Chapter 3 #2
There’s a black SUV waiting for us, and after we thank Joyce and Marvin and tell them to have a good flight back, we walk to the two men who are waiting for us.
They’re giving off serious don’t fuck with me vibes, fitting in perfectly with the overcast skies and the slight drizzle that’s in the air, but they’re friendly enough when they extend a hand to both Ev and me.
In Russian, the guy wearing aviator glasses says, “I’m Denis, and this is Stepan.”
I look over at Stepan, the one with tattoos covering the side of his shaved head and nod at them both.
“I’m Damien,” I tell them.
“And I’m his cousin Evgeny,” Ev says, shaking both their hands.
“Everyone is waiting, so are you ready to leave?” Denis asks. “We should be there in forty minutes.”
“Yeah, we’re ready,” Ev says while we get in the back and they take the front two seats.
None of us bother with small talk. We know our place on this visit.
We’re strictly guests, neither one of us privy to the inner workings of their Bratva.
We’d treat them the same way, so neither Ev nor I take offense to it.
For all intents and purposes, we’re a couple of tourists, just here to take in the beautiful scenery and enjoy the Oregon coastline.
After about twenty minutes, Ev nudges my arm and nods towards his window.
I look out, spotting the roiling Pacific Ocean.
It’s beautiful, there’s no denying that, but that doesn’t mean I want to jump my ass into it.
I remember from last time that it’s freezing and way more rough than calm.
I got hit with waves nonstop, several of them sucking me under with a strength that had surprised me.
The ocean is not to be fucked with, so I’ll probably be keeping my ass out of it this time around.
The coastline disappears when we turn off onto a side road that leads into a forest. The large spruce and rowan trees obscure the view, and soon it feels like we’re miles away from anything.
It’s so different from where Ev and I grew up, and there’s a part of me that really wishes I’d grown up here instead.
There’s no denying the conveniences of city living, but there’s something so peaceful about this place.
It feels like another world almost. I can see why Max offered to live here for half the year.
After several more twisty miles, I catch sight of a large, wrought-iron fence in the distance.
When we get closer, I can see the security cameras that are placed at regular intervals so there’s not a single blind spot.
They make no attempt to hide them. They want you to know you’re being watched.
If you’re stupid enough to keep going, well, that’s on you.
If the cameras and fence weren’t warning enough, when we come around the bend, we see a guard station in front of the main gate.
The man behind it looks harmless enough, but I’m guessing there’s a small arsenal hidden away in there, along with a way to trigger an alarm that would send a small army to help him if needed.
The guy comes out, and even though he has to recognize Denis and Stepan, he still walks over to peek inside and get a look at Ev and me.
“You’re Max’s cousins?” he asks in Russian.
“Yeah, I’m Damien and this is Evgeny,” I answer in Russian. I hold his dark gaze because we may be guests but I’ll be damned if I’m going to be intimidated. I may not be a part of their Bratva, but I am a member of ours, and I bow to no one.
After a few seconds, he nods and takes a step back. “Boss wants to see them at the main house,” he tells Stepan before walking back to his station.
I share a quick look with Ev. Seems like we’re going to take a detour and see Vasily Medvedev first. Instead of veering to the right to take the gravel road that leads to Max and Talia’s place, we go left, driving further into the forest as we pass several large homes, each of them with enough space between to feel private.
They belong to Vasily’s top men and their families.
I’ve met their kids before, and I think we’d all been relieved when we discovered that we genuinely liked one another.
I’d play nice for Max’s sake, but I’m glad I don’t have to pretend to get along with a bunch of douchebag assholes.
The SUV stops in front of a large house that overlooks the ocean.
As soon as we step out, the front door opens and the head of the Medvedev Bratva appears.
Vasily runs the Bratva with his two younger brothers, Volodya and Valeri, but he’s the oldest, and he’s the one who took over after their dad was killed.
Even in his fifties, the man is a formidable presence.
Aside from a sprinkling of grey hair, there’s nothing to indicate he’s inching towards his golden years.
Like my dad and uncles, he’s worked hard to keep his muscle, and when his blue eyes land on us, I recognize the darkness that lurks right below the surface.
We all have it, some of us more than others, but you can’t do this job and keep your hands clean.
It’s impossible. You either have what it takes, or you don’t. And Vasily has it in spades.
