I wish I had half her strength.
“I’m glad you got to see your grandfather,” Belov says. “Don’t let his appearance now color your view of him. He was a mighty man once.”
“So they tell me.”
“Hearing stories is not the same as understanding.”
“I don’t have any desire to understand him.”
Belov sighs. “That’s disappointing. Because he desperately wants to know you.”
Leo is tense beside me, but he is being curiously quiet. I look at him, but he doesn’t meet my eyes. His gaze remains fixed on Belov.
Spartak gives me a smile. “If Don Solovev is keeping you against your will—”
Leo slams his fist down on the table so hard I’m surprised it doesn’t crack. “That’s enough, Belov,” he growls. “I’m done with your games. Why did you call this meeting in the first place?”
“I hoped we could have some civil discourse. A rousing bit of conversion before—”
Leo’s growl cuts him off.
Belov sighs. “Very well. I’ll jump right to the chase then. I have a proposition for you.”
The thing is, he looks right at me when he says it. I blink in surprise. But I do my best to hide it.
“We’re all ears,” Leo drawls viciously.
“It’s simple, really,” Belov says. “You can have your son back immediately. I’ll place him in your arms myself. All you have to do… is renounce the Solovev and come with me.”
I laugh out loud. This can’t be a real offer. But I humor him. “What’s to stop you from killing me the moment I’m on Mikhailov property?”
“Do you think so little of me, Willow? You’re Mikhailov royalty. I have too much respect for Semyon to even consider such a thing.” He shakes his head like he’s offended by the mere question.
There’s a catch coming, though. I can feel it in the air like a storm on the horizon. The crackle of static electricity. The whisper of a cold wind.
Then Belov leans forward.
His eyes are locked on mine. I feel like we’re the only people in the room, in the worst possible way. He tips his head to the side and his mouth curves into a smile.
“Besides,” he adds, “I would never harm my future wife.”
29
LEO
If I lunge across the table and strangle Belov, Ariel and Willow will be caught in the middle of the ensuing fight. That tiny, inconvenient little fact—that I’d have to risk both of their lives to kill this motherfucker—is the only thing that keeps me seated.
Lucky him.
“You’ve really gone soft in the head since I brought down your buildings, haven’t you?” I snarl instead through clenched teeth.
“If you think I’ve forgotten dear Viktoria here is already married, you’re wrong.” His smile gets wider. “If memory serves, you attempted the same daring move not so long ago,” he says, his gaze flickering to Willow. “Weren’t you married to another man when Leo arrived on the scene?”
Willow is sitting stiffly. She’s not looking at me. I wonder if that’s a good sign or a bad one.
“Let’s say I divorce Leo and marry you,” Willow says abruptly. “What’s to stop you from killing my son the moment I’m legally bound to you?”
Belov’s eyes spark with admiration. “You’re smart.” He looks back at Ariel, the first time he’s acknowledged her presence. “See, Brit?” he asks. “She’s not stupid at all. Not that I ever really doubted. I knew the daughter of Anya Mikhailov would be one to watch.”
“Forget my mother,” Willow interjects. “I was one to watch regardless.”
Willow is sparring with one of the most dangerous men in the underworld. If I wasn’t vibrating with rage, I’d be proud.
She doesn’t even give him the chance to respond before doubling down. “Answer the question, Belov.”
Spartak raises a brow. He doesn’t like being talked down to. And he certainly doesn’t like the proud, easy way in which Willow barks out orders.
“Your son will never have to fear me,” Belov says. “Because I plan on raising him as my own.”
I do a double-take. “Excuse me?”
“I know it might be hard for you to believe, but I’m not the brute savage you seem to think I am. I’m perfectly happy to raise your son as my own.”
He says it boldly, confidently, like I’m the naive asshole. But I see the way he shifts ever so slightly in his chair—he’s hiding something. It doesn’t take a genius to guess what it is.