Twenty-Seven
Twenty-Seven
GUNNER
?
Now
“Tell me what you know?”
I settle in my seat, my eyes trail to Victor who has just finished a call. I need to know everything I can, especially with this flight only being a few hours. We don’t have time for hemming and hawing about shit. Since leaving the clubhouse, he has been on his phone barking orders. When Savvy tried to explain to me what she knew, he shut her down with a look that had my woman stepping away from him, hurt and anger shining in her eyes. At that moment, Pakhan or not, I wanted to knock the motherfucker into the middle of next week for putting that look on my woman’s face. Savvy saw the promise and danger in my eyes and acted, pulling me to her, promising that he will tell me what I need to know in time. Of course, it pissed me off, but I understood my woman was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She is my woman, but she’s also his daughter and a member of the organization. As much as it pisses me off, I understand his need to keep what he knows close to his chest, but I don’t fucking like it.
Even though Bellamy was stupid for doing what she did, her decision is why we are on this jet headed to some bumfuck town in Rhode Island. While everyone gets settled, Victor doesn’t answer me immediately as he takes his seat directly across from me and gets situated. Victor is hiding something, that much is obvious by the way he shut Savvy down earlier. It is definitely some witchy woo shit. The longer we go with him not laying his card on the table, the more it’s pissing me the fuck off, but I know I need to be patient. Savvy squeezes my hand and I turn to look at her, my eyes trail from hers to the hand not holding mine. She has her engagement ring around her neck as she plays with it. My eyes return to hers. The smile of her lips has me leaning over and kissing her. I can tell that she is not a fan of the PDA in front of her Pops, but I don’t give a shit and smile into the kiss. Pulling away from her, I give her a wink and sit back in my seat. eyes returning to Victor, who is watching us with a look of approval in his eyes, which is surprising. His eyes leave mine for a second to look at the ring in my woman’s hand and back to me, giving me a nod. He already knew I planned to propose. The fucker is traditional in that way–he hadn’t known when.
I glare at him. He chuckles and shakes his head and then all humor falls from his face and in its place the stoic contemplative mask replaces it. It’s a look I’m more used to seeing. Pushing back into his seat, Victor adjusts the sleeves of his gray tailed suite. The man is in his mid-sixties and doesn’t look much older than me. His dark hair is peppered with gray, his six-foot frame is packed with muscle and his jaw is square and hard. His frost blue eyes are not reflecting their usual cold disinterest in me, but they aren’t warm and fuzzy either. I watch him as he watches me.
The attendant interrupts our stare off, asking us what we would like to drink. I ask for water, not Victor. He asks for a bottle of Imperial Vodka and two glasses. I don’t miss that he speaks to her in English while she spoke to him in Russian. Everything from the moment he told me and my crew that we needed to make way to our small airport in Biddeford, I’ve been watching him more closely. Watching for any sign, any indication of what he is holding back, because he is holding back. The tightness in his eyes, the faraway look he gets when doesn’t think anyone is watching, the tightness of his lips tells me he has secrets. Secrets that I’ll be damned he will be keeping.
“She has been taken.” He says lowly. His eyes never leave mine.
I glare at him. My body is tight with frustration at anger. Savvy’s hand in mine tightens as her breath catches. I don’t look at her, my eyes remain on Victors. This motherfucker better start talking or I’m going to lose my shit. I don’t ask him again–I wait him out.
“She didn’t take her team with her.” With a shake of his head. “Always so stubborn, my vnuchka. She refused our doctors. She wanted her own doctor, not from the family.” He says, giving Savvy a look I don’t understand. My woman curses, but doesn’t elaborate on what that means. “She did her research...” His words trail off.
“Victor, I swear to fuck. Who the fuck has been taken?” I growl.
Savvy says my name softly. Again, not to be a dick. I ignore her, choosing to focus on Victor. This motherfucker better start talking. This you will know when you need to, has me on fucking edge.
Letting out a resigned breath. Before he answers, his attention gets pulled away by one of Savvy’s older brothers, Demyan, who also happens to be Victor”s second. He’s a silent, broody motherfucker hates my fucking guts, and he makes sure I know it. I ignore his glare as he leans down and speaks to his father. His eyes soften when they meet his sisters, but the scowl quickly returns. I watch them, Victor”s eyes tighten the longer Demyan speaks. And then the stoic man explodes from his seat, pushing his son away from him, causing Savvy to startle at my side. His fury is like a living, breathing thing as he clenches his fist at his side. His fa?ade has gone in its place, the beast of the Petrov Bratva. Whatever Demyan told him is something that has had the man ready to burn the world to the ground.
