DMITRII sense Viktor Petrov’s arrival before Jakob announces him. His presence carries weight, a formidable energy I’ve rarely encountered. I’ve been anticipating this meeting, curious to see what kind of man Ana’s brother is.“Let him in,” I command, my voice cool and controlled.Viktor enters, his stride purposeful and confident. He carries himself with the assurance of a man who’s seen the world and faced its challenges. I find myself reassessing my initial assumptions. This is no mere boy playing at being a protector.“You’re Dmitri Orlov,” he states, his voice firm and unwavering.I nod, gesturing to a chair. “And you’re my wife’s brother. Please, sit.”He takes the seat, his posture relaxed yet alert. Our eyes lock, and I’m met with a gaze as steely and determined as my own. Interesting. Most men falter under my scrutiny, but Viktor holds firm.I break the silence. “I’m certain you didn’t come here for a social call. “It’s about Ana, yes?”Viktor nods, his words measured and di
ANAI jolt awake, fumbling for my phone like it’s a lifeline. No messages from Dmitri.Fantastic.“Come on, you brooding idiot,” I mutter, scrolling through my empty inbox. “Give a girl a sign of life.”I’ve spent the night tossing and turning, my mind conjuring up increasingly ridiculous scenarios. Maybe he’s joined a secret underground knitting circle. Or he’s been abducted by aliens who needed a crash course in scowling techniques.As I drag myself to the shower, I catch my reflection. I look like I’ve been hit by the worry truck. “Please don’t be out murdering someone,” I plead to no one in particular.Because that’s a totally normal concern for a wife to have.Welcome to the Orlov family, folks!Downstairs, the house is quieter than a library run by mimes. My phone buzzes—it’s Viktor, with a cryptic “gotta run” message.“What is this, the Great Bratva Disappearing Act?” I grumble, heading out the door.At work, I’m a bundle of nerves wrapped in a pantsuit. When my office phone ri
DMITRII stop in front of a florist shop, parking my car and staring at the flower arrangements sitting prettily in the window. “She finds roses ordinary,” I say to Yelena on the phone. “I’ll get carnations.”She laughs. “Are you sure she likes them, or is it because you bought them that one time? Did you ask her if they are her favorite?”I shake my head, already annoyed. “She’s my wife, Yelena. You’d think I’d know a thing or two about her by now.”“Right.”I roll my eyes, more at myself than her. “That was sarcasm.”She clicks her tongue, the playful attitude still there. “I knew it. Are you delivering them yourself, or will you let your ego get in the way of showing up at your wife’s office?”“Yelena,” I say, the impatience clear in my voice, “I’m hanging up now. I’ll call you back in two hours.”“Wait, I?—”I hang up, tuck my phone in my pocket, and get out of the car, grabbing my coat as I step out. The florist shop door swings open easily, and the warmth inside contrasts sharpl
I stride into the building, fury driving my steps.His secretary, the same woman I saw the day I demanded Nikolai give up his daughter, stands at the entrance. She frowns when she sees me.“Mr. Orlov, to what do we owe this pleasure?”“Is he in? And don’t lie to me,” I growl, the threat hanging between us. “My wife is missing. Anyone who makes it harder for me to find her will regret it.”She glances behind her, her voice less sure now. “Anastasia is missing? Why would you think that?”“She hasn’t been in her office today,” I bite out. “Now, is he here, or do I have to find out for myself?”Her eyes flicker with hesitation, but she steps aside. “You think he kidnapped his own daughter? He hasn’t seen her since she moved in with you. Why would he take her now?”I don’t answer, pushing past her and striding straight into Nikolai’s office.He’s mid-conversation, but I don’t wait for an invitation.“Dmitri,” he snarls, glaring at me. “How dare you?—”“Where’s Anastasia?” I demand, my voic
