by Miranda Kavi
“Gram,” Dmitri said.
He didn’t answer, just stared at her. “Gram!” Dmitri said again.
Gram finally looked at him. “Sir?”
“We leave now.”
“Yes.”
They left together, Gram carrying two suitcases. Dmitri put his hand on the small of Naomi’s back as they stepped into the elevator. He did it because that’s what he would have done with his real woman, Sophia.
Everything still revolved around her and it burned him up inside.
When they left the front door of the hotel, she hooked her arm through his and gave him a soft smile. He returned it. It was strange to force affection when he was cold and still as a stone inside, but he did it anyways.
She was good at pretending, too. The teary-eyed girl vanished, replaced with a confident, happy woman.
An act. A parade for the cameras.
Four months. He could do it for four months.
Chapter 4
SOPHIA
“More,” Tatiana prompted.
“More? I already look like a raccoon.” They were ensconced in Sophia’s bathroom. Freshly purchased make-up crowded the counter: powders, blushes, and lipsticks covering every square inch of the marble-top next to the sink.
“Yes.” Tatiana pulled out an ever present cigarette.
“Hey!” Sophia pointed eyeliner at her. “Not here.”
Tatiana rolled her eyes and then slid from her perch on the counter. “Fine. I go outside.”
She strolled out.
They’d spend the past couple days together: roaming the streets, eating at restaurants, sorting through the piles of clothes that Tatiana had stored at her small but nice apartment.
It was clear she had money, but Sophia wasn’t sure where it came from. She didn’t appear to have a job.
Sophia pushed the questions about her bizarre new friend out of her mind and went to back to work on her thick, black, liquid eyeliner. It was tough to apply, but it was the only thing that could accomplish the dramatic look she was going for.
Tatiana had been prepping her for where they were going tonight. It was a dark, dirty place, she’d said. Not safe at all.
But they were meeting Tatiana’s boyfriend there. Sophia was insanely curious to meet him.
Sophia hoped this was the break she was looking for. One step closer to finding Dmitri.
She’d do anything for him.
She made a dramatic wingtip that extended far past the end of her lash line, then thickened in the line around her eyes. She added smoky gray eye shadow.
Tatiana was back, leaning against the doorway. Her face was naked, free of makeup, and beautiful as usual. High cheekbones, porcelain skin, full lips. Her face could grace a high-end fashion magazine.
“This is much better.” Tatiana smiled. “My turn and then we will address your wardrobe.”
Sophia grabbed the bottle of red wine they’d been splitting and drank it straight from the bottle. “This should be interesting.”
Two hours later, they were on their second bottle of wine and fully decked out. Tatiana looked like a rich party girl, with a skin tight, red leather dress that hugged her down to her knees, sky-high Lucite platform heels, and a mink stole draped around her shoulders.
Sophia didn’t know what to think of her reflection. Her eyes were thickly lined, her lipstick a dark cherry red. Her black mini dress was skin tight with a deep, square neckline. She had on a push up bra that forced her ample cleavage to ridiculous levels. Her heeled, tight black boots were high, over her knees, and each one of her fingers was draped with heavy, silver jewelry.
She flexed her fingers. “Wow, I look…”
“Dangerous,” Tatiana finished. “That is what you wanted, right?”
“Yeah.” Sophia swallowed. “I guess.”
Tatiana grabbed her shoulders. “This man. How bad do you want to find him?”
“Very bad,” Sophia said.
“And he’s big criminal, like you told me?” she said.
“Yes,” Sophia nodded.
“Then we must do this.” She dropped her hands away and picked up her clutch. “It will be fun!” Her big smile was back.
Sophia’s stomach dropped. Tatiana was wild and unpredictable, but she had no other choice.
She grabbed her purse and followed Tatiana out of the hotel room. The cab ride was quiet. Tatiana had the window cracked so she could smoke. Sophia stared out of the window. The streets were wide and paved at first, and then they got narrow and bumpy and dirty.
