Chapter Forty Maksim
After my talk with Hudson, I went down to the club site to see how the clean up was coming along. I needed something to focus on to get my mind off of seeing Sarah tomorrow.
Somehow, I managed to keep focused for the next couple of hours. I was just heading back to my office when my phone rang. At the name on the screen, I immediately answered. “Sammy?”
My heart sank when I was greeted with sobs. “Sammy, what’s wrong?”
“Sarah and I had a fight.”
“Oh buddy, I’m so sorry.”
“I’m mad at her for being mad at you.”
I exhaled a ragged breath as I searched to find the right words.
“Like I said the other night, Sarah is right to be mad at me. I don’t want to tell you what it was because that’s between her and me.
But just know, I did something really mean to her.
It’s going to take her some time to get over it.
So just be nice to her right now, okay?”
Silence echoed over the line. “Can you come over?”
I knew that I shouldn't, but I couldn’t tell him no. Not now after he’d fought with Sarah to defend me. “Yeah, I can. Give me about an hour, okay?”
“Thanks, Maks.”
“No problem, buddy.”
Vasily met my gaze in the rear-view mirror. “Change of plans, boss?”
Nodding, I said, “I need to grab some things from my office first.” When I glanced out the window to gauge where we were, I realized we were close to Irish territory and the bakery Sammy loved.
“First, let’s make a pitstop at O’Brien’s.”
“Isn’t that an–”
“Yeah, it’s an Irish b-bakery, but I’ve been given clearance.”
“If you say so.”
“I’ll call ahead, so it’ll b-be ready.”
“Is this Joyce?”
“Yes. Why?”
“It’s Maksim Korolov.”
A pause came over the line. “Oh, uh, hello, Mr. Korolov.”
“I’d like a dozen of your red velvet cupcakes.”
Once again, there was silence. “Um, sure. We have those for you.”
My skin prickled slightly at her behavior, but then it hit me. Sarah had seen Sammy today, so she’d probably been in the bakery. Joyce knew we’d broken up, so it was awkward for her to talk to me.
“Good. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
“They’ll be ready.”
“See you then.”
After I hung up, I texted Leandro to let him know I needed to shift our meeting about the club update.
When we pulled up at the bakery, Vasily asked, “Would you like me to get them, boss?”
“No. It might look like a slight, so I’ll do it.”
“Yes, sir.”
When I got inside, Michael was at the counter to greet me instead of Joyce. From his expression, I knew she’d told him. I gave him a tight smile. “I guess good news travels fast.”
He furrowed his brows. “What do you mean?”
“About me and Sarah.”
“What about her?”
I frowned. “I thought you and Joyce were acting weird because we broke up.”
At that moment, the tinkle of the bell over the door sounded. When I whirled around, there stood Matvey and Kirill.
Cocking my brows at them, I said, “Well, this is unexpected. I would’ve expected your sons, rather than you.”
Kirill smiled cruelly. “Never trust somebody to do your own murder.”
As I pushed the panic button on my watch to alert Vasily and my brothers that I was in danger, I couldn’t help chuckling. “I guess that means you don’t trust them anymore than I did.”
“Shut your mouth.”
When I threw a glance at my waiting SUV, my heart sank at the sight of Vasily’s head slumped against the steering wheel. I had one gun on me, so I didn’t know how the fuck I was going to play this.
And then three other men poured out from the back of the bakery.
Fuck. I was a dead man walking. There was no way in hell anyone could get to me in time. After everything I’d been through in life, I was going to get taken out in a fucking Irish bakery in enemy territory by my own fucking blood.
Swallowing hard, I cocked my head at Krill and Matvey. “You two really want t-to take it this far? I mean, I get b-bombing the club, but what exactly d-do you plan to gain by assassinating me? Dima will still rule, and I have t-two other brothers to take his place if you end him as well.”
Jabbing a finger at him, I relaxed my jaw and slowed my speech to deliver my next statement without any stutters. “Our men will never, ever allow you two bastards to take over the Korolov Bratva. You might have the last name, but you sure as fuck don’t have the support.”
Kirill gave me a cruel smile. “This isn’t about taking over the Bratva. It’s retribution for you killing our brother.”
“While I wished it had been at my hands, he was taken out by a woman,” I spat back.
Matvey unsheathed a long dagger. “Oh, don’t worry. We’ll get to her as well.”
My chest clenched in agony at the thought of them hurting Mila. Tamping down my fear for her, I replied, “She’s going to be a Kavanaugh, so good luck with that.”
“Where there is a will, there will always be a way,” Matvey replied.
With a smirk, I spit in his face. As he swiped it off his face, I dropped into a fighter’s stance. “All right fuckers. Show me what you’ve got.”
And as the three men from the back descended on me, I only saw Sarah’s face before me. Dying with her beautiful face before me and her name on my lips was the way I wanted to go.