Russian Hitman's Innocent American Read Free Page B

Ivan Bobrov,” he said in a low voice.
    Kaz cocked his head and stared at him. “And why would you be interested in Fedor’s successor? To my knowledge, he hasn’t done anything notable. He’s slowly easing into things. Who knows? Maybe he’ll dismantle the whole thing.”
    Dmitri ignored his curious gaze. “Tell me about Ivan and Fedor. How did they know each other? How long have they been friends?”
    Narrowing his eyes, Kaz straightened. “Why don’t you tell me what’s going on? Maybe then I’ll be more forthcoming with the information you want.”
    The implication was clear. They were not friends. Dmitri felt irritation swell within him, but he tried to get his anger under control. “It has nothing to do with Fedor’s daughter. I have reason to believe that Ivan might be looking for me.”
    “That’s ridiculous. First of all, no one knew of your identity until you faked your death. Why would Ivan believe that you aren’t dead?” Kaz crossed her arms.
    “Forget it,” Dmitri growled. He leaned back, and Kaz shot forward and grabbed him arm.
    “Dmitri, we called it even. You don’t owe me, and I don’t owe you. Consider this very carefully. If Ivan is looking for you, and he has enough information to know that you faked your death, he’s going to be looking for the last people who saw you alive. Now I can protect Veronika, but Charley has no one.”
    “I’ve already thought of that,” Dmitri snapped. “I’m going to circle around and keep an eye on Charley. I just need to get ahead of this situation. Any information that you can give me will be helpful.”
    “You can help by staying away from them,” Kaz muttered. He sighed and shook his head. “Ivan and Fedor were friends long before I ever started working for Fedor. Although friends is not exactly the word I would use. There was something odd between them. Fedor would get drunk and mutter about how fucking useless Ivan was, and I know enough about hatred to recognize it in Ivan’s eyes. They drank together and laughed, but they certainly didn’t like each other. I can’t remember a time when the two of them were alone together. I have a feeling that if that ever happened, one or both would have been dead.”
    “So no one blinked when Ivan just took over? How did that even happen?” Dmitri muttered.
    “Fedor didn’t have friends. I suppose, in the eyes of the public, Ivan was the closest that he had. I hear it’s been difficult for him to find loyalties within Fedor’s circle. He stopped by once to talk to Veronika, but she wasn’t home. I made it very clear that he was never to bother her again.”
    “And how did he take it?”
    “It didn’t seem to bother him. I get the feeling she wasn’t the one he was after anyway. To my knowledge, he hasn’t been back. Why would Ivan question your death? No one else has. Most are relieved that you’re no longer in the game.” A look of concern crossed his face. “Or are you lying to me? Maybe you are still in the game, and Ivan is your next target.”
    Dmitri smiled sardonically. “I never claimed to be out of the game. But no, Ivan isn’t a contract. You can call him a mere personal interest of mine.” He pushed back his chair and stood.
    Kazimir’s eyes never left his. “I was under the impression that Fedor was the only personal interest of yours. I heard a rumor that he killed your father.”
    “It’s funny,” Dmitri said quietly. “I heard that same rumor myself.” Without another word, he turned and tried to leave.
    “Stay away from Charley. She’s trying to distance herself from all of this. She even got herself a new roommate.”
    A new roommate? Dmitri picked up the pace. The chances of Ivan moving that quickly seemed small, but there had been a strange undertone in Kazimir’s voice as he imparted that piece of information, as if he knew something Dmitri didn’t.
    Reverse psychology bullshit.
    An hour later, Dmitri parked his car a few blocks from Charley’s