Page 3

Arielle

Soft vibrations seeped through my fog of unconsciousness, pulling a tired yawn from me as I felt around my bedstand to put an end to it, not ready to leave the warm embrace of my bed.

Where is my phone? I wondered as the vibrations persisted.

I should really get out of bed. I had a long day ahead, but it was so warm and hard I found myself sinking into its—.

Warm…hard?

My eyes snapped open, and I almost jumped out of my skin when I saw a muscular, veiny arm wrapped around me.

The fog in my head immediately faded as my environment came into focus, and the events of last night came flooding in.

Mikhail and I in the club; Mikhail and I in his house; Mikhail’s lips on mine; Mikhail’s tongue on my clit; Mikhail’s cock buried in my pussy.

I felt my pussy walls clench involuntarily as my consciousness was assaulted by very vivid flashbacks of our night. I traced my lips with my fingertips, feeling the tender, swollen skin tingle. My whole body hummed with pleasure that intensified when he pulled me closer, his warm breath causing goosebumps to form on my neck.

I wish I could stay like this for a while, revel in this feeling, and probably let him send me to cloud nine one last time. It’s been so long since a man touched me like I was a work of art and devoured me like a wild animal, but he just had to be a wanted criminal. As if on cue, the reminder watered down the fire that was slowly licking at my lady parts, bringing me face to face with reality.

With my lust-induced haze out of the way, his arms around me had the same effect as having a snake wrapped around me—cold, unpleasant, and downright disgusting. I couldn’t wait to put a reasonable distance between us.

I was in bed with a criminal. Not just any criminal, a dangerous one, and I was supposed to bring him to justice, not enjoy the feel of his body pressed against mine. I immediately got to work, my heart picking up a dangerous pace as I carefully unwrapped myself from Mikhail’s grip.

His rhythmic snores were a perfect contrast to my erratic heart as I slowly untangled myself from his grasp, replacing myself with a pillow. I pulled on my panties, the only piece of my clothing I could find in his room, and tip-toed to the bathroom, needing to speak with Vivian without one of Mikhail’s cameras getting in our way.

I had counted up to four of them from the moment we stepped into the house. One at the general entrance, another disguised as an artwork in his living room, and one on the corridor leading to his room.

“Is everything okay?” Vivian’s groggy morning voice spilled from the speaker after the second ring.

“It’s all good. I need you to do something for me,” I whispered, making myself comfortable in the water closet.

“Where are you?” I could feel her eyebrows scrunching in concern from here.

“Mikhail’s bathroom, but that’s not important. I need you to contact James for me. Tell him I’ll be needing him to override the CCTVs in my current location, every one of them,” I said, checking out the products in his bathroom. Every little piece of information was important. Something as little as a brand a person frequents can turn out to be a significant giveaway.

“On it,” Vivian replied, and the line went dead.

I peeped from the bathroom, making sure Mikhail was still asleep. He looked so peaceful in his sleep it would be difficult to believe the level of destruction he was capable of. We had gone an extra round after the first one, and while he was admittedly the best lay I’ve had in my life, watching as he slept, pathetically clutching the pillow I placed in his hold, I couldn’t help the feeling of disgust that crawled over me.

While I obviously hated criminals, I had an extra burning hatred for those who were into trafficking. Why would anyone want to hurt children? And he has built his empire and lavish lifestyle on the blood of those children and the deaths he has aided by unlawfully distributing ammunition. I could almost taste the sweet victory that would come after he was dealt with and tucked away. The world would be safer if the likes of him weren’t free and powerful.

It’s one of the reasons I pushed forward despite how dangerous my job was. Knowing I was providing a safer environment for people, especially kids, to thrive in kept me going, especially in tough situations like this one. I thought about the kid somewhere whose life would be spared by my simple act, and the job didn’t seem so daunting.

