Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 95627 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95627 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
He knew exactly what I was doing, and the fire in his eyes, his gritted jaw, told me we were going to have this fight. We were going to have it now.
"You don't get to 'Gregor' me, Artem. You said this was on you, that you were going to handle this. All you've done is cost me millions of dollars. Millions in payoffs and damages when your brother had a shootout in the middle of the Ritz with dozens of witnesses and then took it to the middle of the goddamn New Jersey Turnpike. Do you have any idea how hard it was to get rid of all that footage?"
His voice rose with each accusation, spittle flying from his lips.
"Millions more when this rabid bitch Solovyov tried to off a senator in my pocket and then you let him find out about it."
"I didn't tell—"
"And yet somehow he still found out." Gregor cut me off, his finger jabbing toward my chest without actually touching me. "And then I had to hire personal security to follow him around twenty-four seven like a goddamn babysitter, so he would still feel comfortable working with me on these deals."
I hadn't known that. Kostya's brief firefight, I did know about, and I reamed him out for it. Not that he cared. The smug bastard looked me dead in the eye and told me Marina was worth every penny.
If he wasn't my brother, I'd have shot him right there.
Both Kostya and I had done the honorable thing and offered to pay Gregor back plus interest. He refused, likely so he could pull this card whenever he felt like he needed the moral high ground.
No one had mentioned that Solovyov's target was aware of the attempted hit. I hadn't leaked it. There was no benefit to it.
Yeah, it would have caused Gregor a headache and some money for security, but so what? I would have gained nothing.
Now, if that bit of information would have resulted in the senator insisting on working only with me in the future, then I would have leaked it, but I wasn't after the DC territory. I had no interest in dealing with the constant changes brought by the never-ending revolving doors of senators and members of congress.
No, I preferred to leave that bullshit to Gregor.
"Are you done?" I asked, as he opened his mouth to go on another rant. This fight was unproductive, and I had better things to spend my time and effort on.
"No, cousin. I'm not."
Gregor's face reddened, a vein throbbing at his temple.
"This shit has gone too far. Solovyov just killed five of my men. Not our men. My men. Then he stole a shipment of guns that was headed to the Colombians. Now not only do we have to hunt down the men who betrayed us, we have to gut them to send a message. Then track down the guns and get them to the Colombians before they come after our families."
"You are forgetting one tiny little thing, cousin." I kept my tone level, showing him exactly how not afraid of him I was.
"What's that?" he sneered, his eyes narrowing to slits.
"My brother didn't lead Solovyov here. It was your weakness that did that. He saw an opportunity and you should be down on your knees thanking Kostya for figuring it out before it was too late. He didn't have to help you. All he had to do was follow the girl. It would have been far easier for him to grab her and just take her back to Russia."
"That is—" he said, but I had no interest in listening to whatever bullshit was going to come out of his mouth next.
At the end of the day, I was right. Solovyov was after Gregor long before Kostya swore a deathbed promise to his first wife.
"What the fuck are you doing working with the Colombians?" I asked, cutting him off.
There was good crazy, the kind that struck fear in the hearts of men and forced their loyalty. Then there was the shit the Los Infieles Colombians did, and that went well past torturing to send a message. It was torture that was so extreme it had to be a sick fetish.
"That's not the point," Gregor hissed through clenched teeth. "I want to know what the fuck you are going to do about it?"
Gregor turned to pace, shooting Damien a loaded look. I took a step back, making sure to be out of his arm's reach in case he took a swing.
Before I could tell him, I was interrupted by the shrill ringing of my phone.
"What?" I answered.
"Boss, we found the guns. Solovyov's men took them and now he is in the process of finalizing a deal with the Colombians to sell them at a lower price."
Fuck.
"Is that it?"
"Yes, sir."
"Then stand by." I hung up the phone and looked around the room. Everyone was staring at me, waiting for answers.