Chapter 125

You never get anything for nothing.

Micah

 “Kiki. For fuck’s sake! Think about what you’re doing. This whole thing is too dangerous,” I say, trying to talk Kiki out of coming with us and at the same time keeping my eyes on the road ahead. I’m taking them to the Russian gangsters, and I know that this won’t end well. This whole set-up is a joke. Tequila has my gun pointed at me. She thinks she’s doing the right thing. I want to kill her for being so reckless and stubborn, putting Kiki in danger.

“I can take care of myself and I want to help Tahlia. I haven’t been happier since I got out of that hospital,” she says, stubbornly. I will never forgive myself if something happens to her, but this is on Tequila’s back. She has made the decision and she will have to live with it for the rest of her life.

“Shut up, Micah,” Tequila snaps at me. “It’s her choice. She is an adult now. Just take us to where this whole thing is going to take place. At the moment we don’t have any other option. We have to do something. Who knows? Tahlia might be still in London. We can’t fuck it up again; otherwise we will never find her.”

I shake my head and decide to change the tactic.

“So what is your deal, Tequila?” I ask, turning towards Hackney and then stopping at the traffic light. I keep looking on the streets, still hoping to see Tahlia somewhere in the crowds of pedestrians. “How do you even know Tahlia? She didn’t own a phone when she was in Braxton. She has no emergency contacts, no one close, and suddenly you appear, completely out of nowhere.”

She exhales sharply and looks away. Suddenly I think there must be something we all missed, a very important detail about Tahlia that can lead us to her.

“It doesn’t matter what my deal is. Why are you suddenly so interested?”

I shrug. “I care about her. It’s just a shame that I didn’t realise that earlier on when I still had a chance.”

“We met through an online support group,” she answers. “We got on instantly and then continued chatting privately. Tahlia didn’t want to meet at first, not until she found out that Rudolf was shot dead. She thought it was too dangerous for her to leave her safe house; she was in a protection programme at the time. I’ve gone through shit too, you know, but she had it worse.”

“I love her, and I know that I screwed up,” I admit, briefly going over all my past mistakes including Steph. I might never find out what happened to her, why she needed to die. All these years of fucking around and never getting anywhere, but Tahlia—she is someone I can still save.

“Please. Love doesn’t exist. In the end there is always someone that gets hurt. Besides, she will never forgive you.” I should be pissed off that she’s that honest, but she is wrong. Tahlia loves me, and we still have a chance.

I choose not to say anything until we arrive at our destination almost an hour later. The club is on the other side of the city in a grim-looking neighbourhood.  The silence stretches for a good few moments. I let Kiki out first and move towards Tequila, grabbing her hand just before she is about to jump out of the van. This whole trip is a mistake. I should be here alone.

“Give me that fucking gun, Tequila. We both know that I have more chance of injuring someone than you do,” I demand, losing that good boy attitude. This girl needs a reality check. She is caged up like Tahlia, but she’s acting like she knows it all.

She glares at me with anger, trying to pull away from my grip, but I’m done with fucking around. I’ll have blood on my hands if anything happens to them.

 “If you think I’ll fall for your bullshit, then you have another thing coming,” she says, and when she tries to get out, I grab my gun off her, twisting her arm.

“These people out there, they have no idea that I used to be a cop, so you  better keep your mouth shut; otherwise we’re all going to get a bullet straight in the head. Then Tahlia will be on her own.” I secure the gun, so it won’t blow up in my pants. I finally let go of her, she looks like she is ready to punch me, but I don’t give her a chance and get out of the van.

It’s the first time I’ve ever felt this scared. In the past I always faked my confidence and used my arrogance to cover any unease, but this time I’m responsible for two mouthy grown-up women. This whole thing seems like a suicide mission.

 “You gave him back his gun?” Kiki hisses.

“Which side are you fucking on?” I ask.

“Hers, because you wouldn’t let me go,” she replies, folding her arms over her chest. I can make her stay in the van, but at the same time showing up with two girls will make me look less suspicious. It’s a risk, but we haven’t got much time to hang around, so I decide against it. She’s going to make a scene if I don’t let her go.

We walk inside the building and two huge brick shit houses of men who are posing as bouncers direct us to the VIP lounge on the second floor. The whole set-up is more than a little intimidating, but I’m desperate enough to agree with pretty much anything they say, just so I can get Tahlia back. Tom mentioned that the Russians that we’re meeting today are part of the Semya gang based in North London. Apparently he had some favour that someone owed him and he managed to set this meeting up. Now it’s up to me to make it work, to convince them to help me.

