I didn’t show a single emotion on my face. “But?”
“How can we trust you?” Qiang asked. “This woman lived in your house for years and you never once suspected her.”
I didn’t appreciate being ganged up on. Behind me, Roman shifted from foot to foot, taking offense to his tone.
“Careful with how you address me, Qiang,” I warned. “If I recall, none of you have had much luck against Tatiana either. It seems she has outsmarted us all.”
They shifted in their seats at the implication they had been beaten. By a woman, no less.
“Konstantin is correct,” Giovanni said, tone factual. “None of us have gotten any closer to Tatiana in the past three years. This is the only viable plan we have been offered.”
“So we’re all gonna work together?” Thomas Sr sounded doubtful. “We’ve been at each other’s throats for years.”
“We don’t need to hold hands and sing kumbaya, Thomas. I just need to know I will have your support when the time comes.”
Mitsuzo looked thoughtful. “And this contact you have on the inside…they can be trusted?”
“Yes.”
“What information have they gathered so far?”
“The size and strength of Tatiana’s organization. Currently, they are trying to discover all the locations where Tatiana has a stronghold, if you will.” I jerked my chin and Artyom stepped forward. He presented documents to all the bosses. “Numbers, names, everything we currently know.”
Their eyes scanned over the papers, eyebrows raising and furrowing. We all knew that sharing this much information was a sign of trust.
“This is more information than we have gathered in three years,” Giovanni said. “Who is your contact?”
“They’re my concern.”
His blue eyes scanned my face before going back to the document.
“What do you need from us?” Mitsuzo said. The other mob bosses looked to him in faint surprise, but none interrupted.
I bowed my head in thanks to the Oyabun. “Your men and weapons. Tatiana has many large strongholds spread over New York. Taking down just one won’t do much damage; we need to cut off all the heads.”
“What sort of warfare should we be expecting?” Qiang asked.
“Bloody.”
The bosses nodded, their cunning minds churning. I could almost hear the cogs they were all thinking so loudly.
“She murdered women outside of New York. Have you contacted the other bosses?”
“No. I don’t want to show the image that the New York families need help from outsiders when it comes to protecting our own territories.”
They all nodded in agreement.
“It is settled?”
Looks were shared, lips were pursed.
Giovanni rose to his feet and held out his hand. “You will have my support when the time comes to destroy that woman.”
I shook his hand, cementing the deal. “I look forward to it.”
The other three bosses also agreed, shaking hands. Weapons and law enforcement were discussed but I soothed their fears.
“Leave law enforcement to me,” I said. “It’s an election year.”
Chuckles filled the room.
As I went to leave, I overheard Mitsuzo and Giovanni making plans for dinner. Everyone’s ears pricked but no one was surprised. Mitsuzo had a granddaughter; Giovanni had a son. They had much to discuss.
Dmitri was waiting by the car downstairs, dressed head to toe in black. It made him look all the more terrifying. “He’s in there.”
I didn’t ask who.
I slipped into the car, adjusting my sleeves. “Agent Kavinsky, thank you for agreeing to meet me.”
The old agent was feigning calm quite well. He was dressed in a cotton blue button-down, with khaki slacks and worn-out shoes. I felt my lip curl at the sight of his outfit–did no one ever warn him that the world decides who is powerful based on what you wear?
If I had shown up to a meeting with the mob bosses of New York in Kavinsky’s outfit, they would’ve made a game of hunting me down and tossing me through the window.
“I didn’t agree,” he replied, voice raspy. “Your man grabbed me off the street. I lost my bagel.”
“I will compensate you for your breakfast,” I mused. “Methods aside, there is an urgent matter we need to discuss.”
Kavinsky’s bushy brows pressed together. “You should’ve made an appointment with my office.”
That made me laugh. One call to his office and I would be arrested. “An FBI Agent with a sense of humor. I never thought I would see the day.”
He grumbled under his breath but was wise enough to ask, “What did you want to speak to me about?”
“I have a gift for you.”
“A gift from a Russian mobster,” he mocked. “What could go wrong?”
I arched an eyebrow. “I do hope we can speak to each other without disrespect, Stephen. I’ve never been fond of men who hurl insults like rocks and then act surprised when their intended target comes at them with a knife.”
Kavinsky did a good job at hiding his gulp.
“Do you want to know about the gift or not?”
“Go on.” He looked wary. Good. That meant he wasn’t a total idiot.
I glanced out the window, spotting my men guarding the car. They didn’t know the actual conversation happened within the confines of the vehicle. Elena and I had been careful about revealing the entirety of the plan we had created in the darkness of our son’s room.
“I can offer you Tatiana Gribkov. All you need is to be exactly where I tell you, when I tell you.”
His interest piqued. Of course, it did. “She’s on the Most Wanted List.”
“I’m aware.”
“But then so are you.”
I smiled. “I imagine most of my acquaintances are. We do run in different crowds, Stephen.”
“You can say that again,” he muttered. “Why are you coming to me with this? What makes you think I won’t turn you in?”
“Because the agency’s trying to retire you.”
Surprise flickered in his eyes.
“I can do research, as well, Agent Kavinsky. Your bosses want fresh blood–a senior agent doesn’t hold the necessary appeal it once did. But if you brought in Tatiana Gribkov, your job would be safe. You might even get a promotion.” My lips quirked at the sight of his tight expression. “But then you already knew that, didn’t you. That was the first thought you had when I said her name.”
He didn’t deny it. I respected him a little bit more for that. People who denied their ambition were tiresome.
“How do I know I can trust you?”
“The same way I know I can trust you. You don’t.”
Kavinsky ran his eyes over my expression, trying to make out any tell he could find. He was out of luck. I had been outsmarting government agents since before my voice dropped.
“You have a lead on where Tatiana is?”
“I do.”
“What’s the timeframe?”
“The end of the week.”
He sat up. “I can’t pull a team together and convince my bosses before Friday.”
“Find a way past all that bureaucracy, Stephen, if you want to keep your job,” I reminded him. “You’re on my time now. Not your own.”