17. Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Seventeen
Inessa
V iktor is going to kill my father.
It’s the one thing I tried to avoid and was unable to. Fate has a way of catching up to you.
I stumble to a halt in the motel room when I see my dad is tied up.
“Your doing?” Viktor asks Finn.
“Yep. Spoke to the bastard earlier and he confirmed everything. Tied him up so he couldn’t leave.”
My dad’s eyes dart back and forth between Viktor and Finn. A rag is in his mouth, preventing him from speaking, but he can still grunt and groan.
“He tried to kill you, Viktor,” Finn says. “I remember you telling me. I remember how pissed off you were. And now this fucker got his daughter to make a fool out of you. Kill him.”
“No!” I shout, running forward but Finn brings his arm out and I smack right into it. I land on the floor with a groan.
“Finn,” Viktor snaps. “I told you to stop hurting Inessa.”
“But she deserves it. She’s been lying to you this whole time.”
“No,” I cry. “Please, Viktor. Please. You have to believe me.”
“Why should I?” he asks in a sad voice. “You married me. And now when this comes out, I’ll be made a fool all over again. You played the innocent victim against Natasha but you’re not a victim at all.”
“Please. I love you. I never meant to fall in love with you but I did.”
He averts his gaze but I can tell my words mean something to him.
“I just really needed a job. I just needed to make money to keep myself alive.”
“Then why give him any?” Finn asks, pointing at my dad.
“Because he’s my father and I love him despite everything. Please, Viktor. He gambled away all of our money. I came to you to plead for my dad’s life. But I needed the job. You kept me safe. Clothed. Fed. It’s more than my dad’s given me in years. Ever since my mom died.”
“I don’t even know if you’re speaking the truth right now,” Viktor growls. He’s never spoken so viciously towards me before. I know I deserve it but it still hurts.
“My mom is dead. She died when I was a teenager. In a car crash. Everything I told you was the truth. My dad gambled away our money. We had nothing.”
“But you’re friends with Elena. She’s a rich woman. She could have helped you.”
“She offered. But I couldn’t ask my friend to give me money. It’s not right. I wanted to work for it. I was out searching for a job when you offered the maid position to me. I took it. I told you the truth about my money problems and about my mom. I told you about my complicated relationship with my dad. All of that was true.”
“You just lied about who you really are though.”
I flinch. “Yes. I lied about my name. And about knowing you were in the Bratva. But other than that, everything I’ve told you has been the truth. My feelings are true, Viktor. Trust me. I never meant to fall in love with the man who tried to kill my father.”
“After he tried to kill me!” he shouts. His voice dominates the small motel room.
“I know,” I sob. “But I fell for you anyway. You made me feel safe. You made me feel seen. No one has ever done that for me before. You know me, Viktor. The parts of me that matter. You know those parts. I never lied about that.”
He turns away from me. “Your father tried to steal from me and kill me. He needs to die.”
“That was months ago. You could have done something then and you didn’t. Why now?”
“Because you’ve hurt me!”
I stumble back from him. “You always kept me safe. I felt so safe with you.”
Viktor is breathing heavy and staring at me with hurt in his eyes. Hurt I placed there. “And now?”
“Now I’m terrified. I want to believe you wont hurt me but I don’t really know, do I?”
“And who’s fault is that? You lied to me, Inessa. I never got to know the real you. Because of that, you never got to know the real me. This is the real me. A man born of violence and pain.”
“I’m sorry I lied. I know I’m hurting you right now. But Viktor, please don’t kill my dad. If you do, I’ll…”
“What?” Finn mocks. “Never forgive him? I don’t think he cares about that. You and Viktor are done.”
“This doesn’t concern you,” I snap at him.
Finn towers over me. “When you lie and deceive my partner, it does concern me.”
“Finn,” Viktor snaps. “Back down. Inessa is right. This is between me and her. Leave.”
“I came here with you.”
“Then just go wait outside. I’m tired of seeing your fucking face.”
“Viktor-,”
“Finn, go.”
With a huff, Finn shoots me another glare before walking outside, leaving me and Viktor alone.
Well, alone with my dad.
He turns to my father. “You deserve to die for what you attempted to do to me.” He pulls a knife from his shoe.
The sight of it makes me woozy. “Viktor. Please.”
“Be quiet, Inessa.”
“If you kill my dad then…”
“Then what?”
“Then we will be over. I can never forgive you for that.”
“And I can never forgive you for lying to me about who you really are.”
Now is not the time to point out that one is objectively worse than the other. I’m not proud that I lied but murder is murder. And there’s no coming back from murder.
“Viktor, please.”
“Stop begging me.”
“Why? Because it’s making you have a conscience? Because you know this isn’t the right thing to do?”
“Inessa, stop.”