Passing through the club, I feel many eyes on me. I glance around surreptitiously and see about ten more brick shit houses and I bet they are all packing too. There is a woman dancing on the pole downstairs and with no clientele here I doubt she is the window dressing they are aiming for, particularly with the eye tattoos on her upper chest and beetle on her hip. If I recall, the eyes mean watcher and the beetle means pickpocket. I guess she does any recon work they think might be necessary.

I tense my shoulders seeing two men in suits. There are other guys, probably their bodyguards, standing by the bar.

 “Hi, Tom sent me. My name is Micah Thomson,” I say loud and clear, staring at the two Russians with reservation. 

“Sit, Mr. Thomson, and tell us why you brought the bitches. Are they here to sweeten our deal?” asks the taller and bulkier one, staring at Kiki with a curious expression on his face.

“They are my pets and simply for decoration,” I reply, laughing casually and feel Tequila’s eyes on me. I take a seat on a black leather sofa.

“Dimitri, Artyom, take the girls to the bar, buy them a drink. I want to talk to Micah, find out if he has anything at all to offer,” says the other one, which I presume is Ivan. Tom wasn’t specific about how many people I was meant to talk to.

Tequila shoots me furious look when another Russian appears in front of her and Kiki. I can’t do anything right now. We all have to play along and pretend that I’m all right with this. She was stupid enough not to listen to me, and now she is on her own.

“I’m Ivan Poroshenko and this is my brother Vladimir. Tom mentioned that you want to talk serious business?” 

I nod, glad that they get straight to the point, because every minute I spend with them is time that I can use to look for Tahlia.

“I bet you probably have heard about the scumbag Rudolf?” I ask, and before I can blink again I have a gun pressed to my skull. Ivan moves fast, and he is making me look like a lousy ex-cop. I don’t know how a guy like him has such good reflexes. If I don’t come back with something witty I might be dead in a couple of seconds.

“Rudolf took our business, our families, but he is already dead. Give me one good reason not to blow off your head right now. I don’t like hearing that name.” 

There is some movement by the bar. Tequila and Kiki can see what is going on. They need to stay calm and let me deal with it.

“He isn’t dead. The police allegedly murdered him a year ago, but this whole thing was staged,” I explain, knowing that I have only a couple of seconds to convince them to trust me. “Tell me, did anything change on the street since he died? Did you manage to take over Bromley?” 

The two of them exchange looks. I can’t tell what’s going on by their faces.

“There were talks. We celebrated when we heard that he got the bullet, but—”

“Nothing changed, his people still control the main supply, right?” I ask, cutting him off. “Listen, I’m here to finish the job, to kill him. Rudolf has my girl and I’m willing to do anything to get her back.”

“You want to kill Rudolf for us over some chick?” repeats Ivan, laughing.

“What can I say? I’m an old time romantic. Besides, I have been hunting him for years. I want him dead as much as you do.”

 When Vladimir lowers his gun my heart stops trying to kick out of my chest, and I sink back to the leather sofa. Both Russians have sharp features, but Ivan is losing his hair pretty fast. He has a bald patch on the top of his head. Their suits are obviously hand made with high-end cloth that fit them snugly but not cover their massive muscles. They control a lot of areas in London, specialising in distribution of hard drugs and women. Back in the academy I studied their files: the Semya or the Family are one of the top seven Russian Mafia gangs that operate outside of their native country. They are ruthless and cruel and hold grudges for generations. Their preference to dispose of someone is called Zamochit; it’s an old fashioned technique to kill someone through the breaking of every bone in the human body by beating. They are not guys I want to mess around with.

“What are you proposing, Micah? That man is no one, yet he killed half of my family years ago,” adds Ivan, shaking his head. 

“Help me to track him down and I’ll bring you his head. Rudolf has become weak, doesn’t have his people behind him like he used to. This is my proposition and I know that this is what you both want,” I say, probably looking like I’ve lost my fucking mind. Rogers tried to talk me out of this. He is still loyal to me, but I can’t keep putting him in danger. He has a family to think about.

 “Rudolf is a hard man. The bastard is Svarog or you would say–immortal. We sent our best people to get to him and they all failed. So what makes you think you can even scratch his nose?” Vladimir asks, looking amused.

