Ada closes the box slowly, her hands still lingering over the papers, the photographs, the names. It’s clear she’s already dissecting every bit of information Karpov gave us, but I can see the same storm brewing in her mind that’s swirling in mine.
I’m the first to break the silence. “Alright. We’ve got the address. We’ve got the target. We got out opening, a man with connections to the higher echelons of the organization. Now, how do we make sure Tsepov even wants to talk to us?”
Sawyer leans against the exam table, arms crossed, his expression unreadable. “The way Karpov talked about him, he’s not someone you just walk into a room with. This guy’s playing with fire, and he’s not the type to let anyone get too close without a reason.”
“I know,” I reply, my voice low. “But that’s exactly what we need. We need a reason, something that’ll make him think we’re valuable to him.”
Ada glances up from the box, her face thoughtful. “We don’thave much to work with. We can’t exactly walk into his office and say, ‘Hey, we’ve got nothing but questions.’ He’ll see right through us. Tsepov’s smart, he’s been doing this too long to let some strangers waltz in without knowing who they are and why they’re there.”
“So we need to make him think we’re someone important. We need names of the men above him and information about the fire case,” Sawyer chimes in, his voice sharp. “But how do we do that?”
I take a deep breath, trying to sift through the chaotic swirl of thoughts racing through my head. Tsepov is dangerous. Karpov wasn’t kidding when he said there were rats in the lower ranks of the Bratva. He’s a man who knows how to play the game, but it’s a game where everything has a price, and he’s the one setting the terms. I glance over at Ada. She’s still holding the box, her fingers brushing over the papers inside as if waiting for them to reveal something she’s missed. But I can see the wheels turning in her mind, too.
“We dig,” I say quietly. “We dig until we find something that makes him want to talk. A crack in his armor, something he’s hiding. Maybe it’s a past mistake. Maybe it’s someone he’s trying to protect. Whatever it is, we need to find it.”
Sawyer raises an eyebrow. “And how do you plan on using that without tipping your hand?”
“We don’t push too hard,” I reply, walking over to where Ada sits, eyes scanning the papers in front of her. “We make him think we have something he wants. Something that could make him feel like talking to us is in his best interest.”
Ada’s gaze flickers up to meet mine. She knows what I’m getting at. “You’re thinking we leverage his ambition. He wants to climb the ranks. He wants more power.”
“Exactly, it’s the only thing we know about this man. They are all hungry for power.” I say, a smile tugging at the corners of mymouth. “We make him think we can help him get that and keep his dirty work hidden.”
“Right,” Sawyer mutters, stepping forward, his hands still crossed. “But how do we convince him you’re someone who can help him rise? You’re not exactly Bratva royalty.”
“No,” I agree, my mind already working through the possibilities. “But I can present myself as the bridge. We have something Tsepov needs, and if we play it right, he’ll think we’re the ones with the connections to get him where he wants to go.”
Ada seems to consider this, then nods. “So we need to make him believe we have ties to someone higher up. Someone who’s above him. Someone with the power to open doors.”
I feel the weight of the decision settling on my shoulders. I can’t play this too obviously, can’t give away too much. But I do have one name I can drop. One connection that will be enough to make Tsepov sit up and listen.
“Dominik,” I murmur, barely loud enough for the others to hear. I can feel the shift in the air as soon as I say his name. Ada’s eyes flicker, and Sawyer narrows his gaze, understanding the weight of the mention.
“That’s a dangerous game,” Ada warns, her voice steady but cautious. “You don’t know who this man truly is; you’ve only seen him a couple times. We don’t even know for a 100% sure if he is thePakhannow.”
“I know but he is the only thing I can use, and heisthe rightful heir. I cannot use Aslanov anymore; I don’t know how he is involved and whether he is loyal. He is mentioned in the fire case, so we have to be careful,” I reply, my voice firm. “I’m not asking for loyalty, not from Tsepov. I’m simply offering him a way up instead of a downfall. Tsepov wants to move up, and if he believes I have a connection to someone like Dominik, someone who could help him climb the ranks, he’ll listen. We need to dig deeper. I need something that he wants. In what does he wantmore power? Which branch is he most interested in?”
Sawyer raises an eyebrow. “You think that’ll work?”
“It has to, I just need Tsepov to believe that I know him. That I have access to people who can make things happen.”
Ada shifts in her seat, still considering the plan. “But you’re gambling that Tsepov buys this. He could just as easily call your bluff.”
I meet her gaze, a cold edge creeping into my voice. “Then I’ll have to make sure he doesn’t think it’s a bluff. I’ll show him enough to make him believe. I’ll give him information you can’t find on the internet, we have to separate the common knowledge from the direct one.”
Sawyer cracks his neck, his stance more relaxed now. “Alright. So we need to play this smart. Keep it subtle. Make him think you’ve got what he needs without letting him realize just how much you’re actually controlling.”
“Exactly,” I say. “We make him an offer to climb the ranks in the branch he wants, in return we want information about the fire case and for him to tell us names of higher ranks above him. Those will be our next leads. But we won’t ask those names directly, we need to hope he slips up.”
Ada looks down at the papers again, and I see the gears turning in her mind. I’m not sure she’s fully on board with using Dominik like this, but she understands the risk we’re taking. She knows the game we’re playing.
The steps we take from here will determine everything—whether we make it to the heart of the Bratva, or whether we get buried beneath it.
Time to dig.
Chapter 26
One of the Devil’s Ledgers
