“Six weeks ago.” That was it? It felt like an eternity. So much had happened.
“Sorry,” she murmured. She gestured to the bed. “You can sit down.”
“Thanks.” I played with the zipper on the makeup bag once I’d taken a seat. “It’s fine. I’m working through it.”
She didn’t respond as she came back to the bed and continued to pack.
I inspected Zoya’s childhood room. It was cute and girly with the pink flowers painted onto the wall. The massive four-poster bed accompanied princess mesh hanging from the ceiling. Then, I spotted the gun taped underneath her nightstand. A Bratva princess, through and through.
“Do you need help with anything?”
Her hands paused. “You could convince my brother to leave me out of this.”
“That’s exactly why I suggested you go to Philly for the time being,” I said. “Regardless of howyouthink you’re not involved, you are simply because you’re Konstantin’s sister and he’s head of the Bratva. As much as we wish it could be different, the only thing you can do right now is play it smart. And get stronger.”
“Get stronger?”
I nodded. “I’ve been in your shoes. I still am. As women in the criminal underworld, we are targets unless we prove otherwise. That’s what I’m trying to do right now, by taking down Max Volpe and building my own empire in his place.”
She cocked her hip to the side. “What does this have to do with me?”
“We’re at war whether you like it or not. You’re a target. You have to get strong enough to make them regret coming after you.”
Her lips thinned. A little strand of blonde hair fell across her face when she cocked her head. “And this Fallon woman?”
“Fallon is the most badass woman I’ve ever met. There’s a lot to learn from a woman like that.” I wasn’t just saying that for Zoya’s benefit.Istill wanted to learn so much from her.
She studied me carefully. “Why do you care about me?”
“Because I’m fucking tired of women being used as pawns. We deserve better than that. Don’t you want a future where you’re free to do what makes you happy? Without living in fear?”
Her back straightened again. “Yes.”
“Let Fallon protect you,” I said again. “Come back after this war, ready to take the world by storm.”
I wish my father would have let me get stronger. It didn’t matter now, but it certainly would have helped then. Even if everything would have happened the same, I could have saved Cas some of his injuries. Maybe I could have protected both of us.
But now I wouldn’t let either of us get hurt again.
Finally, she placed both hands on her hips. “All right, fine. But I’m only doing it so I can convince Kostya and Kolya to leave me alone. I can handle myself.”
I laughed. “I like you, Zoya.”
She glanced at me from the corner of her eye, a smile pulling up the corner of her mouth. She zipped up her bag. “I like you, too, Leona.”
“Come on,” I said, standing, and nodding back to the door. “Let’s go back downstairs.”
39
OBI
“Ryu,” I said with a slight raise of my chin. He followed me out of the Makarov’s living room so we could have some privacy. We were essentially finished with our discussion, and Makarov was simply giving orders to his men about finishing things with the rest of the Alacrán Cartel.
“What do you need?”
“We have a contract,” I said, voice low. “Chinese shipping magnate. Zhang.”
It was the same contract that had been sitting in my inbox since we went to LA. I’d emailed back my contact earlier today, confirming that we would do the job and expected payment immediately after completion. Once we finished the job, we’d also secure the shipping routes for the newly acquired arms dealing side of our syndicate.
