Chapter 18 #2
She lifts Madison from the table and settles into the armchair beside me. The baby makes a soft, sleepy sound as Alyona rocks her gently. “Thanks for this,” she whispers. “Devin doesn’t get a lot of breaks these days. She could use the sleep.”
“You probably could, too,” I say, glancing up at her. I wonder how she does it, and how she’s been doing it.
I’ve heard the story of how she and Kazimir came together; how my father threatened her when he realized that Kaz Baranov was obsessed with her. The daughter of his best friend.
For a moment we sit there quietly, two women holding two very small humans neither of us had planned to spend the afternoon with. But Liev and Kazimir met in the lobby before heading off to tour the territory we already own, and he didn’t want to leave me at home, even with guards.
I think he got his head about last night. But a part of me softens at the thought.
Then I think, it didn’t mean anything. We are just two people getting the stress out of their systems. That’s what he promised me.
And boy, did he deliver.
Mason squirms slightly in my arms. I adjust my grip automatically, supporting his head the way Aly showed me earlier.
“You’re good at that,” she says.
“At what?”
“Babies.”
I snort softly. “That’s generous.”
“I’m serious.” She studies me for a moment with an expression that is warm but thoughtful. “You look comfortable.”
I glance down at Mason. His eyes are half open now, dark and curious as he stares up at me like I’m the most fascinating thing he’s ever seen.
“I’ve never held a baby before,” I admit.
“Really?”
“My life hasn’t exactly included family moments.”
Alyona nods slowly. “I understand that.”
I look up at her. She shifts Madison against her shoulder, gently patting her back. “I spent most of my life running from the Bratva,” she says.
That surprises me.
“You did?”
“My father was involved in that world before he even came to America,” she explains. “I saw what it did to people, how it shaped everything around them. I lived with my mother and saw my grandparents, mostly. Then he left to follow Kaz here. I swore I would never be part of it.”
I glance toward the twins. “And now?”
She smiles faintly. “Now I’m married to one of its most dangerous men and raising his children.”
“That’s quite a turn.”
“It is. But…I didn’t find what I expected there,” she continues quietly.
“What did you find?”
“Family.”
The word hangs softly in the room.
“I fought it for a long time,” she says. “I told myself that none of those people could ever truly care about each other. That it was all power and survival, but I was wrong.”
Her eyes lift to mine.
“Kazimir would burn the world down for these children,” she says simply.
I believe that immediately.
“I didn’t expect that kind of love,” she adds. “I don’t know if I thought I deserved it or if he meant it. But he proves it time and time again by protecting us.”
“I’ve never really thought about kids,” I admit after a moment.
Alyona tilts her head slightly.
“Not even someday?”
I shake my head.
“I didn’t really have friends growing up.
Not real ones; most of the kids I saw belonged to people my mom hosted at the house.
I never really dated either, and when I was older, I didn’t have time.
After college, it was safe house after safe house.
Every apartment was temporary, and every city was temporary.
” I shrug lightly. “Children didn’t really fit into that equation. ”
She nods with quiet understanding. “That makes sense.”
“I guess I just assumed it wasn’t something I’d ever do.” It feels strange to admit that out loud, and it’s confusing. There’s a mix of nauseous feelings inside me as I skirt the place I’ve never really let my mind go.
Do I want children?
Would my parents be excited? Happy? Or would my father see them as a liability?
Does Liev want children?
I glance back at Alyona, hoping she can’t read my mind.
Suddenly, I realize just how awkward it is to sit in the same room as this woman when I fucked her dad the night before.
Somehow, she doesn’t seem to think the circumstances of our relationship are strange. Maybe because hers are just as weird.
Mason makes a small cooing sound. Without thinking, I rock him gently. Alyona watches the movement with a soft smile.
“You have a natural instinct for it,” she says again.
I laugh quietly. “You’re very determined to convince me of this.”
She shrugs. “Because it’s true.”
“Do you miss Europe?” I ask, trying to change the subject. “Your grandparents, or your mom’s family?”
Her nose scrunches up, blonde locks falling out of a messy bun. “Not the way I thought I would, to be honest. I grew up around my grandparents, but I think now that they always saw me as tainted. By…my dad,” she glances up at me, as if embarrassed at the admission.
Tainted by Liev?
“They didn’t like him?”
“Why would they?” she almost-snorts. “I can’t blame them. I saw him the same way then, too. A monster. A killer. Someone power-hungry and willing to leave me behind.”
I open my mouth. Close it. But Aly’s eyes narrow.
With a sigh, I admit what I was holding back: “I don’t see him that way at all.
Probably because I grew up more entrenched in this world than you did.
But I can’t imagine what it was like feeling as if he abandoned you.
I just think…he’s doing this for you, you know?
And the babies. He kills people, yeah, but he does it for a good cause, as twisted as that sounds. To build a world for your family.”
“You’re part of it,” she cuts in. “You know that, right?” We stare one another down, the suite suddenly feeling small and airless. A place where I can’t hide. “He’d do anything for you, Ryder.”
“He told you that?” I ask skeptically.
