Black Kat (6 page)

Chapter Six

Luke looked out over the Strip while he waited for Alexander’s response to his question about the plans for a new casino in Atlantic City.  When no answer came, Luke turned around to find Alexander intently staring at the flat panel computer screen that was mounted on the wall.  The website pulled up was a local news station, and Alexander’s attention was focused on an article about a dead girl found in the desert.

“Alexander?” Luke prompted.

Ignoring Luke’s original question completely, Alexander pointed the remote at the screen.  “Do you remember this?  Apparently this is the second body found recently.”

Luke was used to Alexander’s laser like focus, so he gave up hope of continuing their previous conversation.  “No, I don’t watch the news. 
Too depressing.”

Alexander drummed his fingers on his desk as he rea
d the rest of the article.  “Hmm,” he murmured.

Luke waited patiently until Alexander turned his attention back to business.

“I gave the go ahead on the plans for the new casino.  Construction should begin by the end of the summer with an opening set for the following spring.”

“Tight timeline,” Luke commented.

“No reason to drag our feet on this one.”

Luke helped himself to a bottle of water from the refrigerator under the bar.  “I think we need to do something about
Dimitri.  I’ve gotten some complaints from the cocktail waitresses downstairs.  He’s been throwing his name around trying to get special treatment…if you know what I mean.”

Alexander stretched his neck to one side and then the other. “I know exactly what you mean.  I think it’s time
I have another talk with him.”

Reaching over his desk, Alexander pressed the intercom button and Janice’s professional voice filled the room.  “Yes, Mr.
Petrovsky?”

“Please find my cousin and send him to me.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Thank you, Janice.”

“What are you going to do when she retires?” Luke asked before taking a swig of water.

Alexander leaned back in his black leather chair.  “I pay her very well not to retire.”

Luke smiled and watched the water swirl as he twirled the bottle in his fingers.  “So, you’re sure about this deal you’re hoping to strike with Kat Rossi?”

“Very sure.”

Luke wanted to warn Alexander that it was a bad idea.  But one look at the determination in Alexander’s eyes let him know he wouldn’t be derailed by anything Luke had to say.

Dimitri
must have already been on the property, because it was less than five minutes before Janice called through the intercom to let Alexander know Dimitri had arrived.

“Send him in.”

Dimitri burst through the door with an annoyed expression on his face.  Luke and Natasha were the only people allowed to enter Alexander’s office unannounced.  Dimitri could probably understand Natasha, but Luke knew the guy was bitter that he wasn’t allowed free reign when Luke was.  There was certainly no love lost between the two men.

Luke stood up and dropped his empty water bottle in the recycling bin underneath the sink.  He raised an eyebrow at Alexander to question whether he should stay.  A slight shake of Alexander’s head had him making his exit.

With a smirk, Luke winked at Dimitri as he walked by.  “Dimitri,” he said by way of greeting.

Dimitri
scowled at him and shoulder checked Luke as they passed each other.  Luke kept going, unfazed, right out of the office.

As he neared Janice’s desk in the reception area outside of Alexander’s
office, she opened her top drawer and pulled out a small bowl of Hershey’s kisses, placing them on her desk, all while talking on her headset and typing away on her computer.

Luke snagged a handful and flashed Janice a genuine smile.  “You’re the best.”

A slight quirk of her mouth was the only acknowledgement to his compliment as she tucked the bowl of candy safely back in her drawer.

The numbers above the elevator showed it was down on the first floor, so Luke skipped the wait and hit the stairs. 
He needed to burn off all that chocolate after all.  By the time he reached the lobby level, he was unwrapping the last piece of candy.  Popping it in his mouth he strode across the lobby.  Nothing seemed out of place.  Not even the two FBI agents parked in the black chairs near the fountain.  Par for the course these days.  Alexander never worried that he would be taken down, and Luke took some comfort in that.  And if it came right down to it, Luke would happily take the fall for the only family he had ever known.  Even if they weren’t related by blood.

The
two agents seemed to be doing a better job of arguing than surveilling, considering Luke walked by them a mere ten feet away and they paid him no attention.   Luke shook his head and strode out the front entrance.

“Don’t we have better shit to do than sit in the lobby of Petrovsky’s hotel?  I doubt he’s going to be conducting criminal activity in the middle of the day in front of his ritzy clientele,” Robert Bass complained.  Colin had been partnered with Bass for six months now, and the asshole always found something to complain about.  No wonder he had been shipped out to Vegas from the New York office.

