Page 32 of Toxic Salvation (Krayev Bratva #2)

VESPER

“I can’t do that!”

Luka’s face contorts with pure horror, and I have to bite my cheek to keep from laughing.

“And why not?” I ask, feigning innocence.

“It’s a facial .” He drops his tone to barely above a whisper. “That’s girl stuff.”

“Since when do you care about what’s girl stuff and boy stuff?” I cross my arms. “This is the twenty-first century, kiddo. Gender norms are outdated.”

“What if someone from school sees me?”

“We’re in private rooms behind screens. Nobody’s going to see you.” I gesture around the upscale spa. “Come on, Luka. It’ll be fun.”

“Yeah, Luka.” Charity jumps in, probably sensing her spa day slipping away. “If not for yourself, then do it for me. I’m a poor paramedic who hasn’t had any self-care in six months.”

Luka shakes his head and crosses his arms tighter.

Pavel sighs and steps forward to jump on the grenade. “How about I do it with you, kid? Facials for everyone?”

Charity’s mouth falls open. She’s been checking Pavel out all morning, but now, she’s practically drooling.

“You’re going to get a facial?” Luka double-checks.

“Darn right I am. Taking care of yourself is never a bad thing. Look at your uncle Kovan—man’s going to look eighty when he’s fifty because he never takes care of himself. I will not succumb to that fate. No, siree.”

Luka bites his lip. “You’ll stay with me the whole time?”

“The entire time,” Pavel promises.

Only after a very solemn pinky swear does Luka agree to the mini-facial. Pavel glances back at Charity and me and mouths, “You owe me big time.”

Then he and Luka disappear into the men’s lounge while Charity and I are escorted to the women’s section.

Unfortunately, our four massive bodyguards follow us, earning dirty looks from every other client at Noeline’s. Everyone is trying to enjoy their spa treatments without being watched by the scariest security detail in San Francisco. I can’t really blame them.

“This is mortifying,” I mutter as we’re shown into a private room.

“I think it makes you look important,” Charity counters. “You should embrace it.”

“Easy for you to say. You’ve only dealt with this for one afternoon. This has been my life for weeks.”

“With good reason.” Charity gives me her best stern look.

We settle into the plush chairs and wait for our aestheticians. Classical music plays softly in the background, mingling with the sound of a water fountain somewhere nearby.

“God, it’s peaceful here. Maybe I should convince Pavel to do a couples massage after this. At least then I could see him shirtless.”

“What happened to Osip?” I say with a sly look. “I thought you had a thing for him.”

“I did. He’s got the whole sexy, intimidating thing going for him. But Pavel has this boyish charm I can’t resist. He’s sensitive. Great with Luka. And he’s getting a facial for us.” Charity grins. “He checks all my boxes. Who knows? Maybe I’ll take them both.”

“Congratulations.”

“Plus, if Pavel and I get married someday, you and I will be sisters for real.”

“First of all, we don’t need to marry brothers to be sisters. Second, Kovan and I aren’t getting married.”

“Not yet. But it’s happening. I’m sure of it.”

“You’ve met Kovan. Does he seem like the marrying type?”

“He didn’t seem like the daddy type, either, but he does pretty well with Luka.”

She has a point. “That’s different?—”

“And he happens to be a total zaddy , too. Sometimes, God really does give with both hands.”

I snort. “Kovan seems to have it all, but really, he’s just a hardworking guy who wants to protect his family at all costs.”

“I was talking about you, V.” She flicks me in the arm. “You’re the one God blessed. You’re a hot doctor who landed a sexy Bratva boss. It’s criminally unfair.”

“Have you been stealing drugs from the ambulance again?”

She laughs. “I know I’m right when you start making inappropriate jokes about my job.”

“The rewards are high, I’ll give you that.” I purse my lips. “But so are the risks. Kovan’s world is dangerous. If it were just me, that would be one thing. But I have this baby to think about.”

Charity gestures toward the bodyguard silhouettes visible through our doorway. “Do you really think Kovan would let anything happen to you or your son?”

I smile, trying not to be one of those people who refuses comfort.

But I’m a doctor. I’ve seen too much death, too much bad luck, too many horrible things happening to good people to believe I’m immune to tragedy.

If this past year has taught me anything, it’s that I’m far from perfect. And if bad things can happen to innocent people, what chance do I have?

“Seriously, Pavel, this is getting ridiculous.”

Pavel glares at one of our bodyguards, who just hip-checked an elderly woman because he thought she was “too close” to me. “I’ll talk to him.”

“That’s it? That’s all you’re going to do?”

“What do you want me to do?” Pavel shrugs. “He’s doing his job.”

“Assaulting senior citizens is part of his job?”

Pavel smirks. “He gave her a teensy little nudge. She’s fine—walked away and everything.”

“Only because her cane kept her upright!”

Pavel glances toward the water fountain where Charity and Luka are sitting. “Listen.” He lowers his tone. “The guys are on edge after the lecture Kovan gave them. They know if anything happens to you, Kovan will have their heads.”

“Great. Just great. No wonder they’ve been so overbearing today.”

“It’s temporary, Vesper.”

