Chapter 5

Kris climbed on his bike, his body fueled by the rage he was feeling. How could Raisa’s own brother sell her out to a sleazy gangster like Volkov? She was his little sister. Weren’t big brothers supposed to protect their little sisters? It was time to have a heart to heart with Stephan Felfan, and he better have the right answers. Or Kris couldn’t promise he wouldn’t hurt him badly.

Oh, he’d keep his word to Raisa and not lay a hand on him, but he had all kinds of neat gadgets he could use to ensure the slime ball felt Kris’ displeasure. He pressed the start button and roared out of the garage, headed for some lunch and conversation with Stephan.

When he walked through the door, the little punk actually had the gall to come up to him like he was a threat. “Where’s my sister, you pervert?”

Kris let his disgust and anger shine in his gray eyes. “I promised your sister I wouldn’t lay a hand on you, but if you persist in acting like you care about her, I’ll break every bone in your body.”

The quick flash of fear was exactly what Kris wanted to see. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I am worried about my sister. She left with you and yet here you are and she isn’t. How do I know you haven’t done something to her?”

“Let’s cut the bullshit, Stephan. I know you don’t owe Volkov money. I know you work for him, and so does your sister. We also know that you promised her to that maniac.”

“Tha ... tha ... that’s not true.”

Kris reached into his jacket’s inner pocket and pulled out the tablet and then turned it so that Stephan could see the screen. “I have copies of your and Volkov’s text messages. Your sister has seen them too.” He swiped, and the screen changed to the bank statements. “I’ve also seen what you do for the Syndicate. Laundering money is illegal, Stephan, and while I don’t care if you destroy your own life, running that money through the diner’s accounts makes your sister an accessory and that I do care about. Very much.”

The little Russian piss-ant swallowed and looked around to see who was listening. “What do you want from me?”

Kris shrugged. “From you? Nothing much. I want you to call your boss right now and hand me the phone.”

“What?? No way, man, he’ll kill me.”

Kris smiled, the smile that several cartel bosses had seen right before they died. “What do you think is worse? Death or what I’ll do to you and leave you alive to suffer it?”

The nervous cook pulled his cell out and hit a button, and then handed the phone to Kris.

After a few seconds, a voice came on. “Why are you calling me Stephan?”

“Not Stephan. Sorry.”

The voice got angry. “Who is this?”

“It’s the flower you think you can cut.”

“The florist, well don’t you have some big ones?”

“Nah, they’re regular sized.”

“What do you want, florist?”

“I want a face to face to discuss how I will not destroy your business and you’re going to leave my girl alone.”

The laughter on the other end was forced. “You think you can dictate terms to me? Do you know who I am, boy?”

“I know who you are, Gregori Volkov, reject from the Brava and self-appointed head of the Syndicate and smelly little vyperdysch.”

“I will kill you for that!”

Now it was Kris who laughed. “Better men than you have tried. Let’s meet and you can listen, or I can just keep the fifty thousand dollars you put in the diner’s accounts this week and take it and the paper trail to the IRS and FBI organized crime task force. Your choice. Or maybe I’ll just tell my friend Igor Vasilyev how badly you are handling business here.”

The indrawn breath told Kris he’d hit on a sore point. “How do you know Vasiliev?”

“I saved his daughter’s life once.”

“You? Ha, you’re nothing but a florist.”

“What did the Brava teach you, vypersdysch; know your enemy. You know nothing about me. Maybe you should call Igor yourself and ask him who Kris Lawson is. Maybe you’ll realize you are in over your head. I will meet you tonight at nine at your penthouse to discuss your funds.”

Then, not waiting for an answer, he hung up on the man. Stephan had gone pale, listening to the conversation. “What have you done?”

“I did what I have to save your sister. What do you care?”

“You can’t insult Gregori like that. He will take your calling him a baby born of a fart as a personal insult. You have just killed yourself and my sister.”

Kris laughed. “You don’t know me anymore than Gregori does. Let me make it plain: I’ve dealt with men far more dangerous than him and I’m still here. If you were smart, you’d remember that, because if one hair on your sister’s body is hurt, I will make you pay for your betrayal.”

“Who are you?”

“I’m the florist. You said it yourself.”

Kris turned and left the diner, smiling as he heard Stephen mutter, “You aren’t no ordinary florist.”

******

Raisa

Raisa walked around Kris’s apartment, cleaning up from the lunch they’d had with his friend and coworker Mac from Blackguard Securities. She was still trying to process that her family business was actually a front for laundering money by the Syndicate. Even more disturbing than that was the fact that the loan she had been told her brother owed Gregori Volkov was nothing more than a trick. One her brother had suggested to the slimy mobster to get her to give herself to him as payment to save Stephan’s life. Tears trickled down her face as she thought about the fact that everything she thought she knew had been a lie.

While waiting for Kris to get home from seeing her brother, she had to do something. After exploring his apartment, she cleaned. Not that it needed cleaning, but that was one way she had to deal with the overwhelming emotions running through her. She started in the great room and then moved on to the kitchen. When that was spotless, she headed into his bedroom and began there. Raisa stripped the sheets and was startled when she bumped the headboard and a panel opened, showing her a pump action riot shotgun and two huge pistols. She was curious why he had hidden weapons in his bedroom. She knew he had been in the Navy and worked in Special Forces, but did all ex-Special Forces guys keep a panic room with an arsenal and hidden weapons in the bedroom? If he had weapons hidden in his bed, where else were there hidden weapons? Was she really safe with him?