Chapter 3 - Arseny

The trip to Danil is long because I get stuck in traffic. There seems to be an accident on the freeway, and there's nowhere to get off before my turn-off.

People are honking in frustration, and the Vegas heat bears down on me like a ton of bricks, even with my air conditioning on full blast. I check my phone: Roger says he needs an extra hand later if I'm willing. I respond with an immediate yes and tuck my phone away.

I crawl past the accident, truck collision with a bus, grizzly sight. I take the turn-off and enter into the quieter neighborhood of the more elite estates. Danil doesn't live too far from my mother's house. We tried to get estates within a short distance if we need one another. My estate is a mile from Danil's.

I pull into his driveway and get out of my car as Wynter comes out of the house.

"Cousin," Wynter says with a grin. "Good to see you."

"Good to see you, Wynter. Sorry, I haven't been to the gym. I had family business to attend to." I shake his hand firmly.

"I heard. It's okay. Don't forget we're starting boxing and running next week."

"Don't miss leg days," I joke and pat him on the back.

I walk to Danil's house, where the guards let me in. I'm crossing the entrance hall toward Danil's office when a voice from up the stairs stops me.

"Fancy seeing you here. That's twice in one day," Asher comes downstairs with Jade in her arms. My now toddler niece looks adorable in a little pink tutu and a little punk rock shirt.

"Neenee," she squeals and reaches for me.

I take her into my arms and hold her. "Hello, little one. Are you excited to see Uncle Neenee?"

"Neenee," she squeals again.

"Asher, I'd love to stop and play with her, but I need to see Danil about something, and then I want to head back downtown." I hand Jade back to her, who raises her arms to me. I stroke her face. "Later, Jadey."

Jade starts to whine, and Asher rocks her. "It's okay. She's going through a phase. Danil isn't in his office. He's outside in the back."

I hurry away before Jade can full-on bawl, though I hear her as I retreat. I feel a guilty tug at my heart. Perhaps there is one woman who has me wrapped around her finger.

I walk out of the back and see Danil sitting on the deck with a cigar and whiskey.

"You celebrating?" I ask.

"I just closed a million-dollar deal. I have reason to. Don't tell Asher I'm smoking at home, though." He takes a deep drag of his cigar. We need more businesses to front for money passing through. You'll need to invest in some more properties, little brother."

"This isn't why I came to see you, Danil. This isn't a social call. I just spoke to Kervyn." I sit down opposite him. "A family is making a move on local butchers. They've beat up one of the owners, threatening him not to come to me. We're going to get him to pay us for protection, but I need to know who the family is. The Pachecos just don't feel right for this."

"No, they're more drugs and assassinations than beatdowns for family-owned stores. Okay, I can take a look into it for you. I'll ask my informants." He kills his cigar and sprays deodorant over himself.

I stand up. "She'll still smell it."

"Yes, but she'll think it"s from work," he grins, getting up from his chair. "Do you want to stay for dinner? We're having lamb shanks."

"As tempting as that sounds, I've promised to do a round at the butchers today, and when I'm done there, I want to go home and sharpen some of my knives."

"You and that knife collection is creepy as fuck," Danil says. "Gives me goosies thinking about it."

"Be thankful you're not on the receiving side then." I give him a deadpan expression before he chuckles and smacks me on the back.

"Oh, I am thankful I'm not."

We walk inside, and Asher is now downstairs without Jade. She comes toward us and then frowns. "Have you been smoking?" she asks Danil.

"I have to go, guys. I'll catch up with you at Mama's house later this week."

I slip out the front door as Danil tries to explain the situation. It amuses me how much he loves his woman. I would never let a woman change me like that.

I join traffic, and it's flowing a lot more freely, coming from the neighborhood and going to the butchery. I park and go in, going around the counter while Roger helps someone.

As I walk into the back, I hear her say her name.

Elena Sokolov.

What? The mafia princess herself.

This is too good an opportunity to pass up.

Debbie calls for Roger and I go to the back. As he walks in, I grab him.

"Roger, I'll give you free protection if you let me deal with this woman."

"You don't normally work the front, and she wants to talk to the owner," Roger says hesitantly.

"I'll make it worth your while," I say. "Just trust me."

Roger nods. "Okay, it's all yours." I don't wear a hair net this time, but I wash my hands and put on an apron.

I take my knives and some cuts of meat, and I go to the front.

I lay them out on the counter in front of her and start slicing.

"Hello," I say. The first thing I notice about her is that she's shorter than most girls. Curvy in a seductive way. Her green eyes are intense.

"Hi," she says shortly, looking toward the door that Roger walked through.

"How can I help you?" I ask without looking at her. I continue to carve the meat.

"I'm waiting for the owner. I need to talk to him. He's just gone in the back." She seems very confident for someone who has no guards. That intrigues me. Why doesn't she have guards?

It"s a bit cheeky if you ask me.

