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Watching his broad back disappear into the darkness from which he came, I slumped against the kennel door, helpless to do anything as my answers strolled away.
8
Sasha
It was hard notto answer Roan when he asked why he was here. I could have given him a one- or two-word reply. It wouldn’t have hurt anything and maybe it would have put his mind at ease, but I wasn’t here to put his mind at ease. I was here to use him. That’s it. He was a tool, an object, a thing.Thething to get me what I wanted — a giant payday from Viktor and a one-way ticket out of this city.
Ivan delivered the package to Roan’s father earlier in the day. The instructions were simple — if he wanted to see his son again, call the number we provided.
We waited all day, and nothing.
“Are yousurehe got it?” I asked Ivan, arms crossed over my chest to keep from slapping the stupid out of him.
Ivan shifted his weight from side to side, alternating between staring at me and staring at the phone on the table. “I’m sure! The housekeeper picked it up from the porch. And I saw him there eating breakfast. She had to have given it to him.”
Hours later, when I was about to send Ivan back with another letter, the phone rang. Phillip Sinclair had had the envelope for over eight hours. I didn’t know what the fuck he’d been doing the entire time. Gregor was monitoring the house, so we knew he hadn’t called the police. In the end, I didn’t really care now that he was finally calling.
“What do you want?” Phillip demanded.
Using a voice changer, Eduard answered in English. “The master key for the bank vault.”
“Never.” He didn’t even hesitate. Did he miss the part in the note where we said we had his son? He couldn’t have. It was before the fucking phone number.
“We have no interest in your money,” Eduard continued patiently, “only the key.”
“Do you know who I am?” His outrage reverberated through the phone.
“Yes, Mr. Sinclair. We are well acquainted with you and your family, as you should know by now.”
He glossed over the response. “Thenyoushould know who you’re fucking with.”
Eduard made a face and pointed at the phone, as if I wasn’t paying attention to every word coming through the speaker. And I thought Russian fathers were assholes.
“It’s a simple trade, Mr. Sinclair,” Eduard huffed, letting his exasperation show. “Do we have a deal or not?”
“Just so we’re clear, you want me to trade thekeyfor myson?”
“Yes.”
Click.
We both stared at the phone, hovering over it in disbelief. It sat on the table between us, staring back, mocking us with its silence.
“Did he just fucking hang up?” I grabbed the phone and looked at the screen. Sure enough, Roan’s father disconnected.
“Maybe it was an accident?” Eduard shrugged. “He’ll call back.”
He didn’t.
We waited for hours. There was no return phone call.
“Wellnowwhat?” Eduard asked, raking a hand through his dark hair, finger-combing it to the side.
I laced my fingers behind my head, holding onto the nape of my neck and trying to think of something. Needless to say, that was not the reaction either of us had been expecting. I was truly at a loss, but I’d be damned if I admitted it out loud. “Let me call Viktor and see what he wants now.”
Eduard nodded and left the room while I dialed.
“Is it done?” Viktor asked as soon as he answered.