As soon as we’re close enough, he waves for us to follow him inside. Their home is gorgeous, but it’s not a pristine mansion. Family photos line the walls, and it feels beachy and cozy and not like an ostentatious museum. You can tell a family lives here, and it reminds me of home.
“Max told me you’re planning on staying for a few weeks,” he says as he leads us down the hall and into a large office with views that overlook the back garden and the vast ocean beyond. He motions for us to sit while he takes the seat behind the large desk.
“We’d like to, yeah,” I say. “If that’s okay with everyone.”
Vasily leans back and steeples his fingers. “Of course. Our families are joined. The Melnikovs are welcome here anytime they like.”
“We appreciate that,” Ev says while I nod in agreement.
“You can stay as long as you like, and you’ll have access to anything on the property.” After a pause, he adds, “All I ask is that you obey the rules.”
This is the first time I’ll be staying here for any real length of time, so I’m a little surprised at the mention of rules. When I lift a brow, he says, “If you leave the property, you tell someone first and you do it with a Medvedev. I don’t want you two going off on your own.”
“Agreed,” I say, not having an issue with always inviting Bran or one of the other guys along.
“With all due respect, stay out of Medvedev business. This is not your Bratva. Understood?”
“Understood,” Ev and I both say.
With his hands still pressed together, he taps his index fingers against one another before leaning forward and resting his forearms on his desk as he looks at us to say, “Do not fuck my nieces and that includes Allie. If you want to get laid, have someone take you to Inferno or one of the strip clubs we own. I’m sure you can find what you need there, but you keep it off my land. ”
That last rule throws me, and it’s Ev who steps in with a quick, “Agreed.”
Vasily doesn’t let me off the hook, he narrows his eyes at me, waiting until I say, “Agreed.” I even make it sound like I don’t care, like the thought of a naked Sitka never once crossed my mind.
He studies me for a second, but when I don’t cave, he leans back and says, “Then welcome to Oregon, boys. Let me know if you need anything while you’re here. Bran and Dima are out right now, but they’re planning on stopping by Max’s as soon as they get back.”
“Great,” I say, standing when he does. I avoid Ev’s stare, keeping up the indifferent charade when we head back towards the front of the house and run into Vasily’s wife Nina.
“Vasya,” she says, giving her husband a big smile.
The darkness fades from his eyes when he looks down at his wife. He gives her a smile that I’m fairly certain no one outside of his immediate family ever gets and says, “How was everything today, zolotse? Did you get that shipment of toys you wanted?”
She beams up at him. “I did. A woman just arrived at the shelter today with her two kids, so it was perfect timing. You should’ve seen the way their faces lit up when they realized it was all for them to play with.”
She’s still smiling when she turns her attention to us.
She has the same dark hair and eyes as Talia and is just as short.
Nina is one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met, so I’m not at all surprised when she steps out of Vasily’s grasp, something he doesn’t look too thrilled about, so she can give Ev and me a hug.
“We’re so excited to have you both here for a few weeks. In fact, I think you should just stay the whole summer. The kids are already planning things to do, so prepare yourselves. You’re in for a lot of bonfires on the beach and icy cold swims in the ocean.”
I laugh and Ev tells her it sounds great. I look up in enough time to catch the look Vasily is giving me. It’s a clear warning to not bust his wife’s happy bubble about what we’ll be getting up to. If she wants to believe we’ll be making s’mores around a bonfire every night, so be it.
Nina isn’t naive, though, so after she hugs us, she says, “Please don’t do anything stupid while you’re here. I really like your moms, and it’ll kill me if I have to call them to say that you’ve gotten hurt because you decided to do something crazy.”
“We promise we won’t do anything stupid,” I tell her.
Ev holds up a hand. “No night swimming or underage drinking, Mrs. Medvedev. You have my word.”
She laughs and pats his chest before slipping back into her husband’s arms. “Call me Nina. You’re right about the night swimming, though.
The Pacific can be brutal. Please don’t ever go in alone, if you go in at all.
It’s freezing, and the rip currents and sneaker waves are dangerous and unpredictable. ”
“They’ll be safe, zolotse,” Vasily says while his eyes dare us to make a liar out of him.
Ev and I don’t have a death wish, so we nod our heads in agreement.