Page 9 of Cruel Russian Monster (Safin Bratva #2)

I stalked into my room and slammed the door behind me. I headed straight to my walk-in closet, dropping the bag of medication on my bed along the way.

I would give Vera what she asked for, a little taste of freedom and the comfort of knowing that her family was safe…for now.

But I'd make damn well sure she'd pay the price if she crossed me. If she broke her word, I’d make her regret the day she drew her first breath.

But as I got dressed, the fury started to subside.

No matter how hard I tried to shut it down, the image of her sprang back.

How she flew off the bed when I stepped out of the bathroom, her hands trembling as she checked me over to make sure I was okay.

How she was worried about the blood-stained car, terrified that Tomas might lose his job, and overwhelmed by everything that had happened.

And when those tears began to fall, I hadn’t been able to resist pulling her into my arms to comfort her.

For Vera to crack like that in front of me after what I did to her and what I had said meant something.

She could've hidden her pain from me, but she didn't. She melted into my arms like she used to.

And every time Vera ended up in my arms, I remembered how we used to be…how good we had once been together.

Yes, once. As in the past tense. As in a previous time. Before now. Before betrayal.

Don’t let a few tears and soft words make you forget the pain she put you through.

And in case your memory’s slipping, check the new scar stitched into your side. A gift from her, trying to run away from the mess she caused.

You’ve been down for two days, Jaroslav. Two days out of the game. That’s two days Lev was exposed. Two days anything could’ve gone wrong. That can’t happen again.

Reinforce the walls. Lock the emotional shit down.

Forget Vera. Forget the past.

It’s time to get back to work.

I stepped out of the closet and spotted my phone on the dresser. I picked it up and scrolled through. Lev had to be wondering where the hell I’d disappeared to these last two days.

To my surprise, there was only one message from him:

Tomas said you were out of state, working on some alliances. Let me know when you’re back in town.

Immediately, I wired one hundred grand to Tomas.

Loyalty like that deserved compensation.

He hadn’t just shown up for me, he’d covered my ass.

And Lev’s reaction made one thing clear: not only had he trusted Tomas because I did, but he respected me enough to believe I’d do what the faction needed, even if I didn’t run it by him first. Which made me feel better about the decision I made about marrying Vera.

Next, I shot Tomas a message letting him know I'd meet him by the car in five minutes so he could take me to the office.

I opened the bag with the medication, downed the painkillers and antibiotics, and left the bottles on the dresser.

Even though I took my time walking down the stairs, I was sore by the time I reached the front door. Hopefully, the painkillers would kick in soon.

When I stepped outside, Tomas was already waiting by the car.

As I approached, a small smile curved his lips.

“Are you happy to see me or happy about the hundred grand I sent to your account?” I smirked.

“Both,” he grinned. “It's good to see you up and about, sir.”

I shook his hand when I stood in front of him and patted his shoulder briefly. “You're a good man, Tomas. Thank you.” I smiled. “Now break time is over, we've got a faction to protect.”

“Yes, sir.”

On my way to the office, my phone rang. I answered, and before I could get a word in, Ninel’s voice exploded through the line.

“You need to talk to Marten and the others; they’re driving me insane. The club gets hit just like the Hearth, but Pyotr and Avit still get to run around Philly? I asked to go shopping, with freaking guards, and they said no!”

She huffed dramatically. “You have sixty seconds. Either someone comes with me, or I’m going AWOL.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose. Honestly, I understood her frustration.

She and Mariya had been staying home more lately, only going out with extra security; they’d been doing their part.

But I also got where my brothers were coming from.

They just wanted to keep our sisters safe.

Because if anything happened to them, we'd break every fucking Bratva law and put those responsible six feet in the ground for what they had done.

Still, I knew Ninel. If she got frustrated enough, she'd absolutely find a way to slip out without guards.

She was the youngest of us, only twenty-two, fresh out of college, and suddenly saddled with more free time than she knew what to do with.

She was used to coming and going as she pleased.

But locking her down completely wasn't in anyone's best interest.

“Ninel, I'm on my way. Tell the guards to get ready.”

“Thank you!” I heard the smile in her voice. “That’s why you’re the best big brother ever.”

“I’m not spending money on you, Ninel. So you’d better walk with your credit card.”

“We’ll see about that. See you soon!”

She hung up, and I let Tomas know about the detour.

Still, Ninel was right. Somehow, she always managed to twist our arms, gracefully, at that, and get us to spend money on her. Every single time.

Forty minutes later, Mariya and I sat outside the changing room as Ninel tried on what had to be her hundredth outfit. As always, the manager cleared the store once we arrived, and security had taken up posts inside and out.

I leaned back slightly, trying to get comfortable, but even that felt like a chore.

The painkillers the doctor prescribed were the good stuff, strong enough to numb the pain, but they came at a price.

My head was slightly foggy, like my thoughts were moving through molasses.

My energy was close to empty, and I felt on edge.

This wasn’t how I wanted to spend my morning.

My plan had been simple: stay at the office, let the boys do the scouting, and go over logistics with Lev.

My mind would've been active. But instead, I’d made the calls, issued the orders, and now I was sitting here in a goddamn boutique, slouched in a velvet chair under soft lighting, trying not to nod off or snap at someone.

“What’s wrong?” Mariya asked. “You’ve been fidgeting and on edge since we got here. Do you think we’re in danger?”

I hated that she even had to ask that question. Being born into the Bratva meant danger was always a given, lingering in the background. But before, it had been manageable, unlike now.

“You’re not in danger. I’d never let anything happen to you or Ninel.”

