Page 8 of Bratva King

A sharp knock interrupted his thoughts.

"Come in,” Alexei said.

The office door opened. Dimitri stepped inside without waiting for further permission, dressed in a charcoal suit with the sleeves rolled neatly to his forearms. His younger brother carried a folder beneath one arm and looked as though he'd already been working for hours.

"You look terrible," Dimitri observed.

Alexei snorted. "Good morning to you too,” he mumbled.

“I’ve seen corpses with more enthusiasm,” Dimitri joked.

"They're probably getting more sleep."

Dimitri crossed the room and dropped the folder onto the desk. "We've got a problem with the shipment coming through Saint Petersburg.”

Alexei automatically reached for the file. "Which shipment?"

"The electronics."

He opened the folder. Inside sat customs reports, shipping schedules, and photographs of sealed containers.

"The port authority suddenly decided they wanted another inspection,” Dimitri said.

Alexei skimmed the paperwork. "Our contact?"

“Was transferred."

"Convenient,” he muttered. Alexei closed the file. "Delay the shipment forty-eight hours."

Dimitri nodded once. "I thought you'd say that."

"If we push it through now, they'll inspect every container,” Alexei said.

"And if we wait?"

"They'll lose interest."

Dimitri smiled faintly. "You're usually right."

Usually. Alexei barely heard himself continuing. "Have Yuri reroute the paperwork through the Lithuanian office. Tell accounting to freeze payment until the cargo clears customs."

"I already have."

"Good." His responses came automatically. His mouth carried on conducting business while his mind wandered somewhere else entirely.

Dimitri studied him for a moment. "You aren't listening.”

"I am."

"What did I just say?" Dimitri demanded.

Alexei looked at him blankly, and Dimitri folded his arms.

"I said Maksim wants another security sweep of the warehouses,” Dimitri informed him.

Alexei rubbed a hand across his jaw.

"You've been somewhere else all morning,” Dimitri pointed out.