Page 128 of Wrapped in Perfection

Dmitri

"If we don't endthis now, we're asking for more trouble," Boris insists, pacing the room. "He torched Nora's pub. She could have died."

He's not typically agitated like this.

It's Nora.

No. That's not the only reason.

I glance at Maksim, who's assessing Boris as well.

"Zamir contacted you, didn't he?" I blurt out, and the room goes silent. Boris stops pacing, crosses his arms, and his face hardens further. He doesn't have to confirm. His expression tells me I'm right.

My gut flips. For three-hundred-and-sixty-four days a year, Boris makes his own decisions. But the one day a year he isn't free keeps him a prisoner to Zamir. It ties him and us to the Russian mafia. And it reminds us all where we learned everything we know about dealing with people like Lorenzo.

But it also reminds us our mother killed herself due to what Zamir made her watch. No mother should have to watch her son torture and kill another man. My mother watched all four sons and ten times over. And Sergey wasn't even a teenager. So our mother's death is on Zamir's head.

"That's the real problem we should be discussing," Maksim seethes.

Lorenzo is screwing us. Hatred for him grows each day. But Zamir stirs something in each of us we will never release.

"It's not your problem," Boris states, as he does every year.

"You know it is," I reply.

"It's one day a year. Everything else works around it. Zamir is not our issue right now. Lorenzo is. And I'm ready to unleash what he has coming to him," Boris says.

Sergey rises. "I'm with Boris. Enough is enough. His threats are getting worse. There's only so much time we can sit back before he comes to attack. Better to be on offense than defense."

Maksim shakes his head. "We all know access to him isn't easy."

"I'll handle it," Boris says.

"You have enough on your plate with Zamir right now, don't you think?" I point out.

Boris scowls. "Since when am I not able to handle more than one thing at once?"

"You're agitated. You only get like this when Zamir calls."

"He torched Nora's pub," he growls.

"This isn't the time to get into a pissing match," Maksim barks.

"Why are you messing with Nora anyway? You can get ass anywhere. Killian will rip your head off if he finds out you're screwing her," Sergey adds.

Boris spins, grabs Sergey's shirt, and shoves him against the wall.

Sergey's eyes widen. "What the fuck! Get off me."

Maksim and I pull Boris back as he yells, "Nora isn't a piece of ass!"

"Jesus. What's gotten into you?" I holler.

Boris scowls. "So, I'll call Anna your piece of ass."

I grab his shirt. "You better watch your mouth."

Sergey pushes me away from him, and Maksim forces Boris to the wall. "Cool it! All of you! And Sergey is right about Killian. You're playing with fire with Nora. We don't need a war with her family next."

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