Page 46 of Cruel Russian Monster
Not one damn word.
I’d been laying all the blame on her. But the truth was, Lev had his part to own, too.
But at this point, that was neither here nor there. I glanced at the woman next to me.
What was Vera's motive? What did she stand to gain? It wasn’t like the others didn't like her, and after tonight, they will respect her even more for standing toe to toe with Lev and calling him out.
I wouldn't have done it as brashly as she did, but Lev and I had butted heads before. But he'd always be respected, not only as the head of our faction, but as the oldest of the Safin siblings, and there were certain tones I wouldn't take with him, at least not in front of the others. And if I did, it wasn't often or as harsh as Vera had been.
I turned scenario after scenario over in my head, but none of them made sense. The only way to find out why she did what she did was to find out from the source.
“Vera, why did you stand up for me back there?” I glanced at her before turning back to the road.
She looked at me. “I didn’t stand up for you. I told Lev the truth. The truth he clearly needed to hear, since none of you had the balls to call him out on it.”
My jaw tightened. “You do realize Lev is the leader of our faction, right? And the way you spoke to him was downright disrespectful.”
She scoffed. “And the way he talked to you wasn’t? Respect is earned. He didn’t even let you explain. What kind of leader shuts someone down like that? And even if he didn't want to listen to you as a faction leader, he could've heard you out as an older brother.”
If Vera thought I was going to out Lev in front of her, she had another think coming. Oh, make no mistake, I agreed with what she said, but I wouldn't be pulled into a conversation speaking ill of Lev.
I barked a humorless laugh. “And Artyom lets others explain?” My voice rose. “Hell, the way you went off on Lev, have you ever gone off on Artyom like that?”
She crossed her arms and turned away from me, lips pressed tight.
My tone hardened. “Since, according to you, Artyom lets you explain shit to him, maybe you should tell him to pull his damn head out of his ass. Explain to him that the betrayal started in the Rykov faction with you at the damn forefront! That this whole shitstorm started with you, maybe just maybe he'd leave our fucking faction alone! And innocent people would stop dying every damn day! Our factions have never been alliances, and you running off made it look like you were backing out of the alliance! What the hell did you expect to happen?”
I pulled up in front of the house, slammed the gear into park. Vera glared at me.
“Next time you see Lev, you will apologize.” The coldness in my voice matched the temperature in the car from the AC. “I’m not about to have my wife at war with the man who leads this family. That tension will blow back on everyone. Katya. Kira. Your brothers.”
Her eyes blazed as she turned to me.
“First of all,” she snapped, “we’re not talking about Artyom, we’re talking about Lev. Second, you didn’t deny anything I said that was true. And third?”
She leaned in, voice icy, matching those damn gorgeous blue eyes of hers.
“I am notyour wife. I’m your hostage. And I will never apologize for speaking the truth. And I'm not worried about Kira or my brothers. Didn't you marry me to end the war? Which means my siblings are winning.”
She threw open the door, slammed it behind her, and stormed toward the house.
I was right behind her.
“Vera!” I called as I entered the house behind her. “I’m talking to you.”
“Well, talk. I’m not stopping you. What? Your legs and mouth can’t work at the same time?” she snapped over her shoulder as she climbed the stairs. “Or do you have to watch your step, so you don't mash your damn ego?”
“Why the hell are you so stubborn, Vera?” I burst into her room right after her. “If you don’t apologize to Lev, you might never see Alexi again.”
“I’m stubborn? Or is Lev stubborn? I can’t understand how this falls on me when your brother has some character flaws he clearly needs to work on! If Lev doesn’t let me see my nephew or my sister because I told him the truth, I’m not the one with the problem, am I?”
She paced the room. “But don’t worry, Jaroslav. Next time I see someone disrespecting you, I’ll stay the hell out of it. After all, a Bratva woman should be seen and not heard, right?While all you egotistical Bratva men get to run around being loud, wrong, and strong.”
My fists clenched at my side.
“Last time I checked, I never asked you to come to my defense, Vera! And that’s the thing with you. You act first and think later. Just like when you ran away a week before marrying Lev. Just like now!”
“Hell, I wish I could go back in time and marry Lev,” she snapped. “Instead of standing here arguing with you over something you couldn’t say in front of your siblings because you respect Lev too damn much. Because you love your siblings too damn much. And you don't want to see your damn faction crumble!”
