Page 27 of Toxic Salvation (Krayev Bratva #2)

VESPER

“Why the hell is she here?” I hiss.

Pavel steps into my path, dropping his voice. “She has a visitation today, Vesper. Court-ordered.”

“The judge is out of his mind!” I shove Pavel aside to catch another glimpse of Yana as she sways through Kovan’s house like she owns the place. “Does Luka even want to see her?”

“Unfortunately, it doesn’t matter what Luka wants,” Pavel answers patiently. He stops me before I can do what I’d like to do, which is go wring her neck. “Yana is his mother and she convinced the judge she cares about her son enough to get biweekly visits.”

“This is complete and total bullshit.”

Pavel exchanges a glance with Waylen, then looks back at me. “Maybe you should go upstairs until the visit is over?”

I don’t even bother answering—I just push Pavel out of my way and stalk through the house to the garden, where Luka stands with a soccer ball, wearing the sourest expression I’ve ever seen on his nine-year-old face.

He’s looking up at Yana, who is skeletally thin and clad in a black velvet dress. She looks like a fucking wraith.

“Play nice, okay?” Pavel warns from behind me.

Before I can tell him I have absolutely no intention of playing nice, Luka catches sight of me. His gray eyes fill with relief and he gives me a smile that Yana assumes is meant for her.

She stretches her arms toward Luka. “My baby boy, I knew you missed me!”

Gag.

Luka stands frozen as she wraps her claws around him and pulls him into her bony embrace. He doesn’t return her hug. His arms stay limp at his side.

“I think I’ll stay,” I tell Pavel firmly.

“Vesper, we don’t need any more complications.”

“I’m not complicating anything. I’m just going to sit here and observe. This is supposed to be a supervised visit, right?”

“That’s what I’m here for.”

“Great. Consider me backup.”

Pavel groans and points at the outdoor sofa behind me. “Park your ass and don’t move. And no matter what, do not interfere with this visit.”

“Aye-aye, cap— Hold on.” I grip Pavel’s arm in panic. “What is she doing?”

“It’s a gift, Vesper. She’s giving him a gift.”

I roll my eyes. “ Is that a PlayStation? Typical. Can’t be bothered to be a good mother, so let’s take the easy way out and buy his love.”

He pinches his nose like his head hurts. “Except Luka is too smart for that.”

“You bet your ass he is,” I agree proudly.

Luka examines the PlayStation with all the enthusiasm of someone inspecting a dead fish. Then he sets it on the grass and resumes playing with his soccer ball. Yana’s eyes flicker toward us, her annoyance obvious even from twenty feet away.

Then she notices me and her entire demeanor changes. She stiffens, chest out, eyes narrowing with purpose.

“Oh, boy…” Pavel sighs. “I really thought today was going to be a good day when I woke up. Joke’s on me.”

I make a show of waving, forcing a friendly smile onto my face. Yana’s tongue swipes along her lower lip like a viper’s before she turns her back on me.

Her expression reads loud and clear: Die, bitch.

I settle onto the sofa beside Pavel and keep my eyes trained on Yana. She’s not the only one who can communicate effectively with her eyes. The next time she looks my way, I’ll have my response ready.

Right back at you, she-demon.

“The court allowed her an hour. She’s overstayed her welcome.”

Pavel shifts uncomfortably, keeping his eyes on his phone. “Until Luka says he’s done, I’m not going anywhere near them.”

“Coward.” I pinch his arm as I get to my feet.

“Hey!” He grabs my hand and tries to drag me back down. “Yana can’t know you’re pregnant. Kovan wouldn’t want that. She’ll go running to Ihor immediately.”

I snake my hand away from him. “Look at me. Can you tell I’m pregnant in this blouse?”

“Well, no, but?—”

“Then she won’t, either.” I start walking away from him.

“Where are you going?” he calls after me. I ignore him. “Vesper. Vesper!”

Both Yana and Luka have their backs to me, but Luka is busy scribbling on a piece of paper while Yana talks his ear off.

“Don’t you miss me, baby? Don’t you want to see your room again? I did it all up for you. It’s got so many cool new things; you’ll love it.”

I want to claw her eyes out right where she stands. But since I don’t want to traumatize Luka more than necessary, I swallow my rage and wait for his response.

“Come on, Lulu, don’t you miss your room?”

“I have a room here,” he says quietly. “And my name is Luka, not Lulu.”

“It’s Mommy’s special nickname for her baby.” She tries to make it sound cute, apparently forgetting her son turned nine years old recently. “You used to love it.”

“Nuh-uh, I never did. I always hated Lulu. My name is Luka.”

Yana is so engrossed in bullying her son that she still hasn’t noticed me standing there. “Fine then, Luka. You want to come home with me, don’t you?”

Her cutesy tone has dropped, but that only seems to remind Luka of who he’s dealing with. “No, I want to stay here with Uncle Kovan and Vesper.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. They’re not your family.”

Finally, he looks up at her. His angry face looks just like Kovan’s. “Yes, they are!”

Yana’s nose wrinkles. “For God’s sake, Luka, how stupid can you be? You think they love you? They’ll want a baby of their own soon and then they won’t want you around. They’ll want to make their own family instead of keeping you.”

That right there is the last fucking straw, as far as I’m concerned. “That’s enough. Yana, your hour is up. I think it’s best if you hit the road.”

She whirls around. Her eyes might actually be beautiful if they weren’t so wild and filled with hatred.

“Who the fuck do you think you are, kicking me out of here? This isn’t your house,” she sneers. “You’re just the glorified mistress.”

“Better a glorified mistress than a jailbird. As I said, I think it’s time for you to leave.”

