Page 40 of Mistaken
Chapter 13 – Go Out with a Bang
In which there is schmoozing, splendor, and bullets.
Maksim…
New Year’s Eve Day
Oleg might be many things, but weak was not one of them.
He’d been hanging in the warehouse under Bogdan’s not-tender mercies for several days before I walked into the room, lined with concrete and sheet metal. He was still a giant, even chained up with cuts all over his chest, back, and arms. He was missing some teeth, his right eye swollen shut, and nearly every finger broken.
“Pakhan,” Bogdan greeted me cheerfully. “It’s been too long.”
I would be inclined to disagree. BogdanÐordevic was a recruit from the Serbian mob, dissatisfied with his place there. I consider luring him away as a major coup, though spending any amount of time in his company was not desirable. His skills in torture were unparalleled. Unlike my father, I did not enjoy torture, though I participated when necessary. But the genuine pleasure he took in his work… I admired the man for his work ethic, but his gentle smile at the best of times was unsettling.
“Bogdan,” I shook his outstretched hand, ignoring the blood that smeared on my shirt cuff. “I see Oleg is still alive and resistant. What about his cousins?”
He lowered his voice. “One succumbed almost immediately to his injuries, very disappointing.” He frowned thoughtfully, “But we got enough from him for yourSovietnikto authorize further questioning.”
I shoved down the fury threatening to take me over. “These men have been in our family’s Bratva since my father’s time. Were they plants from Sokolov?”
Bogdan was meticulously cleaning one of his scalpels, eyeing the handle to make sure it was spotless. “What I have so far from the other cousin is that Oleg was seduced by one of the women in Sokolov’s household. The fool.” he shook his head disapprovingly. “She’s been passing along money and instructions from Pavel Sokolov, and the girl strings him along, telling Oleg that he can leave us soon to join their family and marry her.”
“What a sweet story,” I took off my jacket, rolling up my sleeves. “I knew he wasn’t my brightest soldier, but that has to be the oldest con in organized crime.”
Strolling closer to his bloody hulk, I nod, and Bogdan yanks on Oleg’s hair, yanking his head up to look at me. His good eye opens and he growls at me.“????? ?? ???!”
I incline my head courteously, “What was that? Your speech is a bit mushy. That will happen when you lose half your teeth.” He tries to spit at me, but it dribbles down his chest. “I would admire your stamina, soldier, but now you are wasting my time. What was the plan for my wife?”
He chuckles, and the sound is thick with clotted blood. “You won’t have a wife soon. Or an empire.”
“Hmm,” I select a KA-BAR knife, enjoying how the dull light glimmers along the blade. “Then we have much to talk about.”
My mood was not improved by a phone call from Yuri on the way back from the warehouse.
“We have a problem.”
I pinched the brow of my nose between my thumb and forefinger. “Go on.”
“The shipment of ammunition meant for the O’Sullivan clan was taken last night.”
“Blyad'!”
“It gets worse, Pakhan.”Oh, it definitely must be worse if Yuri is using my formal title. “They killed Sergei. He was overseeing the shipment directly because of the recent theft.”
“Who? Who is behind this?”
“We’ve got nothing. The crew scheduled to arrive this morning found Sergei and the four others, all dead. No signs of forced entry, nothing on the security cameras. They were disabled around midnight.”
I took a deep breath, trying to shove down the fury so I could think. “Set up a swearing-in ceremony for Patrick. He’s the right man forObshchak.”
“Pakhan.”
Again with the formal titles, Yuri?I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Go ahead.”
“There’s going to be discontent because he’s not Russian. You know this already.”
“This isn’t a democracy.” I snapped, “He’s earned this. I’ll be happy to ask if anyone objects during the ceremony. Have him be the one to reach out to the Irish to tell them their shipment will be a couple of days late. Contact Joe Trazados in Miami and get a rush shipment. Bribe him if necessary.”
