9. Dima

NINE

Dima

V itali's dumbass smirk comes out as heels click behind me from the direction of Vlad's home office. I turn to see what has his attention, and Inessa stands like a queen with my sister guiltily beside her. All of the formers disappointment is fixed on me, and her daughter stretches her hands out for me. Verena's face scrunches up as I press the tip of my finger to the tip of her nose. Unfortunately, her mama doesn't soften.

"Don't be cute with my daughter when I'm pissed at you."

I didn't do shit that would affect her life, but Vlad will be a violent cunt if I upset his wife.She lets Verena down on the floor and she waddles over to me gripping my leg as Ana walks in, increasing the rage being directed at me. Her bruising has turned yellow, she looks like she has jaundice. But her cheeks are getting a little fuller with me dosing her meals. Katya peels the child off me as the only woman who I could see becoming Pakhan orders me into the office.

It's not down to Inessa's grandfather holding the position, there's an authority that she carries as she turns on her heel and softens at the hellion. Ana thinks no one smiles at her but there are three aimed in her direction in this very moment. I don't know why they don't count or why she refuses to acknowledge them, but all she has to do is look.

Tag-along Tali marches behind me and Vlad's head pops up when we enter his office. His wife automatically goes to his side as they both move in sync until he's got his arm around her hips. I'm confused as fuck until she spits out her accusation.

"He beat the shit out of Ana."

I swear this fucking place is going to shit, everyone's turning soft and immature.If there was one person who wouldn't give a fuck if I did, it's the one she's chosen to tattle a lie to. Vlad doesn't discriminate with his rage. If you're old enough to know the consequences, you're old enough to accept them by his standards. He was there in the hospital and my hands were clean, but he enjoys the chaos and doesn't tell them I'm innocent of this one act as he instructs them to leave.

"I'll speak to him. Privately."

Both Vitali and Inessa move as they stare me out. I take the seat opposite Vlad after swiping the decanter with his top-shelf whisky and pouring too much. If he's being an annoying cunt, so am I. Rather than discuss the topic of me beating the little hellion, he gets a faraway look in his eyes and blinks back into earth before asking, "Are you fucking her?"

The disgust has lowered with seeing the softer side to Ana, but it's still there and I grimace, knocking back the tumbler.The burn doesn't warm me enough to counteract the shiver running up my spine. He nods to himself, and the cryptic fuck doesn't offer any information with his instruction.

"If you do, check her shoulder. I thought I saw something."

I'm not the only person going crazy with phantom shit on her body. Fucking finally, all these years I've been questioning my sanity when I'm in her presence but it's Ana that's the problem, not me.

I try to remember her shoulders from the hospital, but there's nothing that stands out. Her tattoos go up from her wrist and spread onto the ball of her shoulder and the other is free of any ink. He taps against the desk three times as I offer that information.

"She has tattoos on one of them."

He shakes his head before I've even finished speaking and his brows slowly come together.

"It wasn't a tattoo. It will be a faint mark about the length of my thumb. Or a burn in the shape of a curly E."

Fuck the riddle, it's no use to me when he can just ask her, and she'll tell him.Leaving the office while he plots whatever scheme he's come up with, I discreetly pull Katya away from the others. We're far enough away that no one will overhear but I hesitate then lower my voice.

"You know that salon you go to and they put that shit on your hair?"

She bugs her eyes out and speaks slowly, being a sarcastic shit.

"Yes, Dima, I put fecal matter on my hair."

I swear she's not fucking grown up from thirteen, with everyone else she can act mature but she's still a teenager every time I ask her to do something.

She's hated her hair color ever since we were kids, the one thing she got of our father's, and she always colors it. I'm about to walk away when she grabs my arm and turns into the good kid who would listen.

"What do you need?"

A lobotomy .

Not giving her my first answer, I focus on the topic I had in mind and my voice is rough as fuck.

"Take Ana, she might like it."

I'd have less hair around the house if I bought a dog, it would be more peaceful too. But I hate seeing her pick them up and the sadness weighing her features down as she tries to hide them.I thought she was collecting them at first, to make a voodoo doll or for some other sorcery, but she hides them and mourns each fallen strand.

