20. ANDREY

Chapter 20

ANDREY

A noise pulls me from my sleep. I lie with my eyes closed, listening in the dark room. Isabella is curled up by my side, her breathing rhythmic and calm as she sleeps. The clock on the bedside flashes seven-thirty. The thick, heavy drapes block out the morning sun and keep the room in darkness.

Moving carefully so as not to wake her, I slip out of bed and find my clothes. Now that my eyes have adjusted to the dim light filtering through the curtains, I make my way to the door. There, on the floor, is a note. I pick it up, my heart pounding in my chest.

Meet me in the lobby.

I glance back at Isabella, still peacefully asleep, and quietly open the door. I slip out into the hallway and head toward the elevator, my mind racing with possibilities. Who could have left the note? What do they want? Was it for me or Isabella? The note wasn’t specific.

The lobby is almost deserted, with just a few staff members at the reception desk. I scan the area, and my breath catches when I spot a familiar figure—what the fuck?

“Andrey,” he says, his voice low but clear. “I was wondering if one or both of you would find the note.”

“What the fuck are you doing here, Temur?” I’m trying hard to control my anger and keep my cool. It’s best if he doesn’t know I’ve spoken to my brother. I look around, expecting the rest of his team to jump out at me.

“Coming to find you and Isabella.” He shrugs.

“How did you find us?”

“We always know where Isabella is?“ His eyes hold a warning. “Let’s go somewhere more private to talk.”

He nods, and we walk to a seating area away from prying eyes in a secluded corner. My senses are on high alert, and as my eyes covertly scan the room, he seems to be alone. We sit beside each other on the sofa.

“So why the personal visit?” I glance around again. “Where’s the rest of your team?”

“I was hoping you could tell me?“ His eyes narrow.

“How the fuck would I know?” My brow furrows. “I’ve been driving across Canada to get Isabella to some safe house.”

He raises an eyebrow and leans back in the chair. “You can cut the crap, Andrey,” Temur tells me. “I know that your brother phoned you and told you about the messenger.”

“How would you know that?” My eyes narrow even more, and I’m starting to get uncomfortable, especially if Konstantin has really been taken and the Zhukovs had anything to do with it.

“We have ears everywhere.” Temur shrugs. “And when the commander of the Zhukov Special Forces and heir to the Zhukov Bratva is taken…” His brows rise. “We listen. ”

“You fucking well cloned my phone?”

“Something like that,” Temur tells me, and his eyes turn icy. “You should be thankful that I got access to it, or you’d be long dead!”

“Is that a threat?”

“We don’t threaten !“ Temur warns me. “We need to know if you know anywhere your brother would’ve taken Konstantin, Marco, and Hannah?”

“Hannah?” My brows knit together. “Why Hannah?”

Temur’s brows shoot up again. “Seriously?” His eyes search mine. “You have no fucking idea, do you?”

I lean forward, locking eyes with him. “Look, right now, you’re lucky I don’t rip your fucking throat out. You and your double-crossing fucking boss.”

“What makes you think you’d get even close?” Temur sneers, his bravado evident.

“Because you and your fucking cocky boss love to underestimate me,” I tell him, my voice low and deadly. Before he can move, I have my pocket knife out and the point pressed strategically against his jugular. “Which is good for me but really bad for you.”

Temur’s eyes widen in surprise, his breath catching. “You think you can intimidate me with a knife,” he snorts.

I press the blade just enough to feel the danger but not break the skin. “You’re a smart guy, Temur,” I tell him, using his surprise to relieve him of his weapon. “You tell me…” I move closer, pointing his gun at his thigh near the central artery. “What happens if I so much as sneeze right now?”

I glance at his gun. “This is a… Sig Sauer P365, isn’t it? I believe it has a hairline trigger. I’m sure you know what happens if it goes off in this part of your leg. You bleed out in minutes.” I tilt my head, holding his eyes. “Or if you move your head just ever so slightly, you might find this knife slipping a little deeper.”

Temur’s confidence falters, his eyes darting between my hand and the gun aimed at his thigh. “You’re bluffing,” he says, glancing around the lobby. “This place is public.”

“Oh, please!” My eyes narrow. “Do you think I give a shit? That I couldn’t have a clean-up crew here in minutes.” I give him a slow, sadistic smile. “I, too, have contacts everywhere .”

