Total pages in book: 31
Estimated words: 28975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 145(@200wpm)___ 116(@250wpm)___ 97(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 28975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 145(@200wpm)___ 116(@250wpm)___ 97(@300wpm)
He saw his words were angering Dante.
“So, you tell me, what would you like first, to have every part of your body cut away, or watch your second son die?” he asked.
Dante stared right back at him, and then he smiled. It was not the reaction he was expecting. “Do you really think she is safe?” Dante asked.
Bogdan stared at him. “My wife is always safe.”
“I thought you would put the pieces together, but I guess not. You know I don’t have what it takes to completely annihilate the entire family line of my late wife,” Dante said. “For one, I just didn’t give a shit, but he came to me with the perfect plan to get all of my wife’s fortune. She wouldn’t just hand it over, but with time, we’d be able to take most of it. I don’t know why Evelyn didn’t give it all to him, but … she was close. She died before he could finally take it all. He did make sure she wrote that final letter. Not what I was expecting, but I should have known he would stab me in the back.” Dante smiled. “I can imagine he is about to finish the job he started. I tried to convince you to kill my daughter, but you failed. You decided to keep her. He has been throwing you off the scent ever since, and I guess you’re about to pay that price.”
Chapter Ten
Anastasia was so glad to see Gustov. The moment she saw him, she threw her arms around him and hugged him, like she always did.
“It is so good to see you. It feels like it has been too long.” She pulled away, but only long enough to hug him back, this time even tighter.
She knew Bogdan was busy, and he wanted her to stay inside the apartment at all times.
Gustov closed the door and it was strange how he nudged her into the apartment building. In fact, she was finding his behavior a little strange.
How did he know where to find me?
She smiled at him and he nodded his head. “I know, it’s why I came to see you. I thought it had been too long and I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“I’m fine. I mean, it has been a lot to take in with being married and that letter, and you know, everything.”
“Your mother would have been very proud of you.”
She nodded her head. “Do you want a drink? Tea? Coffee?”
“Coffee, please, black.”
She brushed past him, and in the back of her mind, she couldn’t help but wonder why Bogdan’s men hadn’t alerted her to Gustov’s arrival.
Stepping into the kitchen, she turned the kettle on, and then pulled out her cell phone, trying to see if there was a text from her husband. There was not.
Maybe this was a surprise. Bogdan did like to give her surprises.
“What are you doing?” Gustov asked.
She couldn’t help but jump, holding her cell phone in her hand. “Just seeing if Bogdan had called or texted.”
“Has he?”
“No, nothing.” She pocketed her cell phone and reached for the cupboard above the sink.
She had that feeling in her gut. The same one Gustov had told her to never ignore, and it was swirling inside her. “Has the threat been eliminated?” Anastasia asked.
“Huh?”
“You know, the reason you were on the run and couldn’t stay before. My father, remember?”
“Oh, yeah, right, your father is not aware of my current location.”
She watched him as he looked around the apartment. Gustov had never cared for material things, at least according to her mother, and her own memories, yet she saw him touching certain items. Vases she knew cost a lot of money. In fact, the few items he admired, including some of the artwork, were the most expensive in Bogdan’s apartment. Bogdan himself had told her he liked nice things.
“You know, I cannot remember how you and Mom met,” Anastasia said. “I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately, and I know she adored you.”
“We met through a mutual friend.”
“Her family? My uncle, my aunt?”
“No, I can’t remember who it was.”
She glanced over to Gustov, and he’d gone out of sight of the kitchen, however, he didn’t know that the reflection of the microwave gave away his position, and she saw him loading up his gun. Her instincts were kicking in.
Since she and Bogdan had admitted their feelings to one another, he’d also made her aware of the weapons that covered each of his property. No room was left bare, and all she had to do was slide open the drawer, lift the latch, and there was a small handgun. Her hands shook as she reached for it. She checked to see if it was loaded, which it was, and the safety was off.
What the hell was happening?
The kettle whistled, and she nearly jerked back.