Page 47 of Saved By A God
He sweeps his hand over the rows of tables. “You can do more than all of them combined. As soon as we decide you’re ready, you’ll be given a computer system to hack into the dark web. You’ll dig for information that we’ll use to bribe and control the wealthy.” He points at the big electronic screen. “That’s the amount the group has made today. The target is one hundred million. Yours will be higher.”
I stop and scowl at Kirill. “Let me get this straight. You attacked the Cosa Nostra and kidnapped me to hack for you?”
“Yes.”
Up until now, I thought I was dealing with a very organized group, but yeah, they’re a bunch of dumbasses.
I lick my dry lips before letting out an incredulous-sounding chuckle. “You’re going to put me in front of a computer?”
Not answering the question, Kirill indicates for me to keep moving with a jerk of his head.
When we reach metal stairs running down to the floor below, I have to go slow so I don’t fall and break my neck.
After taking the last step, I look at all the people behind the computers. Some steal curious glances at me, but most don’t tear their eyes away from their screens.
Another man comes toward us, and unlike the guards who are all in combat gear, he’s wearing a gray suit.
When he’s within reaching distance of me, the blood in my veins runs cold as recognition sets in.
Danil Lebedev. He’s a high-ranking member of the bratva.
Well, shit. Things just got really bad.
“Rosellina La Rosa,” he says, grinning at me.
His teeth are stained yellow. The hair on his temples is white, while the rest is golden blond.
He’s older than the last photo I saw of him.
Knowing who I’m dealing with, I lift my chin again as I mutter, “Miss La Rosa.” I take a step closer to him and tilt my head. “Does Yegor know I’m here?”
A burst of laughter from him hits me in the face, and I smell stale cigarettes on his breath. “This…” He sweeps an arm over the area. “This was all Yegor’s idea. It took us three months to get all these hackers and set up this system. Not bad, right?”
God. If the head of the bratva is aware of this, I’m screwed.
“This will start a war,” I say as I lock eyes with him again.
“No, it won’t. Christiano and the family think you are dead, and you will remain dead to them. This place is your home now.”
One after the other, my loved ones’ faces flash through my mind, and I’m hit with an unbearable pain, knowing how much heartache my ‘death’ will cause them.
Suddenly, Danil pulls a gun from behind his back. “You will follow our every command, Miss La Rosa.”
He walks to the nearest desk, where a middle-aged man with thick glasses is sitting. He jumps from his chair and tries to run, but Danil shoots him in the back.
My body jerks from the gun being fired, then my muscles lock in place, and my breathing slows as I focus on not showing any reaction.
I just stare as the hacker’s blood spreads over his shirt. His fingers claw at the ground, his glasses skew on his face, but another shot has his body jolting before it stills.
Shit.
This is a clear message that if I refuse to cooperate, they’ll kill someone to punish me.
“Like I said,” Danil mutters. “You will follow every order. If you don’t, an innocent person dies, and they will be replaced with a new warm body. If you try to contact the Cosa Nostra or the authorities, they all die. The bloodbath will rest on your conscience.”
I lock eyes with Danil as he asks, “If there’s one thing we know about you, Miss La Rosa, it’s that you’re the capo with the soft heart. You put a man in your place because you couldn’t handle dealing with blood and grime in our world.” He walks closer to me while tucking his gun back into the waistband of his pants behind his back. “Are you willing to be responsible for all these people’s deaths?”
I make the mistake of glancing over all the desks, then my gaze gets stuck on a boy who can’t be much older than sixteen or seventeen. He peeks at me, and for a moment we keep eye contact before he continues working.