“I’m not going anywhere. I’m not done spending time with my son.”

“You mean you’re not done trying to manipulate him?” I laugh, but there’s nothing pleasant about the sound. “You can try your worst mind games, Yana, but Luka knows that Kovan and I love him.”

I give Luka a wink and he sidles closer to me, his hand seeking mine.

Yana jumps between us and snatches up Luka’s hand instead. “That’s what she says, baby. But it’s not true. They’re just using you to get to Mommy.”

“Are you for real?” I snap. “Luka, honey, come here.”

Immediately, he tries to drop Yana’s hand, but she refuses to let go. “No! This is my son, you bitch. Go get your own.”

I keep my tone calm and even. “How mature. Can we please be adults for ten minutes, Yana? For Luka’s sake?”

“Don’t tell me how to behave with my own son!”

“Ow.” Luka winces, trying to pull his wrist from Yana’s grip. “Mom, let go. You’re hurting me.”

“Leave us alone!” Yana screams at me. “You’re upsetting him!”

“You’re the one who’s upsetting him! He’s had enough. Let him go!”

“He’s my son!” she cries. “I will never let him go! He’s mine and he belongs with me!”

Luka wrenches his hand free. “I don’t want you!” he yells at her. “I don’t want you to be my mom anymore! You just make me feel bad all the time. I want Uncle Kovan and Vesper!”

“Baby—” Yana spins around and squats down, grabbing both of Luka’s hands. “You don’t know what you’re saying. This… this… woman… has poisoned you against me. She’s filling your head with lies and?—”

“She doesn’t talk about you!” Luka insists. “No one talks about you. It’s nice when you’re not around. I’m happy.”

Yana looks ready to explode. Her eyes bulge and her nostrils flare. “Y-you don’t mean that, baby! How can you say that to your mama when I love you so much! Don’t you love me, sweet boy?”

“No!” Luka practically wails. “No, I don’t love you! Actually, I hate you!”

Then he pushes her away from him and sprints full speed into the house. Within seconds, he’s disappeared completely.

Which leaves me and Yana. She’s sprawled on her ass in the grass, her face screwed up in shock. “Y-you fucking cunt!” she explodes at me before she’s even gotten to her feet.

It’s easier for me to stay calm now that Luka is safely away from Yana. “Call me whatever you want, Yana. It doesn’t matter to me that you hate me. But it should matter to you that Luka hates you .”

She gets to her feet. There’s nothing graceful about how she tries to hike down her too-short skirt and nothing beautiful in her twisted, furrowed scowl.

“He hates me because of you !” she accuses, stabbing a finger in my direction. “I’m going back to court. I’m going to file a motion stating that you and Kovan are trying to alienate me from my son.”

I know I shouldn’t goad the witch, but the burst of laughter that flies out of my mouth is completely involuntary. “Come on, Yana, you don’t strike me as the delusional type. Kovan and I had nothing to do with that. You managed to alienate Luka all on your own.”

“Fuck you!”

“He’s not a pawn. And he’s not stupid, either. Kids know when they’re not wanted. They can sense it. And you certainly make it easy.”

“How dare you talk to me like that, you two-bit tramp?” she shrieks. “You are just some nobody that Kovan picked up off the side of the road and stuck his dick into! That does not make you special. That does not make you important!”

Again, I just laugh. “Do you think Luka cares about those things? Do you think he gives a shit about how influential or important I am?” I take a step toward the crazed woman.

“The only thing he cares about is whether I care about him . Whether I make time for him. Whether I put him first.” I give her a slow once-over, my lips curling with disgust. “Luka deserves better than someone who wants him only because of what he can give her. He deserves someone who loves him wholeheartedly and without compromise. That’s not you, Yana.

So why not give him to people who will love him the way you can’t? ”

She stares at me with those harsh gray eyes, and for a split second, I actually think I’ve gotten through to her. Maybe some part of my speech has appealed to the tiny bit of maternal instinct she has left.

But then her eyes flash and my instincts go off like warning sirens.

“If you try and take my kid,” she hisses, stepping toward me, “I swear to God, I will come for your children one day! I will strangle them in their cribs if I have to!”

She lunges at me, nails first, a manic screech tearing from her throat. Despite how clumsy and slow I’ve gotten since my pregnancy, I manage to sidestep her attack.

But she recovers fast, spins around, and before I can get away from her, she grabs my hair and yanks me backward.

I’ve got to give it to her—for such a small woman, she’s strong. My arms twist back, trying to pry her loose, but she clings on like she’s rabid. My scalp is in searing pain, her nails scrabbling at the skin, and for a minute, I think I might?—

But then?—

“Enough!”

Yana lets go. I collapse to the grass. Massaging my scalp, I turn to find Kovan standing there, his green eyes dark and stormy as he stares at Yana.

If she were a smart woman, she’d get the hell out of here as fast as possible. But Yana made it clear a long time ago that she is not so smart.

“Tell your whore to get out of my face!” she seethes.

Kovan shakes his head. “I should have known that behaving like a decent human being for a whole hour would be too much for you.”

“She started it!” Yana actually points at me as though we’re a couple of ten-year-olds on the playground.

“I don’t give a fuck. I’m finishing it. Get out of my house, Yana.”

Even she knows better than to argue when Kovan uses that tone of voice. Scowling fiercely, she throws me a dirty glare and starts stomping away.

But when she passes within arm’s reach of Kovan, his hand flies out and stops her in her tracks. “And know this,” he rumbles. “If you ever lay a hand on my woman again, you will have much more to worry about than a little jail time. Got it?”

Her ash-gray eyes double in size. Her scowl grows uglier. Then she tosses her sandy brown hair, rips away from him, and storms out.