The Property of a Lady - Elizabeth Adler [211]
He folded his hands together, propping his chin on them, staring at her with his piercing dark eyes.
“You are a clever woman, Missie,” he said softly. “I need not explain to you what could happen if I were just to pick up this telephone, right here, and call the Cheka. They are always with me, even here in New York, always around….”
If her face could have turned paler it would have. He smiled with satisfaction. He was about to drive a hard bargain. “I could take Ava away from you forever,” he said. “I could turn her over to my government to do with as they will because she is the key to the fortune that Russia so badly needs.” He paused for a second or two, watching her like a hawk hovering over the sparrow before it drops for the kill. “But I see that you love her like your own child. I am a compassionate man. I am going to make a bargain with you. I want to give something to Sergei to reward him for the happiness he has brought me. I can think of no greater gift than reuniting him with his sister. The Ivanoff affair will remain a secret between us if you will agree to let Ava come to Russia for a few weeks. I will arrange a ‘cultural visit,’ a few concerts. I will take care of her and see she comes to no harm.”
Missie’s scalp prickled as she sensed danger. The pretty room was heavy with the scent of it, just the way it had been in the train. Through the fog of fear clouding her brain she saw through his plan. He would take Azaylee back to Russia and hand her over to the Cheka so that they could get their hands on the fortune. Alexei would never see her or even know about her. And Solovsky would still have his son. But she knew there was just one trump card left to play in this game—and it was hers.
“I understand your ‘compassionate’ motive exactly,” she replied, “but what you suggest is impossible. And so, General Solovsky, is your threat of the Cheka.”
“And why is that?” He stood up and began to pace the room, his hands clasped behind his back.
“Because America is a democratic nation where intimidation is not a way of life. Ava Adair is a famous woman. There would be an international incident. A scandal against Russia.”
He shrugged. “Russia has a strong back. She has weathered many scandals.”
“The other reason,” she said, sitting ramrod straight on the pink sofa and meeting his eye, “is that I know what happened to Alexei Ivanoff. I intend to make a statement in front of witnesses to this effect. Copies of that statement will be placed in a safe deposit box at my bank with my lawyers. If you ever attempt to touch Ava Adair, General Solovsky, you will hang yourself. And also your son.
He stared at her angrily. He knew he was beaten. She had found the only loophole and she had used it.
He sighed and sat down again opposite her. “You and I are cursed by a crippling disease—love. You know I would die rather than hurt Sergei. The brother and sister will never meet. Alexei Ivanoff will lead his new life and Xenia Ivanoff hers. There is no more to be said.”
“And the fortune that Russia wants so badly?” she asked, the old fear of the Cheka lurking at the back of her mind.
“You must maintain your silence and your anonymity. I can promise nothing.”
He stood up, looking at her with a faint amused smile. “I knew when I met you on the train that you were a tough adversary.”
“Only in love,” she said quietly. “Not in war.” There was just one more question she had to ask, something she needed to know finally. “Please tell me what happened to the prince.”
“Misha Ivanoff was shot by the peasant rebels at Varishnya. His body was burned when they dynamited the house.”
The door separating her sitting room from Azaylee’s suite crashed back against the wall and they swung around, startled. It was Azaylee, her face ghostlike against her blond hair. She was wringing her hands together. “I’m sorry if I interrupted,” she said in a small