20. Daniil
Daniil
We drive down the long driveway, and the farmhouse comes into view, an old wooden structure surrounded by dense trees that cast everything in shadow.
Two buildings sit behind the main house where Calder keeps his chickens and workshop.
He doesn’t let many people onto his property.
I’ve only been here a handful of times, and always with Yulian.
We get out and head toward the house. Tank starts barking his head off before we even make it to the door.
It swings open, and Calder stands there wearing an acid wash kimono with nothing underneath, holding onto his pug’s collar to stop him from launching himself at us.
He raises an eyebrow and looks us over for a moment before stepping aside without saying anything, letting us in.
We step inside, and I’m hit with the chaos immediately.
Dark orange walls covered in vintage neon signs, furniture in every color thrown together without any logic, road signs and strange pictures plastered everywhere, weird things decorating every surface.
It shouldn’t work, but somehow it does. I love it. All the colors feel right.
Calder sets Tank on the floor and tilts his head. “Did you miss me, or is this a wellness check? Because I swear, the hand in your mother’s freezer wasn’t mine. If she says it was, she’s lying—Yulian did it.”
What the fuck?
“Where is he? We need to talk to him,” Mikhail says.
“He’s not in the mood for you right now. He’s busy.”
“Busy with what?”
He rolls his eyes. “Nothing that concerns you.”
That’s weird. And vague.
Yulian appears behind Calder and raises his eyebrows, crossing his arms. He’s wearing a black suit with a tie. “I’m really not in the mood for you after what you pulled at that lunch. Both of you can leave.”
“There was a reason for it,” Mikhail blurts out.
“Yeah? What was that? Being a dickhead?” Yulian says flatly. “Fuck you, Mikhail. After you two left, our father punched me and then said he would cut off my Vegas operations if I don’t get better numbers for him.”
He turns and walks off dramatically. Calder rubs his temple with a sigh, then follows.
Tank runs straight for me, and I crouch down to pet him. He leans into my hand, tail wagging, and I scoop him up. Mikhail stares at me like I’ve lost my mind.
“That demon lets you pet him? Watch it, he bites.”
Tank has never bitten me, so I have no idea what he’s talking about. Mikhail walks off after Calder, and I follow, Tank still in my arms.
Cows moo in the distance, and I hear the occasional chickens clucking. Calder owns these silkie chickens that look like someone dipped them in glue and threw them into a pile of hair. His grandmother owns the farm with cows next door.
We find Yulian in the living room, standing by the window with his arms still crossed. He doesn’t turn around when we enter.
“We need your help,” Mikhail says.
“Nyet, asshole.”
“Yulian, come on.”
“I said no.”
“It was a distraction,” Mikhail says.
Yulian finally turns around and narrows his eyes. “A distraction for what?”
Mikhail glances at me, then back at Yulian. “We needed to get into Father’s office for information.”
“Information about what?”
“About Danya. He took a DNA test, and we’ve been trying to find his biological family.”
“You’re so dead.” Yulian starts laughing and shakes his head. “He’s going to kill you. Last time you asked him these questions as a kid, he beat the shit out of you and broke your arm. Told you to never bring it up again. What are you two thinking?”
Mikhail rubs the back of his head. Yulian’s phone keeps lighting up on the table, and he glances at it before sighing and ignoring it.
“I don’t know anything, okay? I haven’t exactly cared enough to look into it. Daniil is one of us. You see how Mother treats him? He’s her precious youngest baby,” Yulian says, gesturing at me with his hand.
Calder hums and rubs his chin. “We could look into those files we came across—”
Yulian grabs his arm and shakes his head, mouthing shut up.
“Do you remember anything from when Danya came to us?” Mikhail asks.
Yulian sighs and curses under his breath. His phone lights up again, and he stares at it for a second, jaw clenching.
“I don’t know much