Page 31 of Surrender: XXX Maxim
“Milton…” Maxim withdraws from me, lowering his hands to his sides. The posture is a stark contrast from his hostility toward Dima—but not completely relaxed either.
“I came as quickly as I could,” Milton explains, fingering his collar. His eyes dart cautiously around the room before settling over the broken glass on the floor. “Vadim was here?”
“Don’t pretend like you don’t fucking know,” Maxim says with a scoff. “I’m sure he didn’t learn this location through luck.”
“It’s your right to mistrust him,” Milton says with a nod. “But can I make a suggestion?”
“Like what?” Maxim cocks his head. “Say it.”
“Give him what he wants. End this feud.”
He makes it sound so simple. So easy. Maxim doesn’t seem to know whether he’s joking or not. A rugged sound escapes his mouth in response—part laugh, part growl.
“I’ll assume that you don’t know what he requested,” he concedes in a lethal tone. “So, I will let that insult pass.”
“And you can’t give up anything, not one fucking thing, in exchange for a truce?” Milton’s eyes narrow, revealing the briefest hint of anger. A heartbeat later, it’s gone. “Dima has vital insight on how to defeat Anatoli—”
“Dima,” Maxim echoes, an eyebrow raised. “You still call him that.”
Sighing, he crosses to the bar. Putting his palms flat on the surface, he observes the liquor selection with his back to us. “I don’t ignore my past. Not that it lets me. Some days it bothers me, I won’t lie, but I’ve made peace with it. I don’t let it define me now, and I don’t dwell on it. If I choose to refer to Dima asDima,so be it.”
“And I do? Dwell?” Maxim strolls toward the pile of glass on the floor and nudges a chunk with the toe of his boot. “Tell that to the mess he’s always left in his wake. The past does not define me, either. I have just never made the mistake of forgetting it.”
“Anatoli threatens my livelihood as well, or did you forget that?” When he turns from the bar and meets Maxim’s gaze head-on, Milton’s noticeably colder. “Despite his faults, Dima knows better than anyone how to… let’s call it, circumvent overwhelming odds. With his help, you can make Anatoli bow with little bloodshed.”
“So, you want to play peacemaker?” Maxim laughs, shaking his head. “Don’t talk like a pacifist, Milton. It’s beneath you.”
Milton flashes a disarming smile. “Alright, then, let’s cut the bullshit. You don’t have what it takes to defeat Anatoli on your own—” his voice deepens, losing any ounce of congeniality. “You and I both know it. Running from him will only delay the unavoidable. In his arrogance, Anatoli will see it as an opportunity to force you to surrender. The old bastard will get spiteful, placing usallat risk. You do realize that?”
“Go.” Maxim turns away from him and observes my forehead, frowning in concentration. “Get out. We will discuss this later.”
“Will we?” Milton starts toward the entrance, his steps deliberately slow, skepticism darkening the shadows on his face. “I’ll leave out of respect for the circumstances—” he points his head in my direction. “But I won’t let you ignore me this time. I mean it. You have my loyalty, but I’m not above making my wishes known in ways you can’t ignore. Understood?”
He passes through the archway, and the second he is out of view, I remember how to move.
“Are you alright?” Maxim reaches for my forehead, but I recoil, nearly tripping in my rush to back away.
He follows, his eyes narrowed, jaw clenched. “Don’t move—”
“I’m tired.” My fingers tremble as I brace them against his chest. I’m too weak to push him off, but he withdraws regardless. “I… I just want to see my family.”
He eyes me for so long. I’m numb when he finally nods and turns away, his expression blank. “Clean up—” He gestures to the rag on the floor. “I’ll bring the car around. We’ll leave soon. Together.”
I watch him go, storming off to take charge once again.
But I have no desire to follow him this time.
