Chapter 1 - Maxim

Kiril and Paval are deep in conversation about our family business. I came around this morning to run through the latest shipment schedule with them, but now they”re talking about possible interference by an underhanded insider and how to deal with it.

I pick up my phone, glancing at the time on the screen. I should get going, I have other things to do now.

“We have to do something more aggressive. This is getting out of hand, and we”re losing money,” Kiril complains, pacing around the meeting room in the upstairs office of one of our warehouses.

Paval shakes his head. ”The Napoli family is supposed to be one of our allies. If we go in too forcefully, we could stir up some serious shit, especially if we”re wrong, and it isn’t them.”

“Then how do you propose we approach this?” Kiril asks.

I tilt my head at the mention of the Napoli family.

“What makes you think it”s them? We have worked with Angelo Napoli for years, why would he go against us now?” I ask, not usually interested in this side of things but surprised to hear his name. Angelo has a reputation for being an even-tempered man. He generally stays under the radar, similar to me, and his dealings, despite being a mafia boss, are generally carried out peacefully.

“Angelo has always been a good ally, but that means nothing at the end of the day. People change, and that son-in-law of his, Stefano, is nothing but trouble. He needs to be knocked off his own pedestal,” Paval comments, glancing in my direction. “Besides, even the best of men will turn to the darker side of business if their family is in trouble.”

“Do you think their business is struggling? I mean, enough to lead him to turn underhanded?” Kiril asks.

I look from Paval to Kiril. This is their issue to deal with, not mine.

“Guys, I have a shipment schedule to manage. If you”re happy with what I discussed with you this morning, then I”m going to head out and leave you guys to it.” I stand up, picking up my folder and my phone, ready to make a quick exit and get back to work.

“Maxim, actually, there”s a reason you are still here,” Paval says, his eyes narrowing as he looks at me. “Please, sit down, this involves you.”

I clench my jaw, not liking the sound of that one bit. But I take my seat again, leaning back with my arms folded across my chest. I have a tight feeling beginning to form in the pit of my stomach.

I prefer to stay out of everything, other than handling the shipments. It lets me stay under the radar and out of trouble. I am good at what I do. I know my strengths, and I focus on those, letting my brothers handle the rest. It has worked out well for us for a long time, and I”m not too keen on that changing anytime soon.

Kiril takes a seat at the table. “You have a plan?” he asks Paval.

“I do.” He stares directly at me. “Maxim, I think it”s time for you to be more involved in the smuggling side of things. More specifically with regard to the products and shipments we believe are being sabotaged.”

Beneath the table my leg bounces as tension rises throughout my body.

“Involved how?” I ask skeptically.

“I know you prefer to stay out of all of it, but we need you. Your reputation for staying out of trouble is the perfect cover for us here.”

“I hope you don’t expect me to stay out of trouble by getting directly into it?” I raise my brow.

Kiril eyes Paval thoughtfully. “What are you thinking?”

“I”m thinking that a marriage between our family and the Napolis, under the guise of reinforcing our strengths, will give us the chance to have someone on the inside who can take a proper look at what”s going on there.”

“Marriage?” I echo, shocked, unfolding my arms and leaning forward.

“Angelo has a daughter who just finished university. She”s—”

“Marriage is a bit extreme, don’t you think?” I ask, still trying to process everything.

“Maxim, we need you for this,” Paval says calmly.

“It’s a damn good idea,” Kiril nods. “That way, we have someone on the inside, and Paval”s right—you”re the last person they”d expect to be a spy.”

I clench my jaw, mulling over what they are asking of me.

The problem is that they have never put pressure on me to be more involved, and I have always appreciated that. What they are asking of me now is a pretty big thing, but how can I say no? After all, it is for my family.

I rub my hand across my chin, feeling the shadow of stubble, closing my eyes for a moment to let my mind settle. I don’t actually have a choice. And once I have the information they”re looking for, I can always leave the marriage. It’s not ideal, in any way whatsoever, but they aren’t asking me to storm a castle, just to politely step inside it and look around.

I sigh, opening my eyes to glance from one brother to the other.

Finally, I nod. “How are you planning on arranging this?” My voice is tight.

Paval smiles. “I actually made contact with Angelo last night, planting the seed, just an idea. And he seemed keen to discuss it further. I”ll give him a call after this meeting and set up something more concrete. I just wanted to talk to you about it first.”

The sour look on my face obviously does not go unnoticed. Kiril chuckles at me. “It’s time, little brother. You knew the day would come eventually.”

“I guess I did. But it doesn’t mean I have to be thrilled about it.” I smile tightly.

