Page 19 of Forced Bratva Hostage (Dubrov Bratva #15)

Nico, appearing out of nowhere, is a complete shock. Especially out here, so far from home.

We stand in silence for a moment while Tia opens the villa and gets herself safely inside. The door closes behind her and I take a deep breath.

Nico walks a little down the beach, turning towards the ocean with his hands in his pockets.

“You’re not an easy man to find, Andrei,” he says. “We’ve been searching nonstop since you disappeared. We thought you were dead.” He sounds distant, melancholy.

Despite what I told Tia, I don’t know Nico very well. His brother and I may have been best friends, but Nico and I weren’t close.

I stand beside him with my hands shoved into my pockets, too. I have so many things looping in my head. Things I want to say to Nico and his family, but I don’t know where to start or how to piece the words together.

Looking down at the sand, my eyes trace over the shells lying here and there on the beach.

“I had to stay out of sight,” I say.

“I imagined you were in hiding after what happened to Grigoriy, which I can understand—you didn’t know who you could trust. I wish you’d come to us. You and Grig were close. We would have kept you safe, Andrei.”

“I wasn’t specifically looking for safety,” I mutter.

Nico sighs heavily and turns to face me. His eyes pierce into me. His stare is intense, and it makes me want to shrink into myself, wondering what he’s thinking. Say something, Andrei. Fix this. Make it okay. Tell him you’re sorry for what you’ve done.

“I’m really sorry about what happened to your brother,” I blurt out.

“Grigoriy meant the world to me. I would have done anything for him. I wish I could have changed it. I wish I’d never introduced him to the Enzos.

I wish I had never worked for them. I wish I could have been there to help him—I should have been there.

If I knew he was in danger, I would have stuck to his side and kept him safe.

” I swallow hard to fight the lump forming in my throat.

Guilt is sitting on my shoulders, pushing me down, aching in my chest. I can’t say any more without my voice breaking as I fight tears of pain.

Nico shakes his head. “We don’t blame you for anything, Andrei. Grig made his own choices. They were bad ones, and we also wish they’d been different—but that’s not on you.”

I look up at him in surprise.

“But it is my fault, Nico. I got him involved with those people. Grig was a good person. He wouldn’t have trusted them if I hadn’t told him to.”

Nico shakes his head again and reaches out to touch my shoulder. There is a gentle smile on his face. In this moment, he feels like the older brother I never had. Responsible, calm and wise.

“Grig made his own choices. You know, when we were younger, I would always tell him not to do things—something as simple as not grabbing the poker right out of the fire because it would be hot—but he always had to learn for himself. He wouldn’t believe me until he burned his hand.

That’s how Grig was. Even if you’ve had a chance to warn him, he would have made his own choices, Andrei.

That’s why you can’t carry responsibility for his death. ”

My jaw clenches tightly. I disagree, but how do I explain that?

Nico notices my tension and keeps talking.

“I had an old motorbike. A vintage Honda Hawk. Man, I loved that thing. I spent hours polishing it, working on it. Fixing it up. But it wasn’t ready for the road—not by a long shot.

Grig would sit watching me, asking me over and over again when he could ride it, and I would answer the same thing every time—it’s a death trap until I fix everything.

But he would ask again. You know, the brakes didn’t even work on that thing.

I could start it. It purred, but it wasn’t ready.

Anyways, one night, Grig snuck into the garage and he wheeled it down the road so I wouldn’t hear it starting.

He took it for a drive. It went okay for a while, and then things started going wrong—right up to the point he realized there were no brakes on the damn thing. ”

Nico pauses to chuckle quietly, shaking his head at the memory.

“What happened?” I ask.

“He stopped by, driving into the neighbor’s pool.”

“The pool?” I say, shocked.

Nico starts laughing.

“The fucking pool. He drowned my bike. My pride and joy. He fucking drowned it because he refused to listen.”

“Actually, that sounds just like Grig,” I smirk.

“I was furious. I didn’t speak to him for a month.

Maybe more. He got the bike back into the garage, but it was never the same.

Look, Andrei, I’m just trying to help you understand that Grig made his own choices.

No one in my family blames you, and none of us wants you wasting your life chasing revenge. Grig wouldn’t want it, either.”

“I should have been there for him,” I say again with regret.

Nico’s voice becomes sterner.

“Andrei, the reason I came out here to talk to you is because I’m worried you’re making bad choices now, just like Grig did back then.

