my father was grooming me to be his number-one guard. Viktor, being younger than Mikael, knew he’d never take over, but he needed to feel important. When he found out Cassandra hated me, the two became thick as thieves. They would sneak off in the middle of the night. Sometimes they would have sex, and when my father would leave the house, Viktor would take her out into the woods to teach her how to shoot.”
Hayden interrupted. “Wait, did they know they were cousins?”
“Cassandra knew, but she didn’t care. I don’t think she ever told Viktor. Since I was already good at spying on my father, following them and listening in on their conversations was easy. When I overheard them plotting for me to have an accident, I knew it was either them or me. I began taping their conversations as well as their trysts. One night, when I knew they had snuck off to have sex, I put the recordings on my father’s desk. I wasn’t about to go to him and tell him all I knew, as badly as I wanted to let them know it was me who outed them. I shouldn’t have been able to get into his office. He was the only one with a key, and if he found out I could pick the lock…” Natalia closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“I hated my life. I hated my father and everyone else in the house, but as the saying goes, better the devil you know. I had no idea what would happen to me if he kicked me out. If he kicked me out. He didn’t abide disloyalty, and he would have seen me breaking into his office as that. By then, I already knew what happened to those who opposed him. Anyway, he found the recordings. I had no idea what he would do, but I think since he didn’t know who managed to get into his office, he wanted to save face that his sanctuary had been breached. He told Marta she had a choice to make. Either Cassandra left alone, or Marta could go with her. Either way, Cassandra was out. He didn’t tell her about the recording being in his office, but he told her he had proof of her daughter’s transgressions, although he didn’t elaborate. Being the head of a Russian family was all about control. Marta had been with him long enough to know how that worked. Long story short, Cassandra left, Marta stayed, and Viktor hated me more.”
Mav pulled Natalia closer. “That explains why she went after Natalia, but why me? Why does she want me dead?”
Ryker squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. Mav grew impatient waiting for his brother to respond. “Ryker, for fuck’s sake. Spit it out.”
“To get back at me!” He stood and beat his che
st with a fist. “She did it to hurt me. Fuck! At least that’s what I thought. Now that I know about her connection to Natalia, she was probably just using me.”
“Using you how?” Hayden asked.
“She… I’ve been meeting her once a month to… We’d spend the weekend together,” he whispered.
“You’ve been fucking your handler?” Mav asked. He didn’t begrudge his older brother a little sex. If anyone needed to get laid on the regular, it was Ryker.
“Where does Digger come into all this?” Hayden asked.
“She’s probably been sleeping with him too.” Natalia didn’t shrink back when Ryker growled. “Cassandra is a beautiful woman. At least she was when we were teens. I can’t imagine that’s changed. If she went from being an operative to a handler, she’s still cunning. Ryker, I’m assuming since you only saw her once a month, it was nothing more than scratching an itch for you. You don’t strike me as the type of male to hide someone you care about. If I’m wrong, I apologize.”
“You’re not wrong. It’s just, I should have seen it.”
“Why? Why should you think she wasn’t scratching an itch too? That isn’t reserved for men. People in our business don’t make good partners.”
Maveryck wanted to disagree, but he also wanted to hear Natalia’s opinion. Lucy had said Natalia didn’t think she was good enough for Mav and the twins. This was probably why. He kept quiet as she explained.
“People like us – assassins – we either lie to those we love about what we do, or we live a solitary existence. If we get into a relationship, we make excuses for where we’ve been. We have to lead a double life. You can’t have a wife or husband and bring home your stash of weapons, and in my case, disguises. You have to hide them. You keep your home life and your business separate. That has to eat at you. At least I would think so. Since I’ve never been in a relationship, I’m just speculating. Maybe that’s just me. Maybe there are those assassins out there who have no trouble leading that double life.”
Maveryck turned Natalia’s chin so she could see the sincerity in his words. “And maybe they find someone who is in the same line of work as them. They can compare notes on jobs. They can take turns going on jobs while the other stays home with the kids.”
“Mav—”
“So you’re saying I was just a fuck buddy and she wasn’t using me?” Ryker was lost in his anger and didn’t realize Maveryck was trying to get Natalia to see they could have a future together.
“Not at all.” Natalia ran her fingers through Mav’s beard, letting him know she heard what he was trying to say. But she understood this was about Ryker and his feelings too. “I’m saying if this were anyone other than Cassandra, that’s exactly what you two were. A weekend here and there to get what you both needed. Having that would be so much better than trying to find some stranger to hook up with. But this is Cassandra.”
Mav’s Gryphon was pissed thinking of Natalia having one-night stands, but anything or anyone she did before they met didn’t matter. Hell, he had been planning to marry someone else.
“I’m saying, this isn’t your fault. It’s hers. She used you, and for that, I’m sorry. I’m sorry my father didn’t claim her. I’m sorry she felt like I was the enemy. I’m sorry she felt the need to get revenge on me and used you to do so.”
“But why wait?” Ryker fisted his hands against his thighs. “If she wanted her revenge against you, why not go after you before now?”
“Maybe because I was still living at home? She knew the layout. She knew how to get into the house, but there were always guards around.”
“Maybe she knew how much of a badass you are and figured she couldn’t take you out herself,” Hayden said.
“Possibly, but she could have enlisted Viktor’s help. He was pissed when Anatoly made Cassandra leave. Pissed at me, because he said it was my fault somehow.”
