Chapter Thirteen

Aksana

Sitting between Vladmir and Maxim, I tried not to look at the man across the table who kind of resembled me. I wasn’t blind and though it had yet to be proven; I was beginning to believe there might be some truth to where I came from.

After breakfast and a lengthy explanation to Illyria, who in the end slapped Vladmir upside the head, calling him an idiot, the entire house was aware of my situation.

“It’s rather simple,” Montana clearly said. “I am formerly asking for verification of Aksana’s parentage. That’s all. Nothing more.”

After breakfast, Vladimir told me that Montana personally requested my presence at the meeting today. That what was going to be discussed concerned me and therefore, I should attend.

I took that to mean I didn’t have a choice and better get with the program fast.

“Stop,” the man next to him said. “I won’t force her to do this.”

“Damn it, Bane, she looks just like Amy!”

“I know she does, but look at her, Montana. She’s scared. Whatever her life was like, it wasn’t good. I won’t add to her misery, even if it means never knowing the truth.”

“This is bullshit!” Montana roared. “I’m the fucking president of this club. If I want a fucking DNA test done, I’ll get one.”

Bane growled. “I said no. Amy was my sister. Not yours. It’s my decision. Besides, if my file is correct, I won’t burden Aksana with the truth.”

“That’s just it, Bane.” Montana glared. “If that file is correct, she may be your niece, but she will also be my sister. As the head of the Stone family, I have a right to know.”

I stiffened when Vladmir grabbed my hand and squeezed.

“No,” Bane growled. “All you want is access to the information she gave Maxim. You don’t fucking care about her. Just like you never cared about my sister. My answer is still no, and I will stop you if I have to.”

“And we will help.”

Turning, I stared at three men, who all resembled Montana Stone.

One in particular I had met before.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Montana snarked, looking at the men.

“Stopping you from making a big fucking mistake,” Kansas, the president of the Diamondbacks, stated as he came to stand behind me. “The Diamondbacks granted this woman sanctuary; therefore you have no right to demand shit from her.”

Montana slowly got to his feet and sneered, “I’m the president of the Soulless Sinners, Kansas. Or have you forgotten the brand seared into your back? Technically, you do whatever the fuck I tell you.”

The man standing to the right of Kansas chuckled. “I see you’re still trying to be like Dad.”

“Shut it, Arizona!” Montana shouted, pointing his finger at the man.

“I’d like to see him order me around,” the other man said, glaring at the fuming man.

I had no idea what the hell was going on. Clearly, I was caught in the middle of some family rift that had absolutely nothing to do with me, so I remained silent, wondering if I should even be here for this Jerry Springer drama.

“Prez,” a man I knew as Mercy interjected. “You need to calm the fuck down before you say something you can’t take back.”

Looking at Vladmir, the man lightly shook his head and whispered, “Say nothing.”

“The fact is, you hate not being in control,” Kansas said. “You hate not being able to lord over everyone. Well, I hate to break it to you, brother , life doesn’t fucking revolve around you. You are not the lord and master of this family.”

“I’m the motherfucking President!”

Arizona groaned. “So what? I run a multimillion-dollar company that has nothing to fucking do with the club. Dakota would rather eat a fucking bullet than be anywhere near the club, and Kansas moved across the country to get away from the club. Enough is enough, Montana. Dad is dead. His reign of terror is over. You don’t have to prove anything to him anymore.”

“What is this?” Montana sneered. “A fucking family intervention?”

“Face it, Montana,” the other man, who I assumed was Dakota, said. “This is what Dad wanted. For us to be at each other’s throats. He sowed the seeds of discontent, and we allowed it to flourish. His reign of tyranny needs to end. Aren’t you tired of it all? What’s the point anymore? The fucker is dead. He can’t control us anymore. What you do now is on you. You want the club, then run it as you want to run it, but don’t blame Dad when shit goes sideways because the decisions you make now are all yours.”