“Well fuck me,” Temur murmurs. “You are a Pakhan after all, Belov.”

“Start talking,” I release the knife but keep the gun, keeping it hidden from view but handy. “Why would you think my brother has taken Konstantin and Marco anywhere?”

“We stormed the lodge only to find out it was a trap.” His eyes darken as he glares at me. “Did you know that Stacy was your brother’s spy?”

“I didn’t even know they were married until Konstantin told me,” I remind him. “Besides, Konstantin knew it was a trap.”

“Yeah!” Temur nods and looks at me suspiciously. “I’m trying to trust you here, Belov, and I should be the one wanting to rip your throat out as the traitorous bastard.”

“Then why not come in all guns blazing?”

“Your mother!” Temur tells me.

“What the fuck have you done with my mother?”

“She’s safe,” Temur told me. “Urie and Hannah… not so much.”

“Jesus!” I hiss, “I’m starting to get fucked off again.”

“Tell me where your brother is,” Temur ignores me and grills me again.

“I told you, I don’t know…” My eyes narrow. “If you were listening in on my phone, you’d know that.”

“Your brother somehow managed to shut me out,” Temur tells me. “I think he has Davey as well.”

“Davey?”

“Isabella’s tech friend,” Temur reminds.

This is getting fucking frustrating. It’s like a bad version of Spy versus Spy. “I have no idea who he is,” I tell him. “So why don’t you tell me why you think my brother has Konstantin, Urie, and Hannah.”

“I saw him take them,” Temur tells me.

“Why would he have Hannah?” I frown. “When did he take Hannah?”

“Right after he thought he’d killed me at the lodge and ushered her out of a room he had them locked in,” Temur tells me.

“Impossible,” I tell him. “I messaged Hannah right before I left Ottawa.”

“You didn’t message her, but whoever has her phone,” Temur assures me. He pulls out his phone and hands it to me. “I hacked the video feed from the lodge. You’ll see it’s all on there.”

I get onto his phone, and he flips to the feed. My eyes widen. I can’t believe what I’m seeing, so I turn to him. “What the fuck happened here?” My heart is pounding, and I realize why my gut was screaming at me. There was something wrong with what my brother was telling me. “How can I believe you that you haven’t doctored this?”

“May I?” Temur asks. I hand his phone back, and he dials a number while on speaker and a Russian woman answers. “Can you go to Miss Thompson’s room, please?” He hands it back to me. “The nurse will show how much your brother appreciated what his wife did for him.”

“Here you go,” the nurse says and turns her phone to show me Stacy. She is lying in a hospital bed, badly beaten, with medical equipment strapped to her. “We don’t know if she’ll survive the night.”

Stacy’s eyes open, and she tries to say something. “No, you must rest.” The nurse tells her.

“No,” Stacy breathes. “I need to… talk.” She is struggling, and that is when I see the hand marks on her neck. “Andrey… where… Isab…”

“She’s safe,” I assure her. “What happened to you, Stacy?”

“Lev…” Stacy’s struggling to talk. “Be careful.” Her head starts to bob. “Not who I… thought.” She’s trying to force her eyes open. “Tell B… sorry…”

Her head falls back, and the machines start to beeb. “Stacy!” I yell into the phone. “Nurse!”

“I’m sorry,” the nurse said. “I have to go.” The phone goes dead.

I turn to Temur. “Start talking!”

“Lev was leading us into a trap,” Temur tells me. “But he’d arranged for Stacy and Isabella to escape before we arrived. Apparently, Stacy was supposed to encourage Isabella to go on the trip to Canada we were all supposed to go on before Donald Whitman showed up.”

“To find the messenger?”

“Yes.” Temur’s eyes narrow suspiciously once again. “So Lev did mention that?”

“He might have.”

“Did you know Donald Whitman and Lev were big pals?” Temur is watching me intently.

“I don’t even know who the prick is,” I assure him. “I didn’t hear about the man until Konstantin mentioned him.”

“Turns out we now know how the fucker got onto the property and found out where we were,” Temur told me. “Your brother got pissed that Konstantin managed to find his hackers before they could find your mother’s encrypted file he was looking for.”

“Why send Donald Whitman to the compound?”

