14. Natalya

Chapter 14

Natalya

I sit in the corner on the couch as my father paces like a prowling tiger.

Sometimes I forget that he’s an old mercenary. Back when he was younger, Dad was part of the Russian special forces, and even though he’s gotten soft and round in the middle in his old age, he still retains some of that old edge.

And right now, he’s sharper than ever.

Alex sits in a chair in the middle of the room, his hands bound behind his back with rope. Lev stands behind him with a gun pointed at his head. Several of my father’s soldiers are nearby, looking grim, and none of them speak.

The tension in the room is so heavy it makes me sick.

“Do you know what you’ve done?” Dad growls at Alex. His voice is soft and raspy. “Do you have any idea what’s going to happen now?”

“The Italians are going to be angry,” Alex says, his tone completely flat and emotionless.

“That’s a fucking understatement,” Dad shouts in Alex’s face. “You stole my daughter away from her own fucking wedding day. You left the god damn Italians at the altar and made them look like fools. Do you have any idea how angry they are? Do you know what Don Marino’s been threatening?”

“I’ll explain everything to them.” Alex doesn’t flinch when Dad backhands him across the face.

My hands cover my mouth and I can barely watch. I feel sick to my stomach, and I don’t know what to do. I’m totally powerless in this situation even though I know it’s all my fault.

If I had kept the baby to myself—if I hadn’t ever gone to see Alex last night—none of this would be happening.

Instead, the situation is spiraling, and I can’t stop it.

I’ve seen Dad angry before. He’s got a terrible temper, and he’s never been shy about using it against me and my siblings.

But I’ve never seen him like this.

Dad’s face is purple with rage. He’s so angry he can’t sit still.

But worse, he’s also terrified .

It’s written all over him. The fear’s leaking off his body like blood from a wound, and Dad’s not the kind of man that normally would let his fear show like this.

Which means it’s bad.

It’s really, really bad.

“You won’t do a god damn thing. You betrayed me, Alexander. You betrayed everything we stand for.”

“I would never do that,” Alex says and suddenly there’s emotion in his voice, like the thought of being a traitor is too much to bear. “Let me take care of the Italians. I’ll make them understand.”

“It’s too late for that.” Dad nods at Lev. “Kill him.”

“Dad,” I say and leap to my feet.

“Don’t you fucking move,” Dad roars, turning on me and pointing a finger in my face. “You are as much to blame as this stupid bastard. At least I can say he was thinking with his fucking dick, while you have no such excuse, you worthless bitch.”

“Don’t insult my wife like that,” Alex says and menace enters his tone. Despite his position, he’s frightening.

“Alex, man, shut the fuck up,” Lev says, exasperated. He’s still pointing the gun at Alex’s head, but he doesn’t move to pull the trigger.

“What are you waiting for? I told you to kill him.” Dad rounds on Lev and brandishes his fists. “He destroyed everything we worked for. He turned his back on you.”

“Nobody’s killing anyone,” Lev says, shaking his head. “I get that you’re pissed, but at this point Alex is worth more alive.”

“Like fucking hell he is.” Dad’s trembling as he stares from Lev to Alex. “We took him into our family. He was like a brother to you. We promoted him from nothing, and now look what he did?”

“I know,” Lev says with a grimace and his fingers grip the gun tighter. Almost like he wants to do it. “I know what he did, Dad.”

“He fucked your sister,” Dad says and walks over to Lev. He grabs him by the shirt and yanks him forward. “He put a fucking baby in your sister , knowing she was supposed to marry someone else, and now he stole her away on her wedding day. How can you stand there? How can you let him keep breathing?”

Lev’s jaw is set and his face is bone white. “I know what he did, but if we kill him now, we won’t be able to hand him over to the Italians later.”

Dad’s trembling. He shoves Lev away and turns to the fireplace, his hands leaning against the mantel to support himself as he takes deep breaths. I watch all this from the edge of my seat, nausea rolling around me, tears streaming down my face. This was wrong, it was so wrong. We should have gone to the grave with this secret.

“I understand why you feel that way, Otets , but it was never my intention to hurt anyone,” Alex says almost gently.

Dad turns on him. “Don’t call me that,” he snarls.

“We slept together. We made a mistake. I can’t turn my back on her, and I absolutely can’t let another man raise my child, no matter what. I’ve always tried my hardest to be a good member of the Bratva and to be an honorable man, and how could I look at myself in the mirror, knowing I let your daughter down?”

“You are a disgrace to the family.” Dad stands up straight, staring down Alex with pure loathing. “You are no longer a member of this Bratva.”

“Papa,” Lev says sharply. “You should stop.”

“He needs to hear this.” Dad advances on Alex and strikes him once more across the face. “You are nothing to us anymore. Do you hear me? As far as I’m concerned, you’re already dead. Do you understand?”

“I’m your daughter’s husband. I’m the father of her unborn child.”

“I’d rather that child grown up a fucking bastard than suffer the indignity of letting you breathe another day.” Dad turns from Alex and stares at me. “And you Natalya. I gave you another chance, and you disgraced yourself. I’d say I expected more, but I really didn’t.”

“Papa,” I say, staring down at the floor. “This wasn’t supposed to happen.”

“You’re right. It wasn’t.” Dad looks exhausted and deeply sad as he pulls his gun from his waistband. “Perhaps this is truly the only way I can salvage this situation. Perhaps I can’t kill Alex, but if I kill you?—“

“ No ,” Alex roars and lunges forward. He drives himself into Papa like an animal, snarling and snapping like a rabid dog. Lev’s shouting and the soldiers jump in, and the three of them manage to get Alex off Dad before anything bad happens. But Dad’s shaken, and he’s trembling as he gets up and raises his gun, aiming it at me.

“To hell with this. To hell with you traitorous rats. You should have thought about the consequences before you rutted like disgusting wild pigs in shit,” Dad says, eyes wild with sadness, his hand trembling, and I know he’s going to do it. Dad never loved us, not really—we were always his tools to use as he wished. Stepan was his favorite, but Stepan is dead, and me and Lev will never be enough to replace his perfect eldest son.

Maybe it’s better this way. Die having made my own decision. Die having gone my own way. All I regret is that I couldn’t have brought my baby into this world. I glance down at the ring glittering on my finger.

“No!” Alex shouts, struggling against the three men holding him back.

“Dad, don’t,” Lev yells and gets between me and Dad. “Put down the fucking gun.”

“Move,” Dad says, trying to push Lev aside.

“Just stop it.” The two of them struggle for a moment, and I’m sobbing as I watch my family crumble before my eyes.

Then Lev’s phone starts ringing. It’s shrill and cuts through the chaos, and it’s enough to break the spell. The two of them stop struggling over the gun, and Dad’s seething, breathing through his teeth, but he gestures for Lev to answer.

“Take it. That could be the fucking Italians.”

Lev pulls out his phone and puts it on speaker. “What’s going on?” he barks.

Katerina’s voice comes through in a panic. “The shop,” she says, sounding breathless. “Some men showed up, Italians I think, and they started messing it up.”

Lev looks alarmed. “What do you mean, messing it up?”

“They’re breaking everything!” she screams and the sound of shattering glass can be heard in the background. “Oh, shit, they’re taking the watches now. Lev, you gotta get down here! Please, they’re going to burn the place to the ground!”

The line goes dead. Then Lev’s shouting and Dad’s yelling, and they’re rushing out with Dad’s soldiers, and I’m left alone with Alex in the silence that follows.