“Relax,” Tatiana said. “You’re making me nervous.”
The cab rolled to a stop in front of a darkened warehouse. There was no sign on the door, but deep bass reverberated out into the street, betraying the presence of the wild scene within.
“We’re here!” Tatiana chirped. She pulled out her cell phone and checked her screen. “He’s already here, at a table waiting for us. And he brought someone for you to meet.”
The cab driver watched Sophia in the rear view mirror. “This is not a safe place.”
Tatiana rolled her eyes. “It’s fine. Come.” She jumped out and strode away from the cab with confidence on her mile high legs. Sophia thrust a wad of the cash at the driver and stumbled out after her.
Tatiana was waiting outside a rough, metallic door, vibrating with the beat of bass. “Are you prepared?”
“I guess,” Sophia said. She felt silly in her slutty dress and heavy make-up.
Tatiana pushed the door open. “Own it or else you will be devoured.”
The wall of music hit them first. Deep, pounding bass. Some sort of heavy-metal electro mix she’d never heard before.
A heavily tattooed man stood near the door. He stepped aside so they could pass. Tatiana smiled and walked right past him with her fingers laced through Sophia’s. The narrow dark hallway opened up to a massive, tall space.
It was dark, pierced only by blue lights and the flash of a disco ball. Sophia looked up to the dark space above her, noting the massive dark ceiling floating above three balconied floors, all open to the massive dance floor around her. Every square inch of the space on this level was filled with writhing, dancing bodies.
She saw men leaning against the walls with large AK-47s dangling casually at their sides. Holy shit.
She was glad for Tatiana’s help with her wardrobe now. With her gothic, heavy, sexy look, she blended right in with the tough men and women.
Tatiana still had her fingers laced through Sophia’s. “He’s up there!” she shouted over the loud music.
Sophia nodded and followed her up the narrow staircase. More armed men passed them going down as they went up, glaring at Sophia. Guns were everywhere: in this dirty club, in her mind, filling her life.
They found their way to a small booth in the back, where a man was waiting. When he saw Tatiana, he stood and opened his arms wide. She walked into them and they kissed: tongues, groping hands, and all.
Sophia was shocked by the display, but kept her game face on. Finally, they broke apart. Tatiana’s lips were swollen, her lipstick smeared, her hair messy.
Sophia got a good look at the man. He was tall, dark, and handsome, with olive toned skin and a closely shaved head that gleamed in the faint blue lights of the club. He was decked out in all black, black pants, black jacket, black shirt. Even though he was dressed nicely, there was something menacing about him.
He glanced at her, his eyes flickering down to her cleavage before resting on her face. “I’ve heard all about you, Sophia.” He extended his hand, and she took it. “I am Ivan.”
“Sophia,” she said.
He pulled her close and kissed her on each cheek. She didn’t flinch. Greetings were warmer here than she was used to in the United States.
They settled into the booth. Ivan waved the waitress over and whispered in her ear. She came back shortly with a tray of shots.
He pushed one towards her. “Drink,” he said.
She glanced down at t
he small, grimy shot glass. God, she didn’t want to touch it. She didn’t even want to sit down in this place, but she kept her face even and drained the shot, slamming it down on the table for emphasis.
The edge of his lip twitched. He stared at her over the table, unmoving and quiet. Sophia forced herself not to squirm under the scrutiny. She kept her mouth relaxed, her eyes meeting his. Inside, her brain blared an alarm: Danger. Get the fuck out of here.
Maybe she’d gone too far, trusting Tatiana.
Tatiana was oblivious to the stare-down going on between her two table companions. She was smoking, patting her mussed hair back into place, bouncing around in the seat to the beat of the music.
Sophia broke his gaze and looked around at the dark booths shoved in the corner. She saw men and women huddled together. On the booth right next to theirs, a woman was bent over the table with her dress pulled up and bare skin in the air. A guy was behind her with his pants dropped to the ground, fucking her in front of everyone.
