Hostile Ground (The Arsenal #7) - Cara Carnes Page 0,65
love despite the circumstances.”
“Okay.” Shep dragged out the word, making his confusion known without saying anything more.
“They were children when the arrangement was made. Olaf was four. She was two. They met when she turned thirteen. They were to be married three days after Olaf tried to kill my father.”
Zoey’s eyes widened. She paled. “Stacia.”
Kristof fisted his hands. “Ivan was my father’s personal guard back then. He stopped Olaf’s attempt. Father was livid to say the least. Ivan would’ve killed Olaf that night, but Father decided he’d be an example for anyone else who might try to kill him.”
“By imprisoning him,” Cracker said.
“He was beaten. Severely. His tongue was removed so he couldn’t spread lies about Father,” Kristof said. “The true punishment was when Father kidnapped Stacia and sold her into slavery after…”
Zoey clasped her hands over her face. Gage cursed and reached up. He pulled the woman into his lap.
“He raped her while Olaf watched,” Kristof ended. “Then he sold her into slavery.”
Kristof forced the rest of the words from his mind. They’d heard enough.
“He keeps what matters in this recounting out,” Maksim said.
“No. That’s what they need to know,” Kristof argued.
“What isn’t he saying?” Nolan asked.
“Kostya sold Stacia through Kristof’s underground network, or so he was led to believe,” Maksim said. “That is when Kristof began sending data to you, Zoey. We’d discovered your intrusion before that.”
“You…” Zoey looked at him. “You…I don’t even know where to start with this.”
“I’m think we’re missing a few talking points about your network,” Edge said.
“More than a few,” Jesse replied.
“Exactly what is your network doing?” Addy asked. “We all know what it’s supposedly doing. What is it really doing?”
“I am no saint,” Kristof said. “I have done many terrible things. I’ve executed people for The Collective. I’ve sold information, weapons, drugs, identities, anything of value. All the monies from my endeavors were supposed to feed into my father’s syndicate through secret accounts so that none of the other syndicates were aware of our connection. He’d disavowed me from being Sidorav when he killed my mother. For all intents and purposes, Kristof Sidorav died that night.”
“And you became Kristof Lavrov,” Zoey said. “That’s why we couldn’t find history on you before the underground started. Wait. How did you find him, Mary?”
“I dug into Kostya’s history via data in international databases. Interpol had an extensive file, a very old one buried within an archive. A friend of mine unearthed it and scanned it to us. It recounted there being a son. There were also rumors of him killing his wife the same night Kir Sidorav died.”
“Everything you’ve earned the past however many years has gone to him?” Addy asked, her voice loud. “Why the hell would you do that?”
“He didn’t,” Maksim answered quickly.
“It’s complicated,” Kristof said. “Father had no idea what the true value of what I did was. I siphoned just enough funds to him to not raise suspicion. Everything else was set aside and used toward the true plan.”
“Which was? To overthrow him?” Edge asked.
“Yes.” Kristof’s jaw twitched. “My strategic abilities aren’t anywhere near all of your capabilities, but I played the game Father expected. I was the dutiful son he’d disavowed when he was paying attention. But over the years I’ve forged alliances and mounted strategic favors for when the final battle comes. Killing the bastard won’t end his reign. The entire empire has to be collapsed on itself.”
“We suspect that Kristof’s plan was perhaps more successful than we realized,” Maksim said. “That is, perhaps, why he’s tried to kill Kristof recently. We didn’t have access to all of his accounts. We knew we were bleeding him out, but we thought it was a slow leak.”
“It wasn’t,” Edge said. “He’s insolvent in most every account we’ve uncovered so far. HERA is still chasing transactions and finding accounts, but from what we’ve found, he began bleeding heavily four years ago.”
Maksim shook his head. “I shouldn’t have allowed you to step up your plan. You were too angry to think about the end game.”
“He enslaved Stacia and destroyed Olaf,” Kristof growled. “He will pay. For them. And Mama.”
He cut his gaze to Addy. For you.
“Wow.” Zoey sat up from her seated position between Gage’s legs. “So, is there maybe a spreadsheet of all these connections and favors and all of this?”
Maksim chuckled. “She didn’t waste time.”
“They never waste time, comrade.” Kristof regarded the woman. “We have everything semi-organized. I take it you’d like access to this information.”