Page 48 of Mafia Obsession

“I don’t know what your angle is with my wife.” Without an invitation, he takes a seat opposite me in a small wooden chair not built for comfort. “She seems to think she means something to you.”

“She does mean something to me.” I stare him down. “And you better watch it or?—”

“I asked around about you, Zervas. You don’t do relationships.”

“Your wife is my employee.” I tighten my jaw. “Nothing else. And I had you checked out, too. You don’t actually have a job. If you’d like to keep a roof over your head, one that your wife pays for with moneyI pay her, I suggest you don’t aggravate or provoke her boss.”

“I’m not here to aggravate you.”

“I’m aggravated by what you’re doing to her. You think your abuse makes you a man?”

Sinclair shifts in his seat. “What are you talking about?”

“I’ve seen her bruises.” I try to contain myself.

“She’s clumsy. Hurts herself for attention.”

“I told her, and now I’m telling you, that if I see one more bruise,one, you’ll get a visit from someone you will never forget.” I stand up. “I hired your wife to accompany me to meetings and greet my guests. An assistant with a black eye hurts my business. If I seeone more bruise,I will makeyoulook ten times worse.”

David looks down at his hands. “Our marriage worked for a while, but then it didn’t. But I’m involved in something, and I need her.”

“Need her?” The air in the room shifts, and I consider the branding. “I need you to be more specific.”

He studies me, calculating whether to press forward, andthen he does. “She’s the only one who knows where the money is.”

“Money?” I inquire with quiet patience, thinking he knows she stole from Nathan Craig.

I take out my phone and dial Daria, but keep the phone on mute.

Sinclair smiles, proud he could surprise me. “Her father worked for Yuri Volkov in Chicago.” He tells me what I already know. “Money is missing. I assume her father had a hand in that. But he’s dead.”

I keep my face even. “Why is that important to me?”

He sits back and crosses his legs. “KirillVolkov will reward me handsomely for that information.”

“And she knows where the money is?” I ask, bracing myself.

“She’s very vague when I ask her questions about her father.” He shakes his head, angry.

I pretend to take him seriously. “And where would this information be?”

“I don’t know.” David shrugs. “Probably hidden somewhere in Chicago.”

Is that what Lourdes was stealing money for? To go back there…

“If I don’t help you?” I’m not helping him.

“Kirill will take her. Do things to her until she talks. You seem to like my wife.”

“I more thanlikeher. Which is why this conversation is rapidly becoming hazardous to your health,” I threaten. “Do you even realize the position you are in? Standing in my way of having her?”

His eyes narrow. “You’re making a mistake.”

“You’ve made your last mistake.”

David stands and shakes his head. “I’ll give you time to think about it. She’s not worth going against Kirill Volkov.”

“I’ll be the judge of that. Now leave.”