Page 7 of Blood Oath Christmas
“Oh, no you don’t, you worthless bastard,” I say through gritted teeth.
I may be tall and muscular, but I’m lean and extremely light on my feet when I want to be. Like now. I reach him just as he extends a hand for the doorknob. My hand lands on his shoulder and spins him around and off to the side.
His dark brown eyes widen in surprise for just an instant before narrowing, a scowl tightening his lips.
“Konstantin,” he growls. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
I slowly move toward the side, making Vadim turn to keep me in his sights, which puts his back to the door.
“I think the Volkovs would be interested in knowing what you’re up to,” I retort, a small smile playing at my mouth as a brief flash of fear sparks in his eyes. “I’m sure they’d like to know that you took out theirsovietnik.”
“So now you’re astukach, a snitch,” he snarls.
“That depends.” My voice is low, hard. “On you.”
Vadim has never been any good at keeping his control and anger gets the best of him now. He takes a swing at my face, but I step back, avoiding it. With a curse, he reaches for his gun, but I’m quicker and kick it out of his hand then follow up with a punch to his jaw that sends him reeling backward. Vadim stumbles into the club’s door and shakes his head.
“What’s this got to do with you, Mikhailov?” Vadim sneers. He takes a step forward, his hands balled into fists as his side. “You’ve no love for the Volkovs.”
“I don’t have a feud with them, either,” I counter.
“You need to learn to keep your nose out of other families’ business.”
I give a jab to his nose and blood instantly spurts forth. “Maybe you shouldn’t conduct business at the club, a neutral zone for the families.”
Vadim growls and lunges at me, managing to get me in a bear hug hold, one arm wrapped around my throat and the other around my arms. This is one of his favorite moves, and I admit it can be effective. On other guys. But I know this move well. Flexing my arms, I break free of his hold, then grab the arm around my neck and yank it down, then twist it behind his back.
Vadim curses, bent at the waist. He mule kicks me, something I wasn’t expecting, his foot hitting my kneecap. Pain explodes there and I instinctively let go of his arm. He spins, and before I realize what he’s doing, he punches me in the jaw. My head jerks to the side and I fly backward into the door, crashing through it.
Son of a bitch!
He rushes in after me and we crash into a table, knocking it to the ground and scattering chairs. The last thing I wanted was to allow Vadim to get inside the club, get close to Ivy.
I heave him off me and jump to my feet, ignoring the pain throbbing in my knee. As he gets to his hands and knees, I plant a well-placed kick to the side of his head. Vadim grunts and falls to his side. He shakes his head then rolls away from me before quickly getting to his feet.
At least that put him in the doorway. But I don’t want him inside the club at all, so I rush him. Ducking my head, I ram it into his chest, wrap my arms around his waist, and force him out of the building. He’s thrown off balance when I suddenly let go, and I take full advantage. Two punches to the face send him stumbling backward. A roundhouse kick finishes the job, sending him several feet backward where he falls to the ground with a loud thud, his eyes rolled back in his head as he loses consciousness.
I walk to him and stand over him, looking down at the man who has been a thorn in my side for too many years to count. This piece of shit is very likely responsible for my parents’ death. I don’t have proof that Vadim put the hit on them, which is the only reason the asshole still breathes. Now, he’s after Ivy Andreev, the very woman I swore a blood oath to protect.
My body stiffens, my muscles tightening with the urge to end his life here and now. Very slowly, as if having a mind of its own, my hand reaches for my gun and I pull it out, aiming it at Vadim’s forehead. It would be so easy to kill him, pull the trigger and blow his brains out.
My finger wraps around the trigger, slowly pressing it. I can end it all with just a flick of my finger. Justice for my parents, and Ivy would be safe. My finger squeezes a little more.
“Konstantin.”
Viktor’s soft but urgent voice barely reaches my ears. I squeeze the trigger a little bit more. Almost there. Just a little bit more pressure and it will be done.
“Konstantin.”
This time, Viktor’s voice is more urgent, though barely above a harsh whisper. But it filters through me and I stiffen. I could put so many people out of their misery by ending this bastard’s life.
“Cops are coming.”
I hear the sirens now. And they’re close. My bloodlust to end Vadim’s miserable life drowned out the sound of approaching police.
“It’s not worth it,” Viktor says now. “Think of the trouble you’ll bring to the family.”
I don’t want to listen to mysovietnik, but I know he’s right. Despite the bastard’s crimes, he holds a lot of power which wouldn’t bode well for me and the family to kill him in cold blood.
