Is it possible that Mikhail has promised me to someone without telling me? I swallow hard, almost scared to ask what I need to ask. “Someone at school mentioned a rumor they’d heard.”
His eyebrow arches. “What kind of rumor?”
“A rumor that you’ve agreed to marry me to someone,” I say, searching my brother’s eyes for the truth.
I find it instantly, before he even opens his mouth.
Guilt.
It’s true. Elias is right. Mikhail doesn’t trust me to lead the bratva alone. He believes I need a man by my side.
“There’s truth to the rumor, Nat, but I was always going to give you a choice.” He runs a hand through his hair. “It was a provisional deal that I wasn’t going to tell you about until after you graduated.” He releases a shaky sigh. “However, I’ve just received a blackmail to call it off.” His eyes dart toward the folder again.
“Blackmail?” I ask, blood draining from my face.
“Someone knows about our true origins, Nat.” He scrubs a hand across his face. “They said that if the agreement isn’t called off, Lebedev will learn the truth and come for us.”
Rage slams into me as I stare at my brother, my fists clenching by my side. Elias can’t blackmail me and then blackmail my brother with the same fucking information. Who the hell does he think he is?
I swallow hard, trying to get my anger in check before Mikhail notices. “Do you know who is behind the blackmail?”
Mikhail shakes his head. “No, but Lev is on it.”
“Is it wise to trust Lev with that information?” I ask.
“I didn’t tell him what the blackmail was, other than the fact they want your engagement broken.”
I set my hands on my hips. “I thought you said it was a provisional agreement.”
He clears his throat. “Well, now it isn’t anything. We can’t risk our grandfather learning the truth.”
A fact I know all too well, considering I’ve done everything Elias has asked to ensure he doesn’t. It grates against my last nerve that he would approach my brother directly and threaten him with the same information. This is between me and Elias, and no one else.
A sickness pulls at my stomach as I wonder if he got what he wanted from me, and now he’s turning his efforts to my brother instead. God knows what he could ask for to keep quiet.
“How do you know the blackmail will stop there?”
Mikhail’s expression is haunted. “I don’t.”
I swallow hard, my fingernails biting into the palm of my hand. I’ll ensure it does, as if Elias wants me to play ball, then he needs to cut the shit and stay away from my brother. “It’s Christmas Eve tomorrow, brother.” I walk closer to him and set my hand on his arm, squeezing. “You need to relax and forget about this.” I wave my hand at the pile of paperwork on his desk. “It can wait until after Christmas.”
He gives me a sad smile. “I wish that were true, but there’s no rest for the wicked, Natalya. It’s something you will learn when you lead.”
I shake my head. “I think you’ve made it pretty clear you don’t believe I can lead. At least not alone.”
He sighs. “It would be wrong of me to tell you I believe the bratva would accept you as a single woman. With a strong husband by your side.” He shrugs. “It’s doable.”
The ache in my chest widens as Mikhail has always made me believe that it didn’t matter about my sex when it came to leading the bratva, but I can’t deny that as I grew older and learned more about the values of the bratva, I’d had a niggling doubt that I could truly lead as a single female. It sucks.
“I know that I’ve always told you that you have what it takes to be pakhan, and you do.” He runs a hand through his hair, something he often does when he’s nervous. “But I fear the bratva isn’t ready for a female leader.”
I nod in response, unable to speak past the painful lump forming in my throat. “Right.”
“I’m sorry.” His jaw clenches. “I should have consulted you first.”
“Who is he?” I ask, curious as to what kind of man my brother is trying to pair me with.
He shakes his head. “It doesn’t matter now. The deal is off.”