by Katie Reus
His eyes narrowed slightly. “Who is her boyfriend?”
“Not in the same business as us. He’s legitimate. Brooks Alexander.”
Kuznetsov nodded slowly. “I vaguely recognize the name.”
“Everything is under control, I promise. I will find Oleg and take care of him.” As soon as Oleg was found, he would die.
“What happened with him?”
“He couldn’t keep his head on straight.” Semyon shrugged. “I think he has an obsession with the woman, the sister.” He shrugged again, as if he had no concerns. “He will be found and dealt with.”
“Bring him to me when you find him. By disrespecting you, he has disrespected me. I will make an example of him.” For the first time since Kuznetsov had shown up tonight out of the blue, he gave a cold smile.
Semyon nodded even though he had no intention of doing such a thing. “Of course. I hope I will see you tomorrow at the wedding?” It was the only reason Kuznetsov was in town, and why Semyon had to use the man’s proximity to his advantage. Somehow he kept his words steady and even, when all he wanted to do was gut the man right now and watch him bleed out all over the floor.
“I will be there. And I expect our problem to be taken care of soon. I have no time for loose ends.” There was a not so subtle threat in his voice.
“Of course,” he said again, keeping his expression as neutral as possible. Tomorrow one of his men would plant the explosive device in Kuznetsov’s vehicle and, more importantly, make sure he died. Semyon himself would make sure Dimitri was covered in explosive residue. He would be at the wedding as part of Kuznetsov’s security so making sure his hands and coat were covered in it would be simple. Someone had to take the fall for these crimes and Dimitri was simply unlucky.
Semyon tried not to think about all the people who would die at the carnival tomorrow. They were simply collateral damage. It was the only way to make sure Kuznetsov died, that his son Peter was safe. He needed to do this on his own turf, and things had aligned so perfectly he simply couldn’t pass up this opportunity. Not after years of planning.
Chapter 19
—Mine to protect.—
Darcy slipped her thick coat on and buttoned it up as she headed to the front door of Semyon’s mansion. It was thankfully time to go home. Brooks had texted her that he’d gone to get his vehicle. She was surprised he hadn’t waited for her in the kitchen, but she knew he must have a reason. As she stepped outside, there were two men she didn’t recognize.
Both were wearing dark suits and one was smoking a cigarette. Both had close-cropped haircuts, making them look like they might be military. Or former military, she guessed.
The one on the left subtly nudged the other one and they both looked her up and down, as if she was naked. The first said something to the other in a language she didn’t understand. And the second laughed, giving her a lecherous grin. Normally she would have ignored something like that. But she was pretty certain that neither man worked for Semyon. He might be a bad person, but with the exception of Polzin, no one had ever made her feel uncomfortable. And tonight, she was at the end of her rope dealing with bullshit. She wouldn’t smile and be polite.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Brooks’s Tesla Roadster coming up the long driveway. Instead of driving his normal truck, he’d opted to drive what she considered his obscenely expensive “rich guy vehicle.” She wasn’t sure if seeing him gave her the courage or not, but she took a step toward them. “Do you need something?” she snapped, anger in each word.
They both straightened and the one who had spoken shook his head as he dropped his cigarette. Before she could respond, or before either of the men could, Brooks was out of the driver’s side and moving toward her.
He shot the men a dismissive glance before placing his hand at the small of her back and helping her into the passenger seat. She didn’t need the help, but she was definitely glad for his presence.
Surprising her, after he shut the door, he took a few steps toward them. She couldn’t hear their conversation, but neither man appeared tough while talking to him. Less than a minute later, he was in the driver’s seat and pulling away from the front of the house.
“What did you say to them?”
He shrugged.
“Really? You’re not going to tell me?”
“Nope. Did they bother you?”
“Not really. Just two assholes. So why weren’t you waiting in the kitchen? Is everything okay?”
“Yes and no. The Feds found a bomb at the elementary school.” He let out a curse, shaking his head as he pulled out of the long driveway and onto the quiet street. “An elementary school.”
Lead filled her insides as she sat back against the seat, suddenly cold again.
“It was set to go off tomorrow right in the middle of the carnival. It wasn’t a remote type of thing, which is good. But still…” He shook his head.
“So what does this mean? Are they going to arrest Markov?”
“No. There’s nothing tying it to him. And the Feds who were watching the school never saw anyone sneak in. They don’t even have enough for a warrant to search his home. Not that I think he would be stupid enough to leave something at his home tying him to this.”
“Jeez. That’s scary.” Even scarier that he could still be planning to do something else in the future. “What do you think he’ll do when it doesn’t go off?” she asked, even though there was no way Brooks could know. He seemed to understand her question was rhetorical and shrugged.
“I think the real question is, why is he doing it in the first place?”
“I…didn’t think of that.”
“The Feds have. And now that he’s on their radar, they’ll get him. Or if they don’t, they’ll make his life hell.”
“All of this feels so unsatisfying.” Obviously, she was glad there wouldn’t be a bombing, but someone needed to be in jail. He nodded. When he didn’t continue, she said, “Were you taking pictures of him earlier?”
