Page 10

NINE

Inessa

W atching my future mother-in-law flirt in an outfit that’s making me blush has me pushing away my breakfast. The woman has no shame, while I’m filled with it. Averting my eyes as she exaggeratedly goes up on her toes to get a glass, the lace babydoll rides up in my periphery. This is the same woman who has bruises around her neck, and one eyeball is bloodshot from how hard her son choked her. Maybe she hit her head when he dropped her to the floor, and that’s the reason for her disgraceful behavior. No one else seems to think the same as me, and her sons are nowhere to be found.

I’m developing an appreciation for my parents’ neglect if this could have been the alternative. It intensifies when her husband steps in the kitchen, and I know this shit is normal when he doesn’t demand she cover up.How the fuck did they raise their kids? Vlad is fucked in the head and a team of psychologists would struggle with his devious mind. But the other two are fairly normal. They’re not twisted despite witnessing this shit their entire lives.

Len takes the seat beside me as I try to stomach swallowing my coffee and stare out into the gardens. He acts like this is his home, spreading his legs and knocking into my knee. It doesn’t assert dominance like he’s hoping to. All it achieves is making my skin crawl. I’m dressed, unlike his wife, but his eyes are fixed on me as though it’s reversed. He replaces his son as the most vile human being I’ve ever met as he looks me up and down and tries to act above me.

“You’re very comfortable here in such a short amount of time.”

His insinuation isn’t missed and dress shoes clicking against the tile cut me off from responding. Vlad is menacing on a normal day. He could be wearing a false smile and it still can’t be hidden. Right now, it’s murderous as he takes stock of his parents. He doesn’t say anything as they both continue doing whatever they want.Their dynamic is strange. He’s a control freak and brutal, but he doesn’t attempt to command them, and there’s no fear on his face.

He’s solely focused on me and ignores his mother in a way that I wish I could emulate as she stretches again, showing the curve of her ass. My stomach revolts, and I look at the safest sight in the room, Vlad. His gaze is fixed on the leg beside mine, and he slowly scans my body. Reaching my face, he relaxes slightly and his steps thunder until he’s at my side. There’s no good morning or greeting, as he grips the back of my chair, he drags me away from his father. The wooden legs screech against the tile, and the other chair clatters as he pulls it from my side to fit it in the space he’s created.

He lowers into the seat with authority, and everything around him shrinks as he stares at his father, attempting to do the same but failing. Vlad’s rough order is directed at me but spoken to the dickhead glaring at me.

“We’re leaving in five minutes. Pakhan has called a meeting regarding the wedding.”

He’s never called Grandfather by his title with me. It’s always Maximoff. I’m not a lunatic, so I don’t question my escape and choose to keep the small amount of untainted sight I have left as Dima walks into the kitchen, getting Anika’s attention. The way she looks at him should be illegal as she leans against the counter, and I take steady steps away from the Vartanov’s dysfunction.

Viktor’s little head pops out through the railings when I reach the stairs. The kid is full of energy and life despite the death he’s raised around, and I go to the sanest member of this family for my own safety. I keep my voice low when I reach him, so he’s not caught.

“I thought you weren’t allowed downstairs?”

He nods and moves deeper into the hallway towards the living area.

Once we’re away from the assholes, he smiles widely and jumps up onto the sofa, speaking freely.

“This is Tali’s floor. I’m not allowed down there,” He points towards the stairs, and continues spilling family secrets I’m sure I shouldn’t know. “Only when Len and Anika are here. Otherwise, I’m allowed everywhere. But Len isn’t a nice man. He was going to punch me last time, so I stay here now.”

Protectiveness comes out in me, and I stand in front of the sofa. He doesn’t stop bouncing. I gently hold his arms, so he looks at me. He pauses and looks up at me, still smiling as I give him the most genuine promise I’ve ever given.

“If someone ever hurts you or says they’re going to, tell me. Okay?”

He doesn’t need to know that I’ll kill them, even if it’s Vlad himself, but he giggles and tries to scowl.

“You’re not scary. I am.”

There aren’t any signs of fear coming through. Viktor leans into my side and taps his hand on my knee three times as he watches whatever show he’s put on. It’s late in the morning and a weekday so he should be in school, but there’s no one coming to collect him as the next episode plays automatically.

I stroke his hair back and try to get more information out of him. If I’m going to be living here, he’s my only point of normalcy.

