Page 6 of Forced By the Obsessed Bratva

I needed air.

The hedges, cut into smooth shapes, swept into a narrow stone path at the back of the cemetery. It was still, dark,and half-hidden behind towering trees. I walked along it, heels sinking a little into wet grass, a hand brushing against leaves at the edge.

I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop. But voices disrupting the quiet peace I was looking for drew my attention.

It was deep, low male voices, and they were familiar.

I halted behind one of the tall hedges, heart racing in my chest as I identified the other of the colder, gravelly voices.

Matvey.

I hadn’t heard him speak much. As a matter of fact, I wasn’t sure I’d ever heard him speak at all to begin with. The deep, baritone of his voice sent shivers down my spine.

I edged nearer, trying not to snap a twig. My heart missed a beat as I heard the second voice, another man, a bit older, smoother, with the same Bratva accent as Matvey.

“…she did what she was required to do. The alliance lasted during her lifetime.”

Matvey answered more tartly. “It’s not a question of whether she was helpful. She was one of us.”

“She was a Carter. She married into our family. You play the game. Yulia understood that, too.”

The air around thickened, and my legs threatened to give out. They were talking about Yulia.

“It was part of the deal,” Matvey said to him, his voice softer now. Underneath it was steel. A threat, on a very thin leash. “We secured the alliance all thanks to their marriage.”

There was a pause. The other man laughed then. A dark and bitter laugh that echoed through the emptiness. “It was a waste. A strategic move that ended up a damn waste. The youngest one might be worth looking into.”

I moved backward, and my heel got caught on a rock. I let out a shaky breath, hoping they hadn’t heard me, but Matvey’s voice cut through the quiet like a blade.

With my heart racing in my ears, I spun around and walked away quickly. Just short of a run, but almost. I couldn’t stand to hear one more thing. My hands were trembling, my skin hot and cold simultaneously.

They’d used her.

Yulia didn’t marry for love. She married to seal a deal, and now she was dead. Her body was barely cold underground, and they were already speaking about me as if I were next. As if I were nothing more than some pawn on their freaking chessboard.

As if Yulia didn’t matter beyond their stupid alliances.

A wave of anger surged through me.

I didn’t care how powerful they were. I did not care if Matvey was the scariest man on this planet or that his gaze made me feel things I knew were wrong.

I hated them.

All of them.

My chest was too tight to breathe by the time I got to my parents in the waiting cars. I didn’t even wait to hear them talk.

My stepmother’s eyes narrowed on me. “Honey, are you okay? You look a mess.”

I ignored her and shifted my attention to my father. “Tell me the truth,” I said, my voice cutting, shaking. “Why are we still connected with them rather than seeking revenge?”

“Connected with who?”

I inhaled, reminding myself not to blow up. “The Yezhovs. They murdered Yulia.”

My dad tensed up. My stepmom’s jaw dropped open.

“You’re getting emotional,” Dad said matter-of-factly, pulling at the cuff of his suit. “Yulia died of cardiac arrest. That’s what the doctors said.”