“Because Konstantin had you and James on your way there so he could get you all to safety and Isabella to the messenger. He needed to disrupt Konstantin’s plans and make him move to the next location without you. He also knew how Donald Whitman would freak Stacy out,” Temur tells me. “Your brother is shit scared of whatever the messenger has for Isabella.”

“He seems to think Konstantin is the one that wants the messenger,” I point out. “Lev also thinks that Konstantin’s the one that came back to take over EVERYTHING, including my organization.”

“Trust me,” Temur says, throwing a card on the table. “If Konstantin wanted the Belov Bratva, he could’ve taken it years ago.” He shrugs.

“Bullshit,” I snarl. “How would Konstantin take it?” I snort. “Another debt owed to the great Roman Zhukov or Karla Andreev?”

Temur looks at me coldly, shakes his head, and stands, getting ready to leave. “You know what? I’m done talking.”

“Sit!” I order.

“Fuck you,” Temur says to me. “Of course, you’re going to believe your brother.” His eyes narrow. “I understand that. Family loyalty. That loyalty can also blind you to who they really are.” He nods to where I’m holding his gun. “You can keep the gun. You’re going to need it because I have a feeling your brother’s not far behind you.”

“My brother said that Marco was taking them to a safe house.” I offer some information to get the man to tell me more.

“Marco?” Temur’s eyes widen. “He’s your brother’s hostage for leverage with Isabella.” He looks at me questioningly. “Have you spoken to your mother?”

“I thought you were listening?”

“I told you I got blocked out.”

“Yes, I did speak to my mother.”

“So you know about your father,” Temur’s eyes are emotionless and not giving anything away. “You’re a doctor.” He fiddles on his phone. “There’s your father’s medical records. You figure out why, only a few minutes after your brother had visited your father, he suddenly had a brain bleed.”

“What?” My brow furrows. “When did my brother visit my father?”

“While he was supposed to be being held hostage with Stacy and Isabella at the lodge for two days,” Temur’s words send a cold shiver up my spine. He takes a burner phone from his pocket and throws it on the sofa beside me.

“What’s that?”

“Call Sergei,” Temur tells me. “He’ll enlighten you. And I’d get rid of all your phones. Just keep the burner, and when you’re ready, you can call me on it.” His eyes become dark with a warning. “Let me tell you this. If anything happens to Isabella…” He raises his eyebrows. “It’s not me you’ll have to worry about, or even Konstantin.”

He turns and leaves, disappearing out of the hotel and leaving me with more questions than answers and not fucking knowing who to trust. I’m hoping with all my heart Lev isn’t the one that killed my father or Stacy—fuck, Stacy. What do I tell Isabella?

I pocket my knife, put the gun in my waistband, and pick up the burner, heading back to my room. I stop as I spot the same two men who had found us at the diner and Stansted. Fuck! I hit the elevator and rush up to our room. I get there and find Isabella walking out of the bathroom.

She jumps as I walk into the room and stop, feeling my cock instantly respond to her nakedness. I ignore it as I move to the duffel bag. “You need to get dressed.”

“Andrey?” Her brow creases. “Where have you been?”

“I’ll explain on the way,” I tell her. “Put clothes on, and we need to get out of here. Those PMCs have found us.”

“Seriously?” Her eyes widen and she grabs the clothes I hand her. “How did they find us?”

She doesn’t go to the bathroom this time. She just changes, and I feel warm inside. My eyes travel to her stomach. Fuck. I know what I have to do as the feeling hits me like a sledgehammer.

I take the mobile phones out of the bag and shove them in the dresser door. “Let’s go.” I hold my hand out to her, and she takes it. “We’ll need to go down the fire escape I tell her.”

Isabella nods and follows me.

“What time did you say the women’s shelter opens?”

“Nine,” Isabella replies, glancing over the shoulder as I navigate the fire escape. “There’s a small cafe across the road from the women’s shelter that makes a great breakfast.”

We move quickly, navigating the fire escape with a mix of urgency and caution. The cold metal of the steps bites through my shoes, but I ignore it, focusing on the task at hand. Isabella’s grip on my hand is tight, her breathing controlled yet quick.

We hit the ground and blend into the crowd as we make our way to the cafe across from the women’s shelter. The diner looks empty as we step in. The bell above the door chimes, and the warmth engulfs us.