“I was taking pictures of the man he was with.”
“Feel like expanding on that?”
“No. But stay away from the man who was with him. He’s not a good man.” Each word came out tight and he gripped the steering wheel firmly.
She reached out and set a gentle hand on his leg. She wanted to ask who the guy was but Brooks didn’t seem to want to talk about it. “Okay. I don’t plan on spending much time over there anyway, not after tomorrow.”
He set his hand over hers and squeezed. “There’s something I need to tell you.”
That lead felt even heavier in her belly. “What?”
“Leighton said his Fed friend talked about you potentially talking to Markov, or planting something in his house, trying to get him to say something to incriminate himself. Off the books. But if they could find something to use against him—”
“I could do that.”
“No. I told them in no uncertain terms that it would never happen. I just wanted to let you know.”
“I can talk to your Fed friend. Maybe—”
He glanced at her as he pulled up to a red light. “I’m not letting that happen. This isn’t up for discussion.” When she raised her eyebrows at his imperious tone, he continued. “I fucking love you, Darcy. I’m not letting you put yourself in danger. The Feds can do their job and put him in jail the right way. You went above and beyond by giving them information. You literally helped to stop the bombing because of what you passed on. You will not put yourself in any further danger. Period.”
She had a lot to say about his dictatorial attitude, but the only words she’d really heard were “I fucking love you.” How could he just drop that bomb in there with everything else? What was she supposed to say to that? She was open to more with him—wanted more with him. She wanted to be back to the way they were before everything got all messed up. But the last time she’d told him she loved him, made herself vulnerable, she’d gotten burned. And she still felt the remnants of it.
<
br /> Silently, he looked over at her. Though he didn’t say anything, it was clear he wanted her to respond to the bomb he’d just dropped.
But she wasn’t touching that with a ten-foot pole. Not tonight. They’d literally just slept together for the first time in months last night. She wasn’t even sure what their relationship was at this point. And he wanted to tell her that he loved her?
Was he trying to drive her insane? “Will you be going with me to the wedding tomorrow?”
“I can’t believe you even asked that.”
“Just wanted to make sure… I still can’t tell my sister anything, can I?”
“No. Not now. The Feds can’t risk Markov getting a whiff of anything off. Not while they’re building a case against him.”
And that was just something she would have to live with. Sighing, Darcy laid her head back against the leather seat and closed her eyes.
Everyone who would have been at that carnival was now safe. This would all be over with and behind her soon enough.
* * *
Brooks tightened his arm around Darcy’s waist, pulling her back against his chest. She’d fallen asleep about ten minutes ago, but he was too restless. Even sex hadn’t tired him out.
It was good news that the bomb had been found, but there were too many variables up in the air right now. And he really didn’t like the fact that Kuznetsov had been at the rehearsal dinner last night. Well, he hadn’t been at the dinner, but he’d shown up at the tail end when most people had left. The guy was supposed to be at the wedding, but him showing up at the dinner rubbed Brooks the wrong way so he’d passed that information on to Leighton’s Fed friend, along with the images he’d snapped with his cell phone.
But there wasn’t a whole hell of a lot they could do with it. Talking to someone wasn’t a crime. Planting an explosive device was. Other than Darcy’s word, they had nothing linking it back to Markov. Or Kuznetsov, for that matter.
And Polzin was still out there somewhere. Even Gage hadn’t been able to track him down. The man had fallen completely off the grid, which meant he’d been prepared for the eventuality that he might have to run one day. His face hadn’t shown up on any facial recognition software, and he wasn’t using any of his credit cards. That wasn’t too surprising. He would have known that Markov would be able to track him that way. There was the possibility that Markov had found and simply killed him in the last couple hours, but Brooks doubted it.
If it had been possible, Brooks would have broken into Polzin’s place himself. But ever since he’d disappeared, the Feds had increased their surveillance of his house. There would be no sneaking in. Not that Brooks thought it really mattered. A man like that would have a backup plan. More than one.
While all of that weighed on his mind, the main thing bothering him was that Darcy hadn’t responded at all when he’d told her that he still loved her. Of course, he’d more or less snapped it out in the middle of a conversation. He could have used a little more finesse.
But she didn’t say anything.
He wasn’t sure what to think about that. He didn’t like it.
She’d still been intimate with him when they returned to her place, initiating things and dragging him into the shower with her. Not that she’d actually had to drag him; he’d gone willingly and had been planning to join her anyway. But he liked that she’d been the initiator.
Sighing, he closed his eyes and tried to force himself to sleep. It was difficult with her bare back and ass snug against his chest and cock. But he wouldn’t change a thing.
At the sound of his phone buzzing across the nightstand, he gently rolled away from her and picked it up.
A text from Leighton. Darcy’s place is secure. Haven’t seen any movement.
Tonight, Leighton had volunteered to keep an eye on her place. This wasn’t a long-term option, and if Polzin wasn’t caught by the end of tomorrow night, he would insist Darcy move to the ranch, at least temporarily.
