Chapter 25

Jason

I manage to drive home in record time, practically jumping out of the car and flying up the stairs until I reach my apartment. The door is unlocked, and the silence is deafening. I stop in the hallway and look around, waiting, listening. Subtle clicking sounds drizzle in from the living room. Lily's laughter.

"What the hell?" I whisper and storm in, only to freeze at the sight before me.

Rita sits in one of the armchairs, framed by two men the size of bulldozers, both clad in black suits and sporting guns on their leather belts. Russians. No doubt about it because Grigori fucking Fedorov is playing checkers with my daughter at the ivory game table.

She has no idea who this man is or what he's doing here, my innocent angel. She's just glad someone took the time to play with her.

"Grigori," I manage, my voice weak, my legs threatening to give way.

He sits comfortably in his chair, a warm smile stretching across his face whenever he looks at Lily. I don't see cruelty in his eyes this time. I see something else, something profoundly human, fatherly, an emotion I can definitely relate to—pain wrapped in thick layers of fear.

"Mr. Winchester, I do apologize for the intrusion," Grigori says, his tone even and calm.

"Hah! I beat you! Again!" Lily quips, delivering the final move across the game board.

Grigori laughs wholeheartedly. "That you did, little zaika; that you most certainly did. Congratulations on a game well played!" he pauses and gives me a long, hard look before his gaze softens back to my daughter. "I'm afraid your daddy and I have some business to discuss now. Would you please excuse us?"

"Lily, honey, why don't you and Rita go back to your room and wait for me there?" I suggest, keeping a strained smile on my face. It's hard to keep my composure with armed mobsters so close to my daughter.

Rita cautiously gets up and motions for Lily to follow her, but my daughter wants to hug me first. "Daddy!" she says. "Can we play checkers when you're done? Mr. Greg taught me how to play."

"Of course, baby," I reply, gently stroking her pink, warm cheek. "Go with Rita now."

"Okay!"

"I'm so sorry, Jason," Rita tries to tell me, but I wave her apology away.

"It's fine, please. Just get her out of here," I reply quietly so Lily doesn't hear.

Once my daughter and Rita are out of the room, I feel as though I can breathe a bit better. Though I'll be able to take a full inhale when Grigori and his goons are on the other side of the fucking continent.

"What in the ever-living fuck are you doing here?" I hiss, working twice as hard not to charge at him, not to break every bone in his body. "Where's Audrey?"

"That is why I'm here," Grigori replies, then points at a chair across the table. "Please, have a seat. We need to talk."

I'd rather beat him to a pulp, but his security detail won't let me. Besides, I've clearly reached a point where all options are nothing more than possibilities. Working with the Feds, working with the Bratva, working with anyone who might help me get Audrey out of this mess before it's too late. Whomever, whatever it is, I'll take it.

Grigori stares at me for a long, torturous minute, his eyes searching my face.

I stare back; my jaw clenched as I take my seat, the checkerboard between us, pieces left strewn across. He is torn and tired, that much I can tell. There are smudges of dried blood on his white shirt, partially hidden by the teal jacket he's wearing.

"What happened at the hotel?" I ask.

"Arkady Abramovic happened. He played the game well; I'll give him that," Grigori replies.

"Details, Mr. Fedorov."

"He arranged a meeting last night, only he never showed. He had his secretary and a few other so-called associates keep me busy at one of his restaurants while he went back to the hotel, shot my sons, and kidnapped my daughter."

My stomach drops. In hindsight, I was a fool to trust Arkady.

"Your whole security team turned against you," I say, trying so hard not to kill the bastard with my bare hands.

Grigori nods. "He bought them off. Gave them enough money to secure new lives for themselves. I was a fool to think loyalty was still a thing, but I listened to Vitaly's advice and went soft on my people. Played for honor instead of fear. And now, Vitaly is in surgery, fighting for his life. Anton should make a full recovery. And Arkady has Audrey."

"He played us both," I mutter. "This must've been his plan all along."

Grigori frowns. "He played everyone from the very beginning. I know you are former military."

"That I am."

"I cannot go to the police. They will want to make a deal. They don't care about Audrey."

"And you do?" I scoff.

"I am here, aren't I?" Grigori snaps. "I cannot trust my own people, clearly. I only have you, Mr. Winchester, the only man still standing who is willing and able to assist me."

"What the hell do you want me to do, Mr. Fedorov? If Arkady Abramovic has Audrey, he's calling the shots," I reply.

Grigori shakes his head slowly. "He wants to meet. Just me, him, and Audrey. He wants to negotiate. But I don't trust him, and I know it won't be just the three of us. I'd like you to be there. I will provide you with whatever you need, but I want my daughter safe and sound and as far away from that bastard as possible."

"There's a catch here, right?"

"Yes."

I take another deep breath, my skin getting tighter with every exhale. My body temperature rises, the blood rushing to my head as I try to think of a way to follow through with this. It requires tapping into my dark side again. I did it before to save Audrey; I will do it as many times as I have to. But I don't like the hard look on Grigori's face.

There are strings attached, the kind I might end up hanging myself with if I'm not careful.

"What's your deal, Grigori?" I ask.

"I need you to kill Arkady Abramovic and anyone who comes near Audrey and me during that meeting. I have the location, and I can provide you with blueprints and any other technical details that you might need. You were a sniper in the Army, right?"

"Right."

"I will require that skill tonight, Mr. Winchester. And then, I will take Audrey back to New York with her brothers. She will return to her family safe and sound. In return, I will forget that you ever existed, and you and your daughter will always be safe from the Bratva, provided you don't try something stupid. It is the only deal that I can offer."

"You cold bastard," I growl. "You know I'll take it because I love Audrey, and I want her safe."

"Precisely. All is fair in love and war, is it not?"

Nausea unfurls in my throat, a bitter taste glazing my tongue as I look at this man and wonder how a marvelous creature like Audrey came to be with half of his genetic profile.

"You disgust me," I say, peculiarly calmly.

Grigori flashes a smile. "I am well aware. But we need each other, at least for tonight. After it's done, you have my word. No one will touch you or your family. No one."

"You don't deserve your children," I reply. "Even Vitaly and Anton are too good for you. Loyal men, capable men. I know enough about them from Audrey to actually understand why they are still in your service. They love you, but you don't deserve their love."

"I don't deserve much of anything, Mr. Winchester, which is why I always take what I want. It's how I was raised, and it's how I intend to leave this world. Until then, however, it is my solemn duty to uphold the Fedorov values against any and all who try to make a move against us. And right now, Arkady Abramovic has my daughter, the woman you love, in his clutches. Surely, you want to get her away from him."

"I want to get her away from anything pertaining to the Bratva."

"I'm afraid that's nothing more than wishful thinking."

I can see why he says such things. I wonder if he's aware that there is already a plan hatching in the back of my head. Ideas forming. Ways to take advantage of this complex web of lies and treachery.

Grigori doesn't know that I know about his involvement in the kidnapping attempt on his daughter. Audrey doesn't know he had a hand in it. Arkady doesn't know I'm here, negotiating with Grigori. He probably thinks I'm the ultimate stooge after his little game of so-called cooperation. I'll be only too happy to prove them all wrong.

"Fine, Grigori. I'll help you. I'll handle Arkady if that's what it takes to save Audrey."

"I'm glad we're able to reach an agreement," he says, offering his hand.

I shake it. Firmly. Briefly. But it's enough to give him that smidge of confidence that he clearly so desperately needs.