Page 89 of The Mafia and His Obsession Part 2 (Tainted Hearts 5)

He didn’t see her like I did.

A beautiful soul, with a stronger will than all of us.

I looked at Valentin, watching the way he seemed so satisfied with himself. I always knew he was a worthless dickhead, but fuck, he stole the damn trophy tonight.

“That was a mistake, I admit. Thank fuck I changed my mind.”

He nodded, his eyes narrowing on me. “I want to make a deal with you.”

The look on his face…I didn’t like it.

“I don’t make deals that aren’t in my favor,” I implored. “I don’t see how you have something good enough to make a deal with me.”

He chuckled under his breath, confidence masking his posture. “Hear my case first. You’ll like this one.”

“Fine. Speak your case,” I muttered before emptying the rest of the bottle down my throat. There wasn’t a lot and it wasn’t near enough for me right now.

I needed something stronger to deal with this shit.

Valentin dragged the suspense by lighting up a new cigar and slowly placing it between his lips. He took his sweet fucking time, and I watched him blow out a puff of smoke. Growing frustrated with every second ticking by, I let out a small annoyed growl under my throat.

“Patience is a virtue.”

“Oh, you are going to teach me about virtue, old man?” I sneered.

He sniffled in response before taking another strong hit from his cigar. The air in his office was now filled with the pungent smell.

“You know what I want,” he started.

“Alessio’s death,” I replied on autopilot. For more than a year, this had been drilled in my head.

“I want more and you know it.”

“You want power, Valentin. That is what you want. And you will get it. I promised you that.”

“Being the Pakhan has always been in my goal. It’s so near, I can almost sniff it. But you see, I am old now. I won’t have long to cherish my success and you are my heir. Remember, one day, everything I have will be yours. Even the title of the Pakhan.”

He paused, cocking his head to the side. “But then again, that all depends on you and how well you do your job.”

“I know what I have to do,” I hissed, hating the judgment in his tone. As if I were below him, a lesser man than him.

“Alessio is still alive. You were able to eliminate the fetus, but Maila, his daughter is also a problem.”

“You think it’s easy? For me to just waltz in and kill Alessio? Assassinate his family? You are a fool.”

Just like it was no easy talk to kill Valentin Solonik.

When powerful, blue-blooded men slide under our radar, there are months and months of planning before the real kill. So not to leave any evidence behind. That includes the witnesses.

There were few men as powerful as Alessio Ivanshov.

And none of them has ever been assassinated till date.

That was our unspoken truce. Each of us had our territory and we stayed within the limit.

If we fucked up…that meant war.

Valentin ruled Russia with an iron fist. He was on top of the ladder with too many loyal associates to count on our fingers. Killing him was no easy task.

Valentin smirked for the briefest moment, as if he could read my mind. His gaze sharpened on my face, and I placed the empty bottle down.

“Want a smoke?”

I shook my head. My fingers laced together, and I leaned forward, placing my elbow on my knees. “What is your deal?”

“I believe you need an incentive. Something for you to look forward to after your job is done,” he drawled.

My jaw clenched at his words. The meaning behind what he said was clear, and I didn’t like where this was going. It infuriated me that Valentin always seemed to push me into a corner. He played me like I was his pawn.

“You said you were fascinated by my wife, didn’t you, Konstantin?”

There was now a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. A throbbing sensation amassed in my chest. Swallowing against the newly formed lump in my throat, I only stared back into Valentin’s dark eyes. I refused to fall into his trap.

“Here is my deal, son. And I know it is something you’ll be greatly passionate about.” He paused, taking a small gulp of Vodka from his glass. My fists tightened. He was toying with my patience.

“You kill Alessio…and his family. In return, you get to keep my wife as yours.”

Suddenly, all the air in my body had been sucked out. The vein in my neck throbbed and the muscles in my tightened jaw ticked. Pain burned brighter and hotter inside my chest.

What kind of bastard was he?

“It is my reward to you, my son. I can see it. You are interested in Valeria. You’ve already tested her tonight. You’ve inspected her very carefully, and I can tell, she’ll make your dick very happy in a long run. She’ll be fully yours. No man will touch her without your permission.”