NIKOLAI (Her Russian Protector #4) (16 page)

"Girl, show me that ring again!" Lena
practically salivated over the chance to admire Erin's ring. I
found it a bit amusing considering Yuri had already gifted Lena
with more diamonds than most of us would see in a lifetime. "Oh,
Erin," she said with such happiness. "It's perfect. You tell Ivan I
said he did really well."

"I will." A little teary-eyed, she blinked
rapidly and traced the exquisite setting. Perking up, she asked,
"So how is Moscow?"

"Cold," Lena said. "And snowy."

"It's Russia," Benny pointed out.

"It's ridiculous," Lena replied. "But I have to
admit there's something really gorgeous about this place. It's sort
of…stark. In the mornings, everything glistens, and it's really
lovely."

"Should we expect change of address cards
soon?" I teased.

"Hell no," she shot back with a laugh. "This
Texas girl needs her heat and sun and forty-degree winters. Hey,
but speaking of address changes, when do I get to see pictures of
this new house you and Dimitri bought, Benny?"

"Soon." Benny and Dimitri had closed on their
first home together a few days before Christmas. They'd been
planning to purchase one of the lots in the gated community where
Ivan and Erin lived and build a house to spec but they'd stumbled
onto the perfect cul-de-sac house one street over. The house had
been a foreclosure and Dimitri had managed to snap it up at the
auction for a steal.

"Are you making a lot of changes?" Erin
wondered in between nibbles on some snacks she'd brought with her.
"The bones of the house look great. From the outside, at least,"
she added. "It's not very old."

"The house is in great shape," Benny agreed,
"but Dimitri can't stand carpet and I think the pumpkin orange
kitchen is frightening."

"Sergei's crews do fantastic work. You should
get them to bid," Erin suggested. "We were happy with the small
projects they did for us."

"And I'm sure you'll get a family discount,"
Lena chimed in.

"Let's hope. So tell us about these quickie
internships you're doing over there," Benny interjected. "Do you
still feel like opening your own crisis management place is what
you want to do?"

"I'm getting a better feel for it," Lena said.
"Ty and I sort of jumped in feet first when it came to helping
Dimitri get his private security firm out of that tight spot after
what happened with Katya and Jake. We were lucky that everything we
tried worked out fine. Right now, I'm taking lots of notes and
trying to make the best of this opportunity."

"Where are you headed next?" I wanted to live
vicariously through her. "Someplace amazing?"

"If the damn snow stops enough for a runway to
be cleared, we're going to fly to Amsterdam to meet with Yuri's
friend, Niels, and a colleague of his who runs one of Europe's
hottest crisis management firms."

Sitting in the corner of the couch and
surrounded by my friends, I felt some of the lingering fear begin
to dissipate. They all instinctively understood that I didn't want
to sit here and rehash all the gory details of my kidnapping and
abusive treatment. After telling the detectives everything—even
going so far as to sketch everything I remembered about the
warehouse and the faces of the two deceased men who had been
guarding me—and letting them take pictures of my injuries, I didn't
want to talk about what had happened. I needed some time to
recharge my batteries, so to speak.

Proving they were the most amazing friends a
girl could have, they continued to crack jokes and talk about
anything and everything but the kidnapping—and I loved them for
it.

Erin clucked like a mother hen when our Chinese
delivery arrived and I said I wasn’t that hungry. Under her
watchful eye, I found my appetite and ate enough to satisfy her.
She was right, of course. With more food in my belly, I did start
to feel better.

Benny produced some of those sugar bomb
cupcakes that I tried not to eat too often. Tonight, I found I
couldn’t say no. I practically licked the paper wrapper clean to
get the last tasty, decadent, chocolate morsels.

All too soon, Lena had to end her Skype session
and then Benny and Erin had to leave. Dimitri and Ivan had been
patiently waiting in another room while we had our girls' evening.
I assumed they were both concerned with leaving the women they
loved alone with me right now. I didn't blame them. There was no
telling who was trying to hurt me or Nikolai or how far they were
willing to go. I mean, they'd had me kidnapped and were willing to
sell me on the underground sex market!

As I hugged Erin and Benny in the entryway of
Nikolai's house, a stream of men carrying boxes started pouring in
through the front door. Taken aback, I watched them head upstairs
with the boxes. A few of them spoke to Ivan and Dimitri. I noticed
the oh-shit glances between the two friends and figured they knew
something that I didn't. The way they hurriedly whisked Erin and
Benny from the house confirmed my suspicion.

Carrying two big boxes, Sergei brought up the
rear of the human train. I stuck out my foot to stop him. "What's
going on?"

He shifted the heavy weight of the boxes.
"Look, I just do what I'm told, Vivian. If the boss says to go to
your apartment and pack everything up, that's what I
do."

I reeled backward with shock. "That's my stuff?
All of it?" My gaze jumped to the second floor. "Why didn't you
tell me you were going to my apartment?"

"Because I knew you'd get angry with me and I'm
not getting in the middle of whatever is going on here," he
explained.

Unhappy, I crossed my arms but held my tongue.
The person I wanted to yell at for being so impossibly overbearing
wasn't here—but he'd be home soon enough. I hoped for his sake he'd
finally taken one of those pain pills because after I was done with
him he was going to need it.

* * *

Nikolai waited patiently for Lorenzo Guzman to
arrive at the empty airplane hangar. Seated in the backseat of
Kostya's new car, he tried to find a comfortable position for his
aching body. Making conversation, he remarked, "I like this new
car. It's roomy back here."

Kostya eyed him in the rearview mirror. "You
may not like it as much when you see the bill sitting on your
desk."

Nikolai laughed. He wouldn't put it past Kostya
to stick him with the bill for a replacement, even if his insurance
would cover most of the damage to the old car.

