Page 42 of The Bratva's Secret Baby

I turned to another page and began to read absent-mindedly when a soft knock echoed through the living room, making my heart skip a beat.

My eyes fell on the door and my mind raced. When a second knock sounded, I clutched my chest and sighed. Damien!

My lips twisted into a slight smile as I stood on my tiptoes and scurried to the door.

“K?”

My smile sank and the tingling in my stomach disappeared. Kendrick stood at my door, towering over me with his tall frame. He wore a brown leather jacket and skinny pants that indicated he hadn’t come from the office.

“What are you doing here? How did you get past the doorman?”

Kendrick was the last person I expected to see at my front door, and it wasn’t just the fact that he had come uninvited and without notice that got my blood boiling. How did he know where I lived?

He flashed me a humorless smile. “I'm a cop, I can get in anywhere. I’m sorry if I scared coming here uninvited.” A gentle breeze brushed between us, rustling his curly dark hair. “Oh, and I got your address from your file with us.”

I drew my eyebrows together. Something's not right here. I’d just found out Kendrick had lied to me, and my gut instincts resisted trusting him.

He looked over my shoulders. “May I come in?”

I backed away from the door and signaled him to come in.

“Sorry, of course. I was just a little startled to see you here so suddenly and it’s late.”

“That’s all right.” He sauntered into my living room and began to take in the space, his gaze wandering from one end of the room to the other. “You’ve done well, Rosanne. I’m impressed.”

“Thank you,” I said with a smile. I closed the door and walked toward him. “Would you like a drink?”

“A glass of whiskey will do me.”

“I don’t have any alcohol. How about coffee or tea?” I didn’t tell him I had a young child in the house. Kendrick was no enemy, but I couldn't shake the feeling that his visit was suspicious.

He thought for a while. “I’ll have a cup of tea, then.”

“Sure.” I walked over to the coffee table and stuffed the papers into their respective folders, then grabbed my cup of coffee and wandered toward the kitchen as my heartbeat crept up my throat.

I don’t like this at all.

Hastily, I made him a cup of tea. He had settled on one of the sofas when I returned to the living room.

“What do I have to thank for this visit?” I asked, shuffling cautiously toward my armchair.

Kendric leaned forward. “It’s about your brother, Eric.”

I raised an eyebrow, for the mention of my brother’s name piqued my interest. “What about Eric?”

Kendrick cleared his throat. “I need to tell you something, but first I need to ask you how much you know about his death.”

A stab ran through my chest. Even after so many years, it was still hard to talk about Eric’s death.

I was reluctant to tell, but I still didn’t hold back. Kendrick was the only one who could find out the truth about Eric’s death, and I was willing to take the risk. “I don’t know who killed him, but I know it wasn’t anyone from the organization.”

He ran a finger through his hair. “If it wasn’t anyone from The Circle, then who was it?”

I buried my hands between my thighs, and the tremor in my spine mixed with the heat searing my belly. “I don’t know. I’m sure it must have been a third party, but their motive confuses me. Why would anyone want to kill him?”

Kendrick cleared his throat again. He regarded me silently for a moment. “Your brother was very loyal. Sometimes I felt he was loyal beyond measure. He did everything I asked of him, and other than The Circle, I don't see any reason why anyone would hurt him.”

“I know.” I curled something invisible between my thumb and forefinger. “My brother was no saint, but he wasn’t the type to go looking for trouble either.”