Scandalous Heroes Box Set (111 page)

“I can meet you down there,” Dylan countered. “You and Vasily can come down together.  I’m already ready. I brushed my teeth and everything.”

“Is that okay?” Lilly asked Vasily.

“He’ll be fine,” Vasily said, headed toward the restroom.  “Stop coddling him so much.  He’s a big boy.  If he wants to go have breakfast, let him go. He’s eight years old. At eight, I had a job.”

“He’s not you,” she said, rubbing through his hair.  “And we are in someone else’s house.”

“This hardly qualifies as just a house.  It’s more like a hotel,” Vasily joked again.  “He’s fine,” he said finally.  “He’s family.  If there is some place that he’s not supposed to go, he won’t be able to get into that room. That’s why they make locks for doors.”

“Do you have an eye patch, Vasily?” Dylan asked, ignoring his mother. “I’m going to be Blackbeard.” He followed his father into the restroom and stood at the counter.

“Come out of there and give him some privacy,” Lilly scolded.

She came to the door to find Vasily had gone into walk-in closet inside of the restroom instead of using the toilet, like she had thought. 

Vasily stepped out of the closet. “The boy is fine,” he said softly. 

Dylan looked up confused at the two of them. 
What was going on?

“I just don’t want him to get in the way,” she explained, hands protectively on Dylan’s slim shoulders. 

Vasily looked at the two of them and felt sympathetic toward her.  For years, this little man was all that she had.  Of course, she would be protective over him and worried for his every move, but she had to let go of the reins just a little bit. And he knew that he had to help her.

He motioned for Dylan to come to him.  The little boy did so without question.   Rubbing through his curly locks, Vasily smiled at his handsome son, quietly very proud of him in so many ways.  “Hey, I have an idea.  Tonight, after I wrap up things with my boss, why don’t we sit down, have a nice dinner together with all those Russian foods I told you about and we can have a discussion?  Just the three of us, eh,” Vasily said more to Lilly than Dylan.  He looked up at her. 

Lilly knew what he meant.  He wanted to tell Dylan who he really was.

“Do you think that’s wise?” she asked him, voice barely above a whisper.

Vasily smiled. “He’s a big boy, right?”

“I am a big boy,” Dylan protested. 

Vasily opened his hand and gave Dylan the eye patch he had pulled from the drawer in his closet.  “Yes, you are.”

Chapter 11

President’s Island was a huge industrial park with nothing attractive to see for miles and miles around.  Yet, the Medlov men stood out on the mud and dirt talking to the architect about how dynamic Dmitry’s new building was going to be once it was complete.  Rolling the blueprints out on the back of an F-150, they looked at what the 250-acres of land would like in a matter of 18 months. 

“Now that we have all of our permits and tax abatements from the city, we can move forward,” Dmitry said, leaning over the edge of the truck.  “I want no expense spared. This has to be
the
state of the
art arms facility in the country.”

Anatoly was a few feet away by Vasily smoking a cigarette and pretending like he was paying attention to his father.  However, he couldn’t get his mind off the deal that they were discussing when Vasily found out about Leo escaping from prison.  “We’ve got to make sure that the deal in Ukraine doesn’t fall through,” he said to Gabriel, who was busy sending texts on his phone.  Instantly, he wondered if it was business related or the woman everyone knew that Gabriel was seeing. 

“If we don’t, we’ll be broke,” Gabriel said, not looking up from his phone. 

“I don’t know about broke, but a few million lights,” Anatoly corrected.  “I’m thinking we should send someone over there to broker the deal face-to-face.” 

Gabriel dipped his head. “I don’t see why not.  Sure.” He felt Anatoly’s eyes on him.  He looked over at his cousin winking his eye.  “Oh, hell no,” he blurted out.

Dmitry stopped talking and looked over at the boys.  “Is there a problem?”

Anatoly smiled sarcastically.  “Not at all, papa.”

Gabriel turned so that his back was turned to his uncle. “I’m not going to the fucking Ukraine.  Get someone else to sort this shit out.”

Anatoly raised a brow. “Well, who else would you recommend?”

“Vasily,” Gabriel said, putting his phone in his back pocket.

“He can’t go.” Anatoly said in a matter of fact tone.

“Why not?” Gabriel asked.

