Cruel Vows (Sins of the Bratva #4)

Chapter 1

Chapter

One

KATYA

I wake up to the sight of a wedding dress in my room.

I love my room, with its soft off-white walls and rose gold accents. It’s a happy place for me. Because most of my time is spent in here since my brother barely allows me to have fun, I had to make my room a beautiful, relaxing place.

But right now, as I sit up and stare in confusion at the wedding dress, my bedroom doesn’t feel like such a happy place. It feels like a vise closing in around me.

I walk over to the dress, which is draped on a hanger on the back of my door. The dress in question is simple. Made out of silk, it’s drapey and elegant. It looks like something out of the 1930s. The truth is—it’s beautiful.

But what the hell is it doing in my bedroom?

Ripping my door open, I storm into the kitchen of the gorgeous penthouse I live in with my brother and sister-in-law. Dimitri and Evie are seated at the table, enjoying a conversation.

Well, I’m about to end that.

I tap Dimitri on the shoulder. “Why is there a wedding dress in my room?”

“It’s not a wedding dress.” He takes a sip of coffee and looks innocently up at me.

“No? Then what the hell is it?”

“It’s just a dress. Nikolai is hosting an event. It’s black tie. I thought you could wear it.”

My pounding heart calms down slightly. “Oh. So, it’s not a wedding dress? You didn’t offer me up as a bride to a stranger?”

There’s a tightness to his eyes as he shakes his head. “Nope. I wouldn’t do that to you, Katya.”

That’s the thing—I don’t believe him.

I’m a Bratva princess. I was born into it by my parents. I was raised in it by Dimitri, a Bratva boss. I was told every day of my life that I would be expected to marry someday for political gain. I’ve been dreading that day for a while, ever since I turned twenty-one. That’s the perfect age to marry—not too young, not too old. In my world, if you wait to marry past the age of twenty-five, you’re a spinster.

Dimitri has never shown any interest in forcing me to marry for his political gain. He has all the power he could need with his partnership with Nikolai Petrov, another Bratva boss, and Maxim Baranov, the president of a motorcycle club called the Knights.

Despite this, I don’t believe him. He’s going to marry me to someone one of these days, and I won’t be happy.

I don’t want to be a horse sold to the highest bidder.

“You really wouldn’t?” I ask, my hands on my hips, my foot tapping on the floor.

“No. I would tell you if I was going to marry you to someone.” He turns away from me and opens his phone, scrolling through an online newspaper. Probably Forbes or something else boring. I hate to read. I mean, I can do it, but it’s just such a boring thing to do.

How ironic considering my best friend and now sister-in-law, Evie, is a librarian. She works part time at the New York Public Library as she works towards her Master’s. She’s smart and beautiful, with long brown hair and kind eyes.

I may not be bookish smart, but I still think I have street smarts (even though I know I don’t really have any). I was raised in my glass castle. I’ve been sheltered and taken care of my entire life.

Dimitri and I share a father—the infamous Aleksander Ivanov, a man who was on top of the entire city until he died. We have different mothers, which explains why Dimitri and I don’t look alike. He’s dark haired and dark eyed. I’m blonde hair and blue eyes. We’re both tall, a fact I’m proud of.

I have great legs. There’s no point in denying that.

“You really would tell me?” I demand. “You’re not just going to trick me into walking down the aisle because you know I don’t want to?”

“Nope.”

Evie looks between us. “Katya, I’m sure Dimitri would tell you. He’s your brother. He wants what’s best for you.”

“Evie, I love you and think you’re the most amazing best friend in the entire world. But you don’t know my brother like I do. You know him as the man who saved you from bad men. I know him as the real pain in my ass.”

Dimitri makes a face. “I’m not a pain in your ass. If anything, you’re the pain in my ass.”

“No freaking way. Dimitri, you have always been and will always be a pain in my ass.”

Evie pats the seat next to her. “Come on. Have breakfast with us.”

Slowly, I slide into my seat and stare at the spread our housekeeper, Lizzie, made for us. There’s everything there, from pancakes to waffles to scones to bacon. I shudder at the bacon. I need to keep my figure, and greasy pig fat won’t help with that.

“Can’t Lizzie make anything healthy?” I grumble, standing back up to grab my green juice from the fridge. It’s disgusting, but it’s healthy and has everything I could need nutrition wise.

“Why should she?” Dimitri asks, popping a piece of bacon into his mouth.

“Careful, brother. You’re going to get fat eating that. Hope you like the way my brother looks now, Evie, because it’s not going to last forever.”

Dimitri lets out a low whistle. “You’re in a mean mood this morning. What gives?”

“Because you put a wedding dress in my room without saying anything! It has me a little freaked out.”

“It’s not a wedding dress.”

