Kiss Me in the Dark Anthology - Monica James Page 0,29
the task at hand as I’d forgotten I currently had a burning ember pressed to his cheek. “He moves around a lot. He knows being at one location will get him killed.”
I decide to remove the cigar before there isn’t any flesh left to burn.
Viktor whimpers in relief when I toss it to the ground, but that is short-lived when I press the muzzle of my gun to his temple. “He has to have a base. I want to know where that is. I also want to know where Raul is.”
Raul is Chow’s son—the double-crossing asshole I killed—and he was selling his product to both Serg and me. Since I’m out of the game, there is no competition, so people have no choice but to do business with a bottom-feeder like Serg. But that’s about to change. Just as he did to me, I’m going to bring down his empire and claim back what is rightfully mine.
If this were most, they’d be thankful they were still alive. But not me. All I feel is this burning desire to make those who took from me pay. Me being alive highlights the error of my ways. I was too soft, too blinded by something that will never be mine—and that’s a happily ever after.
I hate to disappoint you, but if you’re looking for a story with a hero, then you best turn back now. This is the point of no return.
Once upon a time, I thought that maybe I could do this thing, this living a “normal” life. The devil lay dormant for a while, humoring me because he knew we were cut from the same cloth, and sooner or later, I would need to feed the darkness inside me. Mayhem, power, and control are what course through my veins and what made me a victorious leader.
And now, I want my fucking crown back.
“пожалуйста,” Viktor begs, eyes wide. “Let me go. You’ll never see me again.”
“Stop begging,” I spit in disgust. “It’s quite unbecoming.” It seems Viktor needs an incentive to loosen his tongue.
Pavel reaches into his jacket pocket and produces a remote control. Viktor’s eyes widen. It’s the type of remote you’d see in a movie to make the high power explosives go BOOM. Pavel is known for his love of explosives, so Viktor knows what this is.
“You have three seconds, three fucking seconds to tell me what I want. Otherwise, you’ll be scraping what’s left of your loved ones off the walls.” This isn’t a threat. It’s a promise. “Tell me why this city is dealing with this lowlife. He is a nobody. How has he gained the trust of all?”
He was able to worm his way into my kingdom on the merit of my mother. But unless she’s fucking half of Russia, there is a reason he has climbed the food chain and is sitting pretty on top of it. He is where I was, and I need to know how he got there. I didn’t become the most powerful, most feared man in Russia overnight. But Serg is, and there is a reason for it.
When Viktor remains mute, my last tether snaps. “Pavel,” I order with a flick of my chin.
Viktor shakes his head wildly. “Okay! Okay!” he shrieks, his eyes begging Pavel not to push the button. “If I tell you, promise me you’ll look after my family.”
“Which one?” I ask, unmoved.
He understands this for the simple transaction it is. He tells me what I want, and I kill him quickly in return. “He is…making a name off you.”
I blink once, stunned, but I keep my emotion hidden. “What?”
“He has gained the respect of all because he neutered the feared Aleksei Popov. You are nothing because of him. You may as well have died with your friends.”
And there it is, the truth, glaring me in the face.
Serg has piggybacked his way to the top using my name while I’m forced to hide in the shadows as nothing but a leper.
I’m not totally ruined, thanks to Pavel and his connections. It seems he has allies all over the world who trust his knowledge in stolen ammunition and high power explosives. I am now his lackey, as he is the one calling the shots. But a trusted man in this business is hard to find, so we need one another.
“ублюдок шлюха!” I curse, angered that this little prick is still breathing. “I am going to take great pleasure in seeing him bleed.”