Page 57 of Savage Boss
“I promise.”
I really do, because I don’t want to jeopardize this, the promise of something lasting, something blooming into what might be forever.
26
CLARA
The office is quiet, the sort of hush that settles in after hours, when the tap of keyboards,thelow hum of conversation, and the click of heels have faded. My desk lamp throws a narrow circle of light across piles of folders and files—case notes, audit reports, attendance logs—all meticulously arranged, yet somehow chaotic under the weight of what we’re searching for.
Pavel sits across from me, his brow furrowed, hands steepled together as he scans another spreadsheet, eyes darting over numbers and names. I can almost hear his mind working, hunting for the anomaly that will shine light on the mole.
We’ve been at this for hours, working as methodically as surgeons, dissecting every detail. Somewhere in these documents is the answer to who the mole is, the person who knows too much and moves too quietly.
Pavel points to yet another name as we cross-check employee access logs againstschedules, but I shake my head. “Not her. She was out for jury duty the week of the breach. Alibi checks out.”
Another hour, and a headache is starting to pulse behind my eyes. The silence, punctuated only by the turning of pages or the click of a mouse, is beginning to buzz in my ears, and I have a sudden urge to fill it with something, anything.
“So where exactly are you from?” I’m not even sure why the question popped into my head. I could have turned music on, but the words came out before I could stop them.
I don’t expect Pavel to answer. I think he’ll probably just give me a look and return to work.
But after a moment, I’m surprised when he says,“A small village outside of St. Petersburg. We moved there when I was a child because my father found work.”
“Oh.”
I’m honestly not sure what else to say. I didn’t expect a response and hadn’t thought that far ahead. Then another question surfaces. “How long have you known Dmitri?”
“I met Dmitri at school when we were boys. My parents didn’t like him because they’d heard rumors about his family, but I didn’t care.”
“You’re very loyal to him.” It’s a given, but if he’s willing to talk, I’m going to get as much out of him as possible.
“That is what it means to bevory v zakone.”
“I keep hearing that, but I have no idea what it means.”
“Thieves-in-law is the exact translation, but it is much more than that. We take an oath to uphold the brotherhood. When I first moved to St. Petersburg, the other boys would come after me.Dmitri didn’t even know me, but he had my back, and he’s had my loyalty ever since.”
I haven’t heard Pavel string this many words together since, well, ever. Even working together, it’s usually one-word answers or a truncated sentence at most.
“Why are you telling me this? I have a feeling you’re not just making conversation.”
His mouth quirks into something that resembles a smile. “Because Dmitri isn’t a good guy, and I won’t tell you differently. If you’re going to do this, you have to know what you’re getting into. I won’t pretend to know what Andrey has told you, or what you’ve read in the papers. But even if Dmitri isn’t a good guy, heisa good man—he lives by his word, and he doesn’t do anythingindiscriminately. He is not evil for evil’s sake; his business is his business and nothing more.”
I’m not entirely sure I agree with that assessment. Surely, with a billion-dollar international corporation, you can find another way to do business. Can someone follow a specific code of living while still being on the wrong side of the law? Not only on the wrong side of the law, but creating a billion-dollar empire from it?
More importantly, does that distinction matter to me?
“What was he like as a kid?”
Pavel eyes me suspiciously.
“Indulge me. I’m going to have a kid running around who’s half him, and I want to know what I’m in for.”
The big man chuckles, and I don’t know whether it’s because he’s remembering Dmitri as a child, or if it’s because he knows I’m in for a world of hurt.
“He hasn’t changed much. Dmitri is Dmitri—he’s always been quiet and watchful. I think other kidsmistookthat quiet for timidness or stupidity. If they tried him, they found out very quickly they were wrong. He’s always watching, always calculating, always planning.”
“You said his family had a reputation?”