“Does it have anything to do with why you’ve been MIA the past two days?” she lifted a brow.

I shook my head with a faint smirk. “You’re too smart for your own good, you know that?”

“And if you think answering my question with another question is going to distract me, you’re wrong.” She gave me a cocky smile.

I chuckled. “Maybe. But it’s nothing to worry about, I promise.”

Mariya gave a small nod, though her eyes told me she didn’t believe a damn word of it. She knew me well enough to understand that if I didn’t want to talk, I wouldn’t. So she let it go, for now.

After thirty more minutes, Ninel was finally ready to leave. Somehow, I’d not only been swindled into paying for both her and Mariya’s purchases but also roped into taking them to brunch and footing that bill, too.

Once we returned to the family mansion, I helped my sisters inside with their bags, then turned to face them.

“I know things have been rough lately.” They both nodded. “We’ve all had to make adjustments. Some of us have faced more danger, while others have been more closely guarded.”

I looked directly at Ninel. “I don’t want you thinking that every time you call me ranting about wanting to go out after being told no, that I’m going to come running.”

She lowered her gaze.

“Nins, look at me.”

She did.

“Avit, Pyotr, and Marten are just trying to keep you and Mariya safe. It’s not about control.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. But we’ve got to watch each other’s backs. If they take out one of us, it affects all of us. And that’s exactly what the enemy wants. We can’t let that happen. Got it?”

“Got it,” they said in unison.

I kissed each sister on the cheek and headed out, finally on my way to meet up with Lev at the office.

***

Over the next few days, I kept myself busy with Bratva business. I left the house early and came home long after midnight, doing everything I could to avoid Vera.

Avoiding her physically was easy. Mentally? That was another story.

Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her in that damn satin pajama top, clinging to her skin, her breasts outlined, my lips and fingers yearning for her.

With our rooms side by side, there were nights I stood in the hallway, fighting the urge to go to her. Just to look. Just to breathe the same air. But I reminded myself why I couldn’t.

The goal was clear: she was only here to stabilize the faction.

Vera might carry my last name, but she was still a business deal, an agreement inked for survival, not affection.

She’d asked for some freedom, and in return, she wouldn't escape. To her credit, she’d stayed indoors. But as for using her freedom? My guess? The shootout rattled her, and she wasn’t ready to roam the city, which was fine by me.

One afternoon at the office, I got a call from Timur.

“Sir, Yegor and Zahkar are in Las Vegas looking for Vera. After realizing her things were still at the Airbnb and she wasn't answering her phone, they called in reinforcements.”

I had no doubt Timur knew she was at my house, but he was smart enough not to say it.

“Scrub every surveillance feed showing her from the past two weeks.”

“I already have, sir.”

I couldn’t afford for them to trace her disappearance back to me.

As much as we were on semi-decent terms with Yegor and Zahkar, and as much as I wanted to announce the marriage, and as crazy as it sounded…I wasn’t ready to share her yet.

“Has Artyom been informed?”

“No, sir. I collapsed one of his major deals to keep him occupied. He’s knee-deep in cleanup. He still thinks Vera’s enjoying her trip in Vegas.”

“Good. Keep me posted.”

“Yes, sir.”

Just as I ended the call, an alert pinged on my phone.

One of the cars from my garage was on the move. I checked Vera’s location; of course, her phone was with it.

I made my way out of the office. Was she running again? Had she called someone to pick her up, to help her disappear?

I wanted to believe she'd honor the deal…but with her history of vanishing it, was hard to do. I should’ve hired a damn guard for her.

I walked outside and got into the car. Tomas slid into the driver’s seat.

“Where to, sir?”

Since I didn’t know where she was headed yet, I gave him the name of the street she was on. She already had a fifteen-minute lead.

My fists clenched in my lap as the GPS finally stopped at the city library.

“Head to the library,” I told Tomas.

“Yes, sir.”

My jaw ticked as anger hummed through me. I was pissed mostly at myself for thinking I could trust someone who’d already proved she wasn’t worth it. And at Vera for sending me on a damn wild goose chase when I had more important things to get done.

The real question was, would she still be at the library when we got there?

I glanced at the phone screen. The car hadn’t moved, but her tracker was still shifting inside the library. Either Vera was inside, or she’d handed off her phone to someone else.

I closed my eyes for a few seconds to reel my anger back in, but it was no use. My eyes shot open.

“For her sake, she had better be inside when I get there,” I muttered to myself.

Ten minutes later, Tomas pulled into the library parking lot. I got out and headed inside.

From a distance, I spotted Vera gliding through the aisles, pulling books from the shelves, flipping through them before either placing them back or stacking them in her arms.

She wandered deeper, disappearing into the rows at the back. My eyes locked on the hypnotic sway of her hips, the curve of her ass perfectly framed in those skin-tight jeans.

I followed her slowly, mesmerized, drawn to her like a tide to the moon.

Her hair was up in a ponytail, and all I could think about was pressing her against the nearest wall, fisting her hair just enough to tilt her head and trail kisses down her neck.

Her pulse would speed up under my lips as my fingers slithered down her stomach to her jeans. As I unbuttoned them, she'd widen her stance, giving me room to slip my fingers into her panties. I'd palm the wetness of her folds that always awaited me, as she moaned my name, “Jaro…”

My cock twitched, and I cursed under my breath.

I stopped.

Breathe, Jaroslav. Vera is a pawn. That’s all. A means to end a war. Nothing more. You can't walk up to her with a fucking hard-on.

I shoved the image from my mind, pulled myself together, and then walked toward her.