“Aren’t you supposed to be in school, rypka?”

He turns his head at the endearment without moving his eyes from the TV and pulls his cheeks in, making a fish face before answering.

“I don’t have school. Vlad teaches me things.”

He sighs to himself, and longing fills his voice.

“I wanted to go to school, but it’s not safe. Vlad said it’s stupid anyway because Tali went to school, and he’s still dumb. So he’s going to teach me things, and I won’t be dumb.”

I hug Viktor closer to my side and focus on his show to hide my disdain for the psycho, and what he can possibly teach a child. It’s not one I’ve seen before, and every episode is in a different language. He seems to follow it easily and restarts it from the beginning.

“Do you understand what they’re saying?”

Looking up at my question, he responds, showing my ignorance.

“Falo um pouco de português.”

I’m in awe of a kid as he explains his love of language.

“I haven’t learnt all the words yet, but I got full marks on my test.”

He lowers his voice to a whisper, and his smile is wide, nearly stretching from ear to ear.

“I’ll be better than the other Vory because I’ll know them all, and then people can’t hide.”

Staring back at him with pride, I want to bring him to Steorra so he’s able to make friends with other kids. It’s sad that he’s alone all day and knows multiple languages without anyone to speak to. Even if the reason is disturbing, he’s stillmanaged to learn them.

The playfulness disappears when he looks at something over my shoulder and glares with more heat than he should be able to produce at his young age. Keeping my body in front of Viktor’s, I turn my head to see Vlad silently moving closer with his face set in hard lines. He’s such a fucking heartless prick, he can’t even soften for his own child.

His barked command isn’t at me, it’s worse knowing the innocent ears it’s falling on.

“Get dressed, Dima will be here soon.”

Viktor shuffles off the sofa and he runs past Vlad going down a hallway on the other side of the staircase. I can’t stop my mouth. I don’t give a fuck what he’ll do to me.

“You can speak to everyone like shit, but you don’t treat a child that way. Don’t you have any humanity at all?”

His shoulders twitch and the first thing to move are his eyes as he slowly looks in my direction.

He takes a step forward, and I sit taller, knowing this is a hill I’d be willing to die on. Steorra was originally created to work with orphanages, but it’s gone beyond that. In doing so, I know that the children who are living with their families aren’t always the luckiest. They are with the people who have the power to tear them apart every minute of every day, and I won’t let him try to intimidate me where other people like him have failed.

Strength fills me as I stare up at him, full of righteous morality.

“I deal with people like you every day. Your threats won’t make me shut up. You’ll just be added to the list.”

He pauses in his predatory stalking, his brows come together, and he sounds almost human.

“Who threatened you?”

It’s been four years of dealing with everything from abusive partners to parents trying to gain control over their fragile egos, and I’ve never stepped down. The list is too long to name, and it’s already been dealt with between Verelli’s guards and my own. My charity will remain a neutral zone whether the Vartanovs have an issue with it or not. Each group have their own territory, and I’m not allowing my alliances to change due to marriage when it’s the only thing I’ve worked toward. It’s my only goal in life, and I’ll crumble without it.

I stand, refusing to be in a weaker position, and straighten my dress down. He stares at me, expecting an answer, and I move around him. It’s none of his business what the fuck I do, and I won’t allow anyone to taint the lives of innocent children who need a break from the evil cunts they’ve already been exposed to. He stops me brushing past him and grabs my bicep. It’s not as harsh as his father and his voice is deep and low, pulling me in.

“You will be my wife, and I won’t allow you to weaken my name. The next time they attempt to threaten you, remember that.”

I lean into him without meaning to. His eyes always have this magnetizing power, calling me closer as though they want me to know what’s buried beneath them. We’re so close our noses are nearly touching. My voice lowers without my intention, due to our proximity.

“What makes you think they were able to do it a second time?”

Pride stares back at me. Vlad’s lips curve up, but the smile doesn’t reach his eyes. The twisted fuck is getting off on the imagined brutality. Stroking my bicep with his thumb has me softening when my brain argues not to. It loses the battle when his nose brushes mine and his whisper has my eyelids drooping.

“Good, hit first and hit harder.”

He blinks and turns rigid, stepping back as I sway, chasing his warmth. Taking another step back, he hardens his voice, becoming his usual dickhead self.

“Let’s go.”

