Page 48 of Unbridled Fire
I swallowed thickly, feeling my cheeks warm under her gaze. Was I blushing like a damn teenager? What had this woman done to me?
“Yeah,” I said, clearing my throat. “Well, I’d like my home to be a safe place for you both...for as long as you want to stay.”
Katia’s nostrils flared. “Leo...” she whispered.
“Come on,” I said, gesturing to the doorway. “Let me show you the bedrooms.”
I led her upstairs, pushing away the serious conversation we were about to have to another day.
“This is the guest bedroom,” I said, showing her the first room on the left. “You can stay there to have some privacy. The bathroom across the hall is yours.”
I led her to my bedroom at the end of the hall. “This is my room, and I have my own bath, so you’ll have privacy.”
She studied me with her one good eye that wasn’t swollen shut. “Okay. Should I settle in?”
“Sure. There’s food, soda and bottled water in the cabinets and fridge. Make yourself at home.”
“I think I just want to take a shower,” she said, sighing. “I’ve never craved a damn shower more.”
“Go for it,” I said with a nod. “I’ll be downstairs if you need me.”
As she showered upstairs, I headed down to the den that also functioned as my home office. Opening my laptop, I made notes about the details of Katia’s rescue that morning. As a seasoned investigator, I knew it was important to write everything down.
I documented Dmitry’s outreach to Alexis, and his willingness to help. Maxim also seemed to be a mostly innocent bystander. The main two antagonists had been Marco Nunez and Oskar. At least now, I could confirm with my own eyes that Marco was in New York. Not great news, but now Michael and I could deal with the situation and attack it head on.
A tendril of worry snaked down my spine for Dmitry. Oskar was smart enough to figure out that the kid had betrayed him,and I was concerned for his safety. Reaching for my phone, I called Michael.
“Hey,” he said. “Did you all make it home okay?”
“Yes. Now that she’s safe, I want to get ahead of this situation. In my assessment, we have two main objectives: take down Marco and Oskar before they beat us to it, and protect Dmitry. I’m worried they’re going to retaliate against him for helping Katia.”
“We could approach him at home,” Michael said, “or have Alexis contact him.”
“Let’s have Alexis contact him first. He already communicated with her, and they probably have some sort of secret hacker mutual respect we’ll never understand. I’ll call her and help her craft the message to him.”
“That works. Now, on to Marco and Oskar. We need to work quickly. Katia’s abduction and rescue have probably shifted things into overdrive, and we need to immobilize them quickly,” Michael said. “I have an idea that I’ve been discussing with Alexis. Hear me out and see what you think...”
I listened, realizing the plan would put us into uncharted, dangerous territory, but having hope that it just might work.
“It’s risky, but I like it,” I said when Michael finished.
“Good. Let me continue to work with Alexis for now and I’ll keep you posted.”
Clicking off the phone, I tapped it to my chin, pondering if Michael’s plan had any chance of success. Hell if I knew, but we needed to think outside the box, and I’d never minded taking a risk if I anticipated success.
Shelving it for the moment, I rose to go check on Katia.
I spent the rest of the day helping Katia with her various ice packs. We also took a walk around the block at dusk, allowing her to inhale some fresh air before bed.
Once it grew dark, I cooked us some pasta and we ate it on my couch as we watched the evening news.
“This is good,” she said, grinning as she chewed. I could tell she was still in pain, and my heart ached that I hadn’t saved her from it. “Didn’t realize you were a cook too.”
“It’s pasta from a box and sauce from a jar,” I said, shrugging. “Nothing too elaborate.”
“It’s heaven,” she said, winking at me with her good eye.
After washing the pans and cleaning up the kitchen, I led her upstairs. We stopped at the doorframe to her bedroom, and she tenderly palmed my jaw.