“I’m not throwing a fit because they’re here, Pavel. I knew what I signed up for. I’m upset because these idiots can’t tell the difference between a real threat and a little old lady with a walking stick.”

“The optics aren’t great, I’ll give you that.”

“Screw the optics—he could have broken her hip!”

“You’re a doctor, aren’t you?” Pavel flashes me that charming smile he must’ve learned from his brother. “You can fix it.”

“Don’t get cute with me.” I scowl at him. “This was supposed to be a fun day for Charity, Luka, and me. Your troll bodyguards are ruining everything.”

“Really?” He looks toward the fountain, where Charity is laughing at something Luka said. “Because Charity looks like she’s having a good time.”

“Been watching her a lot, have you?”

He raises his eyebrows. “What exactly are you suggesting?”

“I might put in a good word for you if you tell your guys to back off a little.”

“Back off how?” he asks suspiciously.

“Less Robocop, more human.”

His nose scrunches up. “Pretty sure that wasn’t in their training.”

“Pavel!”

He sighs. “Kovan will kill me if I tell them to ease up and something happens. Seriously, he’ll have my balls on a platter.”

“Speaking of your balls, I’ll tell Charity I accidentally walked in on you naked and you have the smallest package I’ve ever seen.”

Pavel looks stunned. “That’s dirty.”

I shrug. “I’m hanging around Bratva types now. I’ve picked up a few tricks.”

“You’re ruthless.”

“I’m asking for a little relief. Please, Pavel?”

“God!” He groans. “Stop with the puppy dog eyes. I can’t deal with it. Fine! I’ll tell them to back off. But I’m sticking to you like glue.”

“I’ll take it!”

Laughing, I send Pavel off to relay the orders to his men while I join Charity and Luka by the fountain.

“What was that about?” Charity asks while Luka makes a wish with the penny she gave him.

“Hopefully, it means it’ll just be the four of us for the rest of the day.”

“The bodyguards are leaving?” Charity asks hopefully.

“Not quite,” I say. “But they’ll give us some space. Took some convincing to get Pavel to agree.”

“Hmm.” Charity licks her lips. “Maybe you can convince him to take his shirt off for me.”

“I don’t need to convince him of anything. The clothes are already halfway gone.”

Charity grabs my hand. “Did he say something?”

Before I can answer, Pavel heads our way and Charity drops my hand, immediately fussing with her hair.

Looks like Luka and I are playing third and fourth wheel today. Which I’m fine with. I link arms with him and we wander down the endless corridors of the mall Charity insisted we visit. When I glance back, I can barely see our intimidating entourage.

I can feel myself starting to relax.

That lasts about thirty minutes, until Pavel starts herding us from shop to shop like he’s trying to speed us through some kind of timed obstacle course.

“What the hell, Pavel?” I demand when he yanks a pajama top out of my hands and shoves it back on the rack.

“We’re leaving,” he answers.

“We just got here!”

“Someone’s following us.” His tone is tight as he scans the store. “Where are Charity and Luka? I told you three to stick together.”

“Luka was right next to me a second ago, and Charity was busy flirting with you. Is it one person or more on our tail?”

“One that I can see. But he might not be alone. Why the hell did I listen to you?” He spots Luka and Charity on the other side of the store and waves them over frantically. “We have to go. Now.”

“We just got here!” Charity complains, holding an armful of lacy sleepwear.

“Stay close to me.” Pavel’s fingers fly over his phone screen. “Let’s move.”

He types frantically as we exit the store and hurry down the crowded mall corridor. The crowd seems to have doubled in size, and Pavel’s anxiety has tripled.

“What’s going on, V?” Charity whispers as we struggle to keep up with Pavel’s pace.

“Pavel thinks we’re being followed.”

“Are we?”

“I don’t know. Either that or he’s being paranoid. But Pavel’s not really the paranoid type, so?—”

BANG!

The sound is so loud and so much like a gunshot that I drop to the floor instinctively, pulling Luka down with me. Several other people drop, too. Charity stays on her feet, scanning the area.

“Was that a gunshot?” Luka whispers.

“Probably just a car backfiring,” I try to reassure him.

“Get in here.” Pavel herds us toward the nearest store: a baby boutique. “Now.”

“Vesper’s right, Pavel.” Charity tries to calm things down. “It was probably a car backfiring. Or a balloon popping. Or?—”

“Doesn’t matter. Until we know for sure what it was, I want you three in the back. Find an empty dressing room and stay there.”

“Wait—where are you going?” I grab Pavel’s arm as he moves past me.

“I have to find the security detail. I’ve been trying to reach them, but there’s no signal on my phone. Stay here. Get in that dressing room and don’t come out until you hear my voice. You understand me?”

He looks so serious that I nod immediately. “I understand.”

He waits until we’re safely in the dressing room before disappearing around the corner. Watching him leave makes me more nervous than I expected.

“Vesper.” Luka trembles. “What’s happening? Is it Ihor? Is it my mom?”

I drop to my knees and take both his hands. “Don’t worry, honey. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

“But you’re pregnant. I should be protecting you.”

I give him my most reassuring smile. “How about we protect each other?” When he nods uncertainly, I kiss his forehead. “Ihor’s not getting anywhere near you, sweetheart. I promise.”