Page 85 of Cold Bastard
As always, the phrase twisted something fearful in her. “And where would that be?”
“I’m a senior accountant at Magnus, Christani, and Zayne.”
The name brought a devilish smile to her lips. “Ah! Of course, I’ve had some dealings with them.”
Instead of appearing resentful, Voronov smiled in agreement. “Yes, and it was fun to see those big bosses squirm.”
Isabel smirked as Gabrielle steered her to the last man.
“And this is Kai Jones.”
Everything in Isabel froze to a stop, her offered hand stopped in mid-air. Her eyes locked with the man sitting opposite her in the booth and wondered if it was a bad joke from the universe. Kai seemed as surprised as she was, which confirmed that it wasn’t premeditated. And the fact that he didn’t offer his hand, was a tell-tale sign that he remembered her quite well also.
As they all took their places in the booth and Gabrielle ordered a round of beers, it gave Isabel the minute she needed to steady herself and focus back on the reason she was here.
It was difficult not looking at him; Kai had changed since she last saw him years ago. His hair was much longer and his body even larger. Only his usual blinding Hawaiian shirts remained. They were awful but suited him too. Isabel believed he was the only man able to pull that look off in the middle of Chicago without being completely ridiculous. Even worse, look sexy doing so.
When the waitress came with the pitchers and glasses, Isabel welcomed the drink. Her system needed the alcohol, and it would give her something to do with her hands. In their current arrangement, Lazarus and Gabrielle were sitting in front of her, with Aleksei to her left and Kai in the middle.
Gabrielle looked around and started. “We called upon your expertise, Izzy, because we have a serious problem.”
Lazarus nodded and continued. “For a couple of years now, we’ve been in the middle of a guerrilla war with our father. To put it mildly, he hates all his sons and is ready to go to extremes to have the upper hand over us, even see us dead if it suits his needs. Not only is he attacking us directly, but he’s also threatening our families and friends. He’s got to be stopped. So far, we’ve been on the receiving line, but we need to find a crack in his armor, a way of attacking him and bringing him down.”
Kai snorted. “Bringing him down is way too soft for him. Not enough in my opinion.”
Isabel turned to him and blinked. She didn’t know he had other brothers. Another thing that surprised her was his anger, so unlike him she remembered. It gave her an additional detail on how dangerous his father was. When they had met all those years ago, they never discussed their past in detail.
Lazarus nodded at his brother. “I agree. But it would have been way too easy to put a bullet in his head. We need another way. It seems that he’s set on staying in Chicago for the time being and making our lives hell. He already attacked two of my brothers, and there’s no way to know who he’ll target next. With Archer, he forced his girlfriend to steal data from two of his buyers. One is a contact list, the other a flash drive with unknown data on it. We believe it’s Russian government contact names.”
Isabel leaned back, her fingers tracing idle patterns on her damp glass. “Normally, if someone is stealing data, it’s often related to impending blackmail.”
The men looked at each other without saying a word. Gabrielle nodded. “And those two men are the only ones we know about. We need to find something on him to have leverage. Purgatory had tried anything and everything so far without success. Lazarus even reached out to his old contacts at MI6 and it’s another dead end.”
“How can I help?” Isabel was at a bit of loss.
“You’re one of the most active members of Chicago’s most influential businesses. And as he decided to stay in Chicago, he will certainly be part of it more and more. You are bound to hear or see something.”
“He’s someone I know? Already in the circle?”
All the men looked at each other again, apart from Kai, whose eyes were only on her.
Aleksei sighed. “He’s a dangerous man, Isabel. By getting involved, there’s always a risk. Personally, I’m against getting another civilian into the mix. It almost cost Zoe her life.”
“If there’s any risk, are you sure Izzy is strong enough?”
Isabel clenched her hands on her lap. Not sure if the others knew of their connection, she preferred to ignore his insult.
It was Gabrielle who saved her. “Isabel is one of the strongest people I know.” Her friend’s confidence made her smile. It was true that Gabrielle was the only one who knew how much she had to grow and fight to get where she was.
“I owe Gabrielle and Beatrice a lot. And it’s clear that what happens to you and your brothers matters to my friend.”
Kai shifted on his seat, but she decided to ignore him.
“So, who do I have to keep an eye on?”
Lazarus’s gaze darkened. “Jamieson Finch.”
Isabel blinked. “You’re kidding me, right? The powerful mogul?”
At their silence, it was obviously the same man. Isabel sighed, sensing impending trouble. So better announce it now. “Well, that won’t be that difficult to get close. He contacted me this morning for an appointment. I see him tomorrow.”
The End
***