There was already another car waiting. One of the soldiers had brought it at Terrance’s request. I sat in the passenger seat as he drove, and I looked through the file. Pulling out my cell phone, I took a snapshot and sent it to my main computer guy, Edmund. He worked at the casino. He could crack any code and find all the dirt that was needed. He had a thing with numbers as well. I made sure he was protected. He was a good guy.
He used to be part of the Italian mafia, but because of his slender frame and the fact he faints at the sight of blood, they tried to kill him. I found him, killed the men who were about to take the final shot, rescued him, and he’d been loyal to me ever since.
Within minutes, my cell phone rang.
“What do you have?” I asked.
“Okay, so this guy makes next to nothing as a maitre d’ at one of your restaurants. However, an hour ago, fifty thousand dollars has just been wired into his account, but this is where it gets interesting. The wire comes from Oleg Pavlov’s territory, Mr. Belov. Someone in his territory paid for him to do something.”
I know exactly what he paid for.
“I want you to run a check.” I give him Bethany’s name and Edmund hangs up after he says, “On it.”
I press my cell phone against my lips. I need to call Ivan but I don’t have all the facts yet.
Terrance pulls up at an apartment building that had seen many fucking better days. It’s crumbling. Men and women are on street corners. The scent of poverty is heavy in the air. I’d lived in part of this world long ago.
Climbing out of the car, the men notice me, recognize me, and scatter. This is what the Volkov do. They instill fear. It didn’t matter the gang, they knew we had more power. Usually, it was only men with little dicks who wanted to prove a point or thought they could overthrow our power. None of them were here today.
Stepping up to the building, I tilt my head back. Marcus had made a very bad decision. Entering the building, I notice the elevator isn’t working. Not that I’m surprised. In places like this, elevators were always the first things to go. Diapers, used condoms, needles, dollies, and teddy bears decorated the stairs. The stench of piss and shit were heavy in the air. It was a smell I’d not encountered for some time, and it made me sick to my stomach, but I kept moving.
Marcus Knight lived on the fifth floor, and I had to wonder if Adelaide would still mark the area she could or couldn’t move to. I hadn’t gotten the floors cleaned in my penthouse. I rather liked the line she had given me.
We got to the fifth floor and there was no one around. Arriving at Marcus’s door, I see it’s partially open and someone is inside. I smiled. I couldn’t help it. Pressing the door open, I see Marcus scrambling around his apartment. He doesn’t notice me and I watch him. This man helped to nearly kill my wife. I stare at his body and all I want to do is hear him scream. In a place like this, no one would report it.
“Now, is that any way to pack a suitcase?” I said, alerting him to my presence.
Marcus spins around, catches sight of me, and literally pisses himself. He drops to the floor, hands over his head.
“Please don’t kill me. Please. Please.”
The apartment is a shithole. Mold is growing on the walls, and there appear to be old stains from a water leak. One of the windows has been smashed. This is not a place to be lived in. However, it does give me an idea for a business venture.
Going inside the apartment, Terrance grabs Marcus and slams him into one of the wooden chairs, but it was old and not designed to hold too much pressure, and it collapsed. Eventually, Terrance pushes him into a threadbare chair and holds him down.
I stare at Marcus. He’s weak, and he’s pissed himself again. The scent coming off him suggests that he might have also shit himself, which is so fucking nasty. I’m used to this reaction, though. He’s guilty. He knows what he’s done.
My cell phone rings and I see it’s from the casino.
“Any news?” I asked.
“Bethany took a flight over two weeks ago, and other than landing in Pavlov territory, no one else has seen her.”
“Thanks.”
So there is a connection. What I don’t know for sure is who reached out to who. The Evil Savages didn’t help put a hit on my wife. That was all Bethany. She would have met Oleg because of me.
All the brigadiers were at a function. Adelaide hadn’t met them all yet because Ivan had changed my wife after Bethany had been introduced to them.
Now I’m pissed off. I should have killed Bethany. This is what we needed, though. Oleg was no longer loyal to Ivan. That piece of shit was going to die.
I needed to contact Ivan. This is where it got a little trickier. Ivan wasn’t always easy to get ahold of. He might have heard about the attack on the restaurant. He had spies everywhere. I called his number. Nothing.
Marcus had started to beg for forgiveness and even prayed to whatever would help him. In the end, I had no choice but to call Slavik.
“What do you want?”
“I need Ivan.” I didn’t tell him about Oleg or give any details. Ivan hadn’t given me the green light to alert other brigadiers to what we had discovered.
“Hold on,” Slavik said.
I heard movement and then minutes later Slavik hung up. I didn’t have to wait long before Ivan rang my cell. He was in Slavik’s territory. I could only guess he was besotted with the little girl they’d had not long ago.
When Adelaide eventually gives birth to our child, I don’t want Ivan to start dropping by for more random visits. Not that I had anything to hide from him. I never did.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
I give him a rundown of everything that happened, from the attack to Bethany’s last known whereabouts, to the man in front of me.
“Put me on speakerphone and question him. I’ll remain silent,” Ivan said.
This is fucking news to me. Ivan can never be silent. He’s the kind of man who always has to get involved. I put him on speaker and hand my cell phone to Terrance.
“Now, Marcus, you want to live, right? To get to use that fifty grand.”
“Please, please, please, I don’t … I don’t … I was told that if you ever came into the restaurant I was to call this number and tell them exactly where you were.” Marcus started to sob. “She told me it would change my life.”
“A woman told you?” I asked.