11. Return
Chapter eleven
Return
L uerna kept her hand in Rurik’s arm, holding a drink in the other. It was a beautiful night at the botanical gardens. Lights were strung along the tops of trees, and people walked together quietly, admiring the beauty surrounding them. They were at a gala for ‘Beautifying Russia,’ a fundraiser put on by the Utkins. They were a mafia family to the south that had been allies for the last fifteen years. Her sister, Nadia, was married into it, and she was over to the right, greeting guests as they came in. They looked enough alike to pass as twins, with long blond hair, big, beautiful blue eyes, and a confidence that couldn’t be smothered by any weak force. But they were far from similar. Nadia was happy.
And I’m far from it.
But tonight, Luerna wasn’t going to let it sting her. She was child-free. After having Irina two years ago, she was allowed to go on birth control, and Rurik and her were finally getting along again. They rarely had to spend time together, and that made it bearable.
Rurik guided her across the open area to Adrik and Katia. Her brother had come from Russia for a family visit, introducing his newborn baby. It was odd to see her brother as a father. He was twenty-four and still had so much growing up to do. But that’s perhaps a biased opinion. Adrik was the baby of the family, and Luerna had spent much of her childhood changing his diapers.
“Beautiful night,” she greeted her brother with a kiss on the cheek. His wife, Katia, was distant, never exposing more than she had to. Luerna understood her too well and didn’t fault her for it.
“I miss Russia,” Adrik revealed. “But America has its charms. The sun, for instance,” he joked. The weather had been particularly bad since he arrived, and the temperature had dropped to nearly fifty since sunset. Her fur shaw helped warm her shoulders but did nothing for her legs.
Rurik took a deep drink of his whiskey before he waved for a server to get him another. “The family is in good hands, I assure you. No need for these random visits.”
Adrik eyed him, taking a slow sip. “Does my presence upset you?”
Snapping his head straight, Rurik quickly rephrased his comment. “I mean, you must be busy in Florida. To break away couldn’t have been easy.”
Adrik let it go. “My father has everything under control. Returning home is always a pleasure.”
“Of course, of course.” Rurik darted his gaze around, flustered and trying to recover. Then he pointed. “The fucking wolves are out,” Rurik hissed and nudged his head. Ivan Borisyuk and his son Levka were greeted by their sister, Nadia. She acted nice enough but no Morozov enjoyed the presence of wolves after what Levka did years ago.
Luerna leaned back behind Rurik, using him to hide. Her heart pounded in her ears, and her knees were suddenly weak. Seeing Levka brought a wave of agony to her unhealed heart and she didn’t know how to fix it before anyone noticed. Three years they’ve gone without seeing each other once and he here was, with the audacity to show up with a girl on his arm.
Rage came easy and helped mitigate the pain. Luerna had gone to great lengths to put Levka out of her mind after his sudden abandonment. The bitter part of her was thankful for it. He almost made her believe he could actually love her. But he was mafia born. He didn’t know love any better than she did. He knew what he wanted and how to manipulate it to get it.
And he almost fucking got me.
The night Levka ended the phone call and blocked her, she almost walked out the front door to run to him. She would have left her children and everything she’d ever known just to show him how much he meant to her. It had taken great restraint to stay.
Then she decided to bide her time, to put money away, put some things in storage, and find a way to sneak herself and all four of her kids out of the house while Rurik went away on a business trip.
There hadn’t been doubt in her mind that she would have done it. She would have walked away from the Morozov line to be with Levka. She knew he was too scared of her family, but she didn’t blame him. They were powerful and an unstoppable force. She was scared of them herself. But she was willing to go.
And then, two days before she was going to leave, she was throwing up in the bathroom.
All hope died then. She couldn’t show up to Levka’s doorstep with another man’s baby in her belly. She was already asking for too much by bringing four kids with her. Depression hit hard, and she withered away in bed for months. She lost weight and nearly lost the baby. But thankfully, Rurik hired a nanny this time. He called her weak and a disgrace, but with sleep and rest, she kept her sanity this time around.
Luerna straightened her back as the emotions got locked away. She was proud of herself, and it helped raise her head.
“I thought my father took care of their family,” Adrik said.
“They’ve rebuilt,” Rurik answered. “They’ve partnered themselves with the Utkins, making it impossible for us to do anything about it. I have struggled with cooperating with the Utkins. They want too much for too little. Your father seems to think they are a harmless lot. But Fedor’s reaching for a crown, Adrik. I bet he’s coming for yours.”
Luerna dared to glance up, but found her brother’s cold blue eyes on her. She bowed her head, unsure where to look.
“If my father isn’t worried about the Utkins, neither am I. But get me all the information on the Borisyuks. I could do damage control while I’m here.
Luerna couldn’t stop herself. “Don’t you think father did enough? I mean, he stripped them of everything.”
Adrik sipped his drink before he replied off the shoulder. “He tried to rape our sister. Should I forgive so quickly?”
“Did he really try to rape her? I mean, who would do that in our home? It doesn’t make any sense.”
