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Chapter 36
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2022-10-19 14:19:34Related chapters
Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 37
Jozef was in their suite when Shaun quietly opened the door and let herself inside. At first, he didn't see her. He was sitting on the sofa, the TV blaring a music video. The lyrics for Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" filling the apartment as Jozef tapped on his phone, texting someone. Shaun was surprised he enjoyed retro music. Based on the club, she would've pegged him as more of a DJ kind of guy. Shaun wasn't ready for a confrontation with her intense captor, so she quietly closed the door and moved noiselessly toward the bedroom. It was a mistake. Something must've alerted Jozef to her presence because he was on his feet instantly with his gun in hand pointing it at her. Shaun made a terrified squeak and jumped away, bringing her arms up to protect herself, as if they could stop bullets. Once Jozef recognized her he put his gun back in the holster strapped to his chest. I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were here, he signed, remorse bright in his eyes. I prom
Last Updated : 2022-10-19Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 38
Shaun reached out tentatively and touched the scar on his throat. "When did it happen?" He hesitated, as if deciding how to answer. She suspected this was a topic he didn't enjoy talking about, which was why she hadn't brought it up before. Now that he seemed more willing to share with her, she wanted to know about him. About the kinds of things that had shaped the man he was now. Finally, he told her, I was stabbed in the throat when I was seven. I don't remember anything except waking up in the hospital with my aunt and uncle by my side. They told me my parents were both dead. Shaun frowned and scooted closer to him on the couch, leaning in to examine the scar. This close she wasn't able to sign, so she whispered, "Whoever stabbed you would have damaged your trachea, causing vocal cord paralysis. This is why you can't speak, isn't it?" Shaun had suspected, but she hadn't put a lot of thought into why Jozef communicated nonverbally. His lack of speech cou
Last Updated : 2022-10-19Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 39
Jozef wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of the evening holding Shaun in his arms while she slept, but he had a meeting to attend. Krystoff wanted to talk to him about some information Jozef's team had dug up. They'd finally managed to discover the whereabouts of Vasiliy Stanovich, the mastermind behind Krystoff's kidnapping. Unfortunately for them, Vasiliy was holed up in the neighboring country of Poland. Jozef suspected his uncle was going to send him on an out-of-country job, not something Jozef wanted to do while he was still unsure of where he stood with his fiance. Would she try to leave him the moment he was out of the country? Would her heart grow cooler with distance? He didn't want to risk their budding relationship on a job, but his uncle's word was law, and if Krystoff ordered Jozef and his team to go on a job, they didn't have a choice but to go. It was the way they had always done things. Krystoff was head of the organization, Jozef was his loyal d
Last Updated : 2022-10-19Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 40
There's no security that I can detect. No men, no cameras, no alarms. Jozef nodded as his man filled him in. Terek had gone ahead to meet up with their Polish contact and to stake out Vasiliy's hideout. Despite Terek's assurance that the house wasn't wired, Jozef wasn't taking chances with the safety of his team. With the tight timeline they were on, they'd only had a few hours of surveillance, rather than the minimum of two days Jozef would normally insist on. Is he inside the house? Jozef asked. Terek lifted his shoulders in a shrug, his look of frustration mirroring Jozef's, who was silently cursing his uncle for setting up such a disorganized hit. Twelve years earlier, when Krystoff had wanted to up the Koba game in the global market, Jozef had suggested putting together an elite team of mercenaries for hire. His team consisted of the best people he could find in the areas of security, explosives, surveillance, investigation and tech. He'd worked with them un
Last Updated : 2022-10-19Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 41
Havel was the fastest man on their team. He was bigger than the rest of them, but able to move like a speed demon when he needed to. Vasiliy complied. Once he was standing in the middle up the room, his arms up and out to the side, Jozef relaxed enough to sign while Havel translated. What do you want to tell me? "Thank you for trusting me." Vasiliy caught the look on Jozef's face and added, "Yes, of course you don't trust me. What I mean is, thank you for trusting me enough not to shoot before I get the chance to speak." Jozef gave him the universal 'hurry up' signal, which Havel didn't need to translate. "Right, right, of course," Vasiliy said hurriedly. "You'll be in a rush to leave." He didn't sound at all like a man who was facing death. Where was the begging? The bribery? Jozef wondered if he was less frightening than he thought. He glanced at Havel. Nope, the fatigue-clad crew, loaded with weaponry, would look scary as fuck coming through a do
Last Updated : 2022-10-19Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 42
"Dr. Patterson, if you'll just hold your head still for me." Shaun wanted to growl her annoyance as the person doing her hair straightened her head by pushing her chin forward. The man was fingers deep in Shaun's tight curls, trying his best to straighten them. She could tell he wasn't used to working with hair like hers. Her tight curls were usually pulled back in a ponytail or left in an afro that framed her head. Sometimes when she was travelling, depending on the country and her access to clean hygiene, she would have her hair braided into tight rows to keep maintenance down. Shaun was being, poked, prodded, measured, plucked and made-up for the engagement party due to start in just over two hours. Dasha had sent her beauty team to Jozef's suite to help Shaun prepare. She felt like an expensive, very useless doll. Shaun hadn't noticed Jozef enter the room until he stepped up to the man who was working on Shaun's hair, giving him a glare that had the man's hand
Last Updated : 2022-10-19Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 43
Every head in the room turned and the orchestra fell silent as Jozef led Shaun into the ballroom, pausing in the doorway for the occupants to look their fill. Shaun clung tighter to Jozef's arm, while he squeezed her hand reassuringly. Being the object of such focused attention made her nervous and reminded her all over again of how different she was from these people. Though Shaun had helped prepare the house for the party, she was still shocked by the transformation of the ballroom. It was dripping in glittering crystal, gold and black accents and the most expensive settings money could buy. Shaun stared at the tablecloths covering the buffet tables. If she wasn't mistaken, they were the exact same shade as her gown. She stared open-mouthed at Dasha, who was standing near the front of the crowd with her hand on Krystoff's arm. The woman had outdone herself. When Shaun caught Dasha's eye, the older woman lifted her champagne glass in salute. Shaun was truly impressed.
