“We’ll be right back.” I limped his way. My leg was feeling better, but it still hurt a little when I leaned on it.
Max shut the door behind him and kept his voice down, so she wouldn’t hear us. “Valentina leaves and then motherfuckers come in shooting the place? I don’t know about that.”
“Would it be that simple?”
“She might have something to do with it. She’s not even worried about what happened.”
I let out a long breath. “That doesn’t mean she’s guilty. It could mean that shit is always happening around her. Personally, since Kaz has come into our life, there has been a bomb explosion, Shower Posse people dead in my apartment, my revelation of being a serial killer, and a luxury flight with hundreds of fighters following us. Since we’ve been here…it’s been all types of crazy shit—POW prisoners and shit.”
“POW prisoners?”
“That guy in the shackles. And what was up with the mother and child?”
“I don’t remember a mother and child, but I did see tons of girls strolling the property that looked like hookers.”
“How do hookers even relate to what we’re talking about?”
“They were sexy as fuck.”
“Either way, I’m thinking the idea of a normal day to Valentina deals with blood and death.”
“But what about the children’s book?”
My head pounded and ached. “What?”
“The guys were in black, red, and white, same as the riders in the children’s book.”
It could’ve been a coincidence, but the one thing I learned about Kaz was that there was no such thing.
“It could be a meaningful coincidence. So, what do we do? This is no longer Chinatown.”
“No, the hell it is not.”
I leaned against the sink. “If we don’t go, then what? We stay in the room until Kaz decides what he’ll tell us.”
“Or go with her, and have her kill us?”
“You think she’s trying to kill us?” I shook my head. “What’s the point? I’m not in the way of anyone killing Kaz. Those men showed that tonight. They shot X…they…tried to get Kaz.”
“Breathe, Em.”
I hugged myself and realized I’d been shaking. “I need a drink and some fresh air.”
“You want to go with Valentina behind your Russian’s back?”
“It’s his sister. He should be fine with it.”
“Unless she’s helping Sasha go after her own brother.”
“That’s another good reason why we should go with her.” I rose from the sink. “If she is behind this, I’m going to fucking slice her pretty throat.”
“That’s your sister-in-law you’re talking about.”
“Very funny.”
He wiped his face. “I guess we’re going to Prague. If your Russian comes after us, you deal with him.”
“Don’t worry about that.” I limped away. “I’m definitely going to have a conversation with him soon.”
“Alright, Em. This is Chinatown without the killing.”
“This isn’t Chinatown. This is fucking Dante’s Inferno without the poetry.”
“I don’t remember that job.”
“It wasn’t one.”
“Then why the fuck you bring it up for?” Max paced, completely on edge. “Did you know that Valentina has a baby?”
“Kazimir talked about his new baby niece.”
“No one knows who the father is.”
“That may relate or not.” I sighed. “Look, I said it myself that we must stay together and not trust anyone. I get what you’re saying about Valentina, but I don’t want to sit in this room and wait. Who knows when Kaz will finish with that guy and if he’ll tell me everything that’s going on?”
“Okay.” Max walked over to the sink, bent over it, turned it on, washed his face, and turned the faucet off. Silence filled the space. After a few seconds, he stared at me in the mirror. “I say we go with Valentina, but…she might be trying to kill us.”
“If that’s true, then we’ll kill her first. If not and she’s our friend, then we get information and protect her.”
“What do you think about her so far?”
“She’s hiding something, but we’re so far behind in this world. It might not have anything to do with us.”
Max shook the water off his hands and then wiped them on his pants. “Fuck it. Let’s get drunk and try not to die.”
“And X?” My voice came a little shaky.
“We’ll get him a drink too. He’ll love a bottle of something good on our flight to Moscow.” He reached out to touch me and then stopped himself. “Em…”
I was scared, but I tried not to show it. “Yes?”
“Everything is going to be okay.”
“If X dies, then it was my fault, just like Kennedy.”
“No. If X died, he did so with a smile. You took him from a graffiti-covered bus in an alleyway to far across the world. Before those shooters came, he was laughing, loving life, and talking about puppets.”
The weight of the world lay heavy on my shoulders. Pain twisted my heart.
I rose from the sink. “Let’s go.”
Ten
Kazimir
The two men sat on the floor. Neither shook or showed fear. I didn’t recognize them. They were Russian, and most likely Moldovan. I’d spent some time in Moldova. It was in Eastern Europe and had been part of the former Soviet republic. It was full of varied terrain including forests, rocky hills, and vineyards. The area had some of the best wines and largest cellars. Unfortunately, the area also had a special brand of assassin.
I spoke in Moldovan. “Who are you?”
They looked up at me, but neither said anything.
I signaled at my man. “Get me a couple of sharp items. These two need motivation.”
They exchanged looks.
I returned to speaking in Moldovan as someone gave me a hand saw. “You know you’ll die tonight. You came into my uncle’s home. You shot him and others. Ruined my dinner. These are all things that will end your life.”
I walked up to them.
They didn’t crouch or inch away. They’d been prepared to die, which meant they had a purpose. They weren’t interested in saving themselves, but there was something that was on the line.
You may not want to save your lives, but there’s someone you want to save.
“You know you’ll die, so that won’t be my threat.” I stopped a foot in front of them. “I think our discussion should be how long, before you die. Don’t you agree?”
One of them trembled, understanding where I was going. A sound came from behind me. A few seconds later, a nurse stood on my side, scared and shaking. She rolled in two IV units and had a bag with several other items.
I smiled at her. “Thank you for your services this evening.”
Her bottom lip quivered.
I returned to the men. “This is a nice woman. She’s an amazing nurse. She’s going to keep you alive just in case I come close to killing you. What I plan on doing is cutting and breaking, and then she will sew and mend. I’ll have a snack during that time, and then I’ll return and cut and break some more, and she’ll fix that too.”