Chapter 61

Yaroslav

Thomas Gillihan’s House

W e can’t take Artem to a hospital. It would be the first place Innokentiy and Sharkozi come to look for us, we’d be sitting ducks. But Artem needs help. Fast. If we don’t get him to a doctor soon, he’ll bleed out.

“Sergei, pull over at that gas station. Andrey, run inside and buy a sewing kit, vodka, and a burner phone,” I order.

Both do as they’re told and within minutes, Andrey returns, items in hand, and we speed off.

“Sergei, head for the private airspace, we’ll take the plane.”

“But, Boss, won’t Innokentiy and their men head straight there? They know you’ve got the plane there and us slashing their tires will only buy us a small amount of time.”

“It’s a risk we’ll have to take, Artem will die if we don’t,” I respond grimly.

Artem has been slipping in and out of consciousness, I tear his shirt off him so I can get a good look at the wound. Without me applying pressure, blood begins to pour out but I’m able to tell that the bullet went straight through. I’ve no idea if it hit any major organs though.

“Hand me a needle and thread and the vodka,” I bark at Andrey who quickly complies.

“Sorry old friend, but this is gonna hurt,” I say to Artem who weakly nods his consent.

I pour the vodka onto the wound to clean it, and he winces, letting out a sharp exhale. Then, I begin to roughly stitch his skin together, closing the wound.

“He’ll need proper medical attention, and soon. But this should stem the bleeding for now and buy us enough time to get there,” I say taking a swig of the vodka and passing it around the group.

I gesture for Andrey to hand over the phone and make a call.

“Gillihan, it’s Volkov,” I say.

“Yaroslav? How the hell…” I hear his surprised response on the other end.

“I don’t have time to explain. Four of my men rescued me but we’re not out of the woods yet. Artem’s been shot, we need a doctor, fast. Can I count on you? Can we come to you?” I ask.

I hope I’ve made the right call in trusting him. Without him, we’re screwed.

“Of course, I’ll have the doctor here ready when you arrive,” he says without hesitation.

“I’ll see you soon.”

***

“The surgery was a success, but he’s not out of the woods yet. We’ve induced a coma to give his body time to heal. Now it’s just a waiting game,” Gillihan’s doctor tells us before adding, “Your quick thinking in stemming the blood flow almost certainly saved his life.”

“Thank you. If there’s anything else you can do, money’s no object…” I reply.

“He’ll need round-the-clock care, and medicine, both of which are expensive enough in a normal hospital… keeping him here will be a costly endeavor…”

“Just make it happen.”

The doctor nods once. As a Mafia doctor, he knows better than to advise a hospital stay, though I would have risked the police sniffing around if it meant saving Artem’s life.

I feel the need to check on Artem, to see that he’s alright with my own eyes. “Can I see him?”

The doctor hesitates but seems to sense I won’t take no for an answer. “Only if you allow me to tend to your injuries first,” he says, his voice brooking no argument. I nod my assent, “Follow me.”

After patching up the worst of my injuries the doctor is satisfied to let me go. Thankfully, most of the torture was more psychological than physical, though he informs me it will take the swelling on my face a couple more days to go down. Satisfied that I’m not about to drop dead, the doctor takes me to see Artem.

Gillihan’s state-of-the-art hospital room for just such events looks more like a room in a five-star hotel than a place for men with injuries that can’t be easily explained away to recuperate. The only thing giving its true purpose away are the machines Artem is hooked up to. The room is silent apart from the slow and steady beating of the heart monitor and the sound of the tubes breathing for him.

I approach the bed, perching on it, careful not to interfere with any of the equipment.

“You gave us all quite the scare there, old friend,” I murmur, feeling comforted by the slow rise and fall of his chest. “When you wake up, you’re going to get one hell of a promotion. I should have known you could never have been the one to betray me. I’m sorry I didn’t trust you. You’ve always given me sound advice and impartial counsel, even when you knew I wouldn’t like it. I wish you were able to help me decide what to do next.”

After sitting in silent thought for a moment, I get up to leave. “I’m not a religious man, but if prayers work, I’m praying for you buddy,” I say softly as I close the door.

I decide to go speak to Thomas, to tell him the news and thank him for his help. One of his men informs me he is waiting for me on the terrace with an old acquaintance and business partner of mine, a Polish Mafia boss, Filip Nowak.

They both look up as I approach. “How is he?” Gillihan asks, seeming genuinely concerned.

“Still in critical condition, but Artem’s a tough bastard, if anyone can survive this it’s him.”

“Anything he needs, just let me know,” Gillihan offers.

“Thank you. I will.”

“I believe you and Filip know each other?” Thomas asks gesturing to the other man.

“We do. It’s good to see you again old friend,” I say, striding over to shake his hand.

“And you. Although I wish it were under better circumstances.”

Filip has aged a little since we last saw each other, a little more gray around the temples, but he’s still as suave as ever. Back in the day, we used to do very well together with the ladies. Filip may not be as tall or muscular as many Mafia Dons, but he’s deadlier than he looks. Women would fall for his good looks, easy charm, and piercing blue eyes. He taught me how to charm anyone. That brute brooding strength and violence aren’t the only ways to get results. With women or business. I hope his presence here means I have his support and isn’t just a mere coincidence.

“What brings you Stateside?” I ask.

“Gillihan called me. He told me about that bastard traitor uncle of yours and I wanted to offer my support in reclaiming what’s yours. I think we can all agree that Innokentiy and Bogdan Sharkozi are a dangerous and reckless pair that could fuck up everything we’ve built with their arrogance and greed. I wasn’t Roman Sharkozi’s biggest fan, but the man still had some integrity. Rumor has it he didn’t want Roman to take over, he knew he’d be the death of that family,” Filip explains.

