Page 25 of Stolen By the Bratva

I returned with a water bottle and a plate of crackers and dried fruit, simple non-perishables I’d found in the cabinets. “Behave or this goes back on.”

Her gorgeous stare stayed on me the entire time I loosened the gag and let it drop to her neck. As she worked her mouth open and closed and licked her plump lips, she said, “How am I supposed to feed myself?”

I didn’t reply, loosening her hands so that they remained connected to the headboard but with enough slack that she could eat and drink. She wasn’t going anywhere. Even though I compromised to see to her nourishment, I was no fool. That faint glimmer of hope in her eyes wouldn’t get her far. She didn’t wait, taking the water first. I watched as she snacked, never lowering her scowl from me.

After one last look over her, committing her furious expression to memory, I turned to pace at the other side of the room while she ate.

Distance helped. She was a force. A magnet. And fuck it, she was a distraction I’d have to work hard at ignoring.

I had no business kissing her. I didn’t have a reason to lean in and toy with her, to play with her and touch her the little that I had. Those touches were mere examples of what I wanted. If I'd had the time and freedom to give in to my desires, I would’ve had my hands full of her luscious tits and sweet curves.

It was time to do damage control. I’d instigated the damage, and I stood by it, but I had to check in and see what I could do about steering it. First, I called my brothers. Maxim and Dmitri didn’t answer, but I refused to worry. They were instructed to be careful and hide, and they damn well better have done just that.

As I called Ivan and waited for him to answer, my phone beeped with an incoming text. The message was short and to the point, as was Nik’s style.

Nikolai: I’m coming over.

I didn’t need to worry about his trip here. He was too smart to be tailed, and I wondered how far away he might be. I didn’t have to wait long. Before I could start redialing Ivan, since he hadn’t answered when I thought he would, two succinct raps sounded on the door.

It was Nik’s signature knock, and I let him in. Nothing could have prepared me for how bad he could’ve looked, but he didn’t give me a chance to fuss over him.

“Fuck,” I said on an angry exhale.

He pushed right past me, leaving me to close and lock the door after him as he headed toward the bathroom. On the way there, his head turned slightly as he noticed Mila sitting on the bed. She still snacked, glowering with every bite.

“Ivan looks worse,” Nikolai said as he turned the faucet on and began to wet his bloody hands.

“Pavel did this?” I wasn’t shocked that he’d want to come after my brothers for how I’d stopped Andrey’s wedding. Our uncle would want blood. I knew this. But seeing my sibling beaten and bloody filled me with an instant, ugly rage.

Nik nodded. “Well, Andrey wouldn’t get his hands dirty and do it himself.” He wet another washcloth and began clearing the blood from his face. “Had Igor do it. And Stephan. Ivan was taken to the warehouse.” Pausing to look at my reflection in the mirror, he raised his brows. “He won’t talk.”

I sighed, dipping my head in a slight nod. If I spoke, I’d scream. My brothers were no weaklings. They could take a hit or two, but I still hated that my actions were impacting them the most so far.

“Maxim and Dmitri are sticking together,” he said. “Pavel wants blood. Your blood.”

No shit.

“Any of the men he even thinks of as a traitor, anyone he assumes is a supporter, he’s pulled in to question.” He wet the rag again and continued wiping at his face. “He’s not going to kill us. Too valuable for information.”

I shook my head and offered him a towel to dry off the wounds. Now that the blood was cleared away, it didn’t look that bad. Maybe he was right. Pavel wanted to keep them all alive to beat them again. It wouldn’t matter. My brothers wouldn’t fess up. They’d protect me. If I could avoid more pain on their shoulders, though, I would.

“Kastava is threatening war,” he added quieter, leaning around me to glance in the direction of the bed where Mila sat. This studio apartment didn’t offer much for privacy. Whatever he said, she’d likely hear.

He slanted toward me and sighed. “Kastava vows to end the Valkov Bratva.”

“He won’t,” I argued just as quietly. My Family would not be done away with, not like this. All I wanted was to secure my Family, not ruin it. Preventing an alliance with our enemies was the only way to go about making it happen.

“We will be stronger. Without them,” I swore. “I will rebuild stronger in a way we never could have with them trying to get into our business.”

His nod was a weak reply, but I didn’t need to remind him about what was at stake. I followed him out of the bathroom, watching as he got a water bottle out of the fridge. Once more, he glanced at Mila. He drank the water and considered her snacking in mulish silence. He seemed curious but knew better than to speak to her.

“How?” he asked me. “How can we start the process of rebuilding stronger? While Pavel is mad and focusing on finding you and making you pay, what can we do?”

I shoved my hands in my pockets and exhaled a long, hard breath. “We get answers. Meet up with Ivan and go down to the docks again. Investigate this big shipment.” I’d already texted them all what I'd overheard before the wedding. “Check out the office. Find evidence that Pavel can’t ignore. Or find someone who can explain those codes.”

Nik rubbed his jaw, nodding. “They have to reference a third party.”

I agreed. “Someone else who is helping the Kastavas try to fuck us over.”

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