Chapter Thirty-One
Dimitry
The smell of the eggs drifted through the air and I couldn’t help but smile during my meeting that my milaya was determined to learn how to cook. As soon as I ended the meeting, I returned to the kitchen to find Anastasia with Vlad. The immediate thing I felt was rage that he was touching my woman. My first impulse was to go straight into attack but strategy would work better here. So I threatened him and he knew well my threats were never empty. He’d ensure the rest of the Bratva knew Anastasia was off limits.
I didn’t want Vlad here; his job was to send the extra men only. I knew I could count on him getting the right men to protect Anastasia but Vlad wasn’t going to be one of those men. His ways were reflective of Boris’ ways too much. He helped us put Boris behind bars so I couldn’t just dismiss him. Although according to Vlad, he felt he should have a higher position of importance in our organization. Problem was I wanted to go legal and Vlad kept doing things illegally.
Vlad used to be Boris’ right hand man and his best friend. Those two grew up together, their characters very much reflective of each other until Boris went off the deep end. The constant rumor was that a woman was the cause of Boris’ mental instability. However, I would never dismiss that Vlad could betray us as he ended up betraying his best friend. He never outright said what caused him to switch sides and give up on his best friend. My guess was that he was sick of cleaning up one too many of Boris’ messes.
I may have been the one that stepped into Boris’ shoes after his conviction, but I knew Vlad wanted it. However, the heads of other Bratva, and even our own people within the organization, didn’t respect him enough to follow him.
I watched Anastasia with her stiff posture as she took a step away from Vlad but he followed, crowding her space. I could see from here she disliked his closeness. The moment he touched her, I saw red and fury pumped through my veins.
“Vlad what are you doing here?” I asked him, trying to control my anger.
“I’m teaching your woman to cook.” His response didn’t help my anger. Nobody would teach my woman how to cook but me. Anastasia’s grip on the spatula turned her knuckles white, and I slowly came up to her and took it out of her hand.
“You okay?”
Her pulse beat fast but she nodded and asked, “Want eggs?”
“Yes, let’s finish cooking together.” Then I repeated my question. “Why are you here, Vlad?”
“I brought you some more men.”
“Appreciated,” I told him, wrapping my arms around Anastasia, so her body was sheltered by mine. “Next time, don’t invade my woman’s personal space. And if you touch her again, I’ll slice your hands off.”
I didn’t want Vlad anywhere near Anastasia. He was the evidence of the man I used to be. Truthfully, who I still was… underneath the expensive clothes and money I accumulated, I wasn’t that much different than him. We were both sinners of the worst kind, just not as psychotic as Boris. I wondered once Anastasia realized I was part of Boris’ group if she’d turn her back, disgusted she gave herself to someone like me. How fast would she run from me, leaving me behind?
The thought of my life without her hurt in the worst way possible, unlike any wound I had ever experienced.
There will be a woman. Unless you keep her, she would be your undoing. She will bring you to your knees. Without her, your knees will turn raw. With her, you will have a family you so crave.
The words of the gypsy were loud in my head, warning me of consequences I’d experience if I lost Anastasia.
“No disrespect meant,” Vlad apologized and there was truth in his voice. “Am I invited to share a meal with you?”
I was looking forward to having breakfast with Anastasia alone but before I could refuse him, Anastasia answered, “Um, sure.”
The breakfast was done, and she turned around. Her stiff posture gone, she turned around and lifted herself on the tiptoes, placing a kiss on my cheek.
“Sit down with your friend. I’ll grab plates and utensils.”
I took a seat next to Vlad, but he never spared me a glance. He watched Anastasia move around the kitchen and I had to stop myself from barking at him to avert his eyes. I had to get a grip on my possessiveness. She was a beautiful woman and men tended to watch beautiful women. Although the moment he gawked at her with anything but reverence, I’d not only cut his hands off for touching her but also dig his eyeballs out.
He must have sensed my anger rolling off me because his eyes shifted to me. “She reminds me of someone,” he commented low.
“And who is that?”
“The woman that Boris loved,” he replied. “The woman he obsessed over.”
I pondered his words. I had never seen Boris with the same woman twice. Was it because he was obsessed with Anastasia’s mother? Was that the reason he kidnapped the mother and daughter? It seemed very plausible although how those two would ever cross paths was a mystery. For as long as I’ve known him, Boris was imbalanced. I was thirteen when I joined Boris and left the orphanage with my brothers. Nikolai just turned ten, while Sergei was only nine. Once Boris promised our own corner apartment to sleep and eat in Boris’ slums designated for his run rats, I ensured Nikolai and Sergei got out of that fucking orphanage.
I remembered hearing whispers of a woman that left Boris, causing his rampage. The men that knew him before said he was never the same. I couldn’t imagine him being anything but cruel and evil. He seemed to enjoy inflicting pain on others although Vlad told me once he wanted to inflict pain to reflect his own. And Boris didn’t give a fuck who he hurt. When Boris was on the hunt to hurt, I always ensured Nikolai, Sergei, and I were out of the way. It was my job to protect them so if ever his sights were turned to the three of us, I ensured I taunted him enough to get his attention focused on me. I felt responsibility for getting us under Boris’ radar. I was able to protect them from most of it but I failed Nikolai. Boris slashed his face and I wasn’t there to protect him. The guilt still gnawed at me. I felt directly responsible for it.
“Here we go,” Anastasia’s voice brought me back. She had plates with food for us, placing it in front of us, and then sat down with her own plate next to me, so she was hindered from Vlad’s view.
We all took a bite and she smiled with surprise. “Not bad for the first time. At least it is edible.”