“It’s about establishing a presence in his life, Bass.  If he wants to take a stroll through his casino, I want him to see me.  If he comes out of that elevator, I want to be the first thing he sees.  I want to get so far in his head, that he can’t look in the fucking mirror without seeing me behind him,” Colin said.

“Christ, Lewis.  Did the guy piss in your cornflakes?  Why do you have such a hard on for this fucker?”

“Because he’s a criminal who thinks he’s above the law, Bass.  Do you need to reread your job description?  You’re a fucking FBI agent.  Act like one,” Colin growled.  Taking a deep breath, he continued, “Do you have yesterday’s surveillance report?  Or do I have to do your job for you?”

Bass easily brushed off the insults and pulled out his phone.  Scrolling through, he gave Colin a brief rundown of Alexander’s day.  “Went to that rundown shithole he uses as a gym early in the morning.  Didn’t leave the hotel the rest of the day, presumably in his office.  Showed his face around 8:00 pm when he had dinner in the steakhouse here.  After that…looks like he’s slumming it.  Around 10:00 pm, Petrovsky and Wells took a car to The Garden of Eden.  Photos show him spending some time with one of the waitresses.”  Bass whistled, “Fine piece of ass.  Gotta hand it to the guy.  He has good taste.”

The hair on the back of Colin’s neck stood up the second Bass said
The Garden of Eden
.  What was Petrovsky doing there?  Grabbing the phone from Bass’ hand, Colin could barely contain the fury that coursed through him as he scrolled through several grainy pictures of Petrovsky sitting at a table with Kat.  The last picture showed her picking up his business card.

“What the fuck?” Colin said loudly enough to cause several heads to turn in their direction.  “What the fuck is she doing with him?”

Catching on that something was up, Bass asked, “You know her?”

“Yeah, I fucking know her.  That’s Kat.”

Bass whistled again.  He’d only been working with Colin for six months, but he knew plenty about Kat Rossi.  Colin talked about her all the time.  He wasn’t clear on how they knew each other, or what exactly their relationship was, but it was clear that Lewis was gone over this girl.
  Maybe this assignment would shape up to be more interesting than he originally thought.

Having worked for years in New York, Bass knew of Alexander
Petrovsky and his ties to organized crime there. But the guy was meticulous.  Bass had been working organized crime long enough to know who they could get.  And they couldn’t get Petrovsky, not unless he majorly fucked up somehow.  So, being assigned to work the Petrovsky case with a loose cannon like Lewis had him questioning early retirement on a daily basis.  But the girl added another element.  Depending on what her ties to Petrovsky were, maybe they could get her to flip on him.  If not, the entertainment factor alone from watching Lewis’ head explode was worth it to stay on the case.

Colin was still studying the photos of Alexander and Kat, with steam practically coming out of his ears, when Bass gave another low whistle.

Colin whirled around and got in his face, “If you make one more comment about Kat or her ass, I will…”

Bass held his hands up in surrender.  “Easy, partner.  You might want to reel it in and take a look at who just walked in
to Petrovsky’s hotel,” he said, inclining his head in the direction of the hotel entrance.

Colin released Bass’ shirt and turned around just in time to see Kat walk around the corner toward the bank of elevators.  His mouth went dry and his blood ran cold.  She looked beautiful as always in jeans, knee high boots and a snug leather jacket.  Her hair hung loose down her back and swayed as she walked.  Beside her was Blade.  That damn dog, Colin thought.  It was a teddy bear around Kat, but it never let him get close before growling and bearing its rabid teeth.

But it wasn’t how she looked that caused him to react.  It was the fact that she was here, in Alexander
Petrovsky’s hotel, the day after she met with him where she worked.  Jogging across the lobby, Colin caught up with her as she waited for an elevator.

“Kat,” he breathed.

She turned her head and tightened her grip on Blade’s leash.  The fucking dog immediately started growling at him.  For once, he wanted to be able to take her in his arms without her many defenses getting in the way.

“Colin?  What are you doing here?”

Always the suspiciousness in her eyes, even with him after all these years.  It always hurt to see it, but he had grown used to it.  “I work the Petrovsky case.  You know that.  Why are you here to see him, Kat?”  No need to beat around the bush.