I stare down at my brother for a long moment. “It’s really not?”

“No. It’s not. Now, just drink your gross drink and be quiet. Stop annoying me.”

With a large eye roll, I storm out of the kitchen. My brother is up to something, and I don’t like it.

DIMITRI

It is a wedding dress.

But Katya doesn’t need to know that right now.

It’s better this way, trust me. I’ve done something terrible in the name of the greater good, and Katya is the unfortunate casualty of that decision.

She’s going to hate me forever, but I did what I did to keep her safe. To keep Evie safe. Maxim did the same for his wife, Luna. Nikolai did the same for his wife, Ava.

We made this pact with the devil to stop a war from happening. To stop more people from dying. I can’t bear the idea of my wife and sister getting hurt because I could have done something to stop it.

So, I did.

But now, I have to hurt Katya in a different way. It has nothing to do with physical pain. I’m going to hurt her by marrying her to a monster. To the devil himself.

Anton Volkov.

He’s made my life hell for the past year. He kept blowing up my gun shipments—mine and Nik’s and Maxim’s. He blew up Maxim’s clubhouse. He blew up my dance club, with Maxim and me in it.

He used to work with Nik years ago until he betrayed Nik’s trust and gave him a scar across his face.

Anton Volkov is not a man you trust. You run far away from him.

But I’m trusting him with my sister. Because I’m going to marry her to him to make peace, and she doesn’t even know it.

Katya has never met Anton before, but she’s heard about him. She knows the terrible things he’s done. She would fight me tooth and nail about marrying him, so that’s why I’ve decided to trick her into walking down the aisle to Anton.

Is it horrible of me? Yes. But it’s what needs to be done.

I’ve become a changed man, one who would do anything to protect his wife. Before Evie, I never cared about what happened to anyone besides Katya.

And now, I have to use Katya to save Evie.

I walk into the low-lit bar and find Anton in a back booth, sipping a martini like he’s fucking James Bond. More like a James Bond villain.

Anton has a wicked gleam to his face that just radiates evil. His black hair is similar to mine, but that’s where our similarities end. I’m something of a self-described pretty boy. Anton isn’t ugly, I’ll give him that, but he has sharp, strong features that make him hard to look at.

Or maybe that’s just because I fucking hate the guy.

“Ah, Dimitri. Nice to see you again.”

I slide into the booth across from him. “Anton,” I growl.

“It’s been months since we made our deal. I haven’t put you or Nikolai or Maxim into any trouble. I haven’t gone after your women. I think I’ve proven myself. So …”

“So?”

He sets the martini down and steeples his fingers, staring at me with his hard eyes. “So, it’s time I marry Katya. I’ve been good, Dimitri. I’ve been patient. It’s been months. It’s time.”

I bow my head. I’ve been putting this off for as long as possible. Katya will hate me for this. In trying to save my wife, I’m losing my sister. It’s fucked up, but it’s how the Bratva works. It doesn’t care about anyone. It just takes and takes and takes.

“Don’t tell me you’re having second thoughts.” Anton chuckles, and the sound chills my body. “If you back out now, Dimitri, we’re going to have a problem on our hands. I won’t hesitate to start blowing shit up again. I won’t hesitate to kill your wife.”

I lunge across the table and grab his shirt. “Don’t you dare go after my wife.”

“I won’t have to.” He slowly peels my fingers off his shirt. “If Katya marries me. I want to be partners with you, Dimitri. You, Nik, and Maxim. I meant what I said. I’m tired of killing for the fun of it. It’s become … banal. I want something new. Something fresh. Something fun.” His grin is the epitome of evil. “I want Katya.”

“You’ve never even met her.”

“But I’ve seen her. I know she’s beautiful, and that’s all I need in a wife. A beautiful one I can use for political gain. Katya will do just nicely. And if it means the end of our fighting, isn’t that a good thing?”

“Yes,” I admit.

Anton slaps the table with a smile. “Great. Then you know what to do. Stop putting it off. It’s time to marry Katya to me.”

“She won’t want to.”

“Do I look like I care? Even if you have to drag her down that aisle, you will make her marry me. If you try anything else, if you try to kill me, you know I have men who will go after you and your wife and murder you both. So don’t try anything funny, Dimitri.”

“What if I can’t get Katya to cooperate?”

He shrugs. “You’ll figure something out, I’m sure. Just get her to marry me. She doesn’t exactly have a choice.”

“And once you’re married? You won’t hurt my sister. You promised.”

He raises his hand in surrender. “I promise. I have no intentions of hurting Katya. This is purely political.”

“With you?” I scoff. “You’re not a political person, Anton. If you were, you wouldn’t have chosen so much violence.”

“Hey, it worked out for me, didn’t it? My violence and bloodshed caused you to work with me, someone I considered an enemy. I think that’s very political, don’t you?”

