Nikita

Even though they hadn't spent so much time together, Kyle knew enough to know that his boss was lying through his teeth and not being one to give up quickly, and he was determined to get the answers he needed.

Of course, the answers would be essential to the research. Still, he wanted to help his boss grieve too, just like everyone around Nikita had been trying to do for a while now, but the question was, would he really succeed or would he be one of the people Nikita kept ignoring whenever they asked how he was doing?

"Then why did you replay the video several times at the point when your parents are saying they can finally help him? "Kyle asked carefully. He didn't want to piss Nikita off because nothing good came from a pissed-off Nikita.

Nothing.

"I don't know what you mean. Continue," Nikita insisted, but the boy on the other side of the screen was adamant. Or maybe Kyle wanted his head chopped off so bad that he was willing to provoke Nikita to get it.

That was a dangerous move, but Nikita cared about him, and maybe that's why he was gambling with his life. That was a stupid choice, but when had anything brilliant ever come out of Kyle and Nikita's interactions if they weren't on the verge of death anyway?

"Not until you tell me," Kyle insisted.

"My brother is dead," Nikita said, this time his tone and facial expressions showing that he was beginning to get irritated. Did the oy really want to piss him off really? Was that a smart choice for him?

"He is not, and you know it," Kyle said, a little too loudly, a little too harshly, a little too realistically, and Nikita snapped.

"Where is he then? "Nikita asked angrily, making Kyle pick up the irritation in his voice. He had screwed up, and he knew it. How could he help his boss if he didn't even want to be helped? Damn, this would be harder than he thought.

"I'm sorry. All I'm saying is that if Yuri is alive, the least I can do is help you search for him, but I can only do that if you tell me what's wrong with him. Last I heard, one particular vial of the virus is being sold at an incredibly high price.

No one wants to buy it," Kyle explained.

Even though the prices in the dark web were ridiculous, there hadn't been one so ridiculous as the price set for the last vial. It was almost like it had a specific target, but now one could tell that anyway.

Shopping on the dark web wasn't always like Christmas. They sold the deadliest of things and got away with it, not caring about the impacts of what they had done. Anything for money, that was the motto and ethics, that was just shit in their eyes.

"How much," Nikita asked carefully. Maybe this was it, but what if? What if it wasn't? What if he was hoping for too much? What if this was just a hilarious jab that his brain was taking at him? What if he was just too screwed up to think straight, and now everything sounded like hope to him?

What if there were so many things that didn't make sense that his desperation was hopelessly driving him to? What if?

What was there for him to think about?

Kyle could see the wheels spinning in Nikita's eyes, the hope in them. He could tell that Yuri wasn't dead from just the reaction the doctor was giving him. He had been around Nikita enough to pick up the slight hints, and besides, the man had made them go to school.

They had learned a thing or two, and that's how Kyle knew he was right, but he wanted to know how long his boss would downplay the reality that was hitting them hard in the face.

"Three hundred million dollars," Kyle said as Nikitas face lightened up. Well, that was the first time the man looked the least bit happy. Maybe he was on drugs, or perhaps he found something to live for eventually.

"That's it"

"What?" Kyle asked, not getting what Nikita was saying. What did he mean by that?

"The vile with the actual virus that can help my brother," Nikita said, making his junior look at him skeptically. If that was so, then they had to get it and fast. They had to track the location of the darn vile and make sure it was safe so they could go looking for Yuri.

At least they were now getting somewhere.

"I thought you just said he's dead," Kyle said to Nikita, his face showing how happy he was.

Was it weird that seeing Nikita smile made him so happy? Well, the man had been sad and on a downward spiral for literal months. The least he could do was be happy for Nikita, and everything would be okay.

They would be okay.

"And I thought you were smarter; that's why I chose you," Nikita retorted, making Kyle smile even more. There was a probability that he looked like a stupid cow, but Kyle was too happy to care about anything. Everything would be okay.

Nikita was smiling.

He had hope.

Their boss had hope, and what more could they ask of a man who had given up on everything, including himself?

"Well, if you say so," Kyle said with a smile.

"They must know I have picked up hints on my brother being alive, and they must also know about his current illness," Nikita said a little too excitedly, but he didn't care. What mattered to him at the moment was that there was hope for his brother.

Three hundred million dollars didn't mean anything in the Pavlenko household, and that was how rich they were. And if three hundred million dollars Nikita had to spend to get the one thing that could give his brother hope, then he would spend it.

Hell, he would sell himself if the amounts ran short. He had skills, and he was the best at what he did. He was a jack of all trades and could do anything if he could get his brother back. Suppose he could make Yuri feel better if he could get the one thing that his brother had been denied for all these months.

For the hope in Yuri's eyes, Nikita was ready for anything. He didn't care anymore, and all he could think of was Yuri.

Of course, he didn't know where Yuri was, but he had a legion of hackers to make that happen. But for the virus it was time-limited and could be bought off the market by someone who had power and enough wealth like the Pavlenkos. He had to hurry.

"Which means that this could be a trap," Kyle warned, but would Nikita listen to him?