Chapter 19
CHAPTER
NINETEEN
VIKTOR
My chest tightens as I walk down the hallway.
I’ve been back in this house for a few days, but I still can’t shake the shock and sorrow in Lev’s eyes when they first brought me in.
No older brother wants to see his little brother that distressed.
If it had been me who had to bury him, I’d have torn the world down stone by stone.
Mother’s house has been our home for many sheltered years. Ever since Sergei became a threat, I brought Lev here. Now they’ve brought me back here too. The house feels like a fortress again, every corner occupied by men I know and shadows I’m finally starting to trust.
The stitches ache when I take the stairs. The pull of the thread is a constant reminder of the shit show I just escaped. I wasn't wrong when I told Jonah last night that I couldn't fuck him because of the doctor’s advice, but I’d have loved it if he could've patched me up in other ways.
The staircase opens onto another hallway.
Heading toward my office, I feel the weight of the house settling back onto my shoulders.
Lev jumps out of his seat the second I walk in.
Now that the adrenaline of the reunion has faded, I notice differences in my younger brother.
He’s wearing his hair differently. Longer, maybe.
His handsome face has a glow it didn't have the night before I turned twenty-five.
“Vitya, what the hell, dude, you can’t be here.” He grabs my shoulder and pushes me into my desk chair. Something has changed in the way he moves. He’s steadier. “Get him a coffee,” he barks at a guard, then looks at me. “You should be in bed.”
“Yes, nurse.”
Lev rolls his eyes as Nikolai chuckles from where he’s leaning against the wall. “You don't need me for that because you already have one.” Nikolai’s chuckle turns into a laugh.
“What have you been up to?” The longer I look, the more differences I notice.
There’s more color in my brother’s cheeks.
Where the sleeves of his black shirt are rolled up, I see more tattoos than I remember.
But it is his eyes that hold my attention.
They glow with something different. Still fierce, but darker.
As if he’s found something worth holding onto.
He waves me off, which only makes me more suspicious.
“Remember that guy in Vespers?” Nikolai supplies, his voice dripping with amusement. “The blond one with the black shirt?”
Lev blushes, a rare sight. “Oh, fuck off.”
“He was kind to your brother while he was sobbing over your death.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
Lev rolls his chair back. “Can we just focus on work, please?”
Nikolai cackles, making Lev’s blush deeper.
Not wanting to embarrass him, I sit down. “Let’s do it. Let’s talk death and revenge. I’m here for it.”
“Oh, you boring brothers.” Nikolai winks. “Now I have to agree with Lev. You should be in bed, you look like shit.”
“Hey, I never say that about your face.”
Lev whistles. “Low blow, man.”
Nikolai huffs. “Don't forget I’m the one who saved you. The both of you, as it seems.”
“Don't mention him. Jonah is—”
“Yeah?”
I don't know. Or maybe I do. He’s the only thing in my life that isn't covered in blood or loaded with an agenda. He’s a soft light in a world where I’ve spent twenty-five years going blind in the dark. He is the only piece of this mess I intend to keep clean.
Nikolai lifts his chin an inch. “Got it.”
The words surprise me. Nikolai has been my right hand and best friend forever. Our fathers were too. He’s a snake to the outside world and only answers to the Morozovs. Yes, Nikolai’s always kept a lot to himself. He minds his own business. He’s also curious as fuck.
But he seems to be serious right now, so I’ll let it slip.
“I take it he took good care of you?” His gaze flicks to my side, tracking the hidden bandage beneath my shirt.
Lev coughs out a laugh. “You asshole.”
“Oh, brother, if I were you, I’d mind your words now.” My smile only widens. “Which brings me to…” I turn to Lev, shifting back into the role of Pakhan. “I need food and clothes for Jonah. Have someone track down his trailer and empty it because he’d like his things back.”
“Is he going to stay here?”
“Of course he is, dude.”
Nikolai tosses me a set of keys. “Here. Tell your fuck toy to take the SUV. I’ll have Sasha sort out the rest in a few minutes, and she’ll send him the GPS details.”
Lev’s gaze shifts from Nikolai back to me. “You could also just ask him where he lives. You know that, right?”
“And have him refuse? No, brother. That’s not an option.” The thought of him walking away doesn't exist. He is part of the inventory now.
A soft knock clicks on the door. Nikolai tilts his head. “Speaking of, that’s Sasha. I don't believe you have officially been introduced yet?”
A blond woman steps in. “Good morning, sir.” She tips her head.
I blink as the memory of the mansion flickers. “I recognize you from the estate. You were that new guard, weren't you?”
