"Yeah, and I just wrecked his face, like I was ordered," Taras muttered.
He played with the bottle top, loosening and tightening it.
"Look, Khartov - you wouldn't be there if Isaev didn't trust you to do the job. Period. You know how he is."
Isaev surrounded himself by the best, rewarded them well, and expected unconditional loyalty in return, though at the same time he reciprocated with his unconditional trust to only a rarified few. Taras remembered the conversation they'd had about loyalty and trust, right before Ilarion had pressed the handle of a straight razor into his hand.
But the fact that Isaev left Khartov with his house and his dancer was significant.
"This isn't about that. I just want to talk to Barshai for a minute. That bastard's not bad."
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He played with the bottle top, loosening and tightening it.
"Look, Khartov - you wouldn't be there if Isaev didn't trust you to do the job. Period. You know how he is."
Isaev surrounded himself by the best, rewarded them well, and expected unconditional loyalty in return, though at the same time he reciprocated with his unconditional trust to only a rarified few. Taras remembered the conversation they'd had about loyalty and trust, right before Ilarion had pressed the handle of a straight razor into his hand.
But the fact that Isaev left Khartov with his house and his dancer was significant.
"This isn't about that. I just want to talk to Barshai for a minute. That bastard's not bad."