A middle-aged woman with dark hair steps through the kitchen, her eyes widening with pleasure as she spots Isabella.

“Bella!” She smiles, rushing forward and hugging Isabella. “It’s been a while, kitten.”

“Martha,” Isabella turns. “It’s so good to see you.” She turns and introduces me. “This is…”

Maggie’s eyes instantly shine with mistrust. “Yes, a mutual friend of ours told us you were married.” She gives me a tight smile. “You must be Andrey Belov ?”

Isabella frowns. “For fuck sake, Maggie.” Her eyes flare with anger as realization dawns on her. “Not you, too.” She shakes her head. “Please don’t tell me you’re one of my father’s mafia army.”

Maggie starts laughing, and I notice the big brutes looking through the serving window.

“Bratva!” I guess, and I see Isabella’s eyes widen.

She looks at Maggie questioningly.

“Sorry, sweetie,” Maggie nods and turns to Isabella. “Your grandmother has been very good to us.”

“So you were all helpful because of my grandmother?” I see the hurt flash in Isabella’s eyes.

Anger flares through me, and I want to rip the person’s head off that put that look in her eyes. But I control myself and know I’m outnumbered. Besides, I don’t hurt women, not even Bratva women, unless they shoot first.

“No.” Maggie shakes her head. “Sweetie, we’re all grateful to your grandmother for helping us get out of abusive relationships. When she told us that your father told her you wanted to build a shelter to protect abused women, we all volunteered.”

“Let’s go,” Isabella tells me. “I think we can wait in the alley next to the shelter.”

“Isabella.” Maggie steps in front of her. “Honey, please.” She indicates to a booth. “While we’re all grateful to your grandmother, you, little kitten, are the one to whom we’re loyal.” She glances across the street. “We really are women who needed a shelter like you built for us.”

“Isabella.” I put my hand on the small of her back. “I think we’re safer in here.”

Maggie’s eyes widen in alarm at my words. “What do you need to be safe from?”

Before Isabella can say anything, I answer.

“Come, sit.” Maggie moves us to a booth and gets two menus. “Order something to eat, and we’ll talk.”

Maggie lets us eat, and her cafe makes a fantastic old-fashioned farm-style breakfast. Maggie walks over to us and sits beside Isabella. I see Isabella stiffen and move over.

“That was an amazing breakfast, Maggie,” I compliment.

Maggie nods and looks at me. “So, Belov, are you ready to talk?”

I nod and glance at Isabella. She’s still stiff and angry. “Princess, right now we need all the help we can get and like everyone else in your life, your father didn’t want anyone telling you who you really were.”

Isabella nods as one of the big brutes from the kitchen walks out to take our plates. “Bring two warm apple pies with marshmallow cream,” Maggie orders. He nods and disappears.

For the next twenty minutes we discuss the best route to get Isabella and me to our destination. Maggie squeezes Isabella’s hand. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t tell you everything, kitten.” She smiles.

Isabella nods and hugs Maggie. “Thank you for helping us.”

“Of course,” Maggie says, her eyes meeting mine over Isabella’s head. “I’ll leave the two of you alone.”

Maggie leaves and I slide into the booth next to Isabella. “It’s going to be okay.”

I move a stray lock behind her ear. My heart squeezes in my chest.

“Are you sure you want me to do this?” she whispers, and we lean our foreheads together. “For the first time, I’m petrified. I still think it best to stick together.”

“It’s going to be fine, I promise.” I lift her chin and kiss her. “I can’t continue if I don’t know you’re safe.” I smile reassuringly even though I don’t feel it. “Until I know who we can trust…” I swallow. “This is the only way. Maggie assures us that Temur is the one person we can trust.”

We look across the street and see the shelter being opened. I kiss Isabella again.

“I’d better go,” Isabella gives me a small smile. “Be careful.” She kisses me.

I nod and watch Isabella rush out of the cafe and cross the road. She rings a bell at the shelter. A few minutes later, the door swings open, and the woman who unlocked the place steps out and hugs Isabella.

Before Isabella steps inside, she turns toward me and waves. Frowning, I sip my lukewarm coffee as Isabella disappears inside the building, closing the door behind her. The gesture has a hint of finality to it. I shake it off, and Maggie brings another piece of pie.

When Isabella’s safely in the shelter I take out the burner and send a message to Temur.