“Your brothers are right, Prez,” Mercy reasoned. “I’ve been trying to tell you since before George died. You are the President. You make the rules. You decide the Soulless Sinners’ fate, now. You have the power to tip the scales.”

“It’s not that easy, Mercy.” Montana sighed.

“Yes, it is,” I muttered as all eyes looked at me. “I know I’m supposed to sit here and stay quiet but take it from someone who has had her whole life decided for her before I was even born. It’s not easy to change who you are raised to be, but it can be done. The hardest part is breaking free. I knew your father. He was not a nice man, and I am so sorry the four of you had to endure him growing up. As a mother, I would never wish that life on any child. That’s why I ran. I knew if I stayed with the Satan’s Angels, the abuse would never end, and God only knows what Steele would have done to my daughter. I’m sorry if I’ve caused you problems, Montana, but I would do it all again if it meant my daughter was free from the life that you men live.”

Bane smiled warmly at me.

“Thank you for saying that, Aksana.” Montana smirked. “I don’t want to cause you any more pain either, but, sweetie, if you are who we all think you are, then you will always be in danger. If you are our sister, I only want to help protect you.”

Bane sighed. “Me too.”

Vladmir turned to look at me. “The decision is yours, Aksana. I will support whatever you decide.”

“And you have my support as well,” Maxim added.

“Are you sure about this?” Bane asked, standing before me with a needle and vial in his hands. “Because once I send it off, there is no going back.”

Looking up at the man, I nodded.

I needed to know the truth of who I really was. Not because I cared to know, but because the truth would protect my daughter.

Everything I’d done had been to protect her.

“You know.” Dakota grinned, leaning against the wall. “If the bloodwork comes back positive, you are inheriting a rather big family, Aksana. Not only will you have four older brothers, but you will also inherit an older sister.”

Arizona groaned. “Don’t tell her that. Largo is a pain in the ass.”

“Only because she doesn’t take any of your shit.” Kansas chuckled.

“She’s really good at keeping Montana on his toes,” Bane added.

“Let’s just hope that Aksana is the last one,” Arizona groaned, rubbing his hands down his face. “Because I don’t think Montana can take any more girls.”

Bane smirked while he removed the needle from my arm. “Tess is pregnant. If God has a sense of humor, please let it be twin girls.”

Montana’s brothers all laughed.

Placing a piece of gauze on my arm, Bane added, “I will send this off today, Aksana. I should have the results in three days, maybe sooner. When I have the results, I will call you first.”

“Thank you, Bane.”

“August.” The man smiled warmly at me. “Please call me August.”

Walking out of the infirmary, I followed the Stone brothers into the main gathering room of the Soulless Sinners’ clubhouse to find a beautiful brunette woman giving Montana a talking to. She wasn’t nice about it either, as she poked her finger in his chest.

Tessa, Montana’s wife, sat nearby, smiling and nodding her head while the woman ripped into her husband.

“That’s Largo,” Kansas whispered close. “She’s not happy with how Montana has handled things with you.”

“She looks scary,” I muttered, my eyes glued to the angry woman.

“She’s half Italian. Dad had a ménage à trois with the love interest of a Romano and his woman, which resulted in Largo and her brother Landon, who is now dead. It’s a long story, but when the truth about Largo came out, it was the end of George Stone. He died shortly after, when Maxim’s niece Layla did what no one else could.”

Gasping, I looked at Kansas. “She killed him?”

The man nodded. “Yep. Emptied the whole damn clip into his lying, cheating, demented ass. Wish I could have been there to see him get what he deserved.”

Looking around the room, I realized I couldn’t see Vladmir.

Frowning, I was about to ask about him when a pretty woman with black hair and silver tips walked over to me, handing me a beer. “You look like a beer girl.”

“Thank you,” I said, taking the long neck bottle from her.

“And if you’re looking for Vladmir, he’s in the mailroom with Malice and a few of the others. They’re gonna be a while.”

“The what?”

The woman grinned, linking her arm in mine. “Walk into my office and I will tell you all about it.”

Nodding, she walked me right over to the bar.