"I'm his son. You can talk to me." I glance at her, and our eyes meet. There's something about the way she looks at me. She's definitely a snake in the grass, like all Sokolovs.

"You're his son?" she asks.

"Yeah, I just got in for my shift. So if you need anything, you can ask me. I know the entire history of this place." I glance at her.

"I'm going to be the new owner once the transfer is done."

I try not to look surprised, but inside, I'm heated. They are buying the butchers. Little fuckers.

"I want access to the business files to decide the direction I want to take this butchery."

"The butchery makes a good income," I say. "It's busy, in a good area, and a lot of people trust the meat that comes from here. I wouldn't mess with it too much if you want to continue to keep the income."

"I don't even know if I want to keep it as a butchery," she says plainly.

I look up sharply. "Why not? A butchery serves a community."

"So do many places. The area has a few butchers, and I might want to liven things up a little." She looks around. "Can you take me to the business files or not?"

"I can," I say. "Let me just finish here. Why don't you have a seat while you wait?"

She looks at me skeptically but finally sits at the little table where Roger normally sits down when he's doing the finances or having a break. She crosses one leg over the other and impatiently taps her top foot in the air.

"When I'm done, why don't I give you a full tour? That way, you know what you're getting. Then I'll take you to the files in the back," I say, slicing through the meat quickly.

"Aren't you scared you're going to cut yourself?" she asks curiously.

"I've cut myself plenty in the past. It's how I have learned to avoid doing that," I say. "Though I tend to cut others when they interfere with what I'm busy with, you know what I mean."

"Don't put your hand where someone is cutting meat, I guess?" she says. "Which is stupid to do. You could lose a finger."

"Or sometimes an eye, depending on how irritated I am," I joke. She doesn't look amused.

I finish cutting the meat and set it aside for Debbie to package. I wash and dry my hands before removing the apron and motion around.

"This is obviously the front of the shop where we keep all the meat we're selling. You've got several display fridges along that wall, and that wall and the display fridges that add to the front counter here where we keep our more specialized cuts for people to choose from."

I motion for her to follow me. "Built in the sixties, this place has been passed down from generation to generation. Which means it's sad that it's being sold. Being a family-owned business and all. Nothing worse than a small family business selling out."

"Yes, well, things evolve," she says from behind me.

Through the door, I stop her. "This is the disinfectant station. Here, you can disinfect before you touch the meat or work with the food. Hair nets are a must when working back here, but you're not going to be touching meat, so we won't ruin those perfect curls."

I lead her into the large refrigerated room. "Here's where the magic happens," I say, meeting her gaze and grin. Here is where everything is cut, chopped, prepped, and ultimately stored before being put in the front of the shop. This way."

"This is one of three big freezers where we store the full animals before they are cut. We also put cuts back in here if we have too much out front and need to store it. This one is for pigs, that one for lambs, and that one for beef. There's a small fridge for other animals like chicken, rabbit, ostrich, etc." I motion around.

"Upstairs is where my family lives. I'm assuming we're going to have to move out?" I look at her curiously.

"Yes, we would convert that apartment into offices.

She knows what she wants. That's admirable in a girl.

"Then the boxes are through here to the back." I lead her slowly through a corridor toward the back office. "Here are the bathrooms with another disinfectant station if you want to freshen up."

"Yes, please," she says quickly. "I won't be a moment."

I wait outside the door. My heart is racing. I should call Kervyn and tell him what's happening, but I don't have time to reveal everything to him. I need to handle this situation on my own. I text Lawrence to come to the butchery and bring my car around the back alley.

She seems to take forever, but when she does step out, she smells of disinfectant, and her lips are redder than they were before. She must have applied another layer of lipstick. Her lips stick out, stark against her pale skin.

"So, as I said, the office is all the way in the back here." I lead her down the corridor when Roger appears out of the office.

"What's going on?" he asks curiously.

"Nothing, Dad," I say, raising an eyebrow. "I was just showing Miss Sokolov the files she wants to see because she's buying the business."

Roger looks at me apologetically and nods. "Of course. There are some more in storage out back that we keep in a shed, so if you don't find what you're looking for in the office, it'll be there."

"Thank you," Elena says quietly. She seems to have softened a little while on our little tour.

I lead her past Debbie and into the cramped office. It's tiny within, and I take up much of the room. I move behind the desk and sit down to keep myself out of the way, but it still feels suffocating in here. I barely squeeze behind the table, and because I'm so tall, a lot of my frame still fills the room.

Elena stands there awkwardly for a moment before she looks around. "Is this it?" she asks.

"All the files are right over there in those boxes," I motion to where Roger stores every scrap of paper that comes through here. "I keep telling my dad to get a filing system going, but he never listens. Parents, you know? They always know better."

"Yeah, they certainly think they do. Thank you for bringing me here," she says dismissively.

If she thinks I'm leaving, she has another thing coming.

"It's my pleasure. Tell me what you're looking for, and I'll try to help you find it."