Chapter Ten

Midnight, Kramá?”s Villa...

Bogdan didn’t say anything when he was allocated a room on the other side of the Villa from where Zafira would sleep. It did, however, confirm that his suspicions about the Cermaks were right. There was something they were withholding from Zafira.

Checking his watch for the umpteenth time, he paced the room. He hadn’t been sitting around idly waiting for Zafira and Triska to finish giggling over the olden days. Instead, he had excused himself early to contact Vanya to do some dark web background checks on the couple.

“Watch your back, Comare. Triska might be a dear old friend, but they are the ones whose betrayal can cut the deepest,” he grumbled as he kept an eye on the patio where the two women were still happily drinking wine and reminiscing. Well, Triska might be having fun and getting drunk, but he knew Zafira well enough to know she would be fishing in-between with fine-tuned expertise for information Artem Melnyk might have divulged during interrogation.

Interpol was known for using brutal techniques if they believed they had just cause. Since the Pakhan of the Solntvesoka Bratva was classified as one of the most dangerous criminals in the world, anyone thought to have an association with him would be put through the wringer. Artem Melnyk was a strong man, and Bogdan didn’t believe he would give in to torture.

“Except everyone has a price,” he muttered as he leaned against the door. If the agent in charge had done his or her homework on the kind of life Artem lived, all it would take to make him spill the beans on other Bratva leaders would be a coffer full of cash and full exoneration from being prosecuted in the future.

“The cherry on top would be that they could very well go that far,” Bogdan mused out loud.

Like with many of the Bratva families, leaders kept their identities hidden from the outside world. The Guzuns were a prime example of how successfully they could live a double life. No one, apart from the selected few, knew what the Pakhan of the Solntvesoka Bratva looked like or what his real name was.

“In searching for accolades that they finally made leeway in catching one of the most dangerous mobsters in the world, the stupid assholes might just hand the very man carte blanche without even realizing they had him right under their noses.”

The buzz of the cell phone drew his attention from his pondering. With eyes steadfast on the two women, he answered on the second ring.

“What did you find?” he said without preamble.

“If I wasn’t so pissed off at what I’m looking at, I’d give you a proper head scrubbing for answering the phone in such a rude manner, Tat?.”

“Vanya, now isn’t the time for niceties. If your mother is in danger, I—”

“You’re right, but do remember in the future,” she said sweetly before dragging in a deep breath. “It’s not pretty, and Mom is going to be devastated when she finds out how they’ve been deceiving her all these years. Well, her and my father... actually, all of us. Worse... the people of the Republic of—”

“Enough with the senseless chatter! Start talking, Vanya.” Bogdan might have walked away from Zafira a year ago, but that didn’t mean he cared any less for her, her family, or her safety... especially after the night they had spent together at Senza?ii de Club... but for now, those emotions were securely locked away for further unraveling later. Keeping her alive was now his only priority.

“I’m afraid there are some dark forces underfoot in the Cermak household, Tat?. I suggest you get my mother out of there immediately. From what I uncovered, I believe they’re not to be trusted. My gut instinct tells me Mom’s life is in danger.”

“Why? Spit it out, printsessa. I need to know what I’m up against.”

Bogdan’s jaw locked as Vanya began talking. His hands curled into fists as he considered how to break the news to Zafira. Though normally slow to anger, betrayal from trusted friends was the one thing guaranteed to ignite his temper. He pictured her reaction—those usually inexpressive eyes widening in disbelief, her lips parting as if to protest before pressing together in denial until, eventually, she would feel the sting of this betrayal as deeply as he did.

Yet convincing her to leave tonight would not be easy, especially since he was the one who had argued so passionately earlier to stay. Of course, that was before he had the information he was now armed with.

“Fucking idiot! I should’ve done due diligence the moment I found out she intended to come here,” he growled through his teeth, anger simmering, but took a deep breath to calm himself. Losing his temper would not help convince Zafira to amend her beliefs about the situation. He had to approach this carefully, appealing to her reason and making her see why they had to leave immediately.

A brief glance out of the window confirmed that the two women had finished their wine sessions since the patio was deserted.

