“It wasn’t easy, but she did it. She stashed copies of the film in a cave in the woods but kept the original to blackmail Volkov. But it still might not have worked if I hadn’t hit Volkov so hard with that poker. He had a severe concussion, and for a while she was afraid he’d die. She was wondering desperately how she could deal with that. But he woke up a few days later.” She smiled grimly. “And then she gave him an even bigger headache. She showed him the film and told him she’d sent copies to one of her old friends in Moscow. She’d asked him to circulate them to every mafia boss in Russia if she didn’t check in with him every few months. Which she promised she’d do as long as Volkov didn’t hurt us.” She paused. “It was a giant bluff. If Volkov hadn’t been new to the neighborhood, he would have known Anton had made sure she had no friends or even acquaintances outside the village.”

“I’m surprised he still didn’t torture her to try to get his hands on them.”

“I guess he wouldn’t have taken the chance. He had his own copy right in front of him, and there was no way he would have done anything that might give anyone else a chance of seeing those photos. As I said, he was sick with humiliation. Maria said he seemed helpless and furious and she thought she’d won. He threw on his clothes and was stomping out of the room, but he looked back at her and said, ‘You think this is over? I haven’t even started. You’ve forgotten I can still use Anton. There are all kinds of ways I can hurt you and that bitch girl. And believe me, I will.’” Lara shrugged. “And he was telling the truth. He never touched Maria again, but after Anton came back from his trip, he acted as if he was his best friend. They were constantly playing cards or at the racetrack. Anton was flattered that a man as powerful with the other mafia families as Volkov would want to hang out with him. He agreed with everything Volkov said, and his influence grew by leaps and bounds.”

“And how did he treat you after you came back from the competition?”