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around, looking for a decent cup of coffee. Had Papa told him to go with her?
    When Anya Volkov, Sergei’s mother, arrived, Maksim took the opportunity to flee. Anya had gone into hysterics when the doctor emerged from surgery to give them the news that Sergei hadn’t made it. The old she-wolf had verbally attacked Irina, only stopping when Galina had threatened her with the Gauntlet, the werewolf equivalent of a trial by combat, for nearly exposing them to humans.
    Galina had never been happier to leave a place in her entire life. At least Sergei had shuffled off this mortal coil before he could hurt Irina any further. That was some small comfort.
    Her phone buzzed at her from inside the pocket of her discarded coat. Galina fished it out, saw that it was her brother and sighed. Her bath would have to wait. “Hi, Nikolai.”
    “Pop just wanted to make sure you got home okay.” His voice was the best thing she’d heard in hours.
    “Yeah, I’m in and I’ll set my alarm after I get off the phone with you.” She walked down the hall to her bedroom, holding the phone to her ear. “So you heard? When are you getting in?”
    She could hear loud voices speaking in Russian on Nikolai’s end but it was too muffled to make out exactly what they were saying. “We’re on our way back as quick as we can. Should be in by morning.”
    “Anything else?” She passed through the sitting room and her bedroom to get to her bathroom. Her feet slapped against the marble tile.
    “Nothing yet. Pop did say he’s sending a detail over to your place. And Irina’s.”
    “Why do I need one? I’m not the one being shot at!” But Galina knew why. Papa was scared. Someone had killed a man—his man—on his turf. He was going to be in lockdown mode now. He was going to protect his own. “Are we in a war that nobody told me about?”
    “No!” Nikolai exploded. He lowered his voice. “Pop’s just being careful.”
    “How did everything go with Alexei?” She turned on the taps to her massive clawfoot bathtub, filling it with steaming water.
    Nik lowered his voice. “It’s a mess. Again.” He sighed. “I can’t keep doing this—we can’t keep hiding dead girlfriends.”
    “I’m sorry,” she said, putting the phone on speaker so she could shimmy out of her dress. “I wish I could help.”
    “It’s fine. You were there for Irina.” Nikolai sounded concerned. “How is she holding up?”
    “Okay, all things considered.” Irina had been quiet when Galina walked with her and Viktor to his car. The bodyguard had practically been carrying Irina, she was so exhausted from the night’s events. “I’m glad Papa’s got someone watching out for her. I’m going to head over in the morning.” She looked at the clock and saw it was nearly three o’clock. “Well, later in the morning anyway. To help her with arrangements and things.”
    “Be careful, Galya. I don’t know what’s going on but there wasn’t even a hint of a hit out on Serg anywhere in our information network. It came out of nowhere.”
    She assured Nikolai she’d be careful, and then ended the call. She put her phone on the teak table next to the tub and lowered herself into the water. The hot water hit her like a welcoming wave, making Galina realize just how tired she was after a night spent in the emergency room. She sank into it gratefully, pulling the pins from her hair. She felt like she was covered in blood and grime, like she might never be clean.
    Ducking her head beneath the water, Galina soaped her hair. She was rinsing the shampoo from it when her phone rang again. With a sudsy, tired hand, she hit the Send button. “Hello?”
    The voice on the other end of the phone made gooseflesh rise along her arms. Andrey’s deep voice. “Hello, Galina.”
    Galina swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. “How did you get my number?” It was private and she kept her direct number as guarded as she could. Short of asking her family or employer for it, he