He wanted the opposite of temporary, but knew exactly how well that would go over with her. At least the wedding would be over tomorrow, and while she might still have other clients, he didn’t care; she could work from his place.
Brooks texted back. Thanks. Any news from your Fed friend?
Nothing new. Still don’t have enough for a warrant. But they’ll be keeping an eye on him. Hazel said thank you for the pictures, BTW. They knew the two men were linked, but seeing K in M’s house solidified it.
Go ahead and get out of here. Her place is locked down tight. And we’ll be heading out in a few hours. There was no sense in Leighton sticking around. Brooks could take care of Polzin if the man was stupid enough to try to break into her place.
Nah. I’m good. I’ll stick around a couple more hours. Hazel said I could tag along tomorrow at the carnival. They want to keep an eye on everything even though they already found the explosives.
Brooks raised his eyebrows. That was definitely against FBI protocol, bringing a civilian in. But he decided not to comment. Wasn’t his business. I’ll be at the wedding with Darcy. You guys know where to find me if you need me.
Before he’d put his phone down, he got another text.
This time from Gage. Still no news on Polzin but I’ve been digging deeper into his past. Turns out he has a sealed juvie record. Issues with harassing girls, not understanding the word no. And one of those girls died in a car crash. Was deemed an accident. No way to know whether or not true.
Before Brooks could text back, another stream of texts came through.
Started digging even deeper into his adult life. Things not on the normal radar. Found a few links between him and two women who have both died by car accidents. Both deemed accidental. The links weren’t obvious and the cops never made the connection. Should I send the information to your detective friend Hernandez? Or the Feds?
Brooks thought for only a moment then texted back, Both. He was almost positive Hernandez wasn’t involved in anything. It looked as if Turner had been the only dirty cop. And now he was murdered. A dead end to them, unfortunately.
If women who’d somehow angered Polzin had ended up dead via car accidents…it seemed clear that he’d been behind the tampering of Darcy’s brakes. The mechanic had verified that they’d been worn down, though he hadn’t been able to swear it hadn’t been intentional. Still, Brooks had all the proof he needed.
Sighing, he set his phone back down, wrapped his arm around Darcy again and pulled her close. If he wanted to be fully functioning tomorrow, he needed at least a few hours of sleep.
Because he wasn’t letting Polzin get to Darcy again. He’d kill the man first.
Chapter 20
—Today will be one of those days where even my coffee needs a coffee.—
Wearing a silly tank top with Maid of Honor and a skull and crossbones underneath the text—a gift from Emma—Darcy was officially ready for this wedding to be over. Her sister was supposed to be married in two hours and while everything was going according to plan, an underlying tension hummed through her, steady and annoying. Like bees living in her skull.
Looking down at her clipboard while simultaneously texting one of the vendors on her phone, she stepped into the kitchen to find Semyon on the phone. One of the caterers was laying out cranberry and brie bite appetizers.
He nodded briefly at her and continued talking in Russian. She frowned, wondering why he wasn’t speaking in English. With everything going on, she decided to play detective and press record on her phone. She seriously doubted he would say anything of use, but just in case, decided to record his conversation. Brooks would probably be annoyed with her, especially after his “you’re not getting involved” attitude last night. Not that she was particularly mad at him about it. She understood that he was protecting her. And she loved that about him.
God, she needed to tell him that she still loved him too. It was just that so much had happened, tensions were still high, and so much was up in the air right now. And okay, she wa
s a big ole chicken. They’d barely gotten back together and yeah, she was scared about the future.
Shaking her head at herself, she flipped the page on her clipboard and did another run-through of items to be done in the next hour. Her sister’s hair, nails, and everything possible was already done. Emma was the one person she didn’t need to worry about. Darcy’s hair and makeup were done too, and she would put her dress on in about an hour. But she had a few things to take care of first and didn’t want to risk getting anything on the dress.
“Darcy, did you hear anything I said?” Semyon was now standing two feet in front of her and frowning.
Oh crap. She hadn’t even realized he’d moved. “Ah, no, sorry.”
“The priest is here. He just arrived. Is there anything you need from me?”
She shook her head. “No. I just have a few more things to check on, but we’re all good.”
“Good. Make sure you stay on the grounds.” There was a touch of concern in his voice, and once again, she found herself conflicted about him.
Okay, maybe not conflicted. Not since the Feds had found that bomb. That was something only a monster could take part in. But it was still hard to reconcile who he truly was and who he appeared to be to the world. “I will. I won’t be straying far from the house anyway.” She knew why he was concerned. It had to do with Oleg Polzin, and she had no desire to run across him.
As he left the room, she stopped the recorder and turned to one of the catering staff. A short conversation later, she hurried out of the room and up the nearest set of stairs.
And nearly ran into Brooks—who was looking incredibly handsome in his custom-made Armani suit. Her mouth watered as she drank in the sight of him. For a moment, she forgot that she’d come up here looking for him, let alone was able to remember her first name.