With a huff, I get out of the booth. “Just don’t make me regret this.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

Anton’s wicked grin says otherwise.

ANTON

The sight of my mother standing on my doorstep is enough to give me a fright.

She only ever appears when she thinks there’s trouble afoot.

The infamous Katerina Volkov. With reddish hair pulled back into a tight bun and frown lines around her mouth, she’s formidable in looks alone.

But I know my mother—she’s formidable in personality, too.

“Mother,” I say, stepping around her to unlock my front door. My house—well, my mansion—is Gothic castle inspired. I mostly like to freak people out when it comes to my home. They see a large creepy mansion, and they want to stay far away, which makes me laugh at the thought.

But it draws the right kinds of people to it—the kinds of people who are looking for trouble, and those people I’m glad to have in my home.

Because then that means I can do whatever I want with them.

“Anton,” she replies, stiffly following me inside, which is the opposite of the outside. Whites, off-whites, creams, and grays. I like a soothing interior, so sue me.

“What are you doing here?”

“I’m here to talk about the rumor I’ve heard circulating. The one where you’re going to make a deal with Dimitri Ivanov. What is that about? Because I’ll have you know his sister insulted me a few months ago. What ever could you possibly want with that family?”

Katya and my mother had a run in at a tea function where Katya apparently said some mean things to my mother. I wasn’t there, so I’m unsure what was said, but knowing my mother, she doesn’t take kindly to any slight, no matter how big or small.

I only know about this because my mother promptly informed me about what happened, and I knew I couldn’t let it stand. Sure, I don’t love having my mommy with me all the time, but when it comes to my family, I’m prideful. If you insult the great Katerina Volkov, you insult me.

“That’s why I’m making a deal with Dimitri,” I explain as we head into the living room. Her high heels clack on the hardwood, making her seem even sterner. “To put all the wrongs behind us.”

She crosses her arms. “Even the one including me?”

“Yes, mother. Even the one about you.”

“That little bitch needs to pay for what she said to me.”

“And what exactly did she say to you?”

“She called me old.” She sniffs, raising her nose to the air. No one has a more disapproving expression than my mother.

Katerina is sixty-six years old now. In my opinion, that may not be old , but it’s getting up there. I, of course, do not tell my mother this. Even I’m afraid of some things.

“I’m sorry for that. And she will pay.”

“How?”

“By marrying me.”

Her mouth drops open. “You’re going to marry that twit?”

“Yes. It’s the best way for me to make peace with Dimitri and his other business partners.” I pause. “It’s the best way to make amends with Nik.”

“Oh, that man. He did you dirty when he didn’t promote you. Why would you want to make amends? I think everything you’ve done to him is justly deserved.”

I remember slashing Nik across the face. I remember him falling to the ground as his face bled. I remember bringing him back to my home and torturing him. He escaped. Then he thought I was dead, until I made myself known again. And then I tried to kill him—again.

And now, I’m trying to make amends.

“I’m just tired of all the fighting,” I admit. “And besides, making a deal with him, Dimitri, and Maxim Baranov will help secure my hold on this city. It will give me even more power. The four of us together will be unstoppable.”

Her lips curl up at the mention of Maxim. “I don’t like the idea of you working with a biker. It’s unbecoming.”

“Mother, times are changing. It’s not just bikers versus the Bratva anymore. We can work together to make progress. I’m ready for that. I don’t want to be a villain any longer. I want to be a hero.”

She looks at me for a long moment before laughing. “You don’t want to be a hero, Anton.”

I shrug. “True. I like being a little villainous. But I want power, and marrying Katya Ivanov will get me there. You know this. It’s a smart idea.”

She shifts around on the couch, her perfectly pressed skirt wrinkling. I’m amazed she hasn’t noticed yet. My mother notices when things are not perfectly in place.

“I guess,” she says. “But I don’t want those men to betray you. I don’t want you to trust them and lower your guard and then they backstab you.”

“Dimitri won’t risk that. Not when I’m married to his sister. That’s why this is a good plan. It ensures peace for everyone and safety for me. If they act out of line, I can hurt Katya, which they won’t stand for. And they’re choosing to trust me with her. I know not everyone likes this deal, but it will work.”

“Well, what does the girl think about all this?”

“From what I know, she doesn’t know.”

“That girl will cause problems, Anton. Mark my words. You’re going to regret marrying her. She has a vicious tongue on her. She has no manners. I swear, if she weren’t a wealthy Bratva daughter, I’d assume she was raised in a barn.”

“You do know once Katya and I are married, and she’s living here, you can’t keep insulting her.”

She lifts her nose even higher. “Young man, I am your mother. I can do whatever I want. And if you insist on going through with this foolish plan, then I will forever let you know how much I disagree with it. I do not think Katya Ivanov is the woman for you.”