“No. I will not stand back and watch you kill my dad. I love you, Viktor. I fell in love with you because you were so good at making me feel safe. If you do this, then I’ll never feel safe again. You’ll be proving why I lied to you. I lied to protect myself and my father. Was it wrong? Yes. But can you honestly blame me for that?”
“Stop,” he growls, shaking his head and clenching the knife tight.
“Can you blame me for that, Viktor? You’re here, trying to kill my dad. And I know a part of you is doing this because I lied. I know I’m partially responsible. But prove me wrong. Prove me wrong for why I lied. Show me that you’ll spare his life. That I don’t have to fear you. That I can just love you. If you’ll have me still.”
“Was this your plan? To marry me for money and kill me and steal it all?”
“Viktor,” I say softly, cupping his face. “I never married you for your money. I don’t want you to die. I married you because I love you. And if you truly love me, you won’t kill my dad right now.”
With a sharp inhale, he rips away from me. “You’re in my head.”
“Viktor…”
He turns to my dad and raises the knife high. Dad bucks and grunts against the rope strapping him to the chair but it’s pointless – he’s not going anywhere.
I gasp as Viktor lowers the knife towards my dad’s throat. This is it. He’s going to kill my dad. Our relationship is over. I only feel numb inside.
Viktor presses his knife against my father’s throat but he doesn’t move. He holds still as he looks down at my father before looking back at me. I don’t look away. I can’t. I have to be strong - not just for my dad but for myself as well.
I lied out of fear. I’m not proud of it. But I can’t be scared anymore. It’s only led me to make bad decisions.
Viktor gasps and drops the knife to the floor. Only a small nick is on my father’s skin. Otherwise, he’s alive.
“You and me,” he says, “are done. I won’t kill your dad. But we’re over. I don’t want to see you back at the house. I’ll send your clothes to you here. You can stay in this shitty motel with your dad where you belong.”
“Viktor,” I whisper as tears stream down my face.
He picks his knife back up and heads outside.
All the energy leaves me and I slump to the floor and ignore my dad’s muffled pleas to release him.
Viktor
“Is he dead?” Finn asks the second I walk out of the motel room.
“Finn, not now.”
“Is he? I want to see the body. Take a selfie with it.”
“You’re a sick bastard.” I stop him from going into the room. “I didn’t kill him.”
Finn stares at me for a beat too long before he runs to the room. I grab him and shove him back.
“Why the fuck didn’t you kill him?”
I shove him to the car. “Just get in.”
“It’s because of Inessa, isn’t it? After she lied to you, you still feel bad for her? What is her gift? Does she have a magical pussy? Because I’m starting to think she has a magical pussy.”
I punch him so hard he flops right to the ground. “Do not talk about Inessa like that. She and I are done. End of discussion. But I will not have you treat her like that.”
“Did you spare her father’s life in the hopes that you’ll get back together one day?” He rubs his jaw as he stands back up. “Because I hate to break it to you, Viktor. There’s no fucking way you’re getting back with her.”
“Just stop talking.” I get into the car and start to drive away but Finn quickly opens the passenger door and gets inside.
“Fine. I’ll stop mocking you for your decision. That bitch deserved to watch her father die though after she lied to you. If some girl did that to me, she’d be dead.”
“That’s because you hate women.”
“Not true. I hate everyone. Not just women. Men piss me off just as much. Case in point: you. You’re pissing me off right now. You didn’t kill Gleb when you had the chance.”
“I can always kill him later.”
He scoffs. “No. If you didn’t take it now, you’re never going to. Why? Is it because you actually care for her?”
I grip the steering wheel tighter.
“Holy shit. It’s because you actually love her.”
“Why the fuck do you think I married her?”
He shrugs. “I don’t know. To fuck her?”
“I did love her. At least, the Inessa I thought I knew. But we’re done. I’ll get a divorce soon enough. And she’ll be out of my life for good.”
Finn is silent for a long time. Just when I finally start to relax, he speaks again. “Do you really mean that? Will you actually kick Inessa out of your life forever?”
“Yes.” Because there’s no other option.
Mrs. Green won’t stop asking me what happened when I return home.
“Where’s Inessa?” she asks.
“Inessa is not going to live with us anymore. We’re going to get a divorce.”
“A divorce? You’ve only been married for three days.”
“Mrs. Green, I don’t need your judgment right now. I have to call my sister. She needs to return home.”
“But I thought you sent her away for her safety.”
“I did. But I’m going to make peace with Erik. I was fighting him because he made me look like a fool but somehow, my own wife one-upped him. I see no point in fighting any longer. I’m going to take him up on his deal to marry a mafia girl.”
Mrs. Green gasps. “What?”
“So, my sister can return home. It will be safe now.”
“Mr. Smirnov. Should we talk about this?”
“What’s there to talk about? Inessa is no longer welcome here.”
