Page 136 of Impenitent Claim

Dimitri barked a laugh. “You’re still planning the son of a bitch’s death.”

“He’s personally responsible for trafficking the majority of the foreign crowd into the states. He needs to pay for his sins, Dimi.”

“He will.” My cousin brought back his arm and chucked the ball. “But not if you die first.”

“I can’t have him turning an eye on the bratva,” I insisted. “I wouldn’t consider something like hiding if it wasn’t to protect all of you.”

“And we needyousafe,” Dimitri said with heat. “I’m glad you came to me with this.”

“I wasn’t going to.”

“I know.”

We watched Marena trot back with the tennis ball in her mouth.

“Dani and Kaz are at a new lake home we purchased,” Dimitri mused. From his tone, it was clear an idea was forming in his mind.

“We’re purchasing lake homes now?” It was my turn to laugh. “That’s very posh of us.”

Dimitri pinned me with a side look, and that was enough to know his wife was behind the scheme. “They’re on a kind of honeymoon. But if you head that way, the lake is secluded enough you can hide there for the time being, while we still have contact with you. It’s only two hours north of here, right outside a small town named Moosehorn.”

“That could work.” I could spend a few weeks in rural Wisconsin, plotting my next moves before resuming the hunt of my next target.

“You’ll love it there,” Dimitri promised.

The twinkle in his eye gave me pause. “How secluded?”

There was laughter in his voice. “The heart of Lake Country.”

Uh, huh.“You mean one of those lakes where the city folk go to pretend to be one with nature while turning the waterfront into a mini suburbia,” I scoffed.

“Precisely. Hide in plain sight, my friend.”

I was about to refuse him when a shadow jumped on me. “What the hell, bro! You could have called!”

I growled, shaking Luka off, but the brat clung to me like a backpack.

“I’m leaving—right now,” I snapped.

“Luka’s going with you, to make sure the property is secure,” the pakhan declared.

The side look I shot Dimitri was met with stern finality. There was no escaping this road trip north with my younger brother.

“Shotgun!” Luka called out, scrambling down to run back to the party. “Let me just say goodbye to my girl—”

“I shouldn’t have dropped in,” I said to Dimitri, ignoring my brother.

The pakhan only smiled. “Looks like you’re going to have a picnic basket for the road if Chiara has anything to say about it. Come on, let’s say hi to everyone and then you can leave.”

There was no refusing our leader, even though in my heart, I knew every minute I spent with them put them in great danger. Still, the call for a brief moment of human contact, a precious glimpse at family life, would sate the gnawing, feral beast inside and soothe him. Monsters like me didn’t find happily ever afters, but we could enjoy the crumbs of others whenever we had the chance. And if I was being honest, that was exactly why I stoppedby my father’s home instead of calling the pakhan. I was in desperate need of some crumbs.

TO BE CONTINUED IN…