phone, or a camera that fit in their palm. It really complicated jobs like hers. And if she hated anything it was a bleeding complication.
Sighing, she clicked on the email to answer B-Widow. Finishing that, she grabbed her leather jacket, her pack with all the essentials in it and hurried out. Time to scout the last place she saw the BMW.
* * * *
October 31; 12:20 AM Elianya read the message on the computer. Damn. Why would the assassin take so long in deciding? She should have gone with a lesser known, someone more into the simple money. Few would turn down a job for several thousands, let alone five million.
And if Raven turned her down?
Anger licked quickly through her. Then Elianya would use a backup plan.
Backups were wise she knew. Anything could go wrong at anytime, and at this point in the venture she couldn’t afford for it to wrong. Let her brother raise his empire on his old prostitutes, drugs and occasional arms deal. She … she had other ties, other vices she’d exploit and damn if she wasn’t going to create her own empire She knew she was already as wealthy as her brother. While she’d acted the business minded sister who wanted to do nothing more than open her own boutiques, she’d been running another much more 37
lucrative business.
And it was time to take out the competition. Checking her watch, she knew she’d have enough time to get done what she needed and head out to Kladno. She had clients coming in and wanted to make certain they received all they needed. Then it was to her house in Cheb, that lovely little Baroque townhouse she bought fully furnished. Then tomorrow night she was meeting Leos for a photo session at her other business studio in Cheb. Busy busy.
She clicked off the stereo killing the Mozart that floated on the air. Quickly, she picked up her long white ermine coat and slipped it on, pulling her hair free.
Grabbing her briefcase, she left her office and hummed as she planned how to end the tension between herself and her brother.
38
CHAPTER FIVE
October 31; 12:30 AM
Elianya told her driver to wait and climbed out, hurrying into Nero’s. Of course Viktor would be here at Nero’s Was it any wonder the man was falling behind? He’d become complacent.
She winked at Ivan with a smile she knew promised more--not that more would happen. He was a loose end she needed to tie off. Ivan had placed the bug in Viktor’s office here, but his use was at an end. At least after tonight.
Inside, she walked straight to the staircase, cursing a young idiot who almost spilled a glass of red wine on her coat. Her heels clipped up the stairs. She ignored Viktor’s two guards and stalked down the hallway.
How to play this? Staring at the door, she willed tears to her eyes. Blinking more moisture she opened the door. “Viktor?” she forced a tremor in her voice.
Her brother, his hair queued back, dressed immaculately as always, stood staring out the window on the floor below.
“Come in, Elianya.” His voice was flat, but then why wouldn’t it? He was trying to kill her.
She started to cry. “Viktor, I n--need your help.” Quickly, she shut the door behind her and locked it.
“What do you need help with?” Still he didn’t turn around.
Would he kill her? Probably not. If he was, he would have done it himself and not asked Dimitri to do it for him.
She took off her coat. Didn’t want to get it dirty now did she? Very precisely she draped it over the leather chair by the door. Still she left the white leather gloves on.
“I’ve gotten…” She sniffed. “I’ve gotten into trouble, Viktor.” She walked to his sideboard and thought about pouring herself a glass of cold vodka, but decided against it.
Obviously some would think she would have committed the deed, but then, she’d buy those off, or fuck them off. Either way, she’d do what she had to.
She turned and walked to his desk, as she had countless times, pouting as he turned
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