My phone buzzed with a message from Vivian saying the cameras had been overridden and it was safe for me to come out. I looked ridiculous, sneaking out of his room in nothing but my panties, moving from one corner of the house to another till I completely assembled my clothes, held my shoes by the strap, and got down to business. Mikhail did not strike me as the type to stay in bed till 8 a.m., so the faster I worked and hurled my ass out of his apartment before he woke up, the better for me.

My search started in the living room. I didn’t expect to find much there. People rarely kept anything of importance in their living room, but I’ve been in this work long enough to know most art collectors loved to hide clues in their art. The abstract painting above the elaborate fireplace was the first to catch my eye. It looked like it held lots of secrets with its black and red swirls.

Standing on my tippy toes, I moved the canvas around, straining my ear for movements or clicks. I also pulled it from its hanging position, inspecting the wall behind it, running my fingers around it for buttons and hollow areas.

I repeated the action with nearly all the artwork I could find in the living room and corridor. Rehearsing the perfect explanation I had planned should Mikhail find me in an implicating position. He already knew I was an art lover, making it easy for me to escape suspicions. I could easily say I was observing them, and in the worst-case scenario, he thinks I’m an art thief and has one of his men hurl me out in the same manner they treated the guy from the club.

Whichever way it went, the most important thing was that the situation did not lead him to find out the truth about me. When I had no luck with the artwork and the living room, I slowly progressed to the rooms in the hallway. The first three were what I suspect to be guest rooms with white walls, well-made beds, and empty nightstands and shelves.

The next was an almost empty room, save for a huge table in the middle. I also passed an indoor cinema and gymnasium, and neither held useful information. I was almost giving up when I stumbled into a room that looked like it was both a library and home office, with tall floor-to-ceiling shelves covering the walls and a large mahogany table neatly tucked into the side of the room.

I quietly made my way in, scanning the roof and seams for cameras. The table had a few files scattered on it, like he had been working on them before coming to the club. I hurriedly took pictures of everything I could find. I was slowly running out of time, and I’d figure out what was important when I got home. Making sure everything was returned to the state I found it, I called James to restore the cameras, and I made my way out.

I let out a breath I didn't realize I’d been holding when I was safely out of the building and on my way back to Vivian’s. Snooping around Mikhail’s house had me tense and unnaturally alert. He had this air of chill and darkness that seemed to have soaked into everything he owned, making you feel like he was physically there watching you. Vivian was already waiting on her front porch with a mug of coffee by the time the taxi got to her house.

“How did it go?” she asked, handing me the mug. I took a large gulp, letting out a moan of appreciation when the warm burst of caffeine hit my tastebuds.

“A bit too well. I’m half expecting him to turn up here with a team of security and drag me away.” I followed her into the house, settling into the couch and kicking off my shoes.

Vivian rolled her eyes, getting onto the couch with me. “He won’t. He’s a typical male in his masculine ego. They only see women as weak breeding machines not capable of any harm even though history is littered with hundreds of men meeting their downfall at a woman’s hands.”

“I found these,” I said, showing her the files on my phone. “I took the pictures in a hurry, and I’ve not had the time to go over them. Most of them are corporate jargon. I hope there’s something useful in them. The whole house was practically empty.”

“A man like him probably has a house he takes his one nightstands and associates to and another where he actually runs his business. He has a public image to maintain.” She replied, taking the phone from me and going over the files.

I leaned into my chair as the events of last night washed over me. I could still feel his fingers digging into my hips, and my lips were partially bruised by his harsh kisses. I was certain he left bruises and hickeys all over me, and I needed to hop into the shower and scrub every evidence of his touch from me.

Men were funny creatures, and it was almost laughable how much you could get from them if sex was on the table. I learned very early to weaponize my looks. It made things extremely easy. No one expects a beautiful girl to be smart. The general misconception gives me a headstart while they underestimate me.

“Did you find anything yet?” I pulled myself from my head and focused on Vivian, whose brows furrowed in deep thoughts.

“They’re mostly work stuff, but this one stands out.” She handed the phone back to me.

