“I—” Rytas smiles widely at seeing Katya in the flesh. She’s not often here, so this must be a treat for him. “Well, well, Katya. I had not realized you would be here today. What a pleasant surprise this is.”
“What a pleasant surprise indeed. I heard you were here early yesterday. Good, but don’t think you can go back to being late. Inconveniencing me, or my men is something that won’t be tolerated.” Katya makes her power evident in her voice, glaring at the man who brings in billions. She will have no problem casting him aside and finding someone who wants his position. She’s that type of woman, the one who will cut someone off at the knees.
“Understood. Kronid, where is your lovely woman? Is she not here?” Rytas goes from speaking to Katya, to me.
My stomach clenches with rage at the audacity he has, speaking about her after what he made us do last night. Fuck, I should’ve shot him between the eyes . . . but he could’ve killed her before I even had the chance.
“Woman, what woman?” Katya snaps in my direction, her accent coming through thick as ever. Since living in America for many years it’s mainly muted, but every now and again it comes through like this, usually when she’s angry.
“His woman, of course.” Rytas chuckles, darting his eyes between Katya and myself.
“He’s speaking about Dema. We’ve been seeing one another for a while,” I say to her, telling the first lie I ever have to this woman. I was warned to never tell a lie to Katya, but here I am, unable to turn back now I continue on. “She witnessed something she shouldn’t have last night after I asked her to stock the stations upstairs. Rytas here was going to kill her, and so he required proof we were together.”
“Imagine my surprise when I saw the blood dripping down her leg. He was with a woman and yet never fucked her. Oh, how men like this one do not exist where I am from!” Rytas laughs loudly and Katya immediately shifts her eyes over to him.
“Unlike you and your country we have good men here. Men who wait for when their woman is ready.”
“She was waiting until marriage,” I say, digging myself deeper in the hole.
“What a good woman she is. She’ll make a good wife for you. But where is her ring? I haven’t seen a ring on her finger,” Katya’s quick to respond, smiling and her accent thick. She’s like any other woman, excited to hear news of relationships, and all of that.
“I haven’t proposed yet, Katya. I’m trying to find the right ring for her, but so far nothing’s come up.” Fuck, I’m digging myself in deeper and deeper.
With a wave of her hand, she smiles brighter and I spot Slasher grin and put his hand over his face to hide his smile. “Oh don’t worry about it. I have a friend who’s a jeweler. I’ll help you find the perfect ring for Dema. A girl like her deserves all her dreams to come true. Slasher, call Miroslav. Tell him we need a meeting sometime later this month when I’m back in Russia, okay?”
“Yes, dear,” Slasher chuckles, pulling his phone out he walks to the farthest side of the room and goes to make the call.
“She will say nothing because she is family, so, why did you have him fuck her in front of you? That is what happened, yes?” Katya’s accent comes out thicker and she speaks like many Russian women do when they’re speaking English.
“Yes, but you must realize I did not know if it was a lie.” Rytas makes a pitiful excuse.
“Kronid told you he was with her and yet you what, assumed he was lying about such a thing?”
“He had a gun to her head too,” I add in, crossing my arms over my chest.
“You did what?!” Katya screams, charging up to Rytas she pulls out her gun, points it to his foot and fires. “Why the fuck would you do such a thing, you slimy idiot?! He told you she was with him, and yet you doubt one of my men. I could kill you right now, you easily replaceable scum. There are many men who want to be in your position, working with the best of the best. Get out of my sight,” Katya hisses, glaring down at the man who’s now holding onto his bloody foot.
“Michail, ensure our dear friend leaves.”
“Wait! I have business to discuss,” Rytas speaks up, while Katya heads toward the door that leads to the stairwell.
She stops in the doorframe and looks back. “Then you can discuss it with Michail, Kronid follow me. I need you to do something.”
I do as Katya says and follow her as well as her husband up to the level the tattoo parlor is on. “What do you need from me?” I ask, and Slasher laughs at my question.
“She wants you to talk to Pippa, considering she’s always liked you. She thinks Pippa’s refusing to listen to us because we’re her parents,” Slasher chimes in, and I nod in agreement. Children never want to listen to their parents. It’s a fact of life.
“I’ll speak to her, if I can. Where is she?”
“Outside in the SUV with her siblings and two of our men.” Katya’s quick to explain. We turn the corner and I see a flash of caramel colored hair near the breakroom, and we don’t have anyone with caramel colored hair. The only person I know is Pippa.
“You go on out and I’ll meet you there in a minute. There’s something I need to handle,” I explain and Katya heads on with Slasher at her side.
Walking to the break room, I lean against the door frame and stare at the rebellious teenager. “Want to tell me how you managed to sneak out of that SUV with two of your parents’ men on guard?”
Pippa turns around with a devious smile and a terrifying sparkle in her eye. “It’s not that hard when your siblings are younger and start screaming on command. I have them trained well.”
“Your mother’s going to have a heart attack when she realizes you’re not in the vehicle.”
“She has a heart attack if I’m not in the exact room back in Tennessee that I say I’m going to be in. For fuck’s sake, if I go take a piss, she has the men on high alert.”
“Language, young lady,” I grumble, shaking my head at this one. If I were her parent, I’d be freaking out too.
“My dad doesn’t give a flying bologna though, he just tells me to ease up on things. Why can’t Mom be more like Dad?”
I shrug, knowing a bit more about Katya’s past then Slasher’s. Katya’s been through some shit, some seriously fucked up shit. “She . . . I probably shouldn’t be saying this, but you’re almost an adult now and I’m sure your mom will tell you when she’s ready, but she’s been through some stuff, Pip’, and I’m certain she doesn’t want you to go through anything like she did, so that’s why she’s worried, probably.”
“Ya know, it’s really crappy you tell me to mind my language and then say I’m almost an adult.” Pippa cocks a brow, and dammit, the kid’s got me.
I sigh and motion for the girl to come with me. “C’mon, we don’t want your mom to freak out. Just try to wait until you’re eighteen about the tattoo, and I promise I’ll get Dema to do something really sick on you, but fuck, just wait another year.”
“But it’s another year,” Pippa groans, like it’s the most unbearable thing in the entire world.