He doesn’t have any manners and turns going towards the stairs. Following after him, because Grandfather will take any lateness as an insult, my taunt comes out.

“Are you going to leave me naked in the middle of nowhere again?”

He doesn’t pause in shooting his own question.

“Depends, can you shut your mouth and not be a brat?”

He’s standing in front of me as we reach the stairs, my hands itching to push all of my weight into his back as he takes the first step down. I muse out loud, enjoying getting under his skin.

“I wonder if you’d bounce falling down the stairs?”

He angles his shoulders, keeping me in his sight as he dares me.

“Try it. I’ll drag you down with me, meelaya.”

He already is dragging me down to the depths of hell, and I’d rather not tumble through the house with his parents here. It’ll be relayed back to my mother, and her unwarranted opinions will come out. Everyone thinks I’m untouchable, with my grandfather being the Pakhan and my mother’s half-brother the Pakhan’s second in Moscow. All it’s done is insulate me from the lesser monsters while the most insidious come out, unafraid of their wrath.I would deal with a thousand Vlads and Lens of the world before I ever willingly entered a single conversation with my own mother. She’s not just a bitch, she’s the bitch that made me, and she’s aware of every single weak spot she spent years creating with her venom.

My mouth snaps closed, and I increase the distance on the steps to prevent the urge to throw him down. He pretends to be a gentleman as we reach the bottom and holds his hand out for me on the last two. He’s always able to do this, switch between personas, and show that he is capable of being civilized. My fingers glide across his palm. It’s warm and doesn’t feel like the cold corpse it should, and I abruptly pull my hand back, not liking the way it’s making me feel. Being even more strange, he guides us out of the house with his hand on my back and his stoic face straight ahead.

His hand doesn’t leave the small of my back until we reach the car and he even opens my door for me. Alarm bells blare straight away. He’s either going to kill me or impose another one of his ridiculous rules. It can’t be an order to fuck someone else after he declared he’s changed his mind. Buckling myself in to make sure he can’t chuck me out again, I’d rather angry Vlad come back. This one is weird as fuck. He remains silent the entire drive towards my grandfather’s house. He doesn’t make a sound or twitch, like a robotic chauffeur staring at the road as he calculates how to get back to hell.

I break the silence, sounding as hesitant as I feel, bringing up the topic I know will make him erupt.

“You should enroll Viktor in school.”

I don’t let go of the seat belt clasp as he turns his head mechanically, and the deadly tone comes out.

“Don’t interfere with my family.”

He’s a fucking idiot stifling his own child’s brain because of his need for control. Not taking the warning, my anger comes out.

“He’s alone all the time, it will be good for his development, and he’s too intelligent to be sat in front of a screen all day. Don’t hold your own son back because you’re a neurotic, controlling asshole.”

My outburst doesn’t register as I am speaking, and I freeze realizing I’ve spoken his secret out loud. Viktor might be afraid of Vlad, but his bedroom is set up on his floor, there are toys kept in place for him, and he walks around the space like he lives there because he does. I haven’t seen the others interact with him, but the kid says Vlad’s name in every sentence.He’s besotted with him in the way every child is with their father before they’re forced to grow up and realize they’ve made the villain their hero.

Vlad raises one brow, and his lip follows on the same side as I cross my arms over my chest and glare back. The smirk doesn’t leave as he decides to be honest for once.

“He’s not my son, Viktor is my nephew.”

He says it easily, fighting humor as I deflate. Looking back to the road, he does exactly as I described, being a prick.

“Keep cursing, and I’ll wash your mouth out.”

Opening my mouth to argue, I slam it shut when he stares at my lips and continues.

“With soap or another substance.”

My eyes dart to his crotch, and I enjoy taunting him too much, so remove every curse out of my vocabulary to make sure he can’t make good on the threat.

“As long as it’s not yours, I’ll say thank you.”

He laughs. An actual laugh with his head pushing into the headrest, and the joyous sound fills the car. It slowly dies as he shakes his head and looks at me from the corner of his eyes. Every word of his insult drips in condescension.

“Do you have a special pillow for your knees, princess?”

“Why? Would you like to use it when you ask my grandfather for a favor? Expand your territory, maybe?” I fire back and regret it instantly.

His eyes darken, every feature sharpening, and I dumbly refuse to back down and continue glaring at the side of his head for the rest of the drive.