She lifted her chin.  “That’s none of your business, Colin,” she replied coolly.

He reached forward to grab her arm, but Blade moved between them and his growling became louder.  Colin wanted to bare his teeth right back.  Letting his arm fall back to his side, he lowered his voice and forced himself to remain calm.  A surefire way to push Kat away was to go on the offensive.

“I know he came to see you last night.  We have him under constant surveillance.  You have to know what kind of a man
Petrovsky is.  He’s not someone you should be getting involved with.”

He nearly choked on those last words.  The thought of Kat being in an intimate relationship with
Petrovsky made him want to set his badge aside and do what the law wouldn’t allow him to do.

“I’m not here on a social call.  Mr.
Petrovsky said he has information that can help me.”

“What kind of information?  And what do you have to do to get it?”  Colin demanded.

Kat turned her cool eyes on him.  “I don’t know, Colin.  That’s why I’m here.”

Again he tried to reason with her.  “What could he possibly have that could help you?”

Clearly exasperated with the interrogation and having missed two elevators already, Kat put her hands on her hips and glared at him.

“Whatever he has, it’s got to be more than I’ve been able to dig up.  I’m hitting dead ends, Colin.  And it’s not like the authorities are doing anything except filing my case away in the basement of some forgotten storage building. 
This new note?  It means he’s still out there.  And he’s watching me.  And all those missing girls?  I know it’s all connected somehow.  I can’t stop, Colin.”

The elevator doors opened and Kat stepped inside.  She stared out at Colin, daring him to try to stop her.  But he didn’t.  Doing so would only push her farther away from him.  That was something he couldn’t stand.  He would just have to step up surveillance on
Petrovsky and also watch Kat’s every move.

Chapter Seven

The elevator doors closed, and Kat slumped back against the wall.  Blade sat quietly at her side.  She was having enough doubts about being here as it was; she didn’t need Colin acting all big brother on her.  Sighing, she glanced down at Blade.  Who was she kidding?  Colin didn’t want to be her big brother.  He may have never made a move or given any outward indication, but she knew he cared for her and wanted her to feel the same way about him.

She just couldn’t.

Whether it was him or her, she didn’t know.  Wanting to be with a man, wanting to trust someone enough to make herself vulnerable in that way - it was an utterly foreign concept to Kat.

If she could find the justice she so desperately need
ed, maybe someday she would be ready.  Colin would be the perfect person.  He was caring, thoughtful, attractive, protective.  Everything she should want.  So the fact that she was perfectly fine with Blade keeping him at a distance led Kat to believe she was damaged beyond repair.

The elevator dinged, signaling her arrival on the twelfth floor.  She exited into a glass enclosed entryway.  Beyond the doors, which she found to be locked, she could see a large lobby area where an older woman with a sleek white bob sat behind a massive black desk.  Everything was black or white with accents of silver.  Not just here
, but in the hotel and casino as well.  Kat had never been inside The Onyx before, and she was impressed at how perfectly it matched its owner.

The woman glanced up and gave Kat a friendly smile.  The door buzzed, and Kat swung it open easily.  It was solid glass, and she couldn’t see any sort of mechanism that had kept it locked.

“Hello, you must be Miss Rossi.  I’m Janice.  Can I get you anything to drink while you wait?  Mr. Petrovsky is finishing up a meeting and should only be a few more minutes.”

“No, thank you,” Kat replied.

Janice reached down to pet Blade on his broad head.  “What about you?  I might just have an extra dog treat in my drawer.”

Kat raised her eyebrows.  Not only did Blade allow this strange woman to touch him, but he eagerly accepted a treat from her.  She trusted his instincts as much as she did her own.  Whatever may happen with Alexander, Kat felt that Janice could be trusted.

“Do you get many dogs up here?”  Kat asked, looking pointedly at the drawer where Janice had pulled the treats from.

Janice smiled again.  “Mr.
Petrovsky said you were a clever one.  No, I can say this is the first dog that has visited Mr. Petrovsky’s office.  He mentioned you had a dog that might accompany you today.”

Kat wasn’t sure what to make of that information.  He had seen her with Blade that first day at the gym, but how could he know she would bring him today.  And he didn’t exactly seem like the type to welcome pets in the workplace.

Janice sat at her desk and resumed typing on her computer faster than the speed of light.  Kat watched in awe as she simultaneously typed, answered a call and buzzed in a delivery man.  It was less than five minutes before Janice answered a buzz on her intercom and then stood.