“He’s got his family to look after right now.”

“And I don’t?” Gabriel asked.

“You don’t have any kids and you barely sleep in the same bedroom with Briggy, I hardly qualify that as family,” Anatoly said with a snicker. 

Gabriel’s lips thinned.  “It’s not like that. We’re just going through something.” 

“It’s been a year.  It’s either going to work or it’s not. If it’s not, then break up with her,” Anatoly said, walking out of earshot of his father. 

“Let’s just set the record straight.  My private life is my business. I don’t need you to tell me what to do with my girlfriend,” Gabriel huffed.  “Before you married Renee, you literally fucked everything that moved.  I seem to recall a New York Times bestselling author who got the title because you screwed her and posted it online.”

“It got her off my back.  I screwed her literally, because she was trying to screw me. Let’s not forget that she, like someone else here, was a cop.  .”

“
Was
is the operative word. Some days, you make me want to go back,” Gabriel snapped. 

Vasily bit down on his lip to ensure that not even a breath came out.  Everyone knew that this was an issue at the house.  For a while, Gabriel had been at odds in his relationship with the woman that he was seeing.  She also happened to be a woman that Anatoly had seen before he married his wife, and while that had been no big secret in the home, it had not been the easiest thing to maneuver around. 

“Just because you dated her…” Gabriel began.

“This has nothing to do with me and Briggy.  It’s about the integrity of the house.  It’s about everyone knowing what the fuck you do when you leave there and the questions that we are asked when she’s moping around.  Now, papa feels like you should be allowed to deal with it in your own time, but that’s because Royal doesn’t talk to him about it.  Renee, on the other hand, wears my fucking ear out every time she gets a chance.”

Gabriel had heard enough about his broken relationship. He threw up his hand to silence him. “Briggy and I are working things out.  That’s all you need to know.” 

“That’s all I
care
to know,” Anatoly said, throwing his hands up.  “But it makes a perfect argument for why you should go to the Ukraine and handle this deal.” 

“I’m not going to the Ukraine,” Gabriel bit out.  “And that’s that.”

“If you say so,” Anatoly said, turning to Vasily.  “Do you think we have anyone we can send that we can trust to handle this thing?”

“We have a couple of runners who are reliable. I’m sure that we could send them, but it won’t be the same as sending someone from the family,” Vasily answered.  He turned to see Dmitry look dead at him. “I think he wants our full attention.”

“Come over here and learn something,” Dmitry ordered.  “Stop arguing over their like school girls.  Leave home
at home
.” Evidently, he had heard more of the conversation then they intended. 

“One second, papa,” Anatoly shouted.  He pointed at Gabriel. “You’re the lowest man on the totem pole, you make it happen.  Either you go to the Ukraine or you send someone who we can trust, but I’m not sending Vasily.”

“Fine,” Gabriel said, spitting on the ground.

As they walked back over to the truck, Vasily’s phone went off. 

Dmitry rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration. 
It was like having three grown sons instead of one. 

“Sorry, boss,” Vasily said, seeing the call was coming from a blocked line. He stepped over the patches of mud by the trees and took the call. “Hello.”

There was a pause and then, “It’s Yakov,” the voice said. 

Vasily looked up.  “I’m guessing that this isn’t a social call?”

“No. Sorry. I don’t know how to say this but just come out and say it.  Leo showed up at my shop with his boys.  Sort of made me remember the old times when you and I were running and gunning.  He’s got Taras with him now. You know how
special
he is. ” 

“He’s a fucking idiot,” Vasily said flatly.

“Well, the years haven’t changed him at all. Look, Leo didn’t come here for old time sakes.  He was running down Lilly.  I told him that the story was the same.  I went to find her…kill her and she was gone.”  Yakov took a deep breath. 

“But.”

“Why would he care?  He’s a fugitive.  Why is he looking for Lilly?”  To Vasily, it just didn’t make sense.

Yakov knew that he was taking a gamble, but he decided to make his move.  “He thinks that she has something of his…about twenty million dollars in diamonds.”

“What?” Vasily stepped further away from the small meeting behind him.

“When he got popped by the feds, he gave her $20 million in diamonds to hide for him,” Yakov said, looking across the bedroom at his wife, who was packing their belongings as quickly as she could.  “She evidently turned on him, gave him up to the feds and had him locked away, and she took the diamonds with her.”