With a grim expression, he checked his weapons, grabbed his backpack, and with determined strides, walked toward the opposite wing where Zafira would be getting ready for bed. Since he had done reconnaissance before retreating to his room, he knew which hallways to avoid where guards were posted. The intent was to leave the premises unseen, without anyone the wiser, including the Cermaks, that they had gone.

“Our room is just around the corner. If you need anything, just holler.”

“Blyad’,” Bogdan cursed as he pressed his body as flat as he could against the wall as Triska’s voice floated toward him. Luckily, she turned in the opposite direction of the hallway from where he attempted to melt into the wall. Releasing the breath he was holding, he didn’t waste any more time, and within moments, he slipped quietly into Zafira’s room.

“What the actual fuck!?” Her voice rose with anger, but she didn’t attempt to cover her naked torso as she spun around to notice him inside her room. “I suggest you get the hell out of here, Rusu, before I kick your ball sack all the way up your ass until you choke on it.”

“Stop the melodrama, Comare. However enticing your naked body might be, sex isn’t why I’m here. Get dressed. We’re getting out of here. Gr?bi?i-v?, Zafira. I want to be in the air out of Chez airspace before Cermak realizes we’re gone.”

“I am not going anywhere. At least not—”

The soft buzz of Bogdan’s phone cut her protest short as he held up his hand and answered the call.

“Yes, Antonio?” He listened intently. “Good. Make sure the plane is warmed up and ready for take-off the moment we arrive.” Bogdan wasn’t idle during the conversation. He quickly stuffed Zafira’s clothes in her carry-on and flung a pair of pants and a sweater on the bed. “Get dressed, except if you want your tits flapping in the air while we run.”

“My tits do not flap, I’ll have you know,” she snapped but surprisingly started getting dressed. A glacial look chilled him on the spot. “For now, since I can sense the urgency in your manner, I will concede and do as you say, but do not think this is the end of it, Rusu. The moment we’re in the car, you better start explaining your actions.”

“Of course.” He headed toward the door. “Oh, for fuck’s sake,” he growled as he looked over his shoulder to find her in front of the mirror. “Leave your hair. No one is going to see you, and I assure you I don’t give a shit whether your perfect coiffure is in place or messy and sexy.”

“As if I give a shit either way,” she flung back but was on his heels when he opened the door.

Bogdan knew he was being a prick and that his attitude toward her had changed since his return, but that had come along with the shift in their relationship. She was no longer the mighty Comare whose heels he clipped wherever she went or stuck to her side like a leech because the love he felt for her demanded closeness.

No, he had dissociated himself from that role and was done being an extra in her life. It was time she realized he was no longer one of the family’s soldiers who danced to her tune and admired her for her spunk. He was a man with enough power and money to build his own empire, should he choose to. A Dominant who knew exactly what he wanted. She had already given herself to him... she belonged to him, whether she believed it or not.

“Hmm,” he murmured loud enough for her to hear. “The lady doth protest too much, me thinks.”

“Poshel na khuy, Bogdan Rusu.”

“Fuck you? With pleasure, Ms. Guzun, but it’ll have to wait until we’re in the air. I have no intention of rushing it, so a quickie in the back of the GMC with Antonio watching us in the rearview—”

“You’re on thin ice, Rusu. I’m not some brainless twit, and I refuse to be ridiculed. Once we’re back home, I want you to disappear from my life. If I never see you again, it’ll be too soon.”

“Such contradictory words and actions, Ms. Guzun.”

“Shut the fuck up, you svo lach’, and get us out of here, or did you forget your supposed urgency to leave?”

“I didn’t forget, but at least your constant denial of your attraction and lust for me was entertaining during our escape.”

“I am not attracted to you, and I’m sure as hell not lusting after you.” Zafira climbed into the back seat and glowered at him. “You have become demented, Rusu. Probably because your brain has shriveled with age.” She snorted. “As will your dick if you dare swing it in my direction on the plane.”

“Ah, malen’kaya Comare, that’s the kind of challenge the Dom in me just can’t resist. Very well, now we’re definitely fucking on the plane.”

Zafira slammed the door in his face as he moved to get in next to her. His deep chuckle reverberated through the air as he quickly jogged around and got in.

“Yep,” he stretched out and closed his eyes, settling in for a short power nap as Antonio pulled off. “We’re going to fuck all the way back to Moldova.”