“Your Blue is good.”
“A great electric thief. Good on getting data fast.”
“She should meet Misha, if he ever decides to show his face.” Kazimir frowned. “What else did you learn?”
I pretended to play the violin. “This is how Jean-Pierre kills. Some of his weapons are tricked out bows. They have blades on them.”
“Hmmm. This makes me like him a little more. He’s not just perfume and frilly clothes. There’s some edge.”
“You’re so wrong.” I chuckled.
“And what about the cousins?”
“Oh yes.” I turned the knob, sure I had the best view now for the moon. “His cousins are Rafael, Giorgio, and Louis.”
“You remember their names?”
“What else did I have to remember on our vacation? I read their file by the pool this morning. It was as fascinating as reading a good book.”
“I still can’t remember their names.”
“Because you have a lot of enemies.”
“And they die so fast. I’ve stopped trying to remember them.”
Pride hit me with those words. There was something awesome about being with such a powerful and dangerous man.
“Which one do they call the funny one?” Kazimir asked.
“Oh yeah. So I think that must be Rafael. He seems the funniest out of them all. And you said one of them took their clothes off in the steam room. That seems like a very Rafael thing to do.”
“Rafael.” Kazimir repeated it back to himself. “Next time I see him, he better be wearing pants. Which one is the Butler?”
“The Butler is Giorgio, and my understanding is that no one really calls him that to his face.”
“Good. It’ll be the first thing I say to him.”
I laughed. “And the last cousin is Louis. Blue couldn’t find out much about him because he had firewalls or whatever the technical thing it is that blocked Blue from getting his data.”
Kazimir nodded. “Yes. One of them is supposed to be good at security on all levels.”
“That’s all I have for now. It’s a thick file. I’m just looking at old police reports in this city called Belladonna.”
“Jean-Pierre mentioned the city in the steam room. He said people were dying there.”
“Should I have Blue look into it?”
“We don’t work for Jean-Pierre. Whatever it is, doesn’t concern me.”
“These four could be a good group to—”
“To what, mysh, align with?” Kazimir shook his head. “The brotherhood doesn’t need any friends.”
“Fair point.”
Who was I to tell Kazimir how to run the Bratva when I’d just been happily invited for the ride?
However, I wouldn’t disregard the Corsican. The four men may have been impeccably dressed and, according to Kazimir, sweet-smelling, but they were definitely killers. Photos of their victims packed my file. The deaths were nothing pretty.
The four moved like a professional crew. Like Kazimir, they grew up in this world and had become very good at what they did.
I planned to keep a close eye on them.
He came over to my telescope and checked the view. “Good.”
I winked. “I’m not bad at this astronomy thing.”
“You’re not.” He hit me with an intense gaze. “I think I like this Blue. She’ll be a good resource for you.”
“I hope so.”
“And I think I’m lucky to have met you, Emily.”
“I feel the same way.”
“Do you?”
“Yes.”
“Then, you ready?”
I swallowed. “For?”
“More.”
“There’s more that can happen with us?”
“Lots more.”
I thought he would bring up marriage or even the possibility of my being pregnant—something my mind was not ready to consider this trip.
Holding the doctor’s appointment off for Moscow was the only way my brain could wrap around it.
Me, a mother? I’m still having dreams about slicing off the dicks from screaming men tied up in hotel rooms.
I blinked.
“Don’t worry, mysh.” He pulled me closer to him. “We have time.”
Damn it. Why is he so confident? Why can’t I just stop being scared and trust him?
“We do.” I looked up and let out a long sigh. “Kaz?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s go to the doctor tomorrow.”
He loosened his hold, took one hand and lifted my chin. Excitement filled his voice. “Are you sure? Are you ready for the results?”
I swallowed. “If you’re by my side, then…yes. I’m ready.”
“I’ll be by your side. I’m more than ready.” He stared at me with intensity. “I imagine so many things for us.”
“Like what?”
“A little girl who looks like you but with my smile or maybe even my eyes. A boy with my face but with beautiful brown skin like yours. Twins even or triplets.”
“Okay. Wait a minute.”
“These are just my dreams.”
“But could you not dream about triplets?”
“Then twins.”
“Oh my God.” The image of Kazimir holding our twins flashed into my head—two curly-haired little babies, sleeping in his huge arms. My heart warmed. I went breathless for a few seconds.
Kaz held me tighter. “We’ll go to the doctor in the morning.”
A shiver ran through me.
Stop being a punk and deal with it.
I thought that if I could avoid the test maybe the problem would go away, but I’d thrown up again this morning and my breasts were tender. Apparently, biology didn’t follow the avoidance rule.