Page 100 of Demitri

“We did what ourdedushkawanted. We became big and strong and mean. We came back and Ivan took care of business.He wanted it more. Not only had he been beaten by ourotetz, but by us. He was the baby. We made him what he was, Demi. It was all our fault.”

“Hush,” Aunt Linda admonishes. “Not your fault.” She turns to us, rolling her eyes. “I’ve been telling him for years this wasn’t his fault. He wouldn’t believe me.”

“And we’ll be coming back around to that statement.” I glare at Aunt Linda, who has the good graces to look a little ashamed. “Go on.”

“I knew if we were going to succeed here, we had to get smart. Not just strong. We all went to school for things that would help the family. Stanislav went into finance. Ivan got his MBA. Misha and Sergi went into IT. I went into criminal justice and eventually earned my Juris Doctorate—my law degree.”

I raise my brows in surprise at that. “Law?”

“How can you break the rules if you don’t know them?” He shrugs. “It was during that time I met someone. Someone I knew would make the family very unhappy.”

He stares at Aunt Linda and my stomach drops. “You…and…Aunt Linda?”

He nods. “Da. For over forty years. She’s been my confidant, my partner, my keeper, and my wife.”

The room is eerily quiet. It’s like everyone has quit breathing.

“Demitri, I’ve been a government asset for decades. I was the mole. I was the one who connected you to Linda. Gently pushing you all those years to be better than we all were. To not become what Ivan did. Or your sister.”

I flinch at the mention of my sister, but she’s not the one we should be talking about now. At least I know she’s not out here wreaking havoc. She’s behind bars, where she’ll stay for the rest of her life.

“I thought Davis pushed me in that direction?”

Sasha stares at me, not saying a word, waiting for me to connect the dots.

“But he broke his cover for me.”

“At my request, Demi. Even he knew you weren’t going to listen to me, and he wanted to help.”

“What is your deal with this other woman who says she’s my sister?”

“I’m a Pavlov. I’ve been in hiding since the heat began, that’s all they needed to know. Someone wants to grow their power in the Pavlov family? They need a Pavlov behind them. They asked no questions.”

“So you’re here to what? Get information and turn it over to the feds?”

“I’m here to make sure she doesn’t hurt you. First and foremost, I protect you. Then I share what I know with the people I work for.”

“I don’t know how to respond to this. I can’t believe it.” I look at Linda. “And you. You made me trust you. Lean on you. You were like family when I thought all of my family had turned on me. You kept this secret from me. Why? Was it like a sick fucking game? Did you get off on it?”

Do I notice the hurt in Linda’s eyes? Yes. Am I going to take back what I said? Abso-fucking-lutley not.

Mia stops me by putting her palm against my cheek and turning my face to her. “Demitri, baby, take a breath.” I do as she says. “Good. Now take another. Do you need a break?”

I stare at her, the love on her face making me weak. “Maybe.”

“Good enough. We need a break.” She turns to the group, who have all been very vested in what Sasha has been saying. “You can grill them while we’re gone and fill us in when we get back. Gracie, you’re on.”

Mia stands and pulls me up by our still connected hands, walking us past everyone and into the hallway. Before we makeit to her office, she pulls me into her body, wrapping my arms around her shoulders and hers around my waist.

We stand there for what could be seconds or hours. I don’t know, but I need this. I need her to keep me calm. Her presence quiets the demons that have haunted me for years.

“I’m so sorry, Demitri,” she soothes, rubbing my back.

“I don’t know what to think,Krasotka. Or what to do.”

“What’s upsetting you the most?”

“Would it be completely wrong to say it’s that Aunt Linda is my actual fucking aunt?”

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