Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Kade
Aleksander Ivanov stands and picks up the Damascus Viking sword laid out on the long mahogany table before him, then raises it into the air.
The overhead lights beaming down on him reflect off the pure steel of the blade, making him look fiercer— and stronger —than he is. Dressed in his Knights tunic, he almost looks like he’s ready to go into battle.
Tonight we’re at Raventhorn Hall for the Gathering ceremony. A ritual where we renew our pledge to become Knights.
This is the first time that we’ve been allowed to enter Raventhorn Hall. Up until now we’ve only seen the outside of the building and heard stories about what happens inside.
The room we’re in is similar in style to the conference hall the students assembled in yesterday for the welcome back meeting. But the atmosphere is different.
Power ripples around us like the air we breathe. It touches the high, vaulted ceilings, the stained-glass windows, the massive stone columns and ancient stone walls around us.
The power comes from the men, past and present, who have led the Knights.
Right now all that power lies with the man holding the sword and his men.
Aleksander and the twelve judges next to him form the leadership of the Knights’ council.
But there is also us.
The first row—the row where I’m sitting—consists of the men in the Ivanov elite. The next in line to hold that power. This is the first time in twenty years that there has been such a group.
At the head is Caspian Ivanov, Aleksander’s son, and Thorne, his nephew.
I’m next to Thorne. Beside me are my guys, Dmitri and Logan, then Alex, the fourth member of our group. Everyone else—the other eight hundred freshmen initiates—are behind us.
The only thing we have in common is that, with the exception of Alexander, the judges, Caspian and Thorne who are wearing the Knights’ tunic, we’re in full black suits.
“ Sanguis sanguinis mei, caro carnis meae, cor cordis mei,” Aleksander speaks in Latin, raising the sword higher.
His words translate to: Blood of my blood, flesh of my flesh, heart of my heart.
We all repeat the sacred words each Knight must live by for the rest of his life, pledging our allegiance to the Brotherhood.
Those words are just as important as taking the Oath to become a Knight. We’ll be doing that in September at the start of our sophomore year.
Last semester was about proving our worth to be here. Now that the initial trials are over, the rest of the freshman year will be focused on getting us ready to take the Oath.
“Tonight represents the next phase of your journey in becoming one of us.” Aleksander gives us what could pass for a smile but it disappears from his haggard face just as quickly as it came. “All of you must continue proving your worth and immerse yourself in all the training you will be given. The next few months will be crucial for your success and I expect your undivided devotion. Is that understood?”
“Yes, my lord.” We address him in the formal manner and bow our heads in unison.
“Your freshman year here at Raventhorn will test your resilience and capabilities. Most of all, it separates the weak.” He says that word— weak —as if it’s a vile taste in his mouth. “The weak among you will not continue.”
Weakness is not a word in my vocabulary, and all this…
It’s just details to make it official on paper. In my eyes I was always a Knight.
My mother would have said I was blessed by the gods, so I have nothing to worry about.
Aleksander sets the sword back down on the table and looks at each of us. His eyes are filled with the scrutiny of a leader who thinks of himself as a god and the rest of us as his disciples.
I suppose in a way we are. Those who look up to him, those who fear and revere him, and those like me who pretend we don’t know his secrets.
He’s sick. I don’t know what he’s sick with but I know he’s sick.
I’ve seen him try to hide the same symptoms I witnessed in my grandfather before he died. Grandfather had Huntington’s. I don’t think Aleksander has that, but he has something that’s affecting his brain. Could be a tumor.
I’ve noticed the tremors in his hands at times when even he wasn’t aware of them. There have been instances when it’s been clear he had a lapse in his memory while he was talking to us. The kick was watching him shove down a handful of pills when he looked like he was about to go into a seizure. That was at the football game before Christmas.
No one else saw him. Just me.
I was coming out of the locker room after our victory against Houston when I spotted him behind the bleachers at the stadium.
I see a lot I probably shouldn’t see. However, I pride myself on being the observer. Like a wolf, I watch and wait before I strike. When I strike it’s always to take what I want.
All I want from him is my Knighthood, so the old man’s secret is safe with me. Also, I’m not stupid. I know he’d have me killed before I could get the chance to alert anyone to his sickness.
A shit stunt like that would also damage the bonds I’ve managed to form with Caspian. But more importantly Thorne—who I’m sure must be aware of his uncle’s ill-fated state.