She grabs my arm. It’s the first time Mrs. Green has ever touched me. “But what happened?”
“She lied to me. About who she really was.” I pull away from her. “I have work to attend to.”
I can feel Mrs. Green’s eyes on me as I walk away.
Knowing I need to make it safe for Julia, I seek out Erik and Dante. We meet up at a junkyard. Aiden is with them.
I don’t bother bringing Finn with me. He’ll only find a way to make things worse. And right now, I want to make peace, not get into another fight.
Since I’ve lost the woman I loved, I might as well bring my sister home so I can have someone in my life who I love. Julia won’t lie to me. Julia won’t betray me.
“You wanted to talk?” Erik asks. Him, Dante, and Aiden stand in a line across from me. A united front.
“I’m ready to make peace.”
“After I got shot?” Erik nods to his shoulder. I can’t see his wound through his shirt but from the way he’s holding his arm, he’s in pain.
“That was Finn. Not me. I’m ready to end this. You wanted me to be an ally again. I’m willing to do that. I’ll marry Aria.”
Dante sucks in a sharp breath. “I never fully agreed to giving you Aria.”
“She’s not yours to give,” I growl. “She’s not your daughter. What does her father think?”
“We can get Elio on board,” Erik promises.
“We should discuss this more in private,” Dante hisses to Erik. “What if Elio doesn’t agree? Viktor will get pissed off again.”
“You will make him agree to marry his daughter to me,” I say. “I will do my duty. I will make peace.” A marriage without love is the way to go. I can’t get hurt that way.
What was I thinking marrying Inessa? Falling in love? I was a fucking fool.
I am a fool.
Erik narrows his eyes. “Why? Why do you want peace all of a sudden?”
“My wife betrayed me. She’s not who I thought she was. I’m willing to divorce her and marry Aria.”
“You just got married a couple of days ago,” Dante points out. “You’re wishy-washy, Viktor.”
“I’ve always done my duty. I was willing to marry Nadia to form an alliance with Erik. I was willing to marry Elena after Dante kidnapped Nadia. I was willing to step down from Elena because she didn’t want me. But what hurt me was being made a fool. I wasn’t going to marry for love. I made a mistake with Inessa. I have learned my lesson. I will do my duty once more. I will be allies with you again, Erik. As long as you keep Dante in line.”
“Hey,” Dante objects.
“Dante,” Erik warns. “Let me handle this.” He takes a step forward. “You would be willing to do this? Make peace with us? Marry Aria? Are you willing to divorce your wife? Because if you change your mind, Viktor, we’ll have more problems on our hands if you back out of this marriage deal with Aria Romano.”
“That would be ironic, wouldn’t it? Doing the exact same thing that was done to me? Talk to Elio Romano. Get him on board. Then we can discuss more. Until then, no more fighting. I’ll back off if you will.”
“Can you get Finn to step down?” Aiden asks.
I hesitate and the men all see it. “You know Finn is a wildcard. But I’ll convince him. If not…”
“Don’t kill my brother.”
“Easy,” Dante says, placing a hand on Aiden’s shoulder.
“I won’t kill Finn. He’s been an ally to me. But I’ll try to get him to come along. If not… then I’ll leave him for you to deal with. Make the arrangements. We can be allies again.” I walk away before the men can stop me.
I can tell they have a lot of questions but I’m in no fucking mood to answer them. I have been betrayed by my own wife.
I’ll never bring emotion into a relationship again.
Inessa
I untie my dad from the chair and he flops right to the floor. “Dad? Are you ok? Do we need to get you to the hospital?”
“We don’t have the money.”
“We do. I have thousands of dollars saved up.” I go cold. All my money is stashed under my bed at Viktor’s house. Will he give it back to me? I did work hard for that money. I deserve it at least.
Or maybe I don’t. I did lie to him from the beginning. I have no idea what I do and don’t deserve.
I just know Viktor hates me and I’ll probably never get that money back. All that hard work… for nothing. I’m back to square one.
“You do?” Dad asks, looking up at me.
“It’s at Viktor’s house so… forget it. I don’t have any money.”
Rage crosses his features and he jumps on top of me before I can even react. His hands are around my throat in an instant.
“Dad?” I push and shove at his hands but he’s not moving.
“You lost all that money? Now we have nothing. No way to live. You ruined us!” He tightens his hold around my throat.
“Please,” I choke out. “Please.”
As soon as he began to strangle me, he lets go. I suck in a heavy gasp of air.
“What have you done, Inessa? You married the man who tried to kill me? What the fuck were you thinking?”
“I’m sorry,” I sob, curling into a ball. “I’m sorry.”
“What were you thinking?”
“I was thinking we needed the money.” I sit up so fast, I get dizzy. “I was thinking you weren’t doing anything to earn us money so I had to be the one to do it. I was thinking that I needed to survive.”