Thinking of the damage that Kostya's car had
sustained during the attack forced Nikolai to relive the agonizing
hour of listening to Vivian recount her ordeal to the detectives.
His fingers curled to tight fists as rage saturated every pore in
his body.

Hearing the way they'd stripped her, shocked
her and abused her in that shower had made him want to commit
murder. In some ways, the two guards who had been executed had
gotten off easy. If they'd been found alive, Nikolai didn't know
what he would have done to them. Terrible things…

"Looks like they're here," Kostya sat up
straighter. With his black leather gloves on, he was ready for
trouble. Tonight, Nikolai hoped there would be none of that. Kostya
had arranged security and Nikolai trusted everything would go
well.

Lorenzo's SUV rolled to a stop. The cartel boss
stepped out alone and showed that he was unarmed before approaching
Nikolai's car. Kostya slid out of the front seat, opened the back
passenger door and waited outside the car while the two men had
their talk.

The bright light before the door closed gave
Lorenzo a good look at Nikolai's bruised face. He whistled softly.
"What the hell is the world coming two when a boss isn't safe on
his own streets?"

Nikolai had been wondering the same thing. "It
tells me that a new game is trying to move into town and upset the
balance." He glanced briefly at the Mexican mafioso. "You wouldn't
know anything about that, would you?"

"You think I flew all this way to shoot the
shit, Nikolai?" Lorenzo played with his watch band. "We've worked
together for years. I stay out of your business. You stay out of my
business. Everyone is happy."

"Until someone gets ripped out of a car window
and an innocent woman is kidnapped…"

"I'd be careful calling Romero's girl innocent.
She tried to kill you, after all."

Nikolai's gaze snapped to Lorenzo's profile.
The semi-darkness of the backseat made it difficult for him to read
the man. "What happened back then wasn't her fault. She was just a
child being manipulated by her father—a man who is still on your
payroll."

Lorenzo made a soft sound. "Don't believe
everything you hear."

"I believe what I see and what I can prove.
Would you like to explain to me how a trucking company allied with
your outfit was used to truck trafficked young women from the same
warehouse where my Vivian was being held?"

Now Lorenzo was the one who showed surprised.
"I can't explain that but I have my suspicions."

"And they are?"

"Suspicions I'm keeping to myself until I have
proof," he replied rather cryptically.

Nikolai sighed. "Then what the hell is the
point of this meeting?"

"The Calaveras put a price on Vivian's head.
They think it will draw out Romero. I know it won't but they're not
very smart. Luckily for her, they were motivated by money and the
promise of ongoing business with your outfit. I was able to
tentatively buy the hit contract."

Nikolai digested that bit of information. Now
the reason for Lorenzo's visit was crystal clear. "We don't work
with the Calaveras. That's a long-standing rule."

"Not even to save your girlfriend?"

Lorenzo had him by the balls—and he knew
it.

"What do you want?"

"I need guns."

Nikolai frowned. "What happened to your Middle
Eastern connection? I thought you were getting shipments from
Palestine."

"We were but the situation in Syria has
drastically reduced the availability. I have specific
needs."

And Nikolai had a connection that no one else
could reach. He didn't often step outside the family to conduct
business but Grisha had clamped down on weapon exports a few years
ago. Grisha had sworn it was because of supply problems but Nikolai
hadn't believed it. He'd suspected Grisha was trying to keep
Nikolai's crew from growing too big and successful. Refusing to be
squeezed by his own family, Nikolai had reached out to an old
acquaintance.

"Liam doesn't like working south of the border.
You're a bit too flashy for him."

"Set up a meeting. We'll see what he says after
we talk money."

"I can't make any promises."

"I'll make you one. Get this contract running
for me—and I'll take care of Romero, once and for all."

The offer tempted him greatly.
Despite his black reputation, Nikolai had never been a fan
of
eliminating
problems. He'd always found other ways to work around them.
Sometimes all it took was one good ass whipping to put a man in
line but that wasn't going to work with Romero. The man was a
walking liability. His very existence posed a threat to Vivian's
safety.

"Not if I get to him first," Nikolai calmly
replied.

"You can try," Lorenzo answered, equally as
calm. "Set up the meeting. We'll go from there. I look forward to
many more years of business with you, Nikolai."

His offer made, Lorenzo stepped out of the
backseat, returned to his SUV and left the hangar. Needing some air
and some space to think, Nikolai climbed out of the car and walked
to the open end of the hangar.

For a long time, he simply stared at the
airplanes taking off and landing on the nearby runways. On edge, he
lit up a cigarette and enjoyed the soothing burn in his lungs while
his mind worked the angles and considered the options. Trouble was
coming. He could feel it in his damn bones. There was going to be a
shakeup in the way Houston's underworld worked—and if he wanted to
survive, he had to start thinking bigger. He had to start thinking
about the many maneuvers it would take get him out, keep his crew
safe and keep Vivian alive.

Snuffing out the cigarette, he plucked his
phone from his pocket and dialed Liam's number. It took nearly
seven rings for the Irish arms dealer to finally answer. When he
did, he was panting. Knowing Liam, he'd either been exercising or
fucking. The man did little else.

"Well—if it isn't my long lost Russian friend!
How's the head and the shoulder?"

Nikolai touched the staples in his scalp.
"They'll heal. How are you?"

"Oh, same old shit. Just a different day," he
said with a laugh. "But I know you didn't call to chat. What do you
need? Are you looking to stockpile some steel for a new
war?"

"Not yet," he said. Reluctantly, he finally
admitted, "Lorenzo Guzman wants a sit-down."

"Like fucking hell," Liam snapped. "I don't
work with those men. It's too risky."