My sister is a certified little shit and pinches my cheek with a coo. "Do you have a crush?" I pull my face out of her reach, and she turns serious. "Don't hurt her, okay? She's had a shit life. She deserves the best for the rest of it."

I'm not going to do shit to the hellion, I'm not even interested in her beyond basic human interaction. I hand Katya my card before she can demand it, and she walks away with a spring in her step and calls the hellion forward.

My pocket will be lighter when she returns but so will my shoulders if it stops Ana's lips pulling down. There's something about her sadness that irks me, probably because she's a psycho and shouldn't be able to express the emotion. It's uncomfortable, even her silence is. Everything about her is disconcerting and it doesn't change now as she goes on guard at Katya's innocent request.

"I've got an appointment. Can you keep me company?"

Dani and Inessa are roped into the scheme, and they drag a reluctant Ana with them to go do whatever the fuck it is that they do. Her lips twitch, practicing a warm smile instead of a nutty one. Fuck me, I'm like an obsessed fucking creep analyzing her every move.

I can't linger in the hallway like a butler, so I go back to lounge and watch the fight to see how to make the next venue bigger. Valentin strolls in with Verena in his arms. She's a grumpy kid unless she's locked on someone's attention and trying to have a conversation. Sitting his dumbass next to me, he opens his mouth.

"She's fucking crazy, did she just bite the guy's ear off?"

He mumbles psycho under his breath as he watches Ana's rage and I restrain myself because he's holding a child. I change the tape to something suitable for a toddler, and I become a hypocrite as I defend the hellion when I call her worse.

"Stop giving her shit, she's not even here."

The last part is tacked on, so my defensiveness makes sense.

Vitali freezes in his seat and stares at me. The entire room falls silent other than Verena struggling to escape Val's hold as she reaches for me murmuring, "Mwah."

I lift her out of his statuesque arms and kiss her cheek. She stands with one foot on each of my thighs just above my knees and I lift them individually, so it looks like she's walking as she holds my thumbs. She leans up on her toes, letting go of one of my thumbs to slap Valentin's shoulder. "Mwah!"

He leans forward, kissing her cheek and being a dick as he says, "You like me more than him," he nods his head towards me, "don't you?"

She looks off to the side, her lips twisting in the same direction and the other asshole comes alive as I ask, "Who's your favorite uncle, Veroushka?"

I know it will be me since she always runs to me first, but she scrunches her nose up, looking between the three of us as Val and Tali sit taller, ready to be inspected. She's too intelligent and refuses to answer by screaming for her dad with her eyes closed.

"PAPA!"

It ends in a giggle when the office door abruptly opens behind us and his steps thunder in our direction. Vlad doesn't calm down and his hand is tucked in his waistband until he sees that his daughter is safe. She jumps up, stamping on my thighs while stretching out for him.

He's a dick and purposefully swings her body so her foot flies out towards my face as he lifts her. Verena has more care than he does as she winces, "Ooof, hit Uncy Dima."

"Good. Do it again," he praises her and rubs her back.

Tali stands in front of me and leans over the sofa so he's eye level with our niece to repeat my question. "Your papa isn't your uncle, who's your favorite, Vero?"

Val rests his head on the back of the sofa, looking up at her and attempting to bribe a toddler. "You like sleeping on our floor, don't you? With Viktor and Dani?" She nods and he's fucking pathetic adding, "And me?"

Tali taps her chest with his finger and gets offended at being left out. "I drink your teas every morning, don't I?"

She nods and kicks her legs to walks up her dad's body. The dickhead lowers her, so she's stood on my head and looks around the house. "Where's Inessa?"

"She left with the others to get their hair done or some shit," I say without any emotion in my voice.

The small feet stamping on my head are taken away as he throws his daughter in the air. While the overgrown man-children pout and Valentin throws one of his tantrums.

"Stop distracting her, she needs to answer the question."

Vlad continues throwing her in the air as he rounds the sofa. "She doesn't need to do shit." He catches her against his chest, and ushers us to stand with his hand. "Verena, put them in order."

