Page 26 of Cruel Russian Monster (Safin Bratva #2)

My life flashed before my eyes, and it wasn't because of the guns pointed at me.

The woman I loved had just confessed her love to me, then collapsed right in front of me. I needed to get to her.

Fuck this shit.

Then everything happened all at once.

In one swift motion, I knocked out the man closest to me and grabbed the gun from his hand before he slumped to the ground. I aimed it at the guy across from me and pulled the trigger.

Shit.

Nothing happened.

“Get Vera!” Zahkar yelled. “We swapped their weapons out. Locked the firing systems for five minutes, technology’s a bitch.”

I lunged toward Vera, but two arms yanked me back. I fought against them as Artyom bent over to pick her up.

“Artyom, leave Vera alone.”

Lev’s voice cut through the chaos like a damn blade. The arms holding me let go instantly.

I turned. Lev and Avit were standing there, guns trained on Artyom.

Behind them, Marten and Pyotr were already moving, helping Yegor and Zahkar take out the rest of the guards like clockwork.

Artyom's face twisted in rage, but he raised his hands and stepped back. He didn’t even look at Lev or Avit; he glared straight at his brothers.

I knew that Yegor and Zahkar were taking a huge risk defying Artyom like this in front of his men, but I'd thank them later. First, I had to take care of my wife.

I rushed to Vera, dropped to my knees, and scooped her into my arms. Her breathing was shallow, and her skin was clammy.

My gut twisted as I headed straight for the front gate, which was now wide open. As soon as my feet hit the street, I froze for a second.

To my surprise, Tomas was standing there, gun in hand, next to the car.

Thank fucking Christ!

He threw open the back door. I slid in with Vera, and he slammed it shut.

Then he jumped into the front seat, gunned the engine, and we sped off.

I glanced back just in time to see my brothers charging out of Artyom’s compound, heading for their cars.

I turned my attention to the woman in my arms. The woman I wanted more than anything in this life.

“Head to our nearest clinic.” I didn’t even recognize my own voice.

“Yes, sir.”

I closed my eyes as I cradled Vera tighter. Just when I thought my world was starting to make sense, just when I thought I could live some semblance of a normal life, my world caved in.

“Hold on, malishka,” I whispered in her ear.

After what felt like an eternity, Tomas screeched to a halt at the clinic entrance. He jumped out and ran inside. Seconds later, he burst back out, followed by a nurse with a gurney. He opened my door, and I carefully stepped out with Vera. We secured her to the bed and bolted into the clinic.

I entered the private room after the nurse, while Tomas waited outside the closed door. Two orderlies, who were waiting in the room, transferred Vera to the bed, then exited the room with the gurney.

While the nurse began checking Vera's vitals, a female doctor with silver hair walked into the room.

“Mr. Safin, my name is Dr. Decker. Can you tell me what happened?” she asked as she pressed her stethoscope to Vera's chest.

“She just collapsed,” I said, breathless.

The nurse attached Vera to a blood pressure monitor and started fitting her for an IV.

“Any symptoms before this?” Dr. Decker asked.

“She’s been sleeping a lot. I know she hasn’t been feeling well, but she didn’t tell me exactly what was wrong. Is she going to be okay?”

I watched as the nurse drew blood from her arm. Blood had never bothered me before, but watching hers made me sick to my stomach.

“Her heart rate’s a little irregular, and her blood pressure is extremely high. We’re going to give her a mild sedative in her IV to help bring both down. We’ll rush the blood work, but it could still take one to two hours for results.”

I nodded.

“If you notice any changes, press the call button. Someone will come right away.”

I gave another nod. Dr. Decker offered a small smile, then left the room.

I sank into the chair beside Vera’s bed and took her hand in mine.

About ten minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Not wanting to let Vera’s hand go for a single second, I called out hoarsely, “Come in.”

My brothers walked through the door. Lev took the seat on the other side of Vera, while the others leaned against the walls.

“What did the doctor say?” Lev asked.

“They’re running tests. They’ll know more in a few hours. They gave her a sedative because her blood pressure is high and her heart rate is irregular.”

Lev nodded. “The clinic is surrounded by guards. I’m not taking any chances after what happened to Katya. And if Artyom took Vera once, he’ll try again. Timur’s watching him. If he makes a move, we’ll know. We’ve also ramped up security around the family mansion. Ninel and Mariya are safe.”