“Mr.
Petrovsky will see you now.”

Kat wanted to correct her.  It was she who would see him, not the other way around.  But she held her tongue, which was not something she did easily or often.  Blade looked up from where he lay comfortably on the thick carpet.

“He can stay out here with me, if you like,” Janice said, leaning down again to pet Blade.  The traitor licked her hand and rolled over to get his belly scratched.

Kat rolled her eyes.  Surely Alexander wouldn’t do her bodily harm in his office during broad daylight with Janice right outside the door.  “Okay,” she reluctantly agreed.  He did look happy there.

The door to the left of Janice’s desk opened and Alexander appeared in the doorway.  He was tall and, though not overly muscled, Kat could see he was well built beneath his very expensive looking black suit.

“Miss Rossi, I’m glad you came,” he said smoothly.

Kat wiped her hands on her jeans and closed the space between them.  When she reached him, he stood back and gestured inside his office.  An office that was larger than her entire apartment.  One entire wall was made of glass and had a view of the Strip.  Kat imagined it would be breathtaking at night.  There was a sitting area furnished with black leather sofas and stainless steel and glass tables.  Against the far wall sat a massive black desk very much like Janice’s.  Beyond that was an open door, and Kat was able to catch a glimpse of a bathroom, decorated in the same clean modern lines.

She wasn’t so busy being awestruck that she missed the large hulking man standing off to the side.  He had the same dark hair and eyes as Alexander, so they could be related, but that’s where the similarities stopped.  His face wasn’t nearly as handsome, and his nose had definitely been broken before.  Slicked back hair and an ill-fitting suit set him miles apart from the man who stood beside her.

“Dimitri, you can go,” Alexander said firmly.  His voice was quiet, but with an undercurrent of hostility.

Dimitri
looked at Kat and narrowed his eyes.  “But Cousin, I saw her on the cameras.  She was talking to the Feds.  Downstairs.  In your lobby.”

Alexander waved his hand dismissively.  “My business with Miss Rossi is not your concern,
Dimitri.”  He walked farther into the room, clearly done with the conversation and expecting Dimitri to leave.

Which he started to do, his dark beady eyes on Kat the whole way.
  She turned her head to watch him as he passed behind her toward the door.  The instant his eyes drifted down her back to the slight bulge under her jacket where she had her gun tucked into her waistband, Kat’s body tensed.  He took a step toward her and raised his hand.  To take the gun?  To grab her arm?  Kat didn’t give him the chance to finish the movement.

She grabbed his wrist and wrenched it backward while her knee connected with his groin.  In less than two seconds
Dimitri was on the ground with Kat’s boot on his throat and the barrel of her gun pressed to his forehead.

“Don’t move, asshole,” Kat snarled at him and pressed the cold steel farther against his head.

The scene unfolding before him was not exactly how Alexander had expected his meeting with Kat to begin.  But it did underscore the very reasons he wanted to work with her.

Dimitri’s big body lay curled in the fetal position with his hands cupping his crotch.  He stared up at Kat in shock.  Alexander stood where he was and calmly watched to see how Dimitri would get himself out of this one.  The view was a good one.  Kat’s tight jeans hugged her slight curves, and the boots and leather jacket did things to his libido that he hadn’t expected.  The women he spent his time with were polished and styled to perfection.  Yet, Kat, with her long wild hair and worn jeans was infinitely more appealing.

“You stupid bitch,”
Dimitri wheezed.  Bad move, Alexander thought just as Kat brought her gun down hard against Dimitri’s head.

Only then did Alexander move.  He crossed the room to his desk and buzzed Janice.

“Yes, Mr. Petrovsky?”

“I need security in here to remove
Dimitri.  He is…incapacitated at the moment.”

“Of course, sir,” Janice answered evenly
, as if this was an everyday occurrence.

Alexander walked back around and leaned against his desk, his eyes never leaving Kat.  She straightened and took a step back, tucking her gun back into the waistband of her jeans and pulling her jacket over it.

“Impressive,” Alexander said.

Her head snapped up and her eyes met his.  They were still wild with adrenaline, but she kept her expression smooth, though he did note just a hint of color
high on her cheekbones.  Kat glanced down at her handiwork and back to Alexander.

“I’m so
rry,” she said.