Last Updated : 2022-10-19Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 44
"There you two are," Dasha scolded, though her tone was jovial. The party was turning into a spectacular success and it was clear she couldn't be happier. "Come meet the Croziers, they flew in from New York just to be here for your special day." Shaun and Jozef linked fingers, a united force, as they were paraded around the ballroom and introduced to a dizzying number of people. Shaun accepted a champagne glass somewhere along the way, and another as her empty one was replaced the instant the last drop slipped down her throat. She didn't drink often and was beginning to feel the effects of the champagne. She became more relaxed, her responses to whatever inquiries came her way far more candid than they would have been if she'd been sober. For a shining moment, Shaun felt as if she belonged to this glamorous and wealthy family. She was one of them. She was able to talk about her career with their guests as if it were simply on hold while she and Jozef figured out their fut
Last Updated : 2022-10-19
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Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 149
Jozef sat in the window of his hut, looking out at the incredible cerulean blue of the ocean beyond. When Shaun had found out that Jozef had never spent time near the ocean, except briefly when he was on mission, she'd insisted they choose an oceanside setting for their honeymoon. It had been four months since Jozef had murdered his aunt, and he still thought about that moment. Her confessions, her reaction to his being there. He felt intense anger when he thought of her killing his parents and her attacks on Shaun, but time had given him a better perspective. She'd grown up in the mafia. She'd been highly intelligent and motivated. Like Jozef, like his uncle, like the best in the business. Perhaps if she'd been born a man, given her own organization to play god with, she might have channeled her abilities into better use. Her death made him think long and hard about himself. He wasn't much different. He killed too. She used death and destruction to manipulate w
Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 148
Saskia loved everything about school. She loved the books, she loved her laptop, she loved taking notes, she even loved exams. When Jozef deemed it safe enough for her to return to the University, she'd immediately registered for her winter classes. It took some cajoling to get into a few of them, given her late attendance, but she managed a full course load. Saskia loved university and opted to spend more time on campus than off. She ate in the cafeteria, she studied all over the place, wherever she could find a sunny nook. She spent time in the library almost every day, soaking in the atmosphere. It was the university that made her return to Prague bearable. The shining goal of finishing her linguistics degree. As a child she had grown up with tutors, only attending classes with other students in her two years of boarding school. That had been different from the university. The students were similar age and background, and class sizes were limited to a handful
Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 147
Dasha woke with a start, the clicking of heels on the tiles of the hospital floor reminding her of muffled gunshots. She took several deep breaths, trying to calm her pounding heart. Slowly, painfully, she sat up, reaching for the water on her nightstand. The process was made awkward by her other hand being cuffed to the bed. She'd been transferred the day before. She'd waited as long as she could manage before finally giving away her condition. She'd been in so much pain, the poison twisting her guts; the fever raging through her that she'd raved with hallucinations. Screamed obscenities at the prison staff as they strapped her to a gurney and moved her. She took long sips of water, pulling it through the paper straw. It felt like heaven against a throat raw from days of vomiting. Her hand shook as she set the water down. Collapsing against the pillows, she forced herself to stay awake, to keep alert. She was here for a reason. Someone had poisoned her. Not some
Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 146
Your mother is here, Jozef signed, crouching next to the bed. Shaun looked at him, tears bright in her eyes. She hadn't stopped crying in almost two days. She tried to tell herself to snap out of it, to stop feeling sorry for herself. But she couldn't. Of everything that had happened to her in the past few years, this felt the worst. It was the final straw. She couldn't take anymore. "I don't want to see her." Jozef frowned, thunderclouds growing in his eyes. You turned her away yesterday, which we allowed since you need time to heal, but you will not turn her away today. You need your mother, and you will see her. He was the epitome of patience when it came to Shaun and her feelings, but he wasn't going to allow Shaun to push her mother away. She could already see it on his face. He thought she needed her mother, and he wouldn't take no for an answer. She pushed herself up on the bed, feeling dizzy and nauseous. She hadn't left the bed si
Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 145
"Krystoff..." He moved closer to the bed. Dasha squinted against the harsh glaring light, but he still looked like nothing more than a shadow, frustratingly insubstantial. She knew it was him, though. She knew his shape, his scent, his touch... She'd poisoned him. More than once. She hadn't regretted it at the time, but she regretted it now. She worshipped him. She shouldn't have manipulated his love. Soon she would be with him again, and she would have to explain her actions and hope he could forgive her. Dasha had poisoned her first victim when she was five years old. Miss Anya. She'd hated her nursemaid. The woman was sour, dour, and no fun at all. She insisted Dasha wear dresses and always have her hair brushed. She was never allowed out if the weather was bad, and she was always made to complete her studies. If she didn't learn her letters, then she would get a sharp smack across the knuckles. Dasha had overheard her mot
Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 144
Jozef didn't know what to do. It was a strange sensation for him. He always knew what to do, but this time he was out of his element. He crouched next to Shaun's chair, holding her hands in his as she sobbed. He hated every tear that crawled down her face. He was usually the one to cause her tears, but this time, it wasn't him. It was the doctor who'd disappeared discreetly from the room. They were in the fertility clinic where Shaun had gotten her referral. They'd been called to the clinic for the results of their first round of testing. Her tears dripped onto his hands where they were clasping hers. He bowed his own head, blinking back his own tears. Her heart was breaking, and he couldn't do anything about it. He couldn't kill the thing without hurting the woman he loved more than anyone or anything in the world. He couldn't kill PCOS. Polycystic ovary syndrome. Shaun was infertile and the diagnosis was destroying her. He would have to take go
Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 143
Nikolay had a bad feeling. He'd had it for months, but when no one accused him of betraying Jozef, he'd shoved the feeling aside. They didn't know. He was safe. Then why did he feel like the sword of Damocles was hanging over his head, awaiting the right moment to drop? "Saskia." He'd been standing in the shadows outside her suite, waiting for her to appear. She was coming down the hall toward him, her blue headphones wrapped around her neck, her wild brown hair a messy halo around her head. She wore tight ripped jeans, a black hoodie and running shoes. It hit him that she was really quite beautiful in her own way. He'd never found her particularly attractive when they'd dated. She was too wild and headstrong, and he preferred his women compliant. Submissive. Not words one could use in association with Saskia Koba. Yet, in this moment, with the light of the sun behind her, she looked ethereal. He felt a moment of loss, but quickly shook it away. His
Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 142
Fatima giggled at Shaun's description of a drunk Jozef. "He must've been a bear the next morning," Fatima mused. "It seems so out of character for him to overindulge." Shaun laughed and sipped the rich burgundy liquid from her wine glass. "He was certainly growling like a bear. It took a lot of convincing before he would let me take care of him, but I finally got some painkillers and toast into him and he turned back into a human. Later, he told me he rarely drank that much and didn't plan on ever doing it again." "Famous last words." "Yes," Shaun agreed. "Though Jozef is usually pretty responsible. I think it was the excitement of meeting with the other Vor for the first time. I wonder if the other wives discovered drunk husbands in their rooms that night?" Shaun was filling her mother in on the details of her trip to Russia with Jozef. The five days spent at the palace were indeed the vacation Jozef had suggested they would be. Except for evening m
Sinner's Empire Series: Sin of Silence, A Silent Reckoning, Goodnight Sinners Chapter 141
Shaun sucked in a breath as images from that day slammed through her. She had worked with her counsellor on mitigating their impact, but when the head of the Vor told her she was meant to be dead, it was like a fresh wound being ripped open again. "So I've been told," she murmured, bringing her teacup to her lips with a shaking hand. "You survived." He didn't sound either approving or disapproving, and Shaun wondered where the direction of the conversation was going. "You were poisoned, and you survived. You were attacked, stabbed, and you survived. Your husband was attacked, many within the building fell, yet you still survived." A chill ran through Shaun and she felt nauseous. She desperately wished she'd told Jozef where she was going. Was Ivan angry over the deaths that seemed to follow Shaun? Did he blame her for what happened to Krystoff? She didn't know what to say to Ivan, but he'd paused, seeming to expect some kind of response. "Yes, I survived."