“Whatever the reason, we need to figure out a way to take her down.” Maveryck massaged Natalia’s neck while he spoke. “Ryker, does she know you’re aware of her deceit? If not, we can use that. If so, we’re going to have to figure out if there’s anyone at Nexus who can help. And we can’t forget about Digger. We’ve got to watch our front and our back.”
“Unless she has cameras I’m not aware of, she doesn’t know I’m on to her. I snuck into her home a few nights ago with Lucy’s help. As for taking her down, I can do that when I meet her next week.”
“You have to be absolutely certain. If there were cameras, and she knows you were in her house, she’s going to be waiting on you. She won’t fight fair. If she’s your handler, she has seen the way you take out your targets. You don’t use guns, but she will. When you go to her, I’m going with you,” Natalia said. “She might have used you, but the bitch tried to kill me. She tried to kill Mav. I owe her one.”
Hayden was grinning, and Maveryck shook his head. “Don’t say it,” Mav warned.
“Say what?” Ryker asked.
“Nothing,” Mav said at the same time Hayden said, “Princess Badass, the Gryphon Rider.”
“That’s Princess Lollipop to you.” Natalia stuck her tongue out at Hayden. Maveryck wished she wouldn’t encourage his baby brother, but he knew they were forging a bond like no other. When someone you cared about came close to dying, and when you took out the person threatening your loved one, that brought two people closer than almost anything could. He wouldn’t begrudge either of them their growing bond. If anything, Hayden’s loyalty to Natalia was a good thing. His brother would protect Natalia with his life. And with the upbringing she’d had with family who didn’t love her, she could use a new family. Hell, she had one. She just had to accept it.
“I’ll take you with me on one condition,” Ryker said. “Mav comes with us. I know you can handle yourself, but I want someone else there just in case.” Ryker didn’t say just in case what. They knew. Cassandra was a wild card, and if she was hellbent on seeing Natalia dead, she would play dirty. And if she knew Ryker was aware of her using him to get back at Natalia, she wouldn’t hesitate to take him out the first chance she got. “And just so you know, when we worked a job together, she didn’t carry guns; she used a sai and a short sword.”
“I’m fine with Mav going, and I have also trained with sai. I prefer knives because they’re easier to hide. But I have a question. If Cassandra is using Digger to get to you, does that mean she’s aware of the Gryphons?”
“We don’t know she is using him. But at this point, I think we have to assume she is. There are too many variables to understand why Digger would choose to go along with her scheme. Maybe she seduced him, and he’s in love with her. I doubt it’s about money, since we all have more than enough to live on comfortably.” Ryker ran a hand through his hair. “If he told her the truth, we’ll deal with that next week and pray she hasn’t revealed the truth to anyone else.”
“Guys,” Lucy called out. Mav had forgotten she was still on the video call. “I have something. While you were talking, I hacked into Cassandra’s security system. Uncle Ryker’s not the only one who has been meeting her at her home. Digger has too. There’s no audio, but from the video, it’s evident they’re more than business partners. The system she uses doesn’t keep information for more than a month, so I have no idea when their association began. I looked into Digger’s bank account. There haven’t been any deposits made other than those he’s earned from his regular job, so either she’s paying him in cash, or he’s doing it for a different reason.”
Ryker sat down, then stood up again. “I hate to ask this, but did it look like they were merely having sex? Or did they seem, I don’t know, close?”
Mav knew his brother had to be hurting. Even if he and Cassandra had been nothing more than fuck buddies, to know she had used him had to cut him to the quick. Mav couldn’t wait to take the bitch down. There would be no mercy. Not for her or Digger.
“This is not the kind of porn I would choose to watch, but I knew you would want to know that answer. It�
�s clear she’s using Digger, but it’s also evident by the way he looks at her, he’s in love. If not in love, he’s falling. There’s no telling what she promised him. If he wasn’t a traitor, I’d feel sorry for him.”
“So, what’s the plan?” Mav asked. “If we take Digger out, Cassandra will know because she won’t hear from him.”
“We have to find him first,” Hayden said.
“Or, we could lure him to us.” Maveryck had an idea, but first he had to protect the rest of his family. “Lucy, we’re going to need Tamian’s help.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Natalia
As far as plans went, it was solid. Natalia had never been impressed with Anatoly’s money. She’d often thought the old adage about money being the root of evil was correct. Now? She welcomed the fact that both Lucy and Tamian were loaded, and Tamian had his own jet and pilot. Whatever it took to keep the twins safe, Natalia was all for it.
While Maveryck and the others chatted with Lucy on how to lure Digger and Cassandra to them, Natalia used the restroom and then stopped by the galley to see if there was something to snack on. Her stomach was empty since she’d thrown up, and she needed fuel if she was going to fight Cassandra. Natalia wouldn’t underestimate the woman. Revenge was a strong motive. For all the reasons Cassandra felt Natalia deserved to die, they weren’t nearly as strong as Natalia’s reasons for wanting the other woman to pay. Natalia could understand feeling slighted by Anatoly. Having a parent who didn’t recognize you as his own had to be a hard pill to swallow, but it wasn’t Natalia’s fault. Nothing her father had done was for any reason other than he was a selfish bastard.
If Cassandra were out to get revenge for a family member Natalia had taken out, she could understand. Natalia had looked over her shoulder for many years waiting on someone to retaliate for her role in her Russian family. Then again, maybe those other families felt the way she did – the world was better off without the criminals in their lives. There was no love lost for Anatoly when Mav eliminated him. Just like she didn’t feel one ounce of guilt in taking out her cousins.