If Artyom showed his face, I’d kill him with my bare hands and deal with the consequences later.

I rubbed my thumb along the back of Vera’s hand and spoke softly. “Lev…did it feel like this with Katya?”

I looked up slowly to meet his gaze.

“Like what?” he asked, leaning forward slightly.

“Like you’d burn the world down just to keep her safe. Like you’d go to the farthest edge of the earth to get the rarest gem if she asked for it…” My voice dropped. “Like if you lost her, nothing else would make sense because a part of you would be gone, and without her…you couldn’t go on.”

“It was. And it still is.” A small smile curved Lev’s lips. “I’m sorry to tell you, but the feeling doesn’t fade. It just gets stronger every day.”

“I’m sorry.” I looked around the room at my brothers. “I'm sorry I didn’t tell any of you about marrying Vera. Yeah, I wanted to end the war, but I also wanted to make her pay. For starting it…and for leaving me all those years ago.”

Nobody said a word, but I saw the confusion on Lev’s face.

“What do you mean…she left you all those years ago?”

“Vera was my ex before I forced her to marry me.”

A low whistle, then a quiet “well, shit,” echoed in the room.

“When we dated, we didn’t talk much about who we really were. I didn’t want to lose her, and she felt the same. But then she saw me in Philly, found out who I was…and dumped me. She told me she was using me to get back at an ex.”

“Damn,” Lev whispered.

“All of that was a lie. She knew if Artyom found out about us, about me, he’d have me killed.”

“And now, three years later, nothing’s changed,” Marten muttered.

I nodded.

“I never stopped loving her, even though she hurt me. And now that I’ve got her back, I’m not letting her go.”

“Jay.” Avit stepped forward, and I turned my gaze to him. “I’m sorry for how I reacted at your place and at Lev’s. I shouldn’t have disrespected you the way I did.”

“Apology accepted. You were worried about our sisters, as you should’ve been. But you should also know I'll never willingly put any of you in danger.”

Avit nodded, and I continued, “Things didn’t exactly go as planned. Everything feels like it’s gone to shit. Now I’m worried about Yegor, Zahkar…and Kira. Who knows what Artyom will do after their outright defiance.”

“Jaroslav,” Lev chimed in. “None of this happened the way we hoped. If I’d known Vera was your ex, I’d never have gone to Artyom. And if I did know, you would've just been the one to marry her. But the past is done. All we can do is move forward.”

I nodded my head in agreement. There was nothing we could do with the past besides learn from it.

“Once Vera gets out of here,” Lev insisted, “we’ll sit down with Artyom. We'll work something out…sweeten the deal. Tide him over. We’ve got you. We may be cold-hearted Bratva bastards, but before that, we’re brothers. We’ve got your back. And your wife's.”

Lev stood up and walked over. I stood too, and he pulled me into a hug. One by one, the others echoed his words and did the same.

“We’ve gotta go,” Lev said. “But once you hear anything, call us.”

“Will do.”

Once they filed out, I closed the door and looked at Vera. I needed to feel her in my arms. Carefully, I climbed into the small bed beside her, wrapped an arm gently around her waist, and closed my eyes.

Even though my eyes were closed, I didn't fall asleep. I listened to the monitors attached to her, the sound of her breathing, the footsteps passing outside the door.

When the door creaked open sometime later, my eyes snapped open just in time to see Dr. Decker. She approached me with a smile on my face. I was about to get up, but she shook her head.

“No need to get up. We’ve got Mrs. Safin’s blood work results. Congratulations…she's pregnant.”

Vera's pregnant?

“D-did you say pregnant?” I stuttered.

“I did,” Dr. Decker grinned. “You and your wife are going to be parents.”

A hundred emotions slammed into me at once…relief, disbelief, a rising panic wrapped in joy.

Then my brow crinkled. “The sedative she got, could it affect the baby?”

“Already sounding like a father, Mr. Safin,” she smiled. “But, don't worry, the sedative used is safe for pregnant women. When Mrs. Safin wakes up, we'll take her to get an ultrasound so we'll know how far along she is.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

“You're welcome. If you have any questions for me or need anything, use the call button.”

“I will.”

Dr. Decker smiled again and left the room.

“I'm going to be a father. Holy fuck,” I whispered.

I kissed Vera on her head. Although I knew I was supposed to call Lev to let him know Vera's results, I wanted to share the news with her first.