“As I said, he has my girl and I’m desperate enough to do what’s necessary. She went missing three days ago in East London. Rudolf is back in the city because of her. I just need to be pointed in the right direction.” I rub my palms, aware of the tension that soaks the air.

I know that the twins want their territory back and they might be willing to do anything in order to be in power again. I can be a bad guy, sneak into Rudolf’s surroundings and do what’s necessary. He is keeping her somewhere in the city. I’m certain that he hasn’t left yet. Things in Braxton are not going well for him and his people are slowly choosing the other side.

 “We have our channels, Micah. We will get in touch within a couple of hours with a location. You need to be there, and one of my associates will give you more details,” Ivan finally says, rising like this is the end of this discussion. I’m baffled, knowing that this whole thing was just too easy. I’m smart enough to keep my mouth shut and not question him further when we start walking back to the bar. Tequila looks flustered and pissed off. She is sitting close to a tall Russian that was supposed to buy them a drink. Kiki has a disturbing look on her face. I sense trouble; something big is just about to go down.  

“Did you make a deal with him, yes?” asks Dmitri, and he drinks a shot of vodka. The brothers nod. “Good, so our boy won’t mind if I borrow the taller one. She is feisty.”

“I do mind. We need to get going, and both girls must go back with me,” I say, more forcefully that I want, taking a step towards her.

“We will keep her with us until you bring us Rudolf’s head. She is going to be our guarantee that you won’t screw us over,” Ivan barks, smiling widely like this is the best day of his life, eyeing Tequila with twisted excitement. Kiki gets off the chair and I start to sweat, thinking fast about my options. The new guy is caressing Tequila’s back, holding her wrists.

“Kiki, let’s go,” I snap at the younger girl. Tequila shoots me a terrified look, but I’m already turning around. I hear a muted cry for help behind me and then I pull out the gun, turning back abruptly. It’s a trick that I learnt from an old instructor years ago. Both brothers reach out for their guns at the same time, but they are too late. I can easily shoot Dimitri straight in the head right now. He is getting on my nerves, taking what doesn’t belong to him. The tiny voice in my head reminds me that I’m not a murderer.

“I won’t hesitate to put a bullet into his head. Both girls are coming with me and this is not negotiable,” I say, through gritted teeth, knowing that they can have me dead in a matter of seconds. They have nothing to lose. I came to them, not the other way around.

I imagine having that sick bastard Rudolf in front of me. He needs to suffer the same way that Tahlia suffered, and then I might let him die. My career with the force is over, but I no longer care, as long as I have Tahlia.

 “Micah, I can shoot you right now, and then we will get the girls anyway,” Ivan says, piercing me with his crystal blue eyes. Only now in this light I notice the scar that runs over the side of his face.

“But then you won’t get Rudolf. We both know that you want him eliminated. I’m the man for the job. I’m Joe Bloke, no one that he cares about, but I want him dead. I dream about it every day,” I say, pressing the trigger lightly. Tequila stops breathing; her eyes are wide, almost scary.

Kiki keeps moving closer to me, inch by inch, for the first time keeping her mouth shut. 

“Shoot him, Ivan. What are you waiting for? I want this whore,” shouts Dmitri. He must be important or he is one of Ivan’s closest guys. There is no way I’ll let him get his hands on Tequila. I’m ready to blow up his head if he touches her again.

 Ivan hesitates for a good few seconds then he lowers his gun. I move closer to the bar and grab Tequila’s wrist, dragging her over me, not taking my eyes off both brothers.

“You give me the location and I’ll bring you his head. I’m a man of my word,” I say and lower the gun. Then I punch Dmitri straight in the face as hard as I can, and feel like the bones in my knuckles almost crack. He flies backward over the bar, landing on a chair. Tequila lets go of a small yelp. The two Russians seem dumbfounded, staring at me in shock. “I would never imagine you would disrespect a business arrangement. That is for messing with what’s mine.”

Ivan nods his ascent and I decide to leave speedily. I don’t wait to see what Ivan and Vladimir might do. I simply turn around and start walking away, dragging Tequila with me. Kiki is strolling after us, breathing like she’s having an asthma attack.

“What did you do, Micah? What the hell did you promise them?” Tequila hisses once we get outside. 

“Rudolf’s head for his location. Don’t worry, I’ll get tremendous satisfaction from ending his life.”