“It says something about needing signed approval for a cargo arriving at a port in Russia in a few weeks,” she said, looking at me.

This is good. My efforts would’ve gone to total waste if I returned with nothing but a sore pussy to show for my night.

“This might be from his illegal shipping, maybe the ammunition or children from the trafficking. Get me your laptop. We need to report back to Father immediately.” I nudged Vivian and swiftly fixed myself for a video call.

“Cara.” His monotonous response poured from the speaker. No good morning, or how are you? Just straight to business.

“Good morning, Father. I have reports from the subject,” I said, sending the images to him. His brows raised in surprise as he picked up his phone and perused the contents of the file I sent him. “That was quick. This is why I gave this to you. You’re very competent.” He praised, earning him an eye roll from Vivian.

“I trust you had your tracks covered while you acquired these? Mikhail is not a man we want to mess with, and if he sniffs out the slightest fish, he’ll be onto us before we know it.”

“I was careful.”

“Good. What is the plan moving forward?” he asked, and that was Vivian’s cue to join the conversation.

“Good morning, Father,” Vivian greeted, not meeting his eyes.

She always said he scared her—not in a bad way, though. he was never mean to any of us or abusive, just very strict, and tough love was not Vivian’s style.

His eyes crinkled at the sides as he watched her through the screen. “Viv, glad to know you still remember your old man.”

“I was hoping she stays away from his radar for a while.” She went straight to business, earning her a curious look from Father, who had indicated from the beginning that this was time-sensitive and needed to be executed as fast as possible.

“And why would this be?” he asked, leaning into his chair.

“Mikhail is a man of power and affluence, and he has women trooping in and out of his bed every day. The only way Ari is going to get his attention, let alone keep it, is by acting in a way other women won’t.”

“Go on,” he urged while I sat there listening as they drafted the next phase of my life.

“She already set a tone by leaving before he wakes. Men like him are used to the women wanting to linger a bit longer. A woman vanishing before he wakes might be new to him. So, I propose she stays away from his radar for a while and let him seek her out.”

“What makes you so sure he will?” he asked.

“It’s a thing of ego. He’d feel dispensable with how she left, and if she’s to gain his trust, we have to make it look like it was all his doing, like he was in charge from the beginning.”

I found myself slowly nodding in agreement with her proposal. I’ve dealt with a couple of high-profile men, and I can testify they all had one thing in common—a stomach that cannot digest any form of rejection. If you want them hot on your heels, all you have to do is say no or act in a way that is contrary to the affirmative response they’re used to and watch them hunt you down like a sport. It’s something Viv called the natural masculine instinct to conquer and dominate, and it’s seen whenever a challenge presents itself.

Father leaned back into his chair, his brows furrowed as he slowly tapped his lips with his index finger. “I was hoping she turned up in his office with a job application or something. It would keep them in the same space and speed things up.”

“That’ll be too predictable, and he’ll think she’s there because of him, and he’ll throw her in with every desperate girl in Manhattan throwing themselves at him. That won’t be good for us in the long run. Also, if we intend to break him down, this is not a project you want to rush. A man like Mikhail is not one to hand out his heart or trust like a Frisbee,” Vivian countered, maintaining her stand.

“You decide the process, but I want results, and I want them as soon as possible.” And with that, the screen went blank, and Vivian let out a heavy exhale.

“He’s honestly not that bad,” I chuckled, watching as she dramatically clutched her heart, earning me a glare from her.

“I never said he was. I remain eternally grateful to him, but that doesn’t mean he does not scare me shitless.”

“This plan of yours, I’m not faulting it, but what if he doesn’t come looking for me or he doesn’t find me? What do we do?”

“Sometimes I wonder how you’re both the smartest and dumbest person I know. That man was totally into you at the club. He’ll be back. Men are not as complicated as they pose themselves to be.” She replied with a sly smile playing on her lips, totally enjoying this.