“Thank you for your support, friend, it won’t be forgotten,” I reply, feeling hopeful that, despite being outnumbered, all is not yet lost.

“Please, sit and have a drink, we have a lot to discuss,” Thomas says.

“You’re not wrong, we’re going to need to come up with one hell of a plan. But first, I need to know, have you heard from Kim or David?”

Thomas looks unsurprised by my question. “Not personally. But Grace did. When she went to rescue them one of Sharkozi’s men got there first and took Kimberly.” Seeing my stricken face Thomas is quick to add, “Don’t worry. She’s a tough one you’ve got there, Yaroslav. She killed the fellow and escaped impressively fast. She and David are fine. However, we felt it would be safer for them not to stay with us, they’re in a safehouse with your brother-in-law. For obvious reasons, I don’t know its location.”

“You left them with Jackson?” I growl. “Although Jackson is family, I hardly see how a mild-mannered businessman is the better alternative to keep them safe than a Mafia Don.”

Thomas looks at me curiously. “Well, color me impressed. It seems Jackson’s even better than I thought at maintaining his cover. I’d have thought you of all people would know about his past, especially since your brother did.”

Now it’s my turn to look baffled. “What?”

“Jackson’s far from mild-mannered. He’s government special ops, from a long line of them. No offense, but he’s probably more deadly even than any of us, and all sanctioned by the government itself. Though of course, they’d deny that, should he ever get caught out. Heck, what these guys do on behalf of the US and UK governments makes us seem like teddy bears,” he says with a chuckle.

I can’t believe I never looked into Jackson. I was so quick to give up on my sister, to forget about her, I never bothered to dig deeper. I think again of all the years I missed out on with Marta, all because of Innokentiy. The second I realized how little she trusted him and that he caused our estrangement I should have known he wasn’t to be trusted, that he was the traitor. No wonder Jackson blames me for Marta’s death, he could have helped. If I’d bothered to listen to him, perhaps she’d still be alive. I realize I’ve also done the one thing I judge others for doing, underestimate my brother. He never trusted Innokentiy, and he knew about Jackson while I remained in the dark. I vow to never overlook his insights again.

I’m at a loss for words and a little humiliated to be shown up in front of them both this way. I’m not used to being on the back foot. Though that’s been happening more than I care for these days.

Thankfully, Thomas puts me out of my misery. “I wouldn’t worry about not knowing. It’s not common knowledge amongst the Mafia community, I only know because my father and Jackson’s father served together years ago. Even with our money and resources, we can’t know everything, especially not the inner workings of our government.”

I nod and change the subject, I’ll try to contact Kim and David straight afterward. “So, do we have any intel on Sharkozi and Innokentiy’s plans?”

This time, Felip is the one to answer my question. “We have intel that Sharkozi has a ship leaving from Charleston in three days. Since you’re both familiar with the area and have contacts there, I propose this is when we strike.”

“Agreed,” Thomas and I echo in unison.

***

A couple of hours later, our plan is set, and we end our meeting. I’m eager to try to get hold of Kim and David to let them know I’m alright. Thomas told me they have no way of getting in contact with them, and that it was agreed Kim and David would only update them at brief intervals. Given what had happened, Jackson had thought it better that no one know where they were staying. It could be days until they call.

But then a thought strikes me. Ever since Kim gave David the phone from Marta, he’s not let it out of his sight. I can’t imagine that he’d willingly have thrown it away as Thomas tells me they did with their main phones and since no one other than me, Kim, and David knew of its existence, he must still have it.

I just pray I can remember the number. Obviously, Innokentiy took my phone, so I’m using a burner Thomas gave to me. I think I know it, but the first number I try doesn’t connect, and the second one is wrong. The third time, the phone rings out without being answered. This is the last possible number it could be, it must be the right one. I can feel it. So, unperturbed, I try again.

This time, David answers. “Hello?” he says robotically.

My brother’s voice is like music to my ears, even if I can tell that he’s been in a bad state from its tone. It means he’s alive and well.

“David, it’s me.”

“Yaroslav?” he says disbelievingly. “You’re alive.”

“You bet your ass I am. You didn’t think they could get rid of me that easily, did you?” I reply with a smile.

“How?” David asks, his voice almost childlike with his joy and confusion.

“Artem and a team rescued me. We still have to take out Innokentiy and Sharkozi though. Where are you?” I ask.

David takes a deep breath. “I can’t tell you.”

“What do you mean you can’t tell me?” I ask, surprised.

“Brother, you always taught me to be careful, and you made me promise to keep Kim safe, no matter what. I’m glad you’re alive, but how do I know that you escaped? Uncle Innokentiy and his men could be forcing you to call me and find out where we are to get rid of the Volkov line and make Innokentiy the unchallenged leader. I can’t risk that,” he says, his voice determined.

Though it’s frustrating, I’m impressed. It’s exactly what he should do. It’s what I’ve taught him and would have done myself. Plus, as much as I want to see him and Kim, their safety takes priority. As Gillihan said, they’re safer where they are, and without anyone knowing the location.

“I’m proud of you, brother. You’re right, you’re safer there for now. But I will see you soon, I promise. Can I speak to Kim?” I ask hopefully.

“She’s gone out.”

“David, what do you mean she’s gone out?”

“I can’t talk anymore. If they have you, they could be trying to trace this. I’m sorry Yaroslav. I’ll keep them safe, I promise you. I won’t let you down,” he says before hanging up the phone.

As irritating as it is not knowing more, I’m proud of David’s dedication to keeping Kim and our baby safe. Knowing that they’re out of reach of our enemies bolsters me. I need to remain focused on the plan and take back what’s mine.