CHAPTER 59: IRINA

The drive to the hotel didn’t last long, and Ethan and the rest were soon checked in. The rest of OmniTech’s team was supposed to arrive a bit later, giving Lillian a brief window to settle in and prepare.

The meeting was scheduled for the next three days anyway, so she had enough time to prepare anyway.

But her nervousness wouldn’t let her relax.

She and Aria were currently sharing a room on Aria’s request, the latter sprawled across one of the twin beds with her phone in hand, scrolling through social media or maybe searching for some outing spots since she had no intention to waste this vacation.

After all, she had nothing to worry about, no school, part-time job or even a business deal, she could enjoy this as much as she desired.

Lillian on the other hand was pacing around the hotel room, reviewing each line on a stack papers she had prepared.

After her pacing went on for a while, Aria sat up, an annoyed expression on her face as she looked at Lillian.

Without saying anything, she got up and snatched the papers from Lillian’s hand, put them with the rest before taking the stack and locking it in the hotel’s wardrobe.

This all happened while a stunned and confused Lillian looked at her.

Aria then turned back to her before saying with a serious expression on her face, "you’re banned from reviewing those papers for today."

"But—" she wanted to argue but Aria quickly cut her off.

"No buts," Aria said, "you’ll put those papers aside, forget about the deal for now and soak with me in some hot, relaxing water, understood?"

"I ha—"

"Understood?" Aria repeated.

Lillian let out a sigh before nodding. This was a battle she couldn’t hope to win so she just calmly gave up.

"Great," Aria nodded in satisfaction, already striding toward the bathroom.

Within seconds, Lillian heard the rush of water filling the tub and the faint clink of toiletries being moved around.

She sank down onto the bed with a quiet groan, running a hand through her hair. A hot soak did sound good... but every fiber of her being screamed that she should be refining her talking points, not lounging around like she was on vacation.

"Don’t even think about sneaking to your bag," Aria called over the sound of running water, as if reading her mind. "If I catch you with a single piece of paper in your hand before tomorrow, I’m chucking your laptop into the pool."

Lillian just gave up on that plan and relaxed on the bed.

A few minutes later, Aria reappeared in a hotel robe, hair pulled into a messy bun. She tossed another robe at Lillian. "Suit up, business Barbie. We’re detoxing."

Given no other option, Lillian took the bathrobe and followed Aria to the bathroom.

______

Ethan, on the other hand, walked out of his bathroom with a wet hair and towel in hand. After a few wipes of his hair, he tossed the towel on the bed and walked towards the already set up work desk.

Sitting down before the the monitor, he asked, "how’s the search going, Athena?"

Ethan was only just here to make sure everything went well during the deal with Google, no.

If that was the only reason, he could’ve done it from the comfort of his room. The real reason why he flew all the way here was for an advantage.

Now that Nathaniel was distracted, he was taking the opportunity to remove every single brick that held him up.

That job, although currently handled by Isabela and a certain team of hackers Ethan had personally hired, was something that required his involvement.

And if he played his cards right, this would be one of the biggest blows he’d deal, well right behind cutting him off from his father’s support but that was a story for another time.

{I’ve traced three separate aliases tied to Irina, but she’s slippery. Every time I get close to a location, the trail reroutes to a different location, she’s like a ghost. She’s got half the dark web covering her tracks.} Athena replied.

Yes, they were here to find the queen of the underworld, Irina Romanova.

Ethan sighed, he hadn’t expected this to be easy in the least bit. Even getting information about her vacation to California has been a headache, even with Athena’s capabilities.

He leaned back on his chair eyes closed as he went through scenarios in his head. Irana was an important piece of his puzzle and letting her go was not an option.

He needed her connections in the black market and her network’s reach into places money alone couldn’t buy access to.

He needed all that Irina’s empire had, every single connections, trade lines, people and the like.

If he could get her on his side, or at least take control of her supply lines, Nathaniel’s foundation would crumble faster than he could blink.

Athena’s voice cut into his thoughts.

{One of her aliases—Elena Vosk—is showing unusual activity. Someone using that name chartered a private yacht off Marina del Rey, departing in two hours. No public record of the passenger list.}

Ethan’s eyes opened. "And you’re certain it’s her?"

{Eighty-three percent. The other seventeen is if she’s gotten even better at playing decoy.}

"That’s good enough." He stood, pulling on a black shirt and his jacket. "If she’s here, I need eyes on her before she vanishes again."

He paused before adding, "can you hack into any tech on board or close to her?"

{No} her avatar shook its head, {it seems this is a tech free expedition which means she’s deliberately avoiding digital surveillance. If you want to see who’s on that yacht, you’ll have to do it the old-fashioned way.}

Ethan’s lips pressed into a thin line. "Figures."

"Give me the exact location of the yatch," he muttered, "let’s just hope I don’t miss her."

Slipping his watch into place. "Pull up Marina del Rey’s layout, mark me every exit to open water, and get me the berth location."

A wireframe map appeared on the monitor, glowing with Athena’s annotations.

{If you leave now, you’ll have forty minutes to get in position before departure. The yacht’s name is Moon’s Whisper. Minimal crew—five at most. No obvious armed presence.}

Ethan grabbed his phone and a small, matte-black case from the drawer—its contents a mix of compact optics, a listening device, and a burner phone. "Minimal crew oesn’t mean zero protection, Irina is too smart for that."

{Do you want me to alert Isabela?}

"Not yet. If this is Irina, I want the first look. The moment she sees my people, she’ll disappear again and that’s the last thing I want to happen." He pulled his jacket tight and headed for the door. "Besides, she knows Isabela’s face since she was previously part of the underworld. She doesn’t know mine."

With that, he walked out of his room, the muted thud of the hotel door clicking shut behind him.

The hallway was quiet, lined with soft lighting and the faint scent of lemon polish. He moved quickly, hands in his pockets, eyes scanning without seeming to.

By the time he reached the lobby, he’d already slipped into the calm, unremarkable demeanor of a man who was just another business traveler heading out for the evening.

Outside, the California sun was slipping toward the horizon, gilding the palm trees in molten orange.

The valet barely glanced at him as he handed over the keys to the rental a nondescript black sedan that looked like it belonged to someone who played golf on weekends.

Athena’s voice came through his earpiece, faint under the hum of the engine as he pulled into traffic.

{Traffic’s clear. You’ll hit Marina del Rey in twenty-seven minutes if you keep under seventy. The berth is on the far side, private access only.}

"I assume you’ve already spoofed me clearance?" Ethan asked, watching the dashboard glow faintly in the dimming light.

{Of course. In their systems you’re listed as a maritime inspector doing a random compliance check before they leave, that’d give you a few minutes to meet her.}

"Couple minutes is all I need." He said in a calm tone.

The streets thinned as he left the main strip, palm-lined avenues giving way to low-slung marinas and glinting water.

By the time the scent of salt and diesel filled the air, he could already see the masts clustered like a steel forest in the distance.

Athena spoke in his earpiece again.

{Moon’s Whisper is at berth D-14. There’s minimal movement on deck, two figures topside, probably crew. No sign of Irina yet.}

Ethan eased the sedan into a side lot just shy of the main entrance, far enough to avoid marina cameras. He popped the trunk, retrieving his ’maritime inspector’ uniform, one he had passed and picked up on the way here.

The dockside air was cooler here, a soft breeze tugging at his jacket. Lights along the pier cast long streaks across the water, and every so often, the low thud of a rope could be heard.

"Well, let’s see if I can meet her."