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“I will be fine.”
“But—”
Theo drops the pages on the table next to him. He grips my face in both hands, his eyes searching mine. “Kat, do you trust me?”
I manage a small nod between his large hands. “Yes, you know I do.”
Theo nods approvingly. “Good. I need you to trust me once more. I will go to your father, and I will somehow negotiate for the safety of this family. A family you are a large part of. And when I get back, I will show you how much I love you, okay?”
My breath hitches. This is the first time Theo has outright said he loves me. Even if his actions had hinted at it, hearing those words solidifies my faith in him. I believe he will do everything in his power to keep his promise and keep us safe.
“Can you do that for me, princess? Can you trust me once more?”
I give him a small smile, nodding in reassurance.
Relief washes over his face, and he presses a soft kiss against my lips.
“Everything will, be okay, princess. I promise.”
Chapter 14 - Fyodor
Tensions are high as we head into the city. My men and I are strapped and ready for whatever we encounter tonight. The night lights whizz by the window, like streams of colored lines, as if leading us to an impending doom.
I look over to my left where my second in charge, Gavriil, is sitting with both hands on his knees, his gaze fixed straight ahead. He does not agree with the course of action I have decided to take, and I am sure he would tell me that if given the chance. He always was a stickler for the general practices of the organization. His singular focus on any particular task at any given time is an asset we are lucky to have. Unfortunately, that also means it irks him whenever I do something out of the ordinary like I am tonight. Not that he would say so. No, he would just nod and do what was asked of him even if he did not agree. That is how deep his loyalty runs.
Feeling my eyes on him, Gavriil turns his head towards me. When our eyes collide, I cock a questioning brow. He grinds his teeth, but simply nods once before shifting his attention forward again.
That is all it takes for me to know that whatever happens tonight, he will be right there with me, covering wherever I am not able to. Under normal circumstances, my brother Kiril would be the one seated next to me. But these are not normal circumstances. And he is not here.
If my brothers knew what I was doing tonight, all hell would break loose. They are already outraged by how big a part of my life Kat has become, and they have made sure that I know how much they do not agree with it.
The wedding was one thing, but everything else that has happened, how much time I have been spending with Kat, how I have not made any time for regular nights out with my brothers, is rubbing them the wrong way. The truth is, I would love to have another one of our sibling outings where we share what is going on in our lives, but I worry about what I would let slip.
Whether I want to admit it or not, this thing with Kat has transformed into something much bigger than I ever could have imagined. As far as my brothers know, however, this is all still an arrangement to benefit the organization, something for us to hold over Igor’s head. But in reality, Kat is becoming more and more of a partner, in every sense of the word, and someone I could see myself sharing the rest of my life with.
So, I worry about what I would say to my brothers that could implicate me in the ruse I created that I am sure I am no longer successfully maintaining. It could all come crumbling down around me, and I refuse to let my brothers point this out.
So tonight, it is only myself and a handful of my trusted men heading out to meet with Igor.
After my chat with Kat the other night, I did some thinking and reached out to Igor, asking him to meet up. I had been so angry with Kat when she told me about the threats he had sent her and the fact that she had kept them from me, but I could also understand her reasoning. Especially when she told me she loved me. I had not realized how much I had wanted to hear those words spilling out of her mouth until I heard them.
And so, I am heading out to meet Igor tonight to negotiate safety for Kat and our unborn child and also to remind Igor why it would be unwise for him to make a move against me.
I need to be mindful of everything at stake and handle it with the necessary tact—another reason why I did not bring my brothers. They would not approve of the way I plan on handling everything.
The car slows as we near the parking lot where the Dubrovs’s and the Patrov’s turfs meet. It is the closest thing to neutral ground we have without getting any other organizations involved. Neither one of us was willing to meet each other on our own turf—for various reasons—so this will have to do.
I am sure that Igor has got his men kitted out with sniper rifles in any or all nearby buildings, which is exactly why I sent a few of my own men with their rifles. If he is going to have hidden guns on me, I sure as shit am going to have them on him too.
When the car stops, my men look to me for the go-ahead. After confirming with one of the men close by that everything seems to be okay, I nod my approval and we all file out.
Igor and his men arrive not a minute later, making me think he was waiting to get the go-ahead himself. He also seems just as happy as I am to be here, which is not happy at all.
His men form a standoff line behind him, as do mine, and for a moment we just stare each other down, neither one of us willing to relent.
Realizing this can only go on for so long, I signal my men to stand down, holding my hands out to the side as I walk towards Igor. He does the same, walking towards me until we meet in the middle of our two groups.
“Igor,” I say with a curt nod.