Aly shakes her head. “He doesn’t have to. I know you two didn’t exactly get to choose this, but… Sometimes the places we resist the most end up being where you find your people.”
My people.
The idea feels unfamiliar and impossible, and I desperately want it.
* * *
Kazimir chose the most obnoxious restaurant he could, but I can see why. Several transportation executives we recently partnered with like to gather here after meetings.
That doesn’t make me resent it any less. Especially considering I’m wearing a dress that hugs my body uncomfortably, but so do my tactical clothes.
“You can take it off if you want,” Liev murmurs, his breath ghosting over my earlobe as we step through the doors. The sensation sends a shiver down my spine.
Our eyes meet. My heart races with the implication: stripping myself bare. The things I’d do to him; the things I want to do to him. Even here.
On a table. On the floor. Up against the wall.
When did I get so voracious? I nudge him away with an eye roll, trying to ignore his smirk and the tug at my core.
The dining room hums with conversation and low music while servers glide between tables carrying trays of cocktails and small plates. When we sit, I lean back in my chair with a drink in my hand and feel pleasantly loose for the first time in days.
Across the table, Liev is speaking with two port logistics managers about cargo schedules. His posture is relaxed, but his voice carries the quiet authority that always makes people listen carefully.
I probably shouldn’t be staring at him.
But I am.
My husband looks unfairly good tonight. His dark suit fits him perfectly, and the dim lighting catches the sharp line of his jaw every time he turns his head.
The conversation around the table fades into the background while I study the way he gestures calmly as he explains something about shipping routes to the south.
Alyona nudges my arm.
“You’re staring.”
I drag my eyes away and take another sip of my drink.
“I’m observing.”
“You’re staring,” she repeats with a small grin.
I lower my voice and shrug. “He cleans up well.”
Kazimir glances over at us from across the table. “What are you two whispering about?”
“Nothing,” Alyona says smoothly.
I laugh quietly and rest my elbow on the table. The alcohol warms my chest just enough to soften the constant edge of alertness I usually carry.
For a moment, everything feels almost normal.
* * *
We finish the meeting an hour later and move outside toward the valet area. The crowd thins as people drift toward their cars, the street lit by storefront lights and passing traffic.
Kazimir is saying something to one of the businessmen when it happens.
The first man comes out of nowhere.
He shoves past the valet stand and lunges straight toward our group. Another figure appears behind him, moving fast with his head down.
My instincts snap into place instantly, and my hands search my waist, my hips, but there are no weapons on me, unless you count these stupid fucking heels.
The first attacker reaches Alyona.
Before I can react, Kazimir steps forward and grabs the man by the collar. The movement is sharp and brutal. I hear the dull crack of impact as Kazimir drives him backward into the side of a parked car.
The second man charges toward me.
I pivot and block his first swing, catching his wrist and twisting it hard enough to make him grunt. The move throws him off balance, and I drive my knee into his stomach.
He staggers but doesn’t go down.
People around us shout as the scene explodes into chaos. Cell phones are raised, voices reporting a fight to dispatchers.
The attacker swings again, and I duck under the punch, aiming a strike toward his ribs. My hand connects, but the man barely reacts before grabbing my shoulder and trying to throw me off balance. A ripping sound tells me that the dress is probably coming off tonight, though not the way I planned.
We crash against the side of another car.
I push back, forcing space between us, but he’s bigger than I expected and his grip tightens painfully around my arm.
Across the street, I see Kazimir dragging his attacker down to the pavement. The man tries to scramble away, but Kaz moves with ruthless precision, cutting the struggle short. There’s a blur of movement just behind them; Liev taking on two others.
Alyona steps back toward the wall, keeping clear of the fight.
My opponent lunges again. This time he drives into me hard enough that we both stumble. My back hits the pavement, and the air rushes out of my lungs, shoulder blades spiking with pain.
The man pulls out a garrote, a thin wire between two handles of wood, unwinding it rapidly.
Then another figure slams into him from the side.
Liev.
He grabs the attacker and wrenches him away from me with explosive force. The two men collide against the side of the car and trade brutal blows while I scramble to sit up.
Liev moves like controlled violence.
One strike to the ribs. Another to the jaw.
The garrote clatters to the ground as the attacker staggers, and Liev finishes it with a crushing hit that sends him collapsing to the pavement. Police lights fill the street in shattering blue-and-red, passersby watching in shock as I try to catch my breath.
This isn’t good; with the law involved, we can’t haul the men off for questioning. It’ll take time. Greased palms and back-door favors.
For a moment everything goes still.
I look up at Liev from where I’m sitting on the ground. Relief floods through me when our eyes meet.
“Nice timing,” I say weakly.
His expression shifts the instant he looks down at me. Concern flashes across his face.
“Ryder—”
Something feels wrong. A strange heat spreads down my thigh. I glance down. Bright blood is visible against my now-pale skin through the slit in the skirt. The fabric itself feels wet, soaked, but the black hides how bad it is.
“Oh,” I whisper.
The world tilts suddenly.
Liev is moving toward me, his voice sharp and urgent, but the sound fades as the darkness rushes in.
Then everything goes black.