Staring at the rat now, dripping with blood, stinking of piss and shit, I was done. Drawing out my blade, I slid it right across his neck, ending his misery way too soon.
Without a word, I left the warehouse, grabbed my jacket that Leo held, and made my way toward the car. No one said a word to me. They knew not to disturb me during a time like this. Once inside the car, I pulled out my cell phone, typed in the password, and found the security camera app with a view of my penthouse suite.
She still hadn’t kissed me.
I found her within seconds, lying down, her legs dangling across the arms of the sofa, kicking them out. Her hands were pointing up, swaying back and forth, and she was looking so fucking bored. That’s what I wanted-her desperate and hungry. Begging. Adelaide would look so cute on her knees, begging me.
I didn’t turn up the sound but from the way her lips were moving, I could tell she was singing. The temptation to turn the volume up was strong, but I refrained from doing so. Listening to my wife sing would be far too much of a distraction, and I had more business to attend to.
I logged out of the app and ordered Leo to take me to the casino. I needed to make my presence known there first, and to also account for all the log books, while keeping an eye on any potential new faces.
The Feds had a way of appearing randomly. Some of them came to the casino dressed in civilian clothes, but I knew they were there to case the place. To see for themselves if I was prepared at a moment’s notice for a possible invasion. It pissed me off, but again, it was all part of the fun and games.
Leo arrived at the private underground parking. Climbing out of the car, I buttoned up my jacket, which hid the bloodstains. My hands were also tinted with it.
This was a risk, but I always got a thrill out of the prospect of showing who I really was. Getting caught didn’t scare me. There was no way they’d be able to hold my ass for long.
We moved toward the elevator doors together. Typing in my code, I didn’t have to wait for them to open. I stepped inside and pressed down to the basement.
“Terrance sent me a message. Adelaide tried to leave again today. She said you had agreed to it.”
“Did he allow her to leave?” Andrei asked.
“No.”
“Good.”
I knew Leo didn’t approve of my method of dealing with Adelaide. Other brigadiers would have chosen men they trusted to spend time with their wives, to keep them safe, and to keep other men away.
Not me. There was no man I trusted with Adelaide. No one I wanted to leave next to her, day in and day out. She was my wife. No one else would get the pleasure of her company. Not that I spent a whole lot of time with her. I hadn’t granted myself the luxury.
“Sir, can I speak freely?” Leo asked.
“Not about my wife. No.”
“Sir?”
“I’m handling her the best way I know how. If you don’t like it, then you can leave.” Which was a death sentence. Once part of the Bratva, there was no escaping it.
The doors opened and I stepped off. My presence made the room immediately freeze. Men and women, counting piles of cash, doing their job. Glancing over the people, I noted there were no new faces. Everyone here had been working for me for quite some time. They all knew not to fuck with me. Still, it didn’t hurt every now and then to appear, to let them see me.
They had all seen me kill a man. Admittedly, it had been to save them, seeing as he’d brought a gun to this place in the hope of killing me and ending the Bratva, which was so fucking cute. There was no end to Volkov. No way of outing the best man that had ever come to this place.
I’d not been kind to the man who threatened to kill my staff. I’d been a mean motherfucker and they all saw it, and in doing so, they had sworn their loyalty to Ivan. Once I was satisfied nothing was amiss, I left the basement and went to my main office. Leo left me alone long enough to change. I stuffed my clothes into a bag, which I handed to Leo to dispose of.
Rather than leave the casino, I decided to check the basic running of the place. Sitting behind the desk, I logged into the computer, drawing up the emails, and reading through them. There was enough to keep me occupied.
Working my way through each one, the temptation to reach for my cell phone and to see Adelaide was strong, which didn’t bode well for me. Women were a weakness.
Adelaide meant nothing to me. I had no reason to be so … intent on seeing her. I reached for my cell phone, but stopped myself from logging in to see what she was doing. She was just a woman.
My wife.
My still virginal wife.
Gritting my teeth, I tossed the cell phone into my drawer and continued with my work.
As I was about to reach for my cell for the fifth fucking time, my office door opened. I was about to yell at whoever dared enter my office, but I kept my mouth shut as I watched Ivan Volkov enter the room.
After years of being his brigadier, I knew he didn’t want any special greeting. Even though he was the Pakhan, the boss, he never wanted to be treated as such, unless he requested it.
“Hello, Andrei,” Ivan said.
“Volkov.”
“How come you’ve not booked a honeymoon?”
I frowned. “A honeymoon?”
“It’s what new couples enjoy after getting married.” Ivan grabbed my hand and pointed to the band wrapped around my ring finger. I’d picked the ring out. It was silver, plain, and could have been mistaken for anything. “In case you didn’t know, you’re married.”
“I know.”
“So, what about the honeymoon?”
Ivan let go of my hand and I sat back, looking at him. “You’ve come all this way to berate me for dealing with work? I dealt with a rat this morning, who was quite happy to snitch.”
“Ah, yes, but you see, you’ve got a very lovely wife at home.”