Her lips twist as he sits her on his shoulders. Laying one hand over the other and her dad's hair, she hums like a tiny villain while Vlad straightens her dress around his ears.

"Tali, there." She points to center of the coffee table.

"What the fuck? I'm in the middle?" he mutters but he stands exactly where she pointed.

She cups her face with both hands and her dad unhelpfully offers, "You can tell them they're all shit."

The little princess shakes her head then straightens her spine to point at me. "Dima, there." She points directly at Tali, and I resist the urge to put my middle finger in his face as I move him out of the way.

"Wait, I'm last?" Val pouts.

"No. Done wrong." Verena shakes her head and covers her mouth to give her dad her orders. He nods once she's done and has less tact than a toddler.

"Stand in a line, you're all competing for last place."

She tries to cross her arms over her chest, but it only results in her elbowing her dad in the head and he ducks, attempting to escape it while she snaps, "No, Papa!" She raises a finger and holds it in front of her face. "All one."

"Yeah, one out of ten," Vlad mumbles.

"Not nice." she shakes her head, correcting him when grown men would be afraid to do it.

Val scrubs a hand down his t-shirt, straightening it out and presenting himself to be inspected again as he steps forward. "You can tell them the truth," he nods, "that I'm your favorite."

The toddler is more diplomatic than anyone else in her family as she rests her cheek on her dad's hair, pointing behind us. "Viktor."

We all turn to see him walking through the house with his school bag dragging behind him and Tali snaps his head back to Verena. "He's not your uncle."

"Mama?" she offers, straight faced when she's aware of how much it's pissing everyone off.

"Dima?" Viktor asks, and I turn. "I bet you don't know how to count."

"Do your homework yourself," I fire back, refusing to let him goad me into that shit again. The first time I let him was a mistake on my part, the second was a testament to my goodwill, now it will just be embarrassing if I keep falling for it.

Verena kicks her dad in the chest as she says, "I help."

He lifts her off his shoulder, placing her on her feet while she runs before she's even touched the floor. Viktor waits for her and he takes her hand so she doesn't fall then guides her into the kitchen while she rattles off random numbers to prove that she's up for the job.

"Seven, three, nine, hundred!"

My house feels strange without Ana in it, the air even feels different. It's too quiet as though her presence alone infuses the space with sound. Finishing my workout, I slowly walk through the house expecting her to come in. She should be back now. Katya usually spends three hours doing whatever shit she does at the salon, but I pause when I reach the stairs to look through the window beside the door for any headlights.

I'm being a fool and force my steps, taking the stairs two at a time. Fuck, what if she decided to run away again? She has no car or anywhere else to stay but she's hellbent on being uncomfortable. She doesn't even sleep on the shitty air mattress, instead choosing to sit by the window all night. I shouldn't do it. I gave her the rule to stay away from my room and, other than the time she woke me up, it's been respected.

But I can't stop myself and press against the door as I pass it. It's for safety reasons, not hers, my own. If she took off and ran away then I'll need to change the locks so her crazy ass can't get back in and kill me in my sleep. Her bag is still in the corner, she wouldn't leave without it again. I'm not going to invade her privacy any more than peeking through the door and pull it closed. A piece of paper floats out as it gets stuck under the wood. It's torn around the edges and there's clear tape covering it. Picking it up to see if it's significant, there's nothing on it. She's weird as fuck and it's probably a trophy from some prick she killed, or she sees things as well talking to herself. Slipping it back inside, I go and shower. My ears are still waiting for the sound of the door, and I open all the windows and leave my bedroom door open so the sound isn't muted as I shower.

There's no sound of a car or anyone entering the house. Ana is stealthy as fuck and nearly scares the shit out of me as I step out of my bathroom once I'm done. She's stood with dark hair, it's shorter, sitting below her shoulders. But I can't process the change when her eyes are a painful bright red. There's a mark on her temple and my mind can only process one thing as I blurt out, "You wear contacts?"

It comes out as a question, and she freezes.

Then runs the fuck away, locking herself in her room.