She brought her gaze back to Ivan.
He was smiling now. “It is best to keep to yourself here.”
She forced a laugh. “Clearly.”
He pushed another shot to her. “Please.”
“Thank you.” She took it, letting it burn down her throat. What do I say?
He didn’t speak, just watched her while Tatiana danced in her seat. She decided to take charge. “Tatiana thought you might be able to help me.”
“Is that right?” He picked up one of the shot glasses and spun it around in his fingers. “You are looking for someone?”
“Yes,” she said.
“Who?” he said.
She said nothing.
He laughed again. “I understand.” He drained the shot and then put it down. “I know a man that can find people. I can make introductions. However, I am not responsible for your wellbeing during your interactions with him.”
“I understand,” she said in Russian.
“And I expect to be compensated,” he added.
“Of course,” she said dryly.
Her eyes moved to Tatiana. She wasn’t dancing anymore. She was still, her eyes glinting as she listened to Sophia speak. Sophia had seen that look before. It was greed. She’d probably befriended Sophia for money. She was working for her pimp boyfriend. It hurt a little, but Sophia understood how the world worked. She’d used Tatiana as much as Tatiana was using her.
“Come with me,” he said.
Chapter 5
She followed him out of the booth, Tatiana strolling lazily behind them, still nursing a smoke.
He led her down a dark hallway, then another one. The music became distant, the crowd gone. They were in the back corner hallway with thin dirty carpet and navy blue walls with chipped paint and grime smeared on them. Any futile attempt at glamour was long gone.
She flexed her hands into fists. Danger loomed at every dark corner. She could disappear into one of these rooms and never come out. No one would know she was missing.
Crap.
Tatiana hooked her arm through Sophia’s. “Do not be scared of me or Ivan. You can trust me.”
Sophia felt the strange urge to laugh, but she didn’t. She smiled tightly. Yeah, sure. Whatever.
He opened one of the doors which led into an empty room—no furniture, chairs, or windows. Just peeling paint and the faint smell of latex and spermicide. It was some cheap fuck room.
“Wait here,” Ivan said. “I will go get him.”
“You better leave that fucking door open. I’m not kidding,” Sophia barked in Russian. She was very nervous now and more than a little scared.
“Good. You’re tough. You’re going to need it,” Ivan said. “I leave open, and I leave Tatiana.”
With that, he disappeared, leaving the two women alone in the room.
Tatiana paced around, looking at the lonely light bulb and dusty corners. “You sure you want to do this? Once the bad men know about you, it cannot be undone.”
Sophia crossed her arms over her chest. “And you know this from experience, then?”
Tatiana only gave her trademark shrug in response.
“Who is your boyfriend, anyway? What does he do?” Sophia said.
“He owns this club and many, many others,” Tatiana said with a touch of pride. Sophia filed that away. Better not say anything terrible after they leave. The more she learned about Tatiana, the less she wanted to cross her. And she was sure her boyfriend did more than run this nasty-ass crime club.
Tatiana had stopped pacing and was standing in front of Sophia, forcing Sophia to look her in the eye. Her face had a softness to it beneath all that heavy make-up. “But be careful with this man. He knows everyone.”
“I will,” Sophia said. “Thank you for your concern,” she continued, not bothering to keep the edge out of her voice.
Tatiana looked a little hurt, but she didn’t have time to respond because Ivan was back with a man.
The man strode into the room. She wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but it wasn’t him. Thick, black hair hung to his broad shoulders. He had dark, flawless skin and a face like a god. He wore his tailored pin-striped suit over a lean muscular body. She couldn’t place his ethnicity, maybe Greek? Turkish?
She noticed his good looks with a clinical distance. There was no man after Dmitri. They were just there, pretty statues to look at that ignited no physical reaction.
He strolled in, hands in his pockets. Two men loomed in the background. Big men with shoulders like refrigerators. “Leave us,” he said.
