“I’m dangerous, too.”

“No. He’s really dangerous.”

“I thought you’d need my help to get rid of him. Are you defending him?”

I pause. I do want to get rid of Adrian, but resorting to Luca’s methods isn’t the way to go. That’s not any different from acting like Adrian.

Although Luca has been keeping me out of his world, I know that he’s involved in shady business with shady people. He’s a lot like Adrian, but I’ve known him since we were children. I know he won’t hurt me.

“I’m not defending him,” I murmur.

“So do you want to get rid of him?”

“I don’t like to harm people, Luca.”

“Sometimes you have to or they’ll harm you.”

I remain silent, mulling over his favorite words. Luca has always had that philosophy about life and people.

“I’ll get rid of Adrian.”

His words cause a strange clenching in my chest. “I said I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

“It’s not only because of you, Duchess. Remember the people I work for? They want him gone.”

“But why?”

“Because he knows too much about things, and if he’s gone, the brotherhood will be weakened.”

He really is a higher-up if people like Luca’s random employers want him gone. Just what type of business is Adrian involved in? I’ve made it my mission to not get mixed up in that part of his life, but is that the wisest decision?

“Before I get rid of him, I need you to keep an eye on him, Duchess.”

“What?” I hiss.

“You heard me. I want to know if anything suspicious arises. You’re currently the closest person to him and the only one who can figure out his system.”

“His system?”

“He has a system where he watches everyone and everything, predicting things before they happen.”

Patterns. I recall Adrian said he believes in them. That’s why he’s a strategist.

I shake my head the slightest bit, bunching my hand on the lingerie. “I’m not going to be your spy, Luca.”

“Why not?”

“It’s Adrian. He’ll know.”

“He won’t.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“He’s blinded by you.”

My lips part. “Blinded by me? You must be kidding.”

“I’m not. For the first time in his life, the meticulous Adrian Volkov is letting a woman close. If that’s not a weakness, I don’t know what is.”

I don’t like that, the idea of me being Adrian’s weakness. The more Luca talks, the more I want to shut him up.

“All you have to do is act as you’ve been doing all along. Don’t try to find his bugs and don’t get out from under his thumb.”

“No.”

“Lia…” his voice softens. “Have you forgotten what we promised?”

“I haven’t, but I also didn’t sign up to be a part of this game.”

“You were signed up a long time ago.”

“What?”

“Do you want me to tell you who was behind your parents’ deaths?”

A rapid thump takes over my chest as if a wild animal has been awakened. My limbs tremble and the black box seems to close in on me like when I was a kid. “You know?”

“I told you I’d find out and I kept my word.”

“Who is it?” My voice quivers as the noises from that day filter back in, the silence, the screams, the hushed footsteps. My ears ring with the harshness of them and it takes everything in me to remain standing.

“That’s not how it goes, Lia. Give me what I want and I’ll give you what you need.”

With that, he turns and leaves. The meaning behind his words remains with me.

I’ll give you what you need.

Luca worded it perfectly. He, of all people, knows that uncovering the truth behind my parents’ deaths is what’s been haunting me since I was a small girl.

It’s why I have those visceral nightmares and take those pills. It’s why I’m too scared to live and too scared to die.

And to free myself, to choose a final destination, I need to spy on the devil himself.

16

Adrian

I’m running out of time.

In fact, I’ve been running out of time since the first encounter with Lia in the parking lot. If it were any other person, I would’ve ended it as soon as it started.

But it’s not.

During the past four weeks, I’ve been bargaining with myself to get on with it, to extort what I want from her and go. To throw her to the wolves, as per the original plan.

But every time I see her, sink inside her, and own her, I’m left hungry for more. I thought I would have fucked her out of my system by now, but it’s proving to have the opposite effect. Every time I touch her, I’m starved for more, and a part of me keeps wanting to take this to the next step and offer her another one of my truths. One that will either make her more suspicious or give herself to me fully.

Now, I’m seriously contemplating other options about how to go about her. The evening meeting with Sergei and Igor goes longer than I’d like. They both need progress reports about the Italians, something I haven’t brought to the table yet because of a certain ballerina who shouldn’t be involved in this life.

But I already dragged her in. It might have started the day she saw me kill or the day I went to watch her shine on the stage, or her fate might have been sealed the first time I kissed her—or fucked her.

At any rate, Lia Morelli is in.

She might not have a single clue about what’s happening, but her life and mine are intertwined closer than she’ll ever know.

I still hang on to the fact that she’s far enough away from the brotherhood and everything in it. She’s doing her thing with the ballet and I’m doing mine behind the scenes.

Dealing with Sergei and Igor isn’t hard. They know I don’t fail. So far. If they want something about the Lucianos, they’ll get it. Only the method might have changed.

Yan releases a bored sigh as soon as we get in the car. Kolya, however, meets my gaze through the rear-view mirror with a furrowed brow. “They’re getting more insistent.”