Thorne is an ally outside of my friends that I never expected to find at Raventhorn. He has a similar past to me. Thorne lost his parents the same way I lost mine.
He recently got his justice. I’m still searching for mine but at least I know who to look for now.
Thorne is the only one I trust to train me to become stronger. Strong enough to face the motherfuckers who took my family from me. So Aleksander and his secrets are not my concern.
Aleksander starts talking about the schedule for the next few months and my mind drifts to the most interesting part of my plan—the girl.
Lolita.
Sweet little Isabelle in her cute little Lolita dresses is scared shitless of me.
The thought pulls a satisfied smile to my lips.
Last night, as I stood in the rain watching her, she didn’t know what the hell to do with herself.
We must have been about twenty feet apart but I could have been right next to her, watching her beautiful doll-like face freeze in a deadly cocktail of fear and confusion.
I’ve given her reason to be scared of me, but the confused part—that’s the best part.
She’s still trying to figure out what she did to me. She doesn’t know that I know , and it’s possible that she might not even be aware of the impact of her actions. But even if that’s true, that part is irrelevant. It simply doesn’t matter. She still has blood on her hands.
I don’t care how it got there, so I have much in store for little Isabelle Kolyav. I can’t wait to truly start fucking with her.
She hasn’t seen the extent of my fucked-up mind yet.
The meeting progresses and we end it by reciting the Knights pledge, one of the first things my father taught me.
It’s spoken in Old Norse. The language that binds us under the old laws.
My father would have been proud to see me here tonight. He would have been here, too, because he was on the council.
Once the meeting is done, Dmitri, Logan, Alex and I head back to Erebus House, home of the Sigmas, for tonight’s party.
The first two weeks of each new semester are filled with parties and other activities to ease us back into our studies. Classes officially start next week.
By the time we reach Erebus the music is already blaring and the house is filled with students drinking, dancing, guys taking shots off naked girls, and people fucking.
Most high school parties weren’t that different to this so I didn’t get the shocker most people experience when they come here.
As we walk down the corridor people look at us as if we’re gods and they move out of our way.
The respect comes from being part of the elite. And football. Although Logan and Alek aren’t players.
A leggy blonde jumps on Alek’s back when we walk into the game room, and he goes off with her. Good. I need to talk to Dmitri and Logan in private.
I like Alek. I don’t usually like anyone new but he passed our test.
Last semester, when we trialed for the elite group, we had to welcome him into our fold. They needed four guys. Dmitri, Logan and I already vowed from when we were fourteen that we were going to be part of the elite. Failure was not an option.
We also accepted that we would need to be open to a fourth member of our close-knit crew. When we came here and met Alek we knew it had to be him. His cousin is Lucian Sokolov, the third member of the elite unit leadership, so we felt that working with Alek would bode well for us. It did.
But that doesn’t mean he has to know my private business.
We grab some bottles of beer and head to the pool table on the second-floor balcony. There’s no one up here.
We gather around the table and open our drinks.
We haven’t spoken properly since before Christmas. I wanted them to enjoy their birthdays and the holidays with their families. They deserved the break and the time to appreciate their accomplishments.
I don’t celebrate anything anymore. Not since that night.
Two weeks ago was the anniversary. It’s been three years since I lost my parents.
After they were killed no one could find the people who attacked them. No one knew who they were. Dmitri, Logan and I were the only witnesses to what happened.
I vowed to spend the rest of my life trying to find the bastards. Thanks to Dmitri’s tech skills and my off-grid contacts I was able to do so. It took a long time, but we did it.
It was the Malina. The Ukrainian mafia.
I don’t know what motive they had for attacking my family. And it doesn’t matter. What matters is that I know it was them.
Now that I know, they’ll pay.
Dmitri raises his bottle. “Well, here’s to the start of the new semester. And everything that comes with it.”
“Hear, hear.” Logan and I agree, clinking our bottles with Dmitri’s.
I take a gulp, allow the buzz from the alcohol to mellow my mind, then set my bottle down on the table, signaling that I’m ready to talk. They stare back at me in anticipation.
“I’m not so sure I should drag you guys into my shit.”
“Are you kidding me?” Dmitri’s brows shoot up while Logan clenches his jaw and places his beer bottle next to mine.
“I’m serious.” I set my shoulders back and look at each of them. “This is going to be dangerous.”
“When has that ever stopped us?”
“This is different.”
