Hey, Daddy (Semyonov Bratva Book 2)

Expensive, difficult, and talks back.

—Nastya to Haze

HAZE

The man named Lev was, indeed, a computer genius.

With my camera, the audio equipment that was still in my apartment, as well John’s text and cell phone records, we were able to piece together everything that happened.

On the tapes, you could see Daniil and Nastya head inside.

He had her wait in the kitchen, the farthest away from the door, while he disappeared into the bedroom to check out the rest of the apartment before gesturing for her to follow him.

He told her to get herself packed, and as they were passing each other in the hallway, that’s when there was a knock at the door.

It happened exactly as Nastya remembered it from there.

All the way up until she ran into the bedroom and screamed.

The one man that was wearing a black face mask, the one dressed in normal clothes, smiled.

The police officer shook his head, said that he was leaving now, and went.

Daniil pulled out his gun and aimed it at the masked man in the living room.

That’s when his brain exploded from behind and he collapsed.

John stepped out into the light and then aimed the gun at the masked intruder.

The masked intruder’s smile slipped and he said, “So this is how it’s going to go?”

“This is how it’s going to go,” John confirmed.

Then, as if they were in an old west shootout, the masked man lifted his gun, aimed, and fired.

I would never forget the way John’s head snapped backward as he took two stumbling steps.

I assumed how I found him was directly as he fell, but without the camera in the bedroom, I’d never know.

The masked man put his gun up expertly, letting me know he had plenty of gun handling experience.

He also walked like he was trained, as well as saw every little thing.

Even the camera.

Only after he drug Daniil’s body into the room did he say, “Looks like I’m not the only stalker.”

He left after that.

His boots leaving wet, red stains on the white linoleum as he disappeared.

“John was in on it?” Nastya rasped.

I scrubbed my hand over my face. “I…I don’t…”

John was solid.

I would’ve never, ever suspected him.

“I don’t think he was doing anything willingly.” Lev shifted over and showed off his screen. Hundreds of phone calls were coming in from a burner phone starting on Saturday, when the FBI agent showed to let us know that he thought we had a serial killer murder on our hands.

Hundreds of texts went out, too.

All of them were the same.

“Who is ‘she?’” Shasha asked.

“John was a love ’em and leave ’em kind of man. He had a fiancée once, but she left him after she asked him to quit his job, and John refused. I know that John still loves—loved—her. I imagine that, if he was this worried about anyone, it would be her,” I explained.

“Enough to kill your girl over?” Lev questioned.

I rubbed at the spot where I felt the physical ache in my chest before saying, “I think he’d do just about anything for her. She was the love of his life. The almost mother of his child. The one that got away. He knew everything that happened in her life because he couldn’t let her go. So yes, I think if she was threatened, it wouldn’t matter that Nastya was the one to pay the price, as long as she remained okay.”

“And who is this woman?” Auden asked.

I scrubbed at my face. “Her name is Sutton Barlowe.”

“Are we sure that this Sutton Barlowe isn’t in on this?” Dima questioned.

I opened my mouth and then closed it before starting again. “Well, I would’ve said that John wouldn’t do anything like that ever, either. But at this point, I don’t know which way is up.”

“I…” Lev paused and frowned, his gaze going to the computer screen with such intensity that it made my heart leap.

He started typing away at his computer furiously, then the video feed from Nastya’s apartment was back.

She caught my hand and held it, and I felt her all but bury her face into the space between my back and the couch cushion.

“What…” Auden said, then trailed off when the door opened and two people came inside.

The crime scene technicians were still there, combing through all the evidence.

However, the two newcomers…

One was Senator Kennedy, and the other was a man that I’d never seen before.

They spoke in low tones, but the camera that I picked up was phenomenal.

But even if I hadn’t picked it up, the audio equipment would have.

“Think it worked?” the senator asked the new man.

Nastya’s head jerked up and she stared at the screen.

“That’s him,” I said. “The one that shot everyone earlier.”

“How do you know?” Dima asked.

“Look at his eye,” I said, my attention for detail roaring to the forefront of my brain. “He has a fleck of darker pigmentation near his pupil on the left side.”

“Oh, that’s him.” She inhaled. “Who do you think the cop was that they…”

Just then the door opened a second time and a uniformed officer came into view.

“And that’s the cop,” I said. “Look at the left bicep. There’s a scar right in the crook. Same one from earlier.”

“Senator, you can’t be in here. It’s a crime scene.” The officer looked like he was about to choke.

“Oh, really?” Senator Kennedy laughed. “I hate to break it to you, but there’s nothing that’ll stop me from going anywhere that I want to go.”

Cocky son of a bitch.

“Sirs,” the frantic-looking officer said. “If you’re caught in here…”

Both men rolled their eyes, but they left. But not before the one that’d done the shooting earlier had a good look around.

The smirk that was on his lips made me want to throw up.

He’d enjoyed himself.

“Audio only now,” Lev said as he switched.

“…everything is working to plan,” Senator Kennedy’s voice said. “I’ll have her in jail by tomorrow.”

Anger rose inside of me.

“Get the lawyer here,” I said.

It was hours later when we finally made it to Nastya’s house.

Desi went to bed in the ‘softest bed ever’ according to her, and Nastya and I went to the shower.

I helped her clean up for a second time that night, massaging her shampoo and conditioner in her hair for a lot longer than necessary. I followed hair care up with the body soap, then quickly took care of myself before we exited the shower.

I led her to the sink where I helped her get her toothbrush loaded up with toothpaste—she was still a shaking mess even all these hours later.

We both fell into bed exhausted from a disgustingly long day.

But neither one of us went to sleep.noveldrama

We stayed in each other’s arms for hours, lost in our own thoughts.

It wasn’t until the sun started poking through the blinds that she finally fell asleep.

As if that was what my body needed to follow suit, I fell into a dreamless sleep.