Silent Heart (The Vlasov Bratva #5)

Chapter 47 – Kolya

T he cold air bit at my face as I stood in the middle of the harvested field, my hands tucked into the pockets of my jacket. The sunrise was deceptively warm on my shoulders, cutting through the chill in the air but never fully banishing it. My breath came out in soft, white puffs that drifted up and disappeared, but the cadets’ breath was heavier, visible as they ran, climbed, and strained through the obstacle course. The field stretched wide and open before me, dotted with stations of ropes, walls, and balance beams. Frost clung to the edges of the grass, crunching faintly under the boots of those running.

My thumb slid over the button on the screen. A patch of earth exploded, sending clumps of dirt into the sky like a fireworks show.

The noise didn’t faze a single recruit. I hummed deep in my chest.

This could work.

The bullets that sprayed through the air at random were blank rounds. Not that anyone besides me knew that. The explosions were real enough, however. But I strategically detonated them so that no one would be caught in the blasts. These four men and two women didn’t need to be casualties.

They didn’t stop. No matter what I threw at them. Some inner drive in each of them pushed the individuals forward, and as a collective, they stood firm, lending their strength to one another.

For the finale, I remotely dismantled the climbing wall. Two of the recruits were halfway up, far enough to make it back to the ground without hurting themselves. I wanted to see them fight through real panic.

My inner pessimist was silent, while some foreign emotion cheered for them in the back of my mind. That voice was a trickle of optimism that I owed to my little water sprite. She brought out the best in me, and I was willing to embrace that part.

The implosion ripped through the chilly morning air. The large climbing wall shuddered. The bottom buckled.

Come on guys, you can do it!

They didn’t disappoint. The largest leapt to the ground, and with a shove, moved his teammates, who were preparing to climb, out of the way of the collapsing obstacle. The other man? He rode the structure to the ground, gracefully rolling from the debris.

The moment of truth….

There wasn’t a pause. With a shout, the recruits moved around the fallen piece of equipment and continued the course as they’d been ordered. “Run the track until told otherwise,” had been my order. And they were following it without complaint. I’d run them ragged, and they were still going.

Well, I’ll be damned. They were good.

The wind picked up, ruffling the loose flannel of my jacket. By all the saints, these six were lucky. Even in the midst of challenge, bonds were already forming. I couldn’t help but smile slightly, though I quickly buried it beneath my usual stern expression. The field was alive with effort, failure, determination, and grit. I knew what it was to be alone, and yet I wasn’t so jaded that I couldn’t appreciate the comradery.

I barked a sharp command, silencing the clatter of feet and drawing their combined attention. They began high fiving one another, smiling and joking. That was good. Beth had assembled a fit crew of ex-military who were willing to work as vigilantes. Today was the final assessment. These recruits pushed hard since the middle of the night without complaint. After completing a wilderness survival situation, I had this rigorous physical fitness course to push them through.

The cadets moved like a current, some surging ahead with smooth, practiced movements, others lagging, muscles trembling with the effort. But all six of them came trotting over to where I stood.

“I’ve watched you grapple, fight with knives, and shoot. Tonight proved you can survive the worst-case scenarios and not turn on one another,” I said, admiration trickling through my voice. “Well done on staying composed and confident—it’s a good start.”

“A start,” Jackson wheezed, bald head damp and ears bright pink.

“A start,” I repeated. “It proves you’re willing to do whatever is necessary to accomplish goals; you didn’t question the commands, no matter how insane; and no one turned on their brothers and sisters in arms. I can work with this.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” a sweet voice chirped behind me. Beth ambled to my side. “As soon as you clear out this equipment into the moving truck, there’s breakfast waiting for you back at base. If—” she turned to me “—they’re dismissed, captain?”

Captain. A leader. The word felt damn good. Bright sunlight glared off the course equipment, making me squint. It was the kind of light that hinted at optimism despite the biting cold, a small contrast that wasn’t lost on me. These cadets were rough now, no doubt about it, but I could see flashes of potential—a natural leader here, a resilient fighter there. There was no way in hell I could resist lending a hand to mold this mottled crew into the best saints’ damned vigilantes in history.

“Go eat, you’ve earned it. Dismissed!” I clipped out.

A cheer broke out and the half dozen souls scrambled away, dividing the work of packing the equipment into equitable tasks.

The petite force of nature shifted in her boots. Beth could shoot, but this physical exertion was not her forte. That was fine. What that wicked sharp mind could do on a computer was far more impressive than spending a night in the freezing Wisconsin woods without any supplies followed by a demanding push of exertion on the gymnasium equipment.

“You hauled nearly everything from the warehouse out here,” Beth observed, voice mildly impressed. “With no help?”

I grunted. “I asked them to do an impossible task.”

“Why not do one yourself, I get it,” she laughed.

The wind fluttered her braids off the back of the puffy blue coat. I felt her keen gaze assessing me, but I didn’t look directly at her. I knew what was coming next. My answer was ready.

“Are you ready to be my partner, Wraith?” The quiet question slipped through the brisk air, dancing like a snowflake around me.

I slid the leather gloves over my chapped, reddened hands. “I am.”

Beth’s whoops of delight drew the attention of the others. The truth was, this was too good an opportunity to pass up. This woman had big dreams and wasn’t scared to chase them. My pessimism always said there were no organizations like this willing to fight for what was right. Beth didn’t accept that. She might not be able to physically fight, but she did all of this, bringing together ruthless individuals to be vigilantes in the fight against evil. We would start small, but soon, we could have operations thriving, not only over the country, but over the world.

“We’re going to be the thing the demonic sons of bitches fear most!” Beth spun on the tip of her boot.

My new partner had only shared pieces of her story. I sensed the pain was too raw, carved too deep, for her to talk about her past with the trafficking ring that hurt her. In time, she would trust me enough to talk about it. I could wait until she was ready to share.

“We need to think of a different name,” I muttered.

“Wouldn’t think you’d care about that,” she laughed. “We’ll see how the effort goes and brand ourselves accordingly.”