My hand tightens on the gun. All this time, I suppose I’d always known. But hearing it out loud… I feel vindicated in my rage. I also feel as though someone’s breathed new fire into me.
“What else?”
“I don’t know the details. I only know this much because I overheard it. Boris always brags that he only lost one man, but the Bugrov Bratva lost the head of the snake.”
I scowl. “Except that Sobakin didn’t and still doesn’t understand something about the Bugrov Bratva: you cut off one head and another grows in its place.”
I raise the gun a little higher. Akim closes his eyes and breathes out softly.
It’s that one act that changes my mind—the fact that he doesn’t beg for his life. He prepares himself for death like a man, not a coward.
Time ticks past. In the background, I hear the wheeze and cacophony of one of the warehouse rafters giving way to the heat.
One eye peeks open. Akim realizes that my hand has dropped and the gun is no longer pointed at him. “Y-you’re not gonna shoot me?”
“No.”
“Why not?” he asks suspiciously.
“Because you gave me what I wanted.”
He looks even more confused now. “I barely gave you anything.”
“You confirmed something I’ve been grappling with for years. Thanks to you, I have clarity and purpose. Well—renewed purpose anyway.” I take a step towards him and he flinches back instantly. “But remember one thing, Akim: if you ever cross me again in any capacity, I will pull the trigger.”
He still looks skeptical. “Sobakin would never let me live.”
“I’m not him.”
He bows his head. “I… I can’t thank you enough.”
“Then don’t thank me at all. Leave before I change my mind.”
He stumbles away, refusing to turn his back on me. Only when he’s several feet away from me does he turn and start running as fast as he can.
“That’s a first.”
I turn around and find my brother staring at me with raised eyebrows. “It’s just like you to get here when the party’s over.”
He smirks. “I knew you had it covered.” Then his eyes veer past me. “And I was mostly right.”
“It was Sobakin. He was the one that killed Mother and Otets.”
Nikolai’s jaw clenches tight. “I could’ve told you that. In fact, I did tell you that.”
I shake my head. “You had a suspicion. You never had proof.”
“Did we need it?”
“Yes,” I hiss. “Yes, we fucking needed it, Nikolai. You think I want to start a war with a powerful Bratva pakhan for shits and giggles? You’d think I’d risk my men, my family, for the sake of my ego?”
Nikolai holds up his hands. “Fine. But now, you know for sure. What are you gonna do about it?”
“Kill that motherfucker once and for all.”
Nikolai smiles. “For once, Uri, we’re on the same page.”
50
URI
Don’t do it.
The internal refrain is constant as I park my car and head inside. It’s late, but I check on Polly and Lev first. Both are fast asleep in their beds, which means I have nothing more to distract myself with.
I end up in my office with a glass of vodka in hand and the refrain throbbing louder and louder in my head.
Don’t do it. Don’t fucking do it.
I figure turning on the monitor is justified. I need to know what she’s up to. The last time, she taped paper over the cameras. Who knows what she could be doing now?
The screen flickers to life. I find Alyssa lying in bed with a crossword book over her lap. She’s wearing the slip again and with her legs raised, I can see a little more than I bargained for.
Fuck.
I turn the monitor off instantly but the image is already seared into my brain, along with a few other mental fantasies I really need to get rid of. What is it about this woman? She fills me up with all this energy that needs to be spent, and none of my usual methods dim the need even one little bit.
I throw back the liquor, but the burn doesn’t last long enough to distract me from the craving in my body. Seeing her on a screen isn’t enough—I need more. I need her scent and her voice. I need her warmth and the glaring clarity of those dusky blue eyes.
Don’t do it.
Don’t do it.
Goddammit, I’m doing it.
I slam my glass down and make my way down to the basement. I have no idea what I’m going to say to her or how I’ll explain my presence. All I know is that I need my fix. I’ll figure out the rest after I get it.