I hugged him tightly before gently setting him away.
“I’ll be back for you as soon as I can.”
With a final glance at my little brother, I slipped out the back door.
When I reached the dark street, I paused, indecision clawing at me.
I couldn’t leave Damien behind this like. I had to go back for him. No matter what happened, he was my brother. We would survive somehow.
Together.
So, I turned around and went back for him.
And walked into my worst nightmare…
I bolted upright on the couch, running my hands through my hair.
Regret was a powerful thing. It could cripple a person. Take control of his life, his actions, and force him to do things he wouldn’t normally do.
Regret had been my unwilling friend ever since that night.
If only I hadn’t gone back right then…
If only I had just taken Damien with me in the first place…
Then the events that followed would never have happened.
And Damien would probably be with me right now.
But I couldn’t change the past.
What was done, was done.
It was time to sever my friendship with Regret.
Time to honor my promise to Damien.
My brother would be a teenager now. Fifteen.
Was he still waiting patiently for me to come back for him? Did he think I’d intentionally abandoned him? Did he have any idea what hadreallyhappened that night? If I could help it, he would never know the truth.
The only thing I had left to do was get a place of my own, and I would be ready for him. I couldn’t expect Tim to take in my brother. Tim didn’t need the extra burden of a teenage boy in addition to me taking up space in his apartment.
If Damien could just wait a little bit longer, I would come for him. And do my best to make everything right. I wasn’t scared of Papa anymore. I was twenty-one now. I could easily kick his ass. He’d better hope he wasn’t anywhere around when I showed up to get Damien, or I’d stomp him into the ground.
It had taken me four long years to get to where I was now, and I was excited to show Damien all that I’d accomplished. I couldn’t wait to introduce my brother to my new family that would soon be his family too. The Bratva.
But the universe wasn’t working in my favor.
Because I never got the chance.
CHAPTER FOUR
Adrik
After only four months of working for the Bratva, I could say with certainty that Papa was a liar.
One of the reasons I’d originally wanted to work for the mob was because I’d needed proof that my father’s claims about the Popovs had been lies. I’d had to see for myself what kind of people they were.