Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 124446 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124446 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
“Stay in the car,” I tell Mina, helping her into the back. And just in case, I nod at the driver, who locks the doors. Love or not, I’m not going to lay temptation at Mina’s feet.
With Mina safely locked in, I lead Anton a distance away. I do want Mina to see her grandmother, but I also have an ulterior motive for the trip. Taking out my phone, I pull up the information that arrived last night. Someone took out Mina’s assailants, the men my hired team beat and mutilated. I was going to kill them soon, but someone beat me to it. I can only assume it’s to make sure they didn’t talk.
Perhaps I don’t know everything. Perhaps there’s more to Mina’s attack than I thought.
“What’s up?” Anton asks when we’re out of earshot.
I show him the media article on my phone. Whoever popped those men has connections in government, high enough to stage the murders as a drug-related gang war.
Anton frowns as he reads. He gives me a speculative look when he’s done. “What’s this about?”
“Mina.”
“Fuck.” Lifting his face to the sky, he drags a hand over his beard. “I should’ve known. This is why we came to Budapest. This is what you’ve been up to these past weeks.”
“Hear me out.”
“Do I have a fucking choice?”
“No.”
My tone silences him. He sighs and shoves his hands into his pockets. “Spew your poison. I’m listening.”
I wasn’t going to tell anyone, but the situation has changed. I pull up the photo I haven’t been able to look at more than once—not that I need to, as it’s burned into my memory—and turn the screen for Anton to see.
“Christ.” He pales. “Is that… Mina?”
“This is what they did to her. Ten of them.”
“That’s why you offed them.”
“Not me. I was going to, after letting them live dickless for a couple of weeks while reflecting on their sins, but someone else did the job for me, someone powerful enough to make it look like a drug war.”
“Someone must’ve needed to silence them.”
“Exactly.”
“What do you want from me?”
“I’ve tracked them all down, save for one.”
“You want me to get information from him.”
“I’ll owe you.”
He grins. “I can live with you owing me. What info do you have?”
“His name is Laszlo Kiss. He went into hiding like the others, but his housekeeper sold the information to one of our informants.”
“Must’ve been an attractive bribe.”
“Enough to set her up for life.”
“You’re investing quite a bit in avenging Mina.”
Nothing will be too much. Not all the money in the world. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You feel for her.”
I frown. “Would I have done what I did otherwise?”
“You mean take her?”
I’m not going to answer that.
He watches me quietly. “Ilya is right, you know. You can’t keep her against her will. That’s as bad as what those guys did to her.”
My anger spikes. In a second, I’m in his face. “It’s nothing like that, do you hear me?”
“What is it then, Yan? Is it even about revenge? Fuck, was it ever about revenge? I get that you wanted to make her pay for framing us as terrorists, but look at that.” He motions at the phone in my hand. “Look at what they did to her. Don’t you think she’s been through enough?”
“This is the past,” I say harshly, shaking the phone at him. “What happened after has nothing to do with this incident.”
“I’m just saying that maybe the girl’s had enough shit in her life.”
“You don’t have a say in this.” I take a step closer to him. “She’s mine. The only say that matters is mine.”
“Fine.” He lifts his hands. “But this is going to blow up in your face. Mark my words.”
“Just find out what you can from her ex-teammate and let me worry about what will blow up in my face.”
“Fine,” he says again. “Send the details to my phone. I’ll go check it out. I assume this guy is close by?”
“In the northern countryside. After dropping us off at the clinic, the driver can take you. Best be well prepared. I’m sure Kiss expects a visit. He’ll be ready, weapons and all. Guards, too.”
Anton flashes his teeth, which would’ve been perfect if not for one slightly crooked canine. “Sounds like my kind of challenge.”
“Let me know what you find out the minute you do. We’ll meet back here at six. I don’t want to get home late. We need a good night’s rest for tomorrow.”
He salutes. “Gotcha.” On the way to the car, he adds, “I can’t wait to cash in the favor you’ll owe me.”
Flipping him off, I get into the backseat next to Mina while Anton retrieves the ammunition we always travel with from the plane. After loading guns and knives in the trunk, he takes the front passenger seat.
“What’s going on?” Mina asks.