Page 95 of Between Us

Roman's brain was working overtime as he considered who had an incentive to come into their territory and attack their Pakhan so boldly.

One thing he knew for sure. The Bratva had many enemies, but only two other organizations were powerful enough to even try such a thing: NeroRossetti's Outfit and Davit Kasparov's Clan. Either version spelled trouble for Vitaly's Bratva that was still trying to regain its footing following the Armenians' betrayal after decades of working closely together.

“And nobody saw anything?”

“The club was closed tonight because of that plumbing issue. Only a few people were there, and everyone was inside.”

“Someone must’ve witnessedsomething—people on the street or living close by. Do me a favor and start asking around. We need answers.”

“Yeah, I'll take care of it.”

As they wrapped up their brief conversation, Alessandra returned with Alek. His brother looked pale and a little dazed as he trudged behind Alessandra with a cup of coffee in hand.

Roman walked up to meet them halfway and grabbed Alek's shoulder. “Hey, you good?”

“What if he dies?” he said quietly.

“He won't.”

“Fuck, Roman.” His voice cracked as his face twisted with a pitiful expression. “What are we going to do?”

“Look at me,” Roman demanded when Alek lowered his eyes to the floor. “You need to get a grip, alright? He won't die.”

Alek nodded, though he didn’t look convinced.

Roman had to admit that his brother’s reaction surprised him. Alek usually kept his distance from Vitaly, unless some sort of family function forced them to be in the same room for hours on end. But now Roman wondered if maybe his own behavior toward their father had influenced Alek in the past few years.

He’d never intended for that to happen. He’d neverwanted to shape his brother’s view on their family in any way. Unfortunately, it seemed that even without meaning to, his constant head-butting with Vitaly had affected Alek a great deal. Torn between an older brother he loved and respected and the unmovable force of their father’s Pavlovian authority, Alek found himself in a difficult position. And now that everything was going to shit, he was the first one to suffer from it.

As for himself, Roman felt a little numb. After the initial adrenaline had worn off, a sense of calm was slowly setting in. And he needed as much calm as he could force upon himself to solve two very pressing issues: Vitaly’s attack and the threat Oleg represented at the moment.

“I brought you coffee.” Alessandra said, drawing his attention to her.

“Thank you,milaya.” He accepted the paper cup and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Let's sit down for now.”

???

Roman spent the next hour on the phone, trying to get more information on the shooting. As the minutes passed, more men started to pour into the waiting room, until the hospital staff took notice and began to throw unhappy looks their way.

Security was called, and Roman had to pull the two guards aside and slip each a hundred-dollar bill. After a bit of negotiating with the head of the emergency ward, they settled on allowing six of them into the room. The rest had to wait outside for news.

“Roman!” The wretched cry brought his gaze up fromhis phone. Tatyana barreled into the waiting room with Yana on her heels.

“It's going to be alright,” he told his sister as she came straight for him. Eyes red and tears streaming down her cheeks, she buried her face into his sweater as she clung to him. “He's still in surgery, but I'm sure he'll be fine, Anya.”

“Oh, God,” she cried quietly. “I don't want him to die.”

“He won't.”

A few feet away, Yana stood, sniffling into a silk handkerchief. She was wearing stilettos and a skin-tight dress, and Roman fought the urge to demand that she take her fake-crying elsewhere.

Alek stood and got closer to them. Noticing him, Tatyana let go of Roman to grab her baby brother into a hug. “Are you okay?”

“I'm fine,” he said gruffly, although something vulnerable broke through his voice.

Stepan and the other Brigadier got up to leave. Stepan squeezed Roman's shoulder on his way out. “We'll give you some space. Call me when you get any news.”

Roman nodded, once again feeling grateful for his friend's unwavering support. After they were gone, he sat back down beside his wife.

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