“Well, we’ll just have to see about that.”

KATYA

“Do you want to leave the house today?” Dimitri asks, leaning against my bedroom door frame.

I perk up. “I never get to leave.”

“That’s not true. You leave all the time.”

“Just to spend time with Evie at the library, and you know how much I hate to read, so it’s utterly pointless and boring, and she can’t even spend time with me because she’s working.”

“You go to those Bratva woman tea parties all the damn time.”

“Yeah, because you’ve deemed those appropriate for me to go to.” I swear Dimitri only lets me go to those because he thinks the other Bratva woman will keep me in line.

He sighs. “Do you want to go out or not?”

I jump out of my bed. “I do. What do you have in mind?”

“I was thinking a nice evening out with you and Evie. You can wear the dress I bought you.”

I glance at it still on the door. “You mean the not wedding dress?”

“Yes, that. It’s been a while since we’ve been out for a meal, just the three of us. It could be fun.”

“And boring,” I grumble. “Really? I thought you were going to suggest a party or something?”

“What party? Katya, you’re not allowed at any party.”

“You’re worse than Dad, you know?” When my father was still alive, he at least let me go over to friends’ houses for sleepovers, but ever since he died years ago, Dimitri has cracked the whip down on me.

“I know. Now, do you want to go out or not?”

“I do,” I admit.

“Good.” He taps the dress. “Wear it.”

“Why are you so insistent on me wearing that dress? I don’t like to do anything you tell me to.”

He sighs. “Just this once, Katya. Please. I want to have a nice night out with you and Evie. Is that too much to ask for?”

“When it comes to you? Yes.”

“Just wear it. And be ready in an hour.” Once he leaves the room, I’m left staring at the not wedding dress.

Something doesn’t feel right. Dimitri rarely wants to spend time with me. I’m a thorn in his side more than anything else.

So, why does he want to spend the evening with Evie and me?

I have no freaking clue, but I’m not going to pass up the opportunity to go out for one night.

So, with a grimace, I slip on the not wedding dress and get ready to go.

Ok. I’ll admit. I look good in the dress. It hugs my body perfectly. Its soft silk flows around my body beautifully. I really do look like a model out of a 1930s magazine. I style my hair in waves to match the dress.

It’s a little over the top for a night out at a restaurant, but what do I know? I’m not allowed to have fun at all.

The last time I tried to have fun, I took Evie with me to a party of Dimitri’s, and she and Dimitri met for the first time. Evie got kidnapped by an evil man, and Dimitri had to save her. He married her soon after that.

It could have been me who was kidnapped that night. I get why Dimitri is so protective. He just wants to keep me safe. But it’s so stifling and exhausting, and I just wish I had a bit more freedom in my life.

I meet Dimitri and Evie by the front door. “You look nice.”

Evie glances down at her slinky black dress. “Dimitri told me to wear something put together. Isn’t this a bit excessive for a restaurant?”

“I was thinking the same thing.”

Dimitri looks between us. “Don’t gang up on me now. I just want to do something nice for the two women in my life.”

“I don’t trust you,” I tell him.

“You never do. Now, let’s go.”

Dimitri drives us through the city. Every time I get to see New York, I’m always blown away by its mix of beauty and ugly. It’s a place of magic and a place of misery.

“Which restaurant are we going to?” I ask once I notice we’ve been driving for a while.

“It’s a surprise.” His voice is a little tense.

Even Evie picks up on it. “Are you all right?”

He lets out a deep breath. “I’m fine.”

Evie turns around in her seat to look at me. I shrug. I have no clue why Dimitri is acting weird. He’s my brother. He’s always weird to me.

Eventually, we pull up to a little chapel.

“Uh, this isn’t a restaurant,” I say. Evie frowns, also confused.

He shuts the car off. “I know.”

Instantly, the mood shifts, and I know in my gut something isn’t right. I look between the chapel to my not wedding dress and back again.

Then I gasp. “This is a wedding dress. What are you doing? Are you trying to trick me into marrying someone? A man I don’t even know?”

His response sets it in stone. “You wouldn’t have come otherwise.”

“Dimitri,” Evie says, “what are you doing?”

“I’m doing what I have to.” His eyes meet mine in the rearview mirror. “I’m sorry, Katya.”

A man steps out of the chapel. A very handsome man, I’ll admit. Dark hair, strong jaw, broad shoulders. Sharp features that somehow work for him.

“Who is that?” I whisper.

“That’s the man you’re going to marry.”

“What?!” both Evie and I exclaim.

Dimitri still has his eyes on me in the rearview mirror, and they say everything. Guilt. Sadness. Regret.

“That’s Anton Volkov,” he says.