Page 115 of Maxim

“You are only but a child. If you choose to enter the family business when you are of age, we can talk then. Until then, you answer to your sister and Maxim as your legal guardians.”

“You won’t make me make runs? Beat up people?” Alek’s eyes light up for the first time since we rescued him.

“Absolutely not.” Nikolai is firm, and it helps ease some of my fears.

He continues to speak with Alek as two women approach me.

“Maxim, we are happy to see you in one piece.”

His arm falls around my shoulders. “Always. Please meet my woman, Olena. Olena, this is Lia and Ivy. Lia is Nikolai’s wife and Ivy is Dimitri’s wife. He’s the man who gave his seat to Alek.”

I give a small smile. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Oh, Maxim, you can’t be talking about other women when you are courting someone. How did you manage to get her to even agree to be yours?” Ivy groans.

“Actually, Thea is the one who told me about you. About what you did for her and the others. And Maxim saved me. That’s how he convinced me. He was patient and kind. Showed me that not every man in the world is evil.”

Both women’s eyes soften.

“He is one of the best. Makes me glad I call him a brother.” Lia pats Maxim on the shoulder.

“If we can all take a seat. We have to get this call started.”

Several of the men who had been sitting around the table leave, opening up some chairs for us. Maxim guides me to the one next to Alek before taking the one beside me. Once everyone settles, the man I recognize from the photos Thea shared clears his throat.

“This is a secure feed. You can say whatever you need. I’m Alexei, by the way.” He looks at me as he speaks.

I nod. “Olena.”

He nods back.

Then the screen on the wall lights up. Several faces pop up, making me feel uneasy.

Maxim must read me because he reaches out and grabs my hand. “It’s okay. They helped us stop your father.”

I nod but keep hold of his hand.

Everyone says their greetings, then one of the men on the screen speaks up.

“Nikolai, why do you have a child with you? Should we be concerned?”

“Bastiano, as direct as always, I see. He is Olena’s brother. He asked to be here, and I could not see a reason to bar him,” Nikolai answers.

“What we have to discuss is graphic,” one of the other men says.

“I’ve seen worse,” Alek’s little voice says.

It shuts everyone up.

“Let me introduce you. This is Alek Norwak.” Gasps can be heard from the screen.

It seems only the people in this room know about my brother.

“Now can we move on?”

I zone out as they talk about how they took down my father. I know I should care more about the details, but I don’t. I wish I could have escaped with Daryna. I would rather be off playing with her than reliving the nightmare.

“Olena, did you ever hear anything else about the operation? Anything that we might need to know to keep it from starting back up?” Nikolai asks me, drawing my attention back to the group.