Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 127461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 637(@200wpm)___ 510(@250wpm)___ 425(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 637(@200wpm)___ 510(@250wpm)___ 425(@300wpm)
She gave a disdainful little sniff in his mind. We only assassinate really bad men.
Baby, I hate to point this out to you, but I’m a really bad man. You were going to shove one of your favorite knives into my heart before you decided you liked my pretty-boy face.
She moved into him, sliding beneath his shoulder. He slowed his steps to match hers. They turned toward a group of four men who seemed to be playing dice together. He didn’t recognize any of the four.
“Gedeon? I’ve never met any of these men. Don’t introduce us. We’ll keep a distance and just assess them,” Gorya instructed.
“Two of them joined Timur’s team recently and two Sevastyan’s security team,” Gedeon briefed him.
Assassinating criminals isn’t the same as running an entire organization, especially if you’re very good at it, which, unfortunately, you are.
He had to work at keeping his expression blank, although he allowed her to see the amusement in his mind. Why, thank you for noticing. I am very good at being the top boss. And to answer your question, I took the job and can’t very well quit, not when I cleaned the lair up so nicely. I have to ensure it runs smoothly and everyone makes a decent living.
She was silent a moment as they wound their way through several trees. Do you think it’s a great environment for children to grow up in? Look at the way Fyodor and Evangeline worry about their children’s safety.
He took his time answering. He couldn’t very well leave who he was behind. There was no escaping being Gorya Amurov. They would eventually have children. They were leopard. He was a criminal. It didn’t matter that he was doing his best to be as clean a criminal as possible; he was still a criminal. And he had more blood on his hands than most did.
We’ll find ways to keep our children safe if we have them.
She slid her palm along his ribs. He knew that small gesture was a sign of needing to say more. She was intelligent. She knew there would be children.
We can handle anything together, Maya. We aren’t alone. We’ll have Wraith and Rogue. My family will help us. Some of them are already experienced, and we’ll do our best to put off having children as long as possible.
She rubbed her palm along his ribs again. I would never get rid of our child, Gorya. No matter how afraid I was. Never think that. It would be part of you, and I love you. I would guard that child with everything in me.
I know you would, baby. I have absolute faith that you would.
Her breath hitched suddenly, and she abruptly came to a stop, leaning down to fiddle with her shoe. She slipped it off and shook it out as if she had a rock in it. Gorya crouched beside her.
What is it?
Those men. The things they’re thinking. The things their leopards remember. They’re part of a trafficking ring out of Panama, straight from Escabar Velentez’s lair.
All four of them? I can do this one.
No. Give me a minute. There are four leopards. This isn’t easy. Just make it seem natural to give me the time I need.
Gorya signaled Gedeon and his crew and they surrounded him, bringing out a small pack and handing around sandwiches and waters. They kept Maya in the center, surrounded by the larger men so that as they talked and laughed in low tones, it was impossible for the four men to really do more than get glimpses of her through the solid wall of shifter security.
Gedeon, like Maya, reached out to the leopards, to ensure she wasn’t detected and to record any evidence against them with his leopard.
The gathering of information from the four leopards took longer than Gorya was comfortable with, and he realized both Gedeon and Maya were extremely uncomfortable with what the leopards were revealing. He couldn’t touch Maya’s mind to alleviate her stress while she was working, but it was clear the longer she stayed in the situation, the more anxious she felt.
When she pulled away, she was pale. She wrapped both arms around her stomach and hunched forward, rocking in a self-soothing motion. Gorya immediately swept his arm around her and drew close to hide her from the others. He didn’t like the fact that she stiffened at first, but when he continued to hold her close, she relaxed against him.
“Tell me.”
“Later. Inside. Away from them.” Maya’s voice was a mere thread of sound.
Gedeon nodded his head. “Let’s get the hell away from here.”
“I’d like to know what upset Maya,” Gorya insisted, pinning the head of his security with a look that he rarely, if ever, had given him, reminding him he was the boss.
Gedeon refused to budge. “I’ve been around the Amurovs for years, working through private contracts with your family and now as head of your security. You don’t forgive enemies. You don’t abide human trafficking. And spies in your midst? Especially around your women and children?” Gedeon shook his head. “If we’re playing this smart and we want to get any other information from them, it’s best you don’t question them or get your answers until we get inside, away from them. You’ll need to be in complete control.”