Maria
"Yeah. Who is this?" Mercy's no-s**t, tough-girl accent instantly reassures me. She sounds like she's been up for hours, and I can hear bar sounds in the background—glass clinking, people talking, and sports announcer giving a play-by-play.
My voice trembles slightly. "Mercy? I need to talk to you."
Her voice is instantly loaded with worry. "Maria? My God, what's going on? What's wrong?" Her words are rapid-fire. "Where are you? Are you okay? Are you still with Ivanov? Talk to me!"
"I'm safe." My voice is firm. "And you can help by answering some questions."
"Okay, give me a sec." Wherever Mercy is, she moves to a quieter room, and I hear a door slam in the background. "All right, what do you want to know?"
I pause, gathering my nerves into words. "Did you know about my dad, Me