One eye is the usual dull brown, fake as fuck and lifeless because it's plastic. The other a deep blue with swirls of icy blue meeting a brown ring at the center. They're unique, I've never seen someone's eye hold so much of who they are.

Why the fuck does she hide them? They're beautiful.

I only got a glimpse and chase after her, wanting more. She's human, underneath the bullshit she projects there's a real person with thoughts and feelings. And I'm not fucking crazy. Knocking on the door before I break it down, her sharp inhales come through the wood. This fucking girl has been beaten, again, but she's hyperventilating over her eye color being known.

There's no pushback as I press down on the handle, and I take that as it's okay to enter the room. I pause as soon as I see her. She's sat under the window, her knees hugged to her chest, while she blankly stares at the wall. Those contradicting eyes don't land on me as I move closer and squat down, trying to get her attention.

My chest aches at the small childlike whisper. "Evil eyes."

She's going to kill me, but I don't give a fuck and pick her up, cradling her to my chest. Sitting back so I'm against the wall and she's between my thighs, I stroke her hair to get the psycho back. She doesn't say anything other than the same sentiment in different ways and her voice is haunting.

"That's where the evil is." It sounds as though she's repeating something rather than having a conversation with herself. "Evil eyes, you have to hide them."

Someone has broken her. She's been beaten, again, and it's fucked with her incredibly delicate mind. I rest my cheek on her hair and hate the floral notes clinging to her as I type with one hand to find out who the fuck hurt her.

Me:

What happened today?

Katya:

Nothing, we were fine then Ana got a message and left

Why???????????????????

She's just came through the doors all scraped up

I ignore the buzzing as Katya sends through question after question and mute the chat to focus on who broke the unbreakable.

"What happened, lisichka?" 1

The endearment feels natural, it matches her personality, and I don't try to take it back. Ana rests her chin on her knee and looks up at me with that same childlike hurt.

"He always shouted it at me, said no one is allowed to see my hair or my eyes."

I'll kill the cunt, chances are she's already done it, but I'll find a way to do it a second time.

She protectively holds the strands together at her neck and fills with sadness. "I had to keep lightening it, it's why I've lost it all."

I join her protection detail and cup the back of her head as I stop myself from complimenting it. Katya always used to go in a foul mood, saying it was for herself and no one else's opinion, Ana's would be worse. Keeping my voice low, I stroke her cheek with the back of my fingers and hope she can be honest.

"Who did this, lisichka?"

She's in a haze and I'm taking advantage by asking for what she wouldn't willingly give, but a name finally falls out of her.

"I needed money so I could keep the free money. Amon only wanted one hit."

Pulling out every memory I have, there's no one I know called Amon. What is the cunt doing to her? Using her fucking body after years of living that shit when she can come to me and I'll give her it. I own the house and I have enough to never work again.

Her face contorts with a cry, but no tears or sound, and she's so fucking vulnerable right now my heart aches.

"I'm really tired, Dima. For the first time, I think she's dead and I'm just so…tired."

Maybe hope is what's keeping her alive, there's nothing sustaining her without it. Hope with a double helping of violence. Her lashes flutter and I gently shake her shoulders because that one little disc is still in her eye.

"Take your contacts out then I'll put you to bed, okay?"

She doesn't react and just stares at me, through me.

I've fucked up, misjudged the loneliness inside her and spat out hate when she's already seen too much of it. I don't move her and stroke her cheek like that makes it all fucking better. Her lips move with no sound, and I move my ear closer, trying to pick up the conversation she's having with herself. There's nothing but air and that's my fault for taking the piss out of her when she'd talk to herself.Keeping one hand on her back, I pick up my phone and there's no hesitation as I send Vlad a message.

Me:

Have you heard of someone called Amon?

Vlad:

Stay the fuck away from him.

That's unsettling as fuck. If I needed proof that he's a cunt, it comes from king crazy's warning. Vlad usually has professional respect for other psychos, it's why he tolerates Ana despite saying he hates her. Like recognizes like. But she's got herself involved with a someone who hurts her. The longer she remains blankly mouthing to herself, the deeper the ache embeds itself inside of me.

1 ? Endearment: little fox