“The Malina are one of the worst groups of motherfuckers in the underground. They have no alliance with the Knights, so going after them is a suicide mission.”
“You need our help.” Logan glares at me.
“Maybe so, but this is the kind of bad idea that could get me kicked out of Raventhorn, ruin my chances to play for the NFL, and as for getting to the initiation stage of becoming a Knight? Well, I could kiss that goodbye, too, if I’m caught. That’s why I’m hesitant to involve you guys any more than I already have.” They knew I would never stop looking for justice. But that justice is mine to seek, not theirs.
“Kade, do you seriously think we haven’t considered those risks?” Dmitri asks, chewing on his bottom lip. “From the moment I realized it was the Malina I knew what I was signing up for.”
“Me too,” Logan agrees.
“I don’t want you to take any of the risks I have to take.”
“That’s too bad, bro, because we’re in this together,” Dmitri argues before I can say another word.
He and Logan bump fists and fix their gazes on me.
“Can’t let you have all the fun without us.” Logan laughs.
“Like fuck. This is not going to be fun. But… thanks.” I do need them. I hate needing anyone but they’re not like everyone else.
“So, what’s this master plan of yours?” Dmitri takes a swig of his beer.
“I’m going to eradicate them from the system. The Purge: Anarchy style.” I grin, proud of myself for coming up with such an ingenious plan. “I’m gonna fuck with them in ways they never thought possible and, unlike the pop culture film, I’ll have more than twelve hours to wreak havoc and chaos in their lives.”
Dmitri and Logan smile.
It would take an army to go up against the Malina and since I don’t have anything of the sort, I’m using intellect and malice.
“Sounds good. Where do we start?”
I pull a list from my pocket and slide it across the pool table so they can see. “These are all the top people in Boston and New York who have links to the Malina. We can start by destroying them. All their businesses, their contacts, everything . I’ve thought of all the right ways to hit them where it hurts and weaken them one by one until I have them just where I want them.”
“I love this idea.”
“Good. It will be like tearing pieces from a body bit by fucking bit until I reach the heart.”
“And what will you do when you get to the heart?” Dmitri’s smile fades. He knows what I mean by the heart . The main guy I’m after is Nickoli Chekov, the underboss of the Malina’s New York unit.
To get to a guy like that you have to get his attention. But to get him where I want him, I have to tie his hands behind his back and shove him into a corner in hell.
“I’m going to kill him.” I know I sound far too calm to be talking about killing a man like Nickoli. I already sound like I have the fucker under my thumb when there are vast differences between us.
He’s forty-five. I’m nineteen.
He commands a criminal organization across two continents.
I have Dmitri and Logan.
The odds are not in my favor when you look at it that way. But we’re Knights in training. That’s a big enough difference to give me the confidence to try.
In the Bratva you demand blood for blood. In the Knights you take whatever you think you are owed. A life for a life, or many more.
“Until I kill his ass, I’ll watch his world fall apart. Still with me?” I check because this assassination plot of mine could start a war.
They both nod.
“You know we’re still with you,” Logan replies.
“What about Isabelle?” Dmitri gives me a curious stare.
I know he’s wondering what I’m going to do with her.
“What does she get?” Logan adds.
“Whatever I think is suitable.”
“Does that mean you want us to play with the little doll?” Dmitri’s smile widens.
He’s just as fucked up as me and teeters on the cold and calculative side. He’ll play with his toys until he’s had enough of them, but whoever is unfortunate enough to end up in his lair will never see what’s coming until it’s too late. Logan is more direct. You know what you’re going to get with him from the get-go.
“You can play. But you leave her to me.”
“We can do that.” Logan glances at Dmitri, mischief filling his face like a mask.
“Just say when,” Dmitri says with a clipped nod of his dark-blond hair.
I lean on the table and widen my smile. “When. I’ve already begun.”
“Perfect. I can see this semester is going to be interesting to say the least.”
“What about Alek?” Logan looks serious again. “He’s already suspicious that we’re up to something.”
“I’ll deal with him, too.” Alek is no fool. He did what he needed to do to show he could play nice in a team, but make no mistake, he’s leadership material. There will come a point where we might bump heads. “Hopefully I’ll get what I want as soon as possible.”
“Sounds like we have a plan.” Dmitri nods.
I smile back at him. “The plan of all plans.”
The guilty will be brought to justice. Every last one of them.
Especially the girl.