Need to talk. I’m at a place called Maggie’s Cafe.

Five minutes later, he responds.

I’ll be there in twenty minutes.

Maggie walks over and hands me a file.

“I printed off those records for you,” Maggies tells me. “More coffee?”

“No thank you, Maggie, I’m fine.”

“Call if you need anything,” she tells me.

“Thanks. Temur is on his way.”

She nods and walks off.

While I’m waiting for him I go over my father’s medical records that Temur somehow managed to get his hands on and Maggie has printed for me.

The initial reports seem routine—notes from his doctors, lab results, and scans. They detail the heart attack he suffered two years ago and the complications that followed. But something feels off. I’ve seen hundreds of medical records in my career, and these don’t add up. The language is too vague, the descriptions too generic, almost as if someone was trying to hide something.

I delve deeper, my eyes narrowing as I come across a scan taken shortly before he was put on life support. It’s a brain scan, and there it is—a shadow on the left side of his brain, right where the hemorrhage supposedly occurred. But the shadow is faint, almost too faint. It’s as if someone had tampered with the image, trying to make it look like a natural bleed but not doing a thorough job.

My pulse quickens as I study the timeline. There’s a gap in the records, a few hours missing between when my father was admitted and when the first scan was taken. It’s a critical window, enough time for someone to have caused the damage that led to his condition.

I continue to sift through the records, finding more inconsistencies. The notes from the attending physician don’t match the progression of symptoms described in the earlier reports. It’s as if the symptoms were too conveniently leading to a diagnosis of a brain hemorrhage, one that would be fatal without immediate intervention—an intervention that never came.

I pause, my hand hovering over the papers, a cold realization settling in. Someone wanted my father dead, and they were meticulous enough to alter his medical records to cover their tracks. But not meticulous enough to fool me.

I’m so engrossed in the reports I don’t even notice someone walking into the diner until I look up and see Temur towering over me.

“Jesus, man!” I growl. “Wear a fucking bell.”

“I think even if I had a gong, you wouldn’t have noticed,” Temur tells me sliding into the booth in front of me. “I see you’re going over your father’s medical records.”

“I agree he was murdered,” I tell Temur. Anger bubbles inside me. “I’d like to get my hands on this fucking attending physician, Doctor Jacobs.”

“Your mother already set the Polar Bear on him,” Temur tells me. “Your mother was the one that ordered me to steal your father’s medical records.”

I look at Temur alarmed. “How do you know so much about what’s going on with my mother?”

“Because I thought you and Konstantin would like to know she was safe,” Temur replies.

“You were the Russian with her yesterday.”

“No.” Temur shakes his head. “That was another Russian, and believe me, she’s as safe as she can be with him.” He leans forward.

It suddenly dawns on me who he’s speaking about and I don’t know whether to be alarmed, suspicious, or grateful as I’m not sure who to trust at the moment.

“Great, so for all I know you and your double-crossing boss are now holding my mother for ransom.”

“I can leave!” Temur starts to slide from the booth. “You can face your brother on your own but I have strict orders to protect Isabella at all costs!“ His eyes blaze a warning at me.

“That’s what I needed to discuss with you,” I tell him. “I need you to protect Isabella while I try find whoever the fuck this messenger is and why my brother, Marco, and my father have been so obssessed and scared of what it might be.”

“I hope you’ll at least take Sasha with you,” Temur says. “He’s here in Toronto along with Olga, Urie’s fiancée.”

Alarm zings through me. “Why is Olga here?”

“She’s with Sasha.” Temur eyes narrow. “I believe Olga is fully trained and she’s of similar height, build, and coloring as Isabella. She’s also pregnant like Isabella… “

My eyes widen when I realize what he’s implying. “No fucking way am I going to use Olga and get her to pretend to be Isabella.”

“I should be the one to decide that!” Olga’s voice has my head snapping around. “I want to do this.“ Her eyes blaze. “I’ve already got my father’s backing for this.”

“She’s right, young Pakhan,” Sasha appears behind her. “I’ll be there to protect you both and it will lead whoever’s after you away from where Isabella really is.”

I look at the three of them and realize I’m outnumbered and that it is a good idea. I glance out the window to the women’s shelter and my heart jolts thinking that Isabella and my children are in there. But at least they are safe for now.