Vasily’s heart dropped. “Did you know that when you brought her to me?”

“Hell no,” he lied.  “I’d never heard of them before now.  For all I know, he was just saying that as a reason to get me to help him find her, but there is always the possibility.”  Yakov made sure that he planted seeds of doubt with everyone to ensure a good rat race. 

Vasily felt like he was being double crossed again, but he wasn’t sure by whom.  “So does he plan to come here?”

“He plans to follow the diamonds.”  Yakov slipped some clothes in a duffle bag.  “Look, brat. I stuck my neck out as far as I could on this for you and for her.  I have my own family now.  I have to think of them.” He only wished his friend knew how fluid that statement was.  “I’m getting my kid and my wife out of Little Odessa for a while as soon as I make sure that he’s already on the road. I just wanted to be the first to let you know.  If you’re smart, you’ll put a bullet in his head and call it a day.  Then she can start over new without worrying about looking over her shoulder every time that she walks out of her front door, and you don’t have to worry about going to war with a complete sociopath.  And if she does have the diamonds then, well, you guys can start a new life together after he’s dead.”

Vasily had heard enough. “Let him come.  For ten years, I’ve been wanting to get my own revenge on him for the bullet he put in my back.  But now, it’s a lot more personal.”

“How so?” Yakov asked.

Vasily didn’t trust the man enough to tell him.  After all, there had been many years between them.  “Not important for you,” he said, looking back at his boss.  He had to get back to work and deal with this personal stuff on his own time. “Do what you have to do, Yakov.  Get out of town. Stay low.  I’ll handle the rest.”

“Sorry about Lilly.  I guess she got over on both of us.  Have you been in touch at all?”

“No,” Vasily lied. “I put her on a train ten years ago and I haven’t heard from her since.”

“Smart man,” Yakov said, feeling as though he had kept his friend out of trouble, even if he had thrown Lilly under the bus.

As Vasily hung up the phone, he looked up in the sky and took a deep breath.  She had hurt him once, pulled away from him, left him to bleed on the floor of her lover’s house, and he couldn’t help but wonder if she was playing him now. She could have had the diamonds hid until just the right time.  Eventually, a man like Leo would get picked off by someone.  With money like that, all anyone smart had to do was sit in the background and wait. 

“Everything okay,” Anatoly asked, walking toward him.

Vasily nodded. “Yes, boss. Here I come.”

Chapter 11

Cleveland’s Bar

Jackson, MS

When Leo pulled up to the roadhouse bar off, packed with pickup trucks and American-made mini-vans, he took a second look around.  Unsure if he was even in the right place, he stepped out of the black Yukon Denali that he and his men had driven half-way across the United States in and stretched out his body. 

“This is rich,” he smirked.  “I went to prison and so did she.  Good for her ass.”

“The paystub at her house said that she worked here,” Taras, one of Leo’s men said, standing on the side of the truck to urinate. 

As he unzipped his pants, a younger couple walked past them, cuddled up and laughing.  The guy took one look at Leo and his men and made a joke to his girlfriend under his breath, then yelled out, “They’ve got a bathroom inside.”

Leo’s head snapped toward the man.  “If you don’t mind your business, then we’ll use your girlfriend as our urinal, maybe you too, da.”

The man quickly hurried with girlfriend to the car and got in.

Taras shook his head.  “Boss, you might not want to make a scene down here.  We sort of stick out, you know.  Don’t want them calling the police.”

Leo knew that Taras was right, but having been in prison so long, it was hard for him to control his temper. 

As they walked into the small bar, a country band was on the small stage in the corner playing a cover song by Led Zeppelin and in its normal fashion, it was packed to the brim with people. 

With his four henchmen behind him, Leo made a b-line for the bar, where Logan was standing, rag in hand. 

“Welcome to Cleveland’s.  Whatcha having there, chief?”  Logan asked, trying not to make it look so obvious that he was gawking at the out of place group. 

Everyone else in the bar, however, was not as civil.  They gawked at the five brooding monsters and whispered among themselves.  It was obvious to everyone that without saying a word, they were not from Jackson. 

Leo looked at the selection behind the bar.  “Vodka,” he said simply.