The corner of Alexander’s mouth quirked up as he regarded her.
  “No, you’re not.”

Kat smiled, and it reached her eyes.  Alexander remembered seeing her smile at her dog that first day in Dane’s gym.  It was even more beautiful when directed at him.

“You’re right.  I’m not.  He started it,” she replied.  Alexander felt as though he had just been allowed a glimpse of the real Katya Rossi.  The one beneath the layers of armor she wore.  And he liked it very much.

There was a quick knock at the door before it opened.  Two men in suits with earpieces walked in.  If they were surprised to find
Dimitri unconscious on the floor, they hid it well.  With ease, they hoisted him up and carried him out.

When the door shut behind them, Alexander walked to the bar on the opposite side of the room from the windows.  “Would you like something to drink, Miss Rossi?”

“No, thank you.”

Pouring a glass of sparkling water for himself, Alexander motioned for her to sit.  Kat perched on the edge of the sofa, and Alexander took the chair opposite her.  He took a drink of his water and watched as her eyes moved around the room, taking everything in, before finally settling on him.

“Are you going to tell me what you want with me?  Or did you invite me here just to stare at me?”

Alexander chuckled.  “
Ah, well, forgive me.  I was thrown off a bit by your memorable entrance.  Although it was quite entertaining, and it gave me further assurance of what I want.”

Kat leaned forward slightly, challenging him.  “And what is it that you want?”

“I want you to work for me.”

That wasn’t what she was expe
cting to hear.  “Work for you?  Doing what?”

Alexander leaned back in his chair, crossing one ankle over the opposite knee and
steepling his fingers in front of his chest.  “I haven’t worked out all the details quite yet, but there are certain times in my business dealings when it would be useful to have a companion with your…skills.”

Kat narrowed her eyes suspiciously.  “And what skills are those?”

“Your instincts.  Your ability to pick up quickly on dangerous situations.  Your quickness and strength.”

“You don’t know me at all.  How could you possibly know anything about me?”

“Because, Miss Rossi, I also possess that same skill set.  Albeit in a less beautiful package.”

“That still doesn’t answer my question about what exactly I would be doing.”

“The first thing would be to accompany me to the Mayor’s charity gala on Saturday evening.  From there, we shall see what comes up.”

Kat stared at him, and Alexander stared right back.  “What do I get in return?  You said you can help me get what I want most.”

Alexander merely nodded.

Frustrated, Kat stood up and paced to the windows.  She knew enough about him to know that he was thorough.  If he knew she wanted re
venge, then he would know why.

With her back to him, Kat said, “What do you know about me?  About what happened to me?”  Wrapping her arms around her waist, she continued to stare out the window as she waited for his answer.

Alexander rose and crossed the room to his desk.  He thought she might want to see the information he had received as well as the few things his investigator had been able to dig up over the last two days.  Carrying a copy of the thick file, he set it on the table and sat back down.

Kat slowly turned and warily eyed the file. 
After a full two minutes she slowly sat back down and tentatively brushed her fingers over the smooth manila.

“How
much do you remember, Katya?” Alexander asked quietly.

No one ever called her
Katya, and it sounded right coming from him.  With his accent, he said the name as it should be.  Kat flipped open the file and saw the newspaper article of her disappearance.  She suddenly realized this was not the place to take a trip down memory lane, and she swiftly closed the file.

“I don’t remember much at all.  The police said I was heavily drugged.  Fortunately for me I was left with some physical reminders and a permeating sense of fear that stays with me always,” she said bitterly.

Alexander watched as she rubbed her fingers over her wrist.  He could see there were scars on her wrists from the restraints used to bind her.

“How can you help me?”
Kat asked, her tone back to business.

“In a matter of two days, my investigator was able to compile your entire life.  Things you don’t even know about yourself are in that file.  I know that you are investigating on your own, but I doubt you are having much luck.  My resources are far reaching and go beyond what the authorities can do.”

“So, am I correct in assuming your methods of gathering information are not always legal?”

Alexander smirked.  “You are correct, Miss Rossi.”

Kat eyed the file again.  She was running into brick walls on her own.  And the police had dropped the ball from day one.  She didn’t know it at the time, but she knew it now.  Even Colin hadn’t been able to find out anything on the notes she had been receiving.  The bottom line was she needed help.  The kind of help Alexander Petrovsky could give her.  But at what price?