His (Ties That Bind #2) - Natasha Knight Page 0,3
mother’s name was on that list, he wanted her dead for a reason. Now we just have to figure out what that reason was.”
“Do you have any leads?” I ask.
“I believe I may have found a fellow Vor connection,” he informs me. “You may remember him from your younger years. Does Maxim Sobol sound familiar?”
“Maxim?” I echo. “The guy who used to run jobs for Vasily? He’s dead. He’s been dead for years. His name is on that list.”
“But I think, perhaps, he is not so dead after all.” A smile curves Alexei’s lips. “I think that’s just what he wants Vasily to believe.”
It seems like a stretch to bank on a former associate, but I do remember Maxim. He actually helped train me. I ran some of my first jobs with him, and I respected him. But Vasily told me that he killed him. He said Maxim had betrayed him, and I never questioned it further. Now, I wonder what he might have been hiding all these years if he really is alive.
“He worked with Vasily for many years,” I note.
“Exactly.” Alexei smiles. “One can only imagine the things he might know. Just give me a few more days. Let me see what I can do to draw him out.”
I nod, accepting that this will take time. But right now, time isn’t on our side. And I can’t even begin to imagine how this news will go over with Kat when she finds out. It’s unlikely she is even aware of it yet, but at some point, it will need to come out.
“There is something else.” I close the folder and tuck it into my jacket for the time being. “I haven’t had the chance to tell you, but I found my mother’s trinket box in Andrei’s garage. When I confronted him, he claimed he was the one who killed her.”
“Do you believe him?” Alexei’s brows pinch together in uncertainty.
“I do,” I confess. “But he claims my mother was going to turn on Vasily. That she was giving information to a neighbor.”
“Perhaps the neighbor on the list?” Alexei ventures.
“That was my first thought.”
“I will see if I can make a connection.”
“Thank you.” I reach out to shake his hand. “I don’t know where I’d be without you.”
Before he can reply, Magda and Kat appear in the doorway, with Josh still tucked against her side. She must be exhausted from holding him, but I know there’s no prying him away from her right now.
“Josh ate a snack,” she says softly. “But he’s very tired, and I think we need to get him settled in somewhere. Can we go now?”
“Yes, Katya.” I offer her a pained smile. “We can go.”
Kat tests the water in the bathtub with her fingers, her face heavy with exhaustion as Josh wiggles around in her grasp. She can barely hold him at this point, but I know she’s trying to keep a sense of normalcy for him.
“I had a bath already,” Josh protests, his bottom lip quivering. “I want to watch TV.”
“You did have a bath this morning.” Kat glances at his clothes and cringes at the blood that’s been transferred from her. “But you need another one.”
A slamming door down the hall in the hotel causes Kat to flinch. Josh cranes his neck to look up at her, his tiny hand coming up to her face. “What’s wrong, Mommy?”
She chokes back a sob, and I gather Josh up into my arms, pulling Kat up beside me. “Mommy is very tired. She’s going to go rest while I get you cleaned up. Okay, buddy?”
Josh still doesn’t seem sold on the idea, and Kat already has a protest on her lips. But I need her to understand that she isn’t doing things alone anymore. This might be the biggest clusterfuck of her life, but it’s mine too. We’re in this together.
“Just go sit down,” I tell her. “Grab a drink from the minibar. Eat something, please. I’ve got this.”
When it dawns on her that she’s too tired to argue, she nods and pads out of the bathroom. A minute later, the television turns on, and I turn my attention to Josh. The first order of business is disposing of these clothes, but luckily for us, Talia was kind enough to give us a few of her son’s outfits to see us through until I can buy some more.
I rifle through the bag, finding a pair of pajamas and hold them up for Josh to examine. “What do