“They will all die. I am done chasing my tail and keeping the peace. GET HIM ON THE PHONE NOW.”
Everyone stills as we watch Victor. Victor paces the expanse of the aisle of the jet as Demyan stands, glaring at his phone. Putting the phone to his ear, he says a few harsh words and when his father reaches him, he wordlessly hands the phone to him. A few harsh words in Russian leave Victor”s lips before he switches to English.
“You have made your choice. I told you when my daughter severed ties with the faction, that I would not allow for any more of your coven”s underhanded bullshit. I let her live after she infiltrated my organization and got her team killed. She was supposed to stay in the shadows and we would not interfere in your business.” He curses in Russian. “Bogdan, she has taken three of my granddaughters. Three. She will die along with anyone who has helped her in this quest of hers. You should have done your duty, because now I’m coming for all. And nothing will stop me, no mercy. That help you asked for, will never happen. I have informed your High Priest on what he needs to know. Go to him for your shit, because I am done with you.”
He listens to who I assume is the leader of whatever coven Julia is connected to. Fucking witchy woo shit. I swear I never want to hear another thing about this fucking shit ever again in my fucking life. Ignorance is damn bliss. Victor”s face, previously filled with fury, is now stoic as he listens.
“If you are wrong. If you are lying to me. You will die?” Victor”s voice is menacing as he hangs up the phone.
He turns toward the cabin and speaks in Russian, a flurry of movement has everyone connected with Victor moving in haste. My brothers and I look around, not getting answers. They look at me. I’m as out of the loop as they are. I shrug, letting them know I’m as lost as they are at what is going on.
So when Victor returns to his seat, eyes back on me, I raise a brow in question.
“That was Bogdan Cleruch. He is the coven leader of the Cleruch coven in New York. He is also Julia’s father.”
It takes everything in me not to ask the million and one questions floating around in my head.
“He has known what Julia was up to for many years. I will give him his credit. He had tried to stave off this foolish quest of hers.” He says, shaking his head, his Russian accent strong, making it a little harder to understand him, but I get the jest of it.
“Julia’s mother, once a strong contributor to their coven, began losing her powers. It was a consequence of her actions. She began meddling in things she did not understand. In doing so, her powers waned, and in order to stop it. She siphoned the powers of other coven members. She’d convinced those members” of her coven that their loss was a natural occurrence, not something she had caused. Vanna was very convincing, and many believed her, but some did not. When Bogdan discovered her treachery, she was tried by their laws and executed nearly a decade ago. Julia hated her father for taking her mother away from her because she believed everything she was told. With a few of her mother’s followers, she continued Vanna’s work, believing that their loss of power could be remedied with a ritual that includes sacrificing the daughters of one.. So she started her little quest to gather all the daughters that were born to certain families after the two hundredth anniversary of the death of High Priestess Marlo. Her goal is to complete a ritual which she believes will restore her coven”s power and give them so much more. The ritual calls for the sacrificing of the daughters of one over the bones of Marlo. Marlo is said to be one of the most powerful and prolific witches of her time, whose power had been bound to her bones. The witch was smart and afraid that after her death, her coven or another would gain access to her power and use it in ways she would not agree with. She understood people and their lust for power. She understood that light and darkness were only a hair apart. And she did what needed to be done. She refused to allow the goddess gift she was blessed with to cause others pain. She was a pacifist only using her craft for good, unlike many others.” He pauses and shakes his head.
“Bogdan, knowing all of this and his daughter”s plan, is the reason Sin was left in my printsessa care. He knew she would be safe with us under our protection. He knew that without her, the plan Julia concocted would be mute. He was wrong and underestimated his daughter. Julia has bided her time, moved chess pieces to fit her needs and enlisted others. She has prayed on her lessors, promising something she could never follow through with. And now she plans to go through with her foolish ritual, one that I’ve been guaranteed will not work. Because only the High Priestess knows this, at least until she bestowed the information upon me. There is no way to unbind a witch”s power from her bones. All text to do such a ritual was destroyed by Marlo and all memory of it she removed from those that knew of it. Marlo took all of it with her in death.”
I process his words before speaking.
“You say that this chick is delusional as fuck, and she needs to die?” I nod a few times, hearing my brothers and woman chuckle. “Well, then let”s get the fuck in the air and fuck up her witchy woo plans and end the bitch.” I say, sitting back in my seat and getting comfortable.
Victor stares at me for a moment. He chuckles, realizing that I’m not going to ask questions. This shit is above my paygrade. I want my girls back safe and sound and any threat to them eliminated. The end. This witchy shit is for the organization, faction and whoever else to deal with.