Page 7 of Darkest Deeds
“Right. Did you need something else?” I scan the perimeter of the parking lot, years of training kicking in. The need to keep moving constricts my chest, making it feel like it’s strapped to a ticking bomb.
“Actually, yes. I need you to pack another bag and head to Lakefront.”
Groaning, I unlock my car and climb in. Lakefront Airport is where Arthur keeps his private jet. This means more work and no sleep.
“Why the hell would I do that?” Turning the ignition, I head west toward my Metairie apartment. My boss’s only concern may be a handful of ass, but I’m still in the process of covering mine.
“You’re flying to Miami tonight.”
I’d rather fly straight to hell.
I press heavy on the gas, streets flying by right and left. “Are you fucking kidding me? I barely got into town last night and you handed me Lancaster. Can’t one of the other guys do it?”
“This is personal.”
“So was Lancaster.”
He sighs. “Not for me, Niko. For you.”
A personal hit in Miami. I couldn’t be that lucky. “Who’s the mark?”
“Ava Chernova.”
My blood pumps at the last name, but the first one causes me to cross two lanes of traffic, nearly taking out every car in my path. Arthur calls my name as I pull onto the shoulder, but my head is spinning too fast to answer.
“Niko? Did you hear me?”
Arthur’s voice is like a gunshot, snapping me back into the present. Forcing all emotion out of my voice, I scrub a hand across my cheek, the roughness of my beard matching my mood. “I’m sorry, I thought you said the princess of the Miami Bratva.”
“I did.”
Is he fucking serious?
I grip the steering wheel, trying to control my temper. “Do you understand the consequences of a hit like that? The minute her father gets word of this—”
“Sergei ordered the hit,” he says, and the bomb attached to my chest explodes.
“On his own daughter?” I don’t know if I’m shocked, vindicated, or fucking pissed.
Arthur chuckles. “It appears that even the great Sergei Chernov has fallen victim to the Delilah effect.”
“Meaning?”
“Delilah and Sampson, my boy. Behind every great man’s downfall is a woman. Many men’s empires have crumbled because of a female’s betrayal. Let that be a lesson to never get attached to just one.”
His words sink low and hard in my stomach, churning a deadly mix of acid and long buried emotions. Emotions that have dwelled in the darkest recesses of my mind just waiting to break free and rain hell.
“What did she do?”
“From what I’m told, she traded Sergei’s ass to save her own. After a raid on his club, Ava started acting strange, so Sergei had her followed. She was seen meeting with the same man a few times, so he ran the plates and found out they belonged to good old Uncle Sam.”
“Feds?”
“Betrayal never comes from a vengeful hand, Niko. It comes from a smiling face.”
A hard lesson I learned early in life. One that has apparently come full circle.
“In order to secure his alibi, Chernov will be in Texas until tomorrow comparing dick sizes with the Mexicans, so you’ll have time to plan,” he explains as sheets rustle in the background. “What happens between now and then is up to you.” He pauses, waiting for my response, and when the only thing I return is silence, he sighs. “Despite the bad blood between you now, I know you were once fond of this girl, Niko. However, I still need you to get answers out of her before completing the job. You know what that means.”