My brothers go on to talk about what they expect of me, which essentially involves finding out if the Napoli family is involved at all in the sabotage that has been taking place over the past six months or so. I listen quietly, taking in what they are saying but wondering what I”m getting myself into.

After the meeting is finished, I gather my things and head over to my own office to check on all the incoming and outgoing shipments for the week. But I am struggling to focus, and my thoughts feel scattered and messy.

I see myself as a pretty down-to-earth person, and by nature, I know my strong point is not deception. I wonder how I”m going to manage pretending to love some girl I have never met. Although, with these arranged marriages, both parties are generally a bit reluctant in the beginning, so a bit of awkwardness would be normal.

I slam the folder in front of me closed.

I have been staring blankly at the page for thirty minutes.

I”m going to head out to the docks to check on things in person. I can’t sit here anymore; my thoughts are drowning me.

I push my lean, muscular body away from the desk and take a deep breath.

Angelo’s daughter’s name is Chiara. I think she is only around twenty-three or twenty-four, fresh out of university. I can’t imagine she is going to be very happy about this plan.

I have never met her.

I walk out of the office into the parking lot, pulling open the door of my matte black Range Rover. I toss my folder of documents onto the passenger seat and climb in.

The engine starts with a growl, the car rumbling beneath me as I pull out and head towards the docks.

When I arrive, two of my men rush over. They both look stressed. “Maxim, we were just about to call you.”

“What”s going on?” I ask, climbing out and slamming the door shut.

“Something”s wrong. The shipment was packed and ready to leave, but guy who was supposed to arrive to collect is refusing to come. He says we can’t make urgent requests at the last minute unless we”re willing to cover the additional cost.”

“That doesn’t make any sense. We booked it weeks ago.”

“He says otherwise.”

“What the fuck?” I grumble, walking toward the field office so that I can get on the laptop and see what the hell is going on.

I stand in the container, hammering the keyboard in annoyance and pulling up the booking confirmation. “There it is,” I say, pointing to the screen.

“I know, Maxim, I already sent it to him.”

“And?” My agitation is getting worse.

“And he says you canceled shortly after making that booking.”

My brows knot together. “I definitely didn’t.”

“Here.” He holds his phone toward me, showing a screenshot of an e-mail. I take the phone from his hand and zoom in on the details. It says it came from my address, but I know I didn’t send it.

I shake my head, dialing Paval on my own phone.

“Paval, we have a problem, Dimitri is refusing to collect today. He says we canceled, but I know we didn’t.”

“Fuck, that shipment was on a deadline.”

“I know, that’s why I booked it weeks ago.”

I tell him about the e-mail, and I hear a low growl rumble through the phone.

“Someone hacked your e-mail or sent it and made it look like it was you.”

“I have some serious protection on my computers. That wouldn”t be an easy task.”

“I’m telling you, Maxim, someone is sabotaging us. Subtle, underhanded bullshit that is causing massive issues with our clients. Pay Dimitri whatever extra he”s asking, just get the shipment out. I’ll push ahead with what we discussed this morning. We have to get to the bottom of this.”

“Fuck,” I mutter, putting down the phone and dialing Dimitri. He”s a bit of a scumbag, and I know he”s going to push the price far beyond the norm when he realizes how much we need this, but I have to get this container off today.

An hour later things are back on track, but the impact on our profit for this deal is agitating. My brothers are right. We have to get to the bottom of this. These constant interferences add up, leaving us out of pocket or with angry clients, and in our business, you don’t want either of those things.

I climb back into my car once things are sorted and head home. My mind is in chaos, but after dealing with that, I”m more accepting of what I have to do for the family business.

Back home at my mansion outside the city, I pour a whiskey and sit at my dining room table, watching through the window as the sun begins to set behind a thick grey cloud, casting red light that looks like flames.

My phone vibrates against the table. Paval.

“Paval, everything”s sorted with the shipment,” I confirm, realizing I forgot to call him and let him know.

“Good, good. Listen, I just got off a call with Angelo Napoli. He”s agreed, and you”ll be marrying his daughter. He”s pleased with the idea of the union and will arrange a party for next week to announce the engagement publicly.”

For a moment, all I can do is sit in silence. Perhaps I had been hoping that he would change his mind and the plan would fall through.

“Maxim?”

“I’m here. Alright. Let me know the details,” I say stiffly.

Once the call is ended, I pick up my glass of whiskey and pour the rest of it down my throat, feeling the icy burn of the gold liquid and letting it push my other thoughts aside.