Page 41 of Bossed Around By the Bratva

Evelina smiled. “Yes, we have,” she added. It felt like she was looking straight at me.

Glancing at my brothers, I wondered if they had noticed the sweat on my brow. But they seemed to be focused on her and not me. This was a relief. I would tell them everything once this was over. But for now, it was a need-to-know thing.

I had to talk to Zhenya and find out her intentions before making any assumptions. I had developed strong feelings for her and wanted to clear the air.

“We have screened the footage and discovered some of the Aslanov men sneaking in minutes before the fire started. We are confident that it was their doing,” Evelina said, pulling me from my thoughts.

“The Aslanovs?” Alexandr asked loudly as he slammed his fist on the table. I could hear the disgust in his tone and his anger coming through.

“Yes,” Roman Morozov responded. “We are grateful that Akim persuaded us not to ally with them.”

Anton smirked as he glanced at me. “Well, it appears that for once in your life, you were right, little brother,” he said. Turning his attention back to the screen, he continued to speak. “So, what now? What do we do?”

Relief washed over me as I realized it was outside forces, not an inside job. I was momentarily worried that some of the Chernykh men had turned on them. Knowing now that Zhenya was a Chernykh, I considered it could have been an act of retaliation from Timofey.

I smiled as I considered my earlier thoughts. He didn’t even know we were seeing each other, so how could I have made such an assumption? The thought now seemed futile.

“Are we going to hit back? This was an open attack on all of us, was it not?” I heard Aleksandr ask.

The Morozovs glanced at each other before Roman spoke. “Yes, it was, and we have to act. But we need a solid plan. We are doing some more digging on them so we can coordinate an attack on all their estates in one go. We will also contact the Chernykhs to discuss their contribution to the fight.”

“They will pay for what they did,” Leo chimed in.

“I must say that we are glad that there was no loss of life,” Abram added.

“Yes, so are we,” Sergei replied. “But more importantly, is our next move.”

The discussion around me faded into the background as my mind went to Zhenya. I almost had a heart attack on my way to the office, knowing she was inside. But I got her out safely. I don’t know what I would have done if she had been injured.

She suddenly occupied every corner of my mind. I battled, focusing on the conversation. I couldn’t get my mind to return to the room. Even though my heart felt like it had been ripped to shreds and she had made a fool of me, I wanted her.

I couldn’t accept that she had been playing me the whole time, and I had fallen for it. I believed what we had was real, but now there were traces of doubt. I knew I had to find a way to meet her in private. We had to talk about this.

Yet, just thinking of seeing her and not being able to pull her into my arms made breathing difficult. Somehow, I had to get a handle on the pain breaking me.

A loud screeching noise came from outside as a couple of cars pulled up to the house. “I’ll go see who it is,” Anton offered as he headed out the door.

“I’ll go with,” I added, following him out. Abram also moved out with Anton. Before I was properly in the foyer, I heard the raised voices. I could hear Anton talking, but couldn’t quite make out what he was on about.

As I turned the corner, I saw it. In the doorway, Anton and Abram held Iosif and Avgust tightly. I suddenly stopped trying to figure out what was going on. Iosif was screamingsomething, but it sounded more like ramblings than any language.

“I want his head on a stick. No, I want it on a plate!” Iosif yelled, shoving Anton with force.

“Calm down, let’s talk,” Anton replied. I could hear his aggression coming through slowly.

Then Iosif saw me. Our eyes locked, and it was like looking into the heart of a volcano. “You!” Iosif screamed. His voice pierced the air around us. “You fucking did this! I will kill you with my bare hands. I will rip your head off and spit down your throat!”

Alexandr’s guards had also come to see what the commotion was about. Four men stood outside trying to pull Iosif and Avgust back out the door. Yet, they also had the other two Chernykh brothers to contend with.

Aleksandr’s tone was calm as he spoke. “Why don’t you calm down and tell me what happened? What is the reason for this sudden hatred towards Akim?”

Iosif scoffed, trying to pull free from Anton’s hold. I knew this was it; my brothers were about to find out what had transpired between Zhenya and me. Iosif’s anger and hatred came through clearly in his tone as he responded. “Your dearest baby brother took my little sister’s innocence!”

Silence filled the room as his words echoed through my mind. They turned and looked at me. I knew there was no reason to defend myself as the truth would set you free. I met Alexandr’s gaze. Giving him a slight nod, I confirmed it.

I was guilty of this; I had broken the rules of the alliance. Iosif had made it very clear that no romantic alliance would ever be formed between the families. Yet here we were. On topof that, I also took her virginity, and we had an office romance. These were inappropriate.

Then, putting her life in danger over and over again. Well, I had to conclude that it seemed I have fucked up. Alexandr nodded and turned back to Iosif. I didn’t have to say anything. He knew me all too well.

---