Sophia strained to hear the origin of his accent, but it was a mishmash of sounds—perhaps the Indian subcontinent?
“I want ten percent,” Ivan said.
“Five,” Sophia barked. She was no stranger negotiations.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Ivan said.
The handsome man held up his hand. “Enough.” Ivan shut his mouth. His obedience was instant, and it made Sophia even more nervous. Who was this guy? “Five fucking percent. Now get the fuck out.”
Tatiana’s sneer was gone, her eyes wide now. She looked at the man then back at Sophia. “I’ll be nearby. I’ll be able to hear if she screams.” She gave the man a cold, hard look then left with Ivan.
The rickety wooden door shut behind them, and Sophia was alone with the man. A dangerous man.
He paced the edge of the room with his hands in his pockets, his eyes carefully avoiding her cleavage and the exposed flesh of her legs. “What is your name?” he finally said, pausing under the solitary light bulb.
“Sophia, and yours?”
“Tariq.”
She didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t like they could shake hands or hug. She was out of her element in every way, so she slipped into HR super professional mode, even though she was dressed like a fetish model.
“Tariq, I’m looking for someone. Can you help me?”
He began his slow pacing again. “Most likely. Who is he?”
She took a deep, ragged breath. “This fast? You want a name this fast?”
He stopped again and turned to look at her. “I will not hurt you. I am not here to rip you off. I came to this shit club and this little room because I heard you had money and you need something that I can provide. You have to trust me a bit or our business ends here.” His words were harsh, but his voice was soft and cool.
“Fine. He’s a gunrunner. His name is Dmitri Davydov.”
“Dmitri,” he repeated. His eyes skimmed down the length of her boot-clad legs. “Are you looking for arms?”
“You know I’m not, and my purposes with him are none of your business.”
He tore his eyes away. “Fair enough. I’ve heard of your Dmitri. Slippery fish. Tough to find.”
“Can you do it?”
“Almost certainly,” he said. “750,000 dollar retainer. 750,000 dollars upon completion. US currency. Wired per my instructions. I will not bring him to you. I can, but you’ll need a lot more money than that.�
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Her mind spun. That would wipe out a good chunk of the life insurance proceeds that Josh left her. She needed that money to live a life on the run with no job and no work visa.
She swallowed hard. Ivan was watching her with his intense dark eyes.
She needed Dmitri. She’d search for him until she was penniless.
“Okay.”
He slowly pulled a slip of paper out of his pocket and held it out to her.
“What’s this?” she said.
“Swiss bank account number. I’ll begin when I receive my retainer. My associate will drop off a burner phone so I can reach you. Where are you staying?”
She took the paper and stored it in her purse then gave him the name of her hotel. “That’s it?” she asked. “That was quick.”
“I can stay and chat if you would like,” he said with a hint of a smile at his lips. “But I’d prefer we leave. This place is truly disgusting.”
She offered a weak smile. “Then I won’t take up any more of your time.”
He looked vaguely disappointed, but quickly left the room.
She stood alone in the room. Had she done it? Could this man really help her or was he going to defraud her of her money?
She had no idea. No way of checking. Nothing to go on. Just a pack of probable lies from shady people in a dirty club.
Fuck.
Tatiana flew into the room and hugged Sophia. “Are you okay?”
She appeared to be genuine, so Sophia reluctantly hugged her back. “Fine, yes.”
“Do you have any idea who that is?” Tatiana said. “He’s one of the most dangerous men in the world. He’s a mob leader with connections to crime syndicates all over the world.” She was talking fast now, her face flushed. She pushed a thick wad of her long hair out of her face. “Ivan told me all about him right after we left.”
“Well…he was nice. Professional,” Sophia said.
“Nice?” Tatiana said. She pulled a cigarette out of her purse. “Are you fucking kidding me? He is not nice. He is very bad man. He does terrible things. You need to remember.”
“And you need to remember I am no stranger to bad men that do bad things,” Sophia said.
