Chapter 20
Gavril
I pulled up across the street from the shitty apartment studio that Konstantin’s phone led me to, frowning as I did so. For an FBI agent, the place was subpar at best.
I mean, come on, surely Hampton made enough money to afford a decent place to live.
No wonder he felt the need to stalk my wife. No one would ever fuck him in this shithole.
Cutting off the motorcycle, I climbed over the tank and tucked the keys into my leather jacket, feeling the small revolver I had tucked away in the pocket. I also had the knives I took from Naomi in my boots, and if all else failed, well, good ole fists were going to have to do it.
I had to get to the evidence before Hampton could.
The street was quiet as I approached the studio, seeing the light filtering from the window. If Hampton was there already, I wasn’t going to let him leave alive. It would be my chance to rid this world of him once and for all.
If someone else was up there, well, I would have to take matters into my own hands.
Tucking my hands into the pockets of my jacket, I pulled out the pair of gloves that I kept there, pulling them on carefully as I walked silently up the stairs. Adrenaline flowed through my veins in torrents, hoping that the fucker was inside.
I wanted him to be inside.
My boots barely made a sound as I climbed up the stairs and looked in one of the windows, seeing no movement inside. The hair on the back of my neck stood straight up. This could be a trap. I was well aware of the fact. I could be facing Hampton himself or looking at the possibility of a dozen FBI agents waiting in the wings. Konstantin might have been told false information for a reason.
I had to take the chance though. I couldn’t walk away, not now.
Pulling out my lock-pick kit, I set to work on the older-style lock, grinning when I heard the successful click a moment later.
Hell yeah, I still had it. My mother had been the one to teach me the skill, stating that a good Pakhan should never forget the basic skills. Even my sisters were aware of how to pick locks. They were hot targets, and if they ever found themselves in a situation, I wanted them armed with the same skills that could save their lives.
Maybe I would teach my wife next.
After tucking the kit away, I pushed the door open with my boot, barely breathing so I could hear even the slightest sound that would tip me off.
Hearing nothing, I took a step inside. There was a single naked light bulb in the middle, illuminating the small room for me to see everything inside.
Yep, it was a shithole.
I shut the door softly and stepped over to a curtain that was suspended from the wall, pulling it aside. The metal rungs scraped across the curtain rod and I stepped back, clenching my fists as I surveyed the contents.
It was a wall of Naomi.
Rubbing the center of my chest with my hand, I forced myself to look at the contents. Some of the photos were apparently from a social media account, screenshots of her life before me. In all of them she was smiling, her arms thrown around men and women alike.
No, she was beaming at the camera, with no trace of worry or concern on her face. This was Naomi before I forced her into this life.
This was the Naomi who had fought this asshole for her life back, who constantly was on the run though the pictures wouldn’t tell the story.
She was so fucking gorgeous that it made my chest hurt.
That and I wanted to tear down every picture on the wall. Hampton didn’t deserve to have these.
I flexed my hands inside my gloves and forced myself to remain calm for now. Konstantin had sent me here for a reason, knowing that the FBI stalker had something on me.
It was time for me to figure it out.
As my eyes moved over the pictures, I realized some of them were more recent. Somehow he had taken photos of us leaving the physician’s office, my hand on her back as I helped her into the waiting car.
There was another of Naomi on the side of the road, with Ivan hovering over her nervously as she bent over. My stomach twisted as I realized it was the day of the women showing up on the boat, when Naomi had realized what I was doing at the docks.