Sasha’s face flushes when Nikolai glances her way. “I was there the night of the shooting. I saw it happening. Saw how they dragged you away. I waited every night in Vesper hoping Nikolai would come back. When he did, I told him what I’d seen.”
“And what did you see?” I ask, bracing myself for the truth.
“As soon as Lev and Nikolai left, three men came out of a parked car. They put you in a vehicle and drove off.”
“Kidnapped you,” Lev cuts in, his voice tight. His nostrils flare. “Those assholes.”
“I trained Sasha in three days, and then brought her in contact with Kirill.”
“Kirill?”
“He still works at the estate for Sergei,” Nikolai says.
“They recruited Sasha, and that’s when the intel started flowing.
But it isn't that simple, Vitya. Sokolov is a paranoid prick. He doesn't take calls, and he doesn't meet unless it’s through Sergei’s private relay. Every message is wrapped in a shifting Cyrillic cypher. If we send a text that doesn't match the day’s code, he’ll vanish and he’ll tell Sergei we’re alive. ”
“Then crack it,” I growl. “Sergei’s patterns haven't changed in twenty years. He’s arrogant and he thinks no one is smart enough to listen in. He treats his security like a game he's already won.”
“I’m working on it,” Nikolai mutters while his fingers fly over the keys. “But if I miss a single character, the whole relay self-destructs. I need the master key from the encrypted relay to spoof the signal.”
“Work it out. I’ll decide the when, but once we have that code, we use my voice to bring the dog somewhere we can collar it.”
Lev claps his palms once, sharp. “Alright. Then let’s get to it. I’m heading out with the boys to check the harbor for collections.”
Nikolai’s already hunched over a computer. “I’ll let you know when I’ve cracked that code.”
“Great.” Sliding a palm over the wood of my desk, I feel the hum of the house. Fuck, it feels good to be back. Even better with a plan for blood. Revenge begins today.
We’re on our third coffee when Jonah steps inside. “I brought you food.”
Nikolai lets out a whistle. “Damn, Pakhan. I wish I had a nurse like that.”
“Yeah, I bet you did.” My dick perks up at the way Jonah’s face flushes. I crook his finger. “Come here.”
He crosses the room fast and sets the tray on the corner of my desk with shaking fingers. The guys were just talking about you. They’re jealous, you know? Pulling Jonah into my lap, I grin when he yelps in surprise.
I feel Jonah’s fingers dig into my skin as he registers the brand I’ve just put on him.
I’m not just protecting him because I’m making it clear to the only men I have left that he is off-limits.
I don't want the rest of the world when I can have the one who watched me bleed and didn't look away.
A name is a claim of ownership and I am making sure everyone knows he belongs to me from now on, whether he likes it or not.
Burying my nose in his hair, I murmur, “He’s wondering what it takes to get you on your knees. Should I show him?”
Jonah’s body goes rigid before a shiver rolls through him. He grips my forearms until his knuckles turn white. His head falls back against my shoulder. “Viktor, no,” he gasps, but the sound is ruined by the way his hips stutter against mine. “He’s, he’s right there.”
“I know he is,” I growl into the shell of his ear. “Watch how he looks away when I claim what’s mine.”
Nikolai pretends to focus on the computer, but he fails.
I feel his eyes all over us. Good. Let him watch.
Snaking an arm around Jonah’s neck, I pull him in.
He smells like coffee and heat, and he opens so easily for me.
I know I’ll never get enough. Nibbling on his bottom lip, I lick inside his mouth.
He wiggles on top of me while he pants. I blindly grab a piece of fruit from the tray and then rest my free palm on his thigh.
Heat jumps under my skin as Jonah inhales too sharply.
“Eat.” I bring the strawberry to his lips. He bites into the fruit and fresh juice leaks down his mouth. I catch it with my tongue, licking it up while he swallows.
“More.”
He takes another bite and lets me suckle the juice from his lips.
Behind us, Nikolai clears his throat. Jonah’s pupils are blown and his face is flushed.
The tremble in his wrist gets worse every time my thumb drags slow circles on the inside of his thigh, tracing the heat near his groin.
He manages a handful of strawberries before I stop thinking and just decide to take him.
Drifting my fingers inward, I shove down his sweatpants while making sure to turn us so Nikolai can't see a single inch of Jonah’s skin. He shrieks when his cock springs free and into my palm. “Hm. You’re already wet for me.”
A sharp, choked sound escapes him. “V, Vik,”
“Keep eating.”
“I—I…” His face goes red. “C—can't concentrate.”