Chapter 14: Konstantin

Friday. Home, Arlington, VA.

KONSTANTIN WAS UP EARLIER than normal. He hadn't been able to make himself sleep. Every time he closed his eyes it was a gamble what he would see.

Haley's face.

Or his mother's.

His memories of the woman who'd born him were hazy. More than anything else, he remembered how she'd made him feel.

Apprehension.

Gut churning dread.

Outright fear.

He wouldn't wish any of that on his daughter. There was no way he'd allow that woman into their lives if she thought she could treat Zasha the same way she'd treated him.

Ivana was more like a mother to him, but she'd always been just a little distant. Because she'd felt her loyalty was to his mother? He'd always assumed that was just how people of that generation were.

Had Ivana still been loyal to his mother while in his employ? What were the chances Ivana knew where his mother had been all these years?

He checked the time.

Six.

Still too early to have another chat with Ivana, but he was gr