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Ah, shit. Calling Kristoff by that name was a trigger. This could go south, fast.
Viking got up and casually placed himself between the two men. They looked ready to lock horns any second. Then something odd happened; both men fell back into their chairs.
“No need for that, big guy,” Caputo said, gesturing for Viking to sit down. “We’re not gonna kill each other.”
“At least not today,” Kristoff agreed. “Tell me why this is personal for you.”
Caputo hunched forward. “It’s not about him. It’s about a girl who works for him.”
“Seven,” Viking guessed. That crazy assassin was on their list as well. She might have saved his sister-in-law in the end, but was the one who had kidnapped her in the first place. So they felt less than warm-and-fuzzy about her.
“Seven,” Caputo confirmed.
“Not exactly a girl, but more a psychotic assassin,” Kristoff mused. “We’ve done some digging on her to see if she could lead us to him. So far no luck, but we did find out she’s been with the Bridemaker since she was a little girl. According to rumor, she’s his most loyal acolyte and fiercest soldier. What’s your business with her?”
Caputo’s lips thinned. “We have history.”
As the men got talking about history, Viking thought about his own. Here he was thinking Caputo was crazy for even wasting breath on a crazy woman when he’d just married his own past. What to do? What to fucking do?
CHAPTER 20
ELENA
Elena fumed after Viking’s not-so-thinly-veiled threat that she wasn’t to leave the apartment. Stirring her coffee, she tried to come to grips with the reality of her new life. She tried to concentrate on the happy picture she’d drawn her daughter when she’d called Vicky.
Being married to Viking had one big perk. At least she was finally out of the Romanov mansion, and far away from that dreaded wine cellar. But now what? Three days into her life as Viking’s wife, it was the top question on her to-do list, together with buying some clothes and underwear. He’d been ignoring her for the past few days, rising early and coming home late, supposedly because of business. Not that she’d ever asked him where he was going or what he was doing. She wasn’t born yesterday. Vory men didn’t talk shop. Ever. Especially not to a wife they didn’t trust. Still, so far, though his treatment of her had been icy, she’d been treated better than she could ever have hoped for when she found out he was locking her up for life.
She could make this work. Keep her head down while figuring out a way to stop Pedro. This marriage? It was a fluke. He wanted her to pretend she had accepted her fate? She could do that. It was no skin off her nose to pretend to be a content little mafia wife. She’d done it before.
That was when you didn’t give a crap about your husband.
So?
So? You love the big bastard.
It didn’t matter. She could take whatever he would throw at her. She’d gotten quite adept at throwing back curveballs.
The bell rang and she opened the door, expecting to find Baran or Yuri.
What was actually on the doorstep was a different kettle of fish, though. It was her first curveball of the day. Willowy tall, wearing a tight skirt, and a halter top that was probably illegal in some states.
“Who are you? Where’s Daddy?” A frown accompanied the blonde’s dumbfounded expression.
An expression Elena was about to smack off her face.
“Your Daddy?” How remarkable. She’d spoken the words without strangling the girl.
The girl rolled her eyes and barged past Elena, entering the foyer.
“You must be the new housekeeper,” the girl stated, in her infinite wisdom. The pitter-patter of dog feet followed, and Loki came from around the corner. The girl blanched, but then put on a fake smile. “Hi, doggy, Mandy likes you.”
Right. “Then why do you look like you’ve just swallowed a lemon?”
Mandy blinked. “Um…shouldn’t you be offering me a drink or something?”
Loki growled at her, and the girl screeched.
Elena patted the dog. “Good boy.” He deserved some extra dog biscuits.