Adrik turned to face her, surprised she would come to their defense, but Rurik gripped her bicep harshly and interrupted, “Don’t listen to her. She’s medicated.”
The disrespectful comment wasn’t lost on Adrik, and his sharp blue eyes flicked to Rurik. Luerna almost jumped in victory, preparing for Adrik to stand up for her. Her little brother was always the defender and hated Rurik for years. He opened his mouth to say something but snapped his lips shut for some reason and turned away. Luerna sank and bowed her head.
She should know better by now.
“Should I have him removed?” Rurik pursued.
Luerna knew he didn’t give a shit about Levka. He only wanted to be as accommodating to her younger brother, like a dog. Adrik replaced Alexei as heir and now had power. Rurik knew who to suck up to.
“Just leave it alone,” Luerna bit.
Rurik’s fingers dug into her arm, and she hissed.
“No,” Adrik decided. “No reason to disrupt this beautiful night.” He glanced at Rurik’s hold and said, “Give my sister and I a minute.”
There was a hint of hesitation. Rurik squeezed her before letting go and leaving.
Luerna rubbed her arm as Adrik turned to her. With a hand on her back, he shifted her through the crowd till they slipped down a walkway into a small alcove. “Why are you defending Levka?”
“I’m not,” she screeched.
He rolled his eyes at her terrible lie. “Are you fucking him?”
“No–”
“Your whole attitude changed the moment you saw him. And if I noticed, Rurik would have as well. I can’t protect you if I don’t know what you’re doing. What’s going on?”
She shook her head, desperate to answer him honestly. “Nothing. But what happened with Kira isn’t what we thought. He wasn’t going to rape her. He just didn’t want to marry her.”
“That’s an interesting solution.”
She winced. “It was stupid. He knows that.”
“You’re friends, at least. Talk about stupid. Rurik will find out-”
“He won’t–”
“He will, and when he does? I am halfway around the world. He is in charge here. Our uncles will back him up. He can lock you in a cellar and I won’t be able to stop it. Rurik is Papa’s favorite for whatever fucking reason. I cannot go against him. So whatever’s going on, end it. Promise me.”
Luerna had an endless supply of resentment toward anyone that wanted to tell her what to do. “Don’t think you can come here and assess in five seconds what’s going on.” He snatched her hand to keep her from walking away.
“You’re not telling me everything. And the only person that can help you is me.”
“I don’t need your help.”
Alexei and Gil approached with knit brows. “What’s going on?”
Adrik stepped back, releasing Luerna.
“Can you deal with him?” Luerna beseeched Alexei. “He seems to think I need saving. Well, little brother, I’m fine. I’ve been caring for myself for years now, and I don’t need you.” Luerna pushed through both of them. She hated it when her brothers returned. They always acted like they never left, like the power dynamic hadn’t shifted, like they had any clue what life was like here in Russia. But they were ignorant, and it wasn’t technically their fault. Luerna was never forthcoming with information. She wished they would just mind their business.
Luerna shoved her way, keeping her head to the ground so no one would stop her. But inevitably, someone stepped in her way. When she looked up to snap at them, Levka stood in front of her. Hugging his bicep was a young college girl with a stupid grin. Luerna hated everything about her even though there was literally nothing to hate.
“Mr. Borisyuk,” she greeted, subtly using his last name to remind him they were not friends and would never be again. “I’m surprised to see you here.”
“Mrs. Morozov,” he respectfully bowed his head. “We were invited by Fedor Utkins himself.”
She pulled back faster than she probably should have. “Curious. With my family and yours at odds with each other, it does seem motivated.”
“I’m sure it is. But who am I to say no to a superior?”
“Well, at least you know your place.”
Levka clenched his teeth and forced a smile. “I certainly do.”
Her coldness was something he feared. All the progress he had made before had been destroyed. It had been so difficult to get into her bubble and now he wasn’t sure she’d ever allow him in again. But he had to try. The only problem was Levka wasn’t ready yet to take her from Rurik. He was months away, so close and yet too far to reach out to her.
Levka shouldn’t have come tonight. He was a starving man searching for a morsel of food and she was the only thing that could sedate him. He thought if he could just get a piece of her, talk to her, see her, it would ease the pain in his chest, but now he realized his mistake.
A piece wasn’t enough.
“Well, if you’ll excuse me.” She stepped around him, but a hand was on her elbow.
“Wait.”
She snatched out of his touch a bit too harshly. Levka’s girlfriend’s smile faded.
“I have a business venture.” He pulled out a card and quickly wrote something on the back.
“Why would I care about that?”
“It’s about horses.” He held out the card, desperate for her to take it.
Luerna flicked her eyes wildly over him. The eagerness of his gaze told her everything and she almost laughed, wanting nothing more than to slap it out of his hands. If he thought he could come back and she’d just be waiting at the door like a pathetic dog he didn’t know her as well as he claimed.
“Call me. Please.”
She told herself no, but her fingers closed around his for a fraction of a second before he was gone. She didn’t need to look back to be sure. She felt the emptiness of his presence like a hole in the bottom of a pool, sucking all the water out and leaving her drained and heavy.