“By marrying the man who tried to kill me?”
“You tried to kill him first!”
He scoffs. “Why are you so na?ve? Why couldn’t I be blessed with a daughter who has both beauty and brains? Instead, you only got your mother’s looks. There’s nothing in your brain.”
“I worked hard for us. For you! You did nothing these past couple months while I worked for hours every day cooking and cleaning until my back and feet hurt. I did all of that for you! So I wouldn’t find you dead in a gutter somewhere.”
“I never asked you to do that!”
“Yes, you did,” I say in a much softer voice. All the fight is leaving me. Fighting is something I’ve never done. Life was always easier to go along with if I just didn’t… fight. If I just gave in to what my dad wanted. I’ve never stood up to him before.
“You did,” I continue. “You wanted me to get a job. You had no problems with me paying for you to stay here for weeks. You never got a job yourself.”
“You never gave me any of your money. You could have given me more.”
“So you could… what? Waste it all on gambling?”
He looks away from me. “Inessa… I’m sorry. I just miss your mother.” Tears bubble up and spill down his face while his shoulders shake. “I’m just sorry.”
This is how my dad gets me. Every time. Without fault. I forgive him because he’s too pathetic to hate.
And now he’s all I got.
I sidle up next to him. “Dad? Come here.” I wrap my arms around him and he holds be close.
We sit on the floor for a long time before he lets me go.
“We don’t have any money now,” he says. “Because of you.”
I’m not prepared for his hand.
He hits me across the face and I sprawl onto the floor, all the wind knocked out of me. He stands up and kicks me in the stomach. “You are not your mother. You will never be her. You made a fool out of me, Inessa. You married the man who tried to kill me. And now you don’t even have him.” He kicks me once more before sitting down onto the bed. “I’m ashamed.”
He’s ashamed? I’m ashamed to have ever loved him. I cough from the pain in my side. My face stings from his punch.
I need the money I earned from Viktor. If I’m going to have a fresh start, I need it now.
I push myself to my feet and hurry from the motel room. Dad doesn’t stop me. With no car to drive me home, I have no choice but to walk until I can get onto the subway. Fortunately, I have a pass I bought when I first got paid from Viktor, and have it on me.
I manage to make it to Viktor’s house after walking for an hour. I don’t know what’s waiting for me on the other side.
I knock on the door and Mrs. Green opens it. “Inessa? Child.” She pulls me into a hug. “What happened? Look at you. You look terrible. Did someone hurt you?” She tries touching my cheek but it stings too much. I wince.
“I need the money I worked for. It’s under my bed. Under my bed. Not Viktor’s.”
“I… Should I tell him you’re here? He’ll want to know I’m giving you money.”
“It’s the money I worked for. I’m owed it. I saved it. If you don’t move out of my way, Mrs. Green, I’ll go in there myself and get it. Unless you want to get it for me. It’s nine thousand dollars. All in cash. There better not be a dollar missing.”
“Honey, what happened to you? Who did this to you?”
My body is bent over slightly from the pain my father caused to my ribs. “Just get me the money.”
“I think it’s better that I talk to Mr. Smirnov first.” She turns away from me and I take my chance.
I dart inside and run past her, ignoring her as she calls out for me. I find my money under my bed – all of it, thankfully – and run back into the hallway.
I stop when I see Viktor.
“I told you not to come back here,” he growls. For the first time in a long time, I’m scared of Viktor. He looks like the devil himself, not the man I fell in love with.
I hold up the box with my money in it. “I just needed this.”
His eyes flick down to it. “I’m not sure you deserve that.”
I almost break down right then and there. “I worked hard for this money. I am owed it. I don’t need or want anything else. Just this. Let me walk out of here with this.”
For just a moment, his eyes soften. “You have a bruise on your face.”
“Finn hit me. And… so did my dad.” My fingers skim along my neck.
“He hurt you? Your dad?”
“Why do you care?” I ask. It’s the wrong thing to say because Viktor’s soft expression hardens again.
“I don’t care. Take the money. You did work for it. I can say this for you, Inessa. You’re good at cleaning a house. Now get out of mine. I’ll be sending you divorce papers soon. I’ll be marrying someone else.”
I gasp. “What?”
“I’m making peace with Erik and Dante. To do that, I need to marry a Mafia woman. We’re done, so I don’t see why you would be upset. You never loved me.”
“Viktor, that’s not true.”
He holds up a hand. “I’m done listening to you. Get out of my house, Inessa. This is goodbye.”
With no other choice, I clutch my money box to my chest as I walk past him. Mrs. Green watches me leave the house, looking like she wants to objects. But she doesn’t say a word.
Instead, she shuts the door behind me and I know I’m locked out of Viktor’s life for good.