Chapter 13

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Violet whispered to herself. She had spent the last three hours combing through all the information she had, and there was the only thing that confused her.

“I don’t understand his connection to Viktor Ivanov, especially since he’s not around anymore.”

Violet knew Viktor was Kyle’s father, but she hadn’t known who Viktor was until she’d ended up with the Volkov clan.

“It looks like my father owed him money, but I don’t see how. My father dealt with shady, dangerous people, but no one like Viktor,” she mumbled to herself.

~Knock, knock.~

“Housekeeping. Can I come in?”

“I don’t need anything. Thank you, though,” Violet yelled through the door. She didn’t want to find out if it was really housekeeping or if it was someone who was sent after her.

She knew to be cautious and to be aware of the people around her, especially since she wasn’t surrounded by the people who took care of her.

Violet waited a few minutes before continuing her work. She wanted to make sure no one was lingering.

Once she was sure she was alone again, she switched gears and started planning her attack.

Now that she knew there was a connection to Viktor, she would use knowing Sarah and Kyle to her advantage, letting it be known she could gain access to their organization.

***

Violet had had a hard time sleeping the past two days. She was nervous about how this was going to play out.

She knew her father would be angry and figured he would detain her before listening to her.

She took a deep breath before putting her car in drive to finish the last mile of the trip to her father’s compound.

“Stop the car!” a guard yelled, and Violet quickly rolled down her window.

“What is your purpose here?” he asked.

“I’m here to see my father. Please let him know that his daughter Violet is waiting outside the gate.”

The guard at her window seemed confused, but the man standing behind him knew exactly who she was. She hadn’t seen him in years, but he was the one who had always helped her.

“Let her through. She’s telling the truth.”

“Thank you, Simon,” Violet said.

***

“She tried to trick us by ditching the car in the town next to where she was staying. I got word from one of our guys watching her father’s compound that she showed up there today,” Ryan reported.

“I fucking knew it. She put herself in danger. Can we go after her now?” Anatoli asked.

“Technically yes, but not everything is planned out. I would like to give our men at least two days.

“We need to get her out safely, and security is probably heightened right now because of her arrival. Her father may think it’s a trick.”

“Ryan is right. We need to make sure we have things in order before going in after her. We have two days to get shit together and get her,” Max said.

“Two days? A lot can fucking happen in two days!” Anatoli yelled.

“Violet is smart. She knows what she’s doing. She has a plan, and whatever it is will help us take care of her father.”

“If anything happens to her, I hold you accountable,” Anatoli said, pointing at Dimitri.

“Understandable,” Dimitri responded.

Anatoli didn’t want to blame him, but he was the one who had given her the information. The information that made her believe she could do this on her own.

***

Violet picked at her fingernails as she sat on the couch waiting for her father. She knew he was taking his time to make her feel more scared.

“Why did you come back?” Simon whispered.

“I need to make things right.”

She didn’t want to give anything away. Even though Simon had helped her in the past, she didn’t completely trust him. He was loyal to her father, and she knew he’d crush her plans in a heartbeat.

“You look good. I’m assuming whoever you are with is taking care of you?”

“I agree with him. You look well taken care of. Are you relying on another man to take care of you?” her father interrupted.

~He hasn’t changed over the years~, she thought to herself. ~He still looks unhappy and unhealthy.~

“I take care of myself. I’m just with a man who treats me with respect,” she snapped back.

“You’re stupid for coming back here. I owe a lot of money because of you. Cannin was not supposed to buy you.”

“He didn’t buy me. As you can see, I’m free and doing what I want.

“I came to let you know that I have connections to the Volkovs, which also means I have connections to Ivanov’s daughters.”

“Ha, my daughter thinks she’s smart. Why does this concern me?”

“You are in debt to his organization, and the person who runs it is not the heir. The heir is married to one of the Volkov brothers.”

She could tell her father was trying to guess what her next move was.

“I’ll help you gain access to the Ivanov organization if you let me and my siblings go. This is the only way I will help you. Then I want you out of my life permanently.”

He let out a small laugh. “You could have stayed away and lived a normal life.”

“You would have found me eventually, and I can’t leave my siblings with you knowing what you are capable of.

“You put me through hell when I lived with you, and I’m not going to let them suffer for as long as I did.”

“I’m sure we can come up with a deal.”

Violet knew the deal was a lie, but she had to act like she believed him.

“Why don’t you show Violet around, Simon? I’m sure the two of you have a lot of catching up to do,” he said with a smirk.

Simon nodded before gesturing to their starting point.

“I’ll have a room prepared for her in the guest wing.”

She hated the way her father could lie and look charming. She knew he was forming a plan, and she intended to be ready for whatever it was.