*Sephie*
I made sure to make even more food this time, thinking there would be leftovers they could eat the next day. Wrong. They just ate more.
“I’m going to have to start rationing you guys. Or you’re all going to have to start running with me.” I said, as they all went back for seconds and thirds.
Misha laughed. “This kind of delicious death will be worth it.” They all agreed with him.
“I hate running, but I’ll do it if it means I can eat more of this,” Stephen said.
“It’s not so bad, once you get used to it,” Misha said.
“Just never think you can run faster than her and you’ll be fine,” Adrik said, winking at me.
“I haven’t run in so long, you have a good shot at beating me now.” I grinned at him.
We stayed in the kitchen, talking, well after all the food was gone for a second day in a row.
“Have Dario and Massimo made it to meet with Trino yet?” Ivan asked.
Viktor nodded. “Armando is in contact with some of Trino’s people. They confirmed that Dario and Massimo landed this morning. Trino is making them wait, just like he did with Lorenzo and Anthony,” he said, laughing.
“I like his style,” I laughed.
Adrik looked at me thoughtfully. “I think it would be a good idea for you to meet him, solnishko. Mando and I were talking about it. I don’t want to count on him without you meeting him first.”
I smiled to myself at how reliant he had become on my observation skills. He was just as good as I was, to be fair, but I kind of loved how he included me in his business. “How funny would it be for him to come here to meet with you while the other bosses are waiting on him in Colombia?” I said, mostly joking at the absurdity of it.
Adrik looked at me, then looked to Ivan, then to Viktor. “That’s not a bad plan, solnishko. I didn’t want you to go down there while they were still there. It appears he’s going to keep them there forever because he’s having such a good time making them wait.”
Viktor asked, “how much time do you need to figure out whether he can be trusted, Sephie?”
I thought for a moment. “Not long, unless he’s a complete psycho like Massimo. He took me longer. Everyone else I’ve been able to figure out almost immediately.”
Viktor looked to Adrik. “We could meet him in between here and there. It would likely get back to the other bosses if he came all the way here, but we can meet him halfway without them knowing. We can get in and out of your usual meeting spot with Trino quickly. It’ll give Sephie enough time to meet him and he can get back before the other bosses catch on that he’s meeting with you.”
Adrik thought for a few moments. “It might be nice to get away for a couple of days. We can take Mando and Giana as well. I want Sephie to see everyone together. She’ll be able to tell me if anyone is lying. I trust Mando. I mostly trust Giana, but I don’t know her well. And I trust Trino so far, but I want Sephie to confirm that.” He looked to Misha, raising an eyebrow, silently asking for his thoughts on this plan.
Misha thought for a few minutes. We could see him working through various scenarios in his head, but he ultimately gave the green light. Adrik then looked to Andrei and Ivan. “How long before you two are up for travel?”
Andrei spoke first. “I’m good, Boss. Whatever you need. I should be able to use it almost fully in the next couple of days.” Adrik nodded, then looked to Ivan, who was quiet for a moment. He looked conflicted.
“Ivan’s wound is more serious than Bubba’s. He won’t be back to normal as quickly, but he’s still more lethal with one arm than most people are with two, so there’s that,” I said, winking at him.
“I’ll be okay to travel, Boss. She’s right. I won’t have full use of my arm for a while, but I’m good. There’s no way I’m not going,” he said, looking right at me. I couldn’t help but smile at him. He’s taking his new role very seriously.
Adrik was quiet, thinking about this plan. “I’ll speak with Mando and Trino tomorrow. Trino still hasn’t given Lorenzo and Anthony an answer on their proposed deal.” He laughed. “He’s really enjoying stringing them along. This will give him reason to make them wait even longer, so I can’t see him not agreeing to meet with us.”
Finally, he looked to me. “Are you up to a quick trip to meet him?”
I nodded my head. “I’m curious to meet him. Especially after hearing how he’s been treating the other bosses. Just promise me that you won’t let Giana go shopping at any point while we’re gone.”
They all laughed. “Deal,” Adrik said, smiling at me.
Misha had time after dinner to splice together the videos so they would play continuously for at least 8 hours. “It should restart when it gets to the end, but I haven’t tested that out yet, so I don’t know for sure if that will work.”
I looked to Ivan. “You were good on the couch earlier, right?” I was worried about leaving him alone again overnight. I didn’t want him to have to go through it again, if we could avoid it. If I needed to sacrifice another night of sleep, I would gladly do it to keep him from having to relive it.
“Yeah, it worked well. Just like it did last night, only it was still playing when I woke up.”
I looked to Misha again. “Okay, we can try it again, but if you hear anything, you come get me right away again. Understood?”
Misha nodded, handing Ivan the phone. “It’s all ready to go. You just have to plug it in and hit play.”
“Thanks, kid,” Ivan said. He put his good hand on Misha’s shoulder. Misha just nodded and left for his room.
I looked to Ivan. “Want me to make sure you fall asleep okay before leaving?” I felt silly asking a grown ass man if he wanted me tuck him in, but I wanted to make sure he was okay.
He smiled at me, pulling me to him and hugging me. “I’ll be okay, princess. Thank you. For everything.”
“You know I love you, Squishy. I just want to make sure you’re good. I need you around and what not,” I said, grinning at him. “And also, your one-armed hugs still suck.”
“Technically, I can give you a normal hug. It’s not like I’d feel the difference,” he laughed.
“Touché. But then I’d have to yell at you for using your bad arm and it would just get ugly.”
He covered his nose and leaned away from me. I couldn’t help but laugh at him. He was so different from when I first met him, and I adored this Ivan. He pulled me back to him, giving me another one-armed hug and kissing the top of my head. “I’ll see you in the morning, princess.”
“You know where to find me if you need anything.” I looked at him seriously. He chuckled, nodding his head as he walked toward his room.