The only people who were at fault in this entire situation are the Enzos.

They were unforgiving of Grig’s mistake, and they acted harshly in retaliation.

It’s them that we blame. No one else. For Grig’s sake, because he would’ve wanted me to stop you, I’m here to tell you not to ruin your life over this.

Walk away. Let it go. Grig is gone. Whatever you have planned with the girl isn’t going to bring him back. ”

“The girl?” I mutter, my heart beating faster.

Nico gestures towards the villa. “I know who she is,” he says.

I press my lips together and take a deep breath.

I didn’t want Tia brought into this conversation. I was hoping he didn’t know who she was. This makes things awkward.

“She’s just here as my guest,” I say.

Nico shakes his head. “Your guest is causing havoc at home while the Enzos tear the city apart searching for her.” He tilts his head to the side and raises one brow at me. “There are rumors that you’ve married her.”

I huff loudly, pushing the air from my lungs to try and expel the anxiety building in me.

Nico doesn’t give up. “Listen, man, I’m not going to tell you how to live your life, but that girl, she has to go back to her brother. He will kill you over this if you don’t let her go home. It’s not worth it. Whatever you have planned, it’s not worth it . It won’t bring Grig back to us.”

Except, Tia is worth it—how can I send her back to her brother knowing what I know now?

She’s not safe there.

How do I explain that to Nico?

In my silence, Nico sighs and says, “I believe in a peaceful life. The mafia is a fucked up place that forces people to do things that aren’t right.

But in whatever way I can, I avoid that and put my energy into my loved ones instead.

All I care about is protecting them, keeping them safe.

Don’t play with fire unless you’re willing to get burned, Andrei.

And usually it’s not you who ends up burned—it’s the people you love.

Give the girl back to Boris before this gets any worse.

If you need help getting her back safely, we can do that for you.

I can take her now, and she’ll be home in a few hours. ”

I shake my head.

“Andrei, if any harm comes to her, it’ll be over. There’s no going back once you’ve crossed that line.”

My heart clenches.

“She’s completely safe with me, Nico. Absolutely no harm will come to her while she’s in my care,” I say sternly.

Nico stares into my eyes, and I narrow my gaze at him. He sighs and nods. He can see I mean it.

It shocks me just how much I mean it.

I would never hurt her.

My entire plan revolved around using her as a tool, and since I’ve gotten to know her as well as I have, that’s changed.

My heart is involved now, and because of my feelings towards her, my plans are ruined. I didn’t realize just how much this changed things until this moment, right now.

My jaw is clenched again, my mind racing. What am I going to do? I’ve fucked up my own plans.

“Alright, Andrei. But if anything happens, if you change your mind or you find yourself in a difficult situation, call me. You have my number, right? We’ll send the entire force out to support you.

You are part of our family. Blood isn’t the only thing that brings people together.

Grig thought the world of you, man. You meant a lot to him, and you are welcome in my home anytime. ”

His words are so deeply felt that they spike pain in my heart. Emotions bubble over, and I fight to control them.

“Thank you,” I murmur. “That means a lot.”

“Call if you need anything at all. Make sure you call,” he says.

I nod.

Nico nods, smiles, and shrugs his shoulders. “Alright. It was good to see you, man.”

“You too,” I smile.

Standing on the beach, I watch him walk away, disappearing into the darkness. For the longest time, I didn’t move. My eyes are still focused on the direction he left.

There wasn’t a single moment during that conversation where I felt he had any anger towards me. He came all this way to let me know it was the opposite of what I thought. He wants to support me, be there for me. He offered his help. He isn’t blaming me. I’m the one who is blaming myself.

I let out a slow, long breath. The air is cool, and the waves lapping against the sand are soothing.

Fuck.

Everything just got thrown into chaos. A quiet, uncertain chaos.

Tia is no longer a stepping stone in a plan. She’s become more than that. Getting to know her has derailed everything.

Nico made me see things differently.

But I can’t push aside my guilt as easily as he expects me to. I still blame myself for what happened to Grig, and I still want revenge. I just don’t know how to make that happen anymore.

I refuse to put Tia in danger.

That’s not negotiable.

Turning towards the villa, I stare up at the balcony where Tia is sitting. She’s looking out over the ocean, but as I walk towards the house she looks down at me on the beach and smiles. Her face is radiant and beautiful. My heart clenches at the sight of it.

Dammit.

This girl is affecting me in more ways than one.