But I felt like an idiot. What happened to her today could've been prevented. I should've insisted that Vera have security details, especially with everything going on. And now that I knew she was pregnant, I wasn't going to make the same mistake twice.

This time, when I closed my eyes, I allowed myself to drift into a light sleep.

I woke up to the light strokes of Vera’s fingers on my chest and her mumbling incoherently, the beeping on the blood pressure monitor rising.

I opened my eyes. She looked like she was struggling to open hers. I stroked the side of her face.

“You’re safe now, malishka. I’m here. You’re safe,” I repeated the words until the beeping slowed and steadied.

About ten minutes later, Vera’s eyes finally opened.

“Jaro…the baby…” she croaked.

She knew?

I kissed her gently.

“You’re both okay. You and the baby…you’re fine.”

I pulled out my phone and called Tomas.

“Yes, sir?”

“Can you bring in two bottles of water? Just come straight in.”

“Yes, sir.”

I pocketed the phone.

“Vera, why didn’t you tell me…?”

“I found out right before I called you,” she said softly, nuzzling into my neck. “But then I decided I wanted to tell you in person.”

She looked up at me.

“I’m sorry I left home without Tomas. I just wanted to surprise you.”

A tear slid down her cheek. I wiped it away.

“You have nothing to be sorry for. You’re here, in my arms…with our baby growing inside you.”

Just then, the door opened, and Tomas walked in with two bottles of cold water.

“Sir. Ma’am.”

“Thank you, Tomas,” I said as he placed the water on the small table next to the bed before slipping out.

I pressed the button on the side of the bed. When it was almost in an upright position, I stopped it. Leaning over, I grabbed a bottle of water, opened it, and held it to her lips. When she’d had enough, I closed it and placed it back on the table.

I placed a finger under her chin, and she looked up at me.

“Vera, you said something back there…before you fainted. What was it?”

Her eyes darted away, then met mine again as a pink hue glistened on her cheeks.

“I love you,” she whispered.

“Say it again,” I growled softly.

“I love you, Jaro. I never stopped loving you.”

“I love you too, malishka.” I kissed her softly. “I promised to marry you when you finished college. We didn’t plan for things to happen this way… but I fell for you all over again somewhere between throwing you in that U-Haul and our trip to Florida.”

I kissed her again, this time more passionately. When we finally pulled away, I rested my forehead against hers and just held it there.

Then I pulled back slightly.

“Dr. Decker wants to take you for an ultrasound. Do you want to do it now?”

“I almost lost you today,” she whispered. “Can you just hold me?”

“I’ll do anything for you.”

I pulled her closer, and she curled into my chest. Together, we drifted off to sleep.

When we woke up again, Vera went to get the ultrasound done. Only then did we send a picture of the sonogram with the message: “Another Safin is on the way.”

Katya, Mariya, and Ninel sent back screaming voice notes, and Lev and the others dropped by one by one to give their congratulations in person.

I knew she was sad and worried when she didn’t hear back from Yegor, Kira and Zahkar.

But I reassured her, as soon as they could, they’d get in touch.

Especially Kira, since she did storm the headquarters in disguise and then snuck into the clinic to see Katya when she was ill. And Vera chuckled knowingly.

Over the next three days, Vera stayed at the clinic until I was satisfied with where her blood pressure was. Katya had gone to the house and packed a bag with some of our things since there was no way I was leaving Vera there alone.

Between her, Ninel, Mariya and Tomas, we were well-fed, and while my brothers dropped in, we insisted the women stay indoors until things with Artyom were settled.

Lev took it upon himself to hire security for my house. No one was taking chances.

On the fourth day, Dr. Decker declared Vera fit to leave and wrote a prescription for prenatal vitamins.

I asked if she’d be willing to come to the house if needed.

She said yes. I handed her a cap payment of one hundred grand to make sure that if Vera ever needed her, she’d drop whatever she was doing and be there.

When Dr. Decker left the room, I turned to Vera.

“Mrs. Safin, are you ready to go home?”

“Yes, please,” she smiled.

“And are you ready to put that casual bullshit aside and make this marriage work?”

“I am.”

I kissed her. “Me too. And when we get home…I’ll show you how grateful I am for having this second chance of loving you.”

With one arm wrapped around Vera's waist and the duffel bag slung over my shoulder, we exited the room.

It may have taken us three years…

But we were finally where we were always meant to be.