ANAWhy does it feel like someone dropped a piano on my head?I slowly open my eyes, only to be stabbed by the brightest, most sterile light. It’s like my retinas have signed up for an all-out assault, and the pounding in my skull doubles. I blink, groaning as I try to gather my bearings.Where the hell am I?There’s an obnoxious beeping sound, and somewhere nearby, I hear a voice—familiar, distant. It’s muffled, like when you’re dreaming and someone tries to talk to you in real life. But I’m too busy figuring out why I feel like I got steamrolled.As my vision clears, I realize I’m in a hospital bed, hooked up to machines like some sci-fi experiment.“Ana?”Dmitri. The voice snaps into focus, and I turn my head toward him. Well, try to. My entire body revolts, screaming in protest as pain shoots through every muscle.“Kotyonok,” he says softly, taking my hand in his. “I’m here. I’m right here.”“What…?” My voice is barely a croak, and even that hurts. “What happened?”“You’re in the
And just like that, life barges back in. “I’ve got to take this,” Dmitri says as he stands up. “I might need to leave the hospital for a while, but I’ll be back. I promise.”As he walks away, I sigh and close my eyes. I just hope he’s safe.I open my eyes again,blinking against the hospital’s harsh, white lights. The steady beeping of the machines, the smell of antiseptic—yep, I’m still here. My body protests as I shift slightly, everything feeling heavier than it should. But before I can fully process anything, there’s a loud pop that nearly makes me jump out of my skin.I whip my head around, almost giving myself whiplash, only to see Viktor standing there with a ridiculous bouquet and an army of balloons.“Welcome to the land of the living.” He grins, eyes sparkling with mischief. “Sorry about that. One of the balloons popped.”I sigh, trying not to laugh, and watch as he awkwardly ties the balloons to the bedpost, the roses unceremoniously dropped on the bedside table.“Hey, sis,”
DMITRIOne.Two.Three.Boom.Watching the warehouse go up in flames is satisfying. The kind of satisfaction that seeps deep into your bones. The crackling wood, the thick smoke curling up into the night sky—it all feels like a cleansing, a purge of anyone foolish enough to betray me. It’s the kind of catharsis only fire can provide, a reminder to the world that Dmitri Orlov doesn’t just make threats. I deliver.“Is this the last one?” I ask, not tearing my eyes from the inferno as Leonid steps up beside me.“Yes, boss,” he says. “I just got word from the others. Two of the sites had some resistance, but it was handled.”Resistance. Pests. That’s what a once-powerfulpakhansyndicate and an Italian Mafia gang have been reduced to.Handled.Good. It’s the beginning of the end for anyone who thinks they can move against the Orlov family. If this doesn’t scare them, the fire will finish what my reputation started—reducingeverything they built to ash. And if that still doesn’t do the job? I
I slip in quietly, the sound of the shower masking my footsteps. I place my hand gently on her shoulder. She jumps, gasping, her wide eyes locking onto mine as she shakes her head.“You scared me to death, you brute.”“I would’ve brought you back to life,” I murmur, my voice low, possessive, as my fingers trail up to cup her chin. I tilt her head back, making her meet my gaze, my mouth hovering just inches from hers.Her lips part slightly, and my tongue flicks out to trace the seam of her mouth, teasing, a soft, needy sigh escaping her.There’s nothing gentle in the way I look at her—nothing soft. I’ve been cold, ruthless, dangerous all my life. But with Ana, there’s something else. Something more.My control frays at the edges every time she’s close, and tonight, I don’t intend to hold back.I deepen the kiss, cradling her face with a hand and pulling her close with the other. Her body is soft, as usual, and warm from the water cascading down.“You’ll get wet,” Ana whispers.“Mm,” I
I got up from the chair, walking past Arlo to the door as I watched them both. Like the colors of a rainbow, my brother had different sides. He had his days: good ones, bad ones, crazy ones, and bloody ones. I didn’t trust him to keep his cool with this foolishly brave girl. But fuck interfering. I wasn’t going to stop him.Whatever he decided was going to be her fate. She was his problem to deal with now.“Let him do whatever he wants. My only concern is those two.”“But Enzo….”“I’ll blow his fucking head off if it comes down to the worst.” I was unbothered, and I made sure he understood that.“You know what? Forget your fucking brother….” The Italian and Rafa were still at it. “You’rethe piece of shit, you crazy fuck! Who stands in the middle of the road with a gun anyway? My papa’s going to have your head for this!”“Boy, am I going to enjoy killing you. You called me a dog. Pleased to inform you that I barely bark; I fucking bite.” Theshinkechoed in the room, and silver pressed a
TimurI adjusted the gloves against my wrist and tossed the syringe to the floor while I watched the sight of them resting against each other,Pchelkaand her brother. They both had bloodied faces, but I was more concerned with the sunshine princess, whose golden hair had mingled with streaks of red. The other one, with dark eyes and a spitfire mouth, had her eyes shooting daggers at me, Rafayel, and Arlo.She’d woken up first.“I’ve heard a lot about you, Timur Yezhov, but none of those briefs warned me ahead of time that you’d be this dumb.”“I’m going to slice your fucking tongue off, bitch,” Arlo sneered beside me in Russian, but I raised a hand. There was no use spilling her blood yet. We had to hear more from her; then I’d decide if keeping her alive was worth it. Her feistiness was interesting to watch—entertaining, even. She was good sport.Jerking my chair closer to their huddled bodies, I propped my elbows on my knees, leaning forward. She didn’t even flinch. Cocking her head
Jayden shot me anare-you-serious-right-nowlook over his shoulder, still marching forward toward the pavement.“They don’t have Honda Odysseys,” he emphasized, like that wasn’t already obvious. “And they don’t do simple.”Then, he halted in his tracks, allowing me to step beside his huge frame. Taking my hands in his, he let me in, permitting me to see the fear in his eyes for the first time that night.“Look, Seri, I know this is not the life you planned for either of us. You’ll miss your kids at school, you’ll miss the house, you’ll miss everything. But none of us could have known what Dad did, the debt he owed. I promise we’ll sort out this messafterwe leave. Those goons can’t know we’re gone.”Sniffling tears, I nodded and pulled him in for a brief hug before we got to the car. Subtly, he knocked on the window three times. It was eerie, like a secret Morse code only he and the driver understood, and when the door opened and the driver walked up to us, I blinked in disbelief.The la
Serena“And you’re sure this is a good idea?” I asked for the hundredth time. And, again, earned a tired, frustrated growl-slash-sigh from Jayden.Upfront, he stopped walking and turned around with his flashlight pointed directly at me. I squinted, raising my arms to shield my eyes from the bright rays. We were in an abandoned dry canal—one I didn’t know how Jayden had managed to find. Dressed in a black hoodie with a backpack slung over his shoulder, standing at the center with that annoying flashlight, he looked like a villain—a teenage ninja villain.But it was just Jayden.“Take that thing out of my face, please.”I couldn’t see his face, but I knew my brother well enough to feel his vexed eye roll. He dropped the flashlight and turned his back to me, continuing his trek down the canal. Quietly, I shifted the knapsack on my backpack, following the sharp outline of his broad back as he trudged deeper into the swallowing darkness.“No, it’s not a good idea,” his voice echoed around
“Fuck! I almost had him,” Rafayel cursed, dropping his cards beside mine.“My apologies, but this is important. Level one shit,” Arlo said, looking anything but remorseful for interrupting our moment.I didn’t mind because I knew he had something—he always did.He stopped in front of me, flashing his phone toward me as if I could see the screen. A sly grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Got updates on the Skye siblings.”The Skye siblings.Truly, level one shit.“Good or bad?”“Somewhere in between. They barely leave the house. They’re scared. Real scared.”Satisfied, I approved the update with a nod. Of course, they were scared. They knew exactly what was coming and couldn’t run far enough. But Arlo wasn’t done.“But that young one,” he continued, his eyes narrowing slightly, “Jayden.”“The boy?”“He’s got eyes of fire. They know we’ve been watching and are gonna try to run. I see it.”I sat up straighter, grabbing the cards. “Then let them.”He paused, and Rafayel raised a ques
TimurRafayel dealt the cards with that familiar glint of mischief in his eyes, but his face remained calm.Clicking my tongue distastefully, I leaned backward on a chair, folding up my sleeves. We sat across from each other, the low rumble of thunder muffled in the background. It was supposed to be one of those rare moments when we had some peace, no business to deal with, no chaos to clean up—just a game of cards between brothers—until the clouds gathered.“It still bothers you, doesn’t it?”Rolling the cigar stick between my fingers, I trimmed the end with my cutter. “Sometimes.”“And the dreams?”I fixed the cigar between my lips, bouncing my feet up and down the rug. “Stopped about a year ago. Stop talking, and let’s play.”Fucking lying through my teeth. The dreams hadn’t stopped. Not since that night after I was literally tied to a chair and forced to watch one of my father’s techniques for truth extraction. The aggressive thunderclaps, the artistic splash of red on the walls,
Serena“Who were those men?”That was the first thing Jay had asked five nights ago after the unannounced visit of the men in black.Quickly, I’d wiped the tears off my cheeks with the back of my hands. My feet stopped moving, pausing by the counter. I was about to put the cake away, ready to chuck it inside the fridge, when he stormed into the house, confused, concerned, and angry at the same time.I’d wished him a happy birthday, but Jay didn’t care, not about the wish or the cake I’d spent hours baking. Instead, we’d spent the wee hours of his birthday talking about the Russian mafia and the debt our late father owed.We sat in the living room tonight, the same cloud of gloom and uncertainty hanging over our heads as more rain pelted the glass windows. He parted the curtains with his fingers again—for the fifth time exactly—and the view was the same: rain, dark, cloudy skies, billows of what appeared to be dusty wind, and a black truck with bright white headlights.“They’re not goi
“This…this is outrageous!” Waving the paper midair, eyes zeroed in on me, glaring with instant anger. “My dad died last year, so you can’t get anything from him.”“We are well aware of that because he stopped paying last year.” Eagerly, Arlo gestured toward the contract. “Read the last line.”She did.And she jumped to her feet, red-hot with anger. She was trembling with tears, the prickly pines emerging from within as she got ready to defend her home and her brother with everything. “No.”I sat back, assessing her while she faced my underboss.“Technically, yes. Oliver signed that contract.”“And I don’t care! You…you guys can’t do this. It’s evil. How can his debt pass on to his male blood relative? It washisdebt, and we knew absolutely nothing about it. Jay doesn’t know a thing. Please, I’m begging you. He’s only seventeen. He’s still a child.”“Child, my fucking foot. I cut a man’s finger off at fifteen. Your brother’s already fucked a woman, and you wouldn’t even know.”Realizing
TimurI sat on the couch in the dainty living room, Arlo standing beside me and Kristian and Vasili by the door. Everything was more her than Oliver: the colors, textures, and smell. She owned the space, and her composure and confidence were the indicators.Placing the basketball cake on the center table, she took the seat opposite mine, crossing her legs with elegance and chewing her bottom lip with her nerves all over the place.Raising her head, she looked me in the eyes—a sparkling pair of blue eyes that reminded me of the reflection of clear skies on the vast ocean. She was not tall, but when she squared her shoulders in a feeble attempt to appear fierce, her height edged upwards.“You claim that you’re my father’s friends, and yet, I don’t even know your names.”I shouldn’t have been surprised that she wanted an introduction. She looked like the type, anyway.“Timur Yezhov. Not exactly pleased to make your acquaintance, Miss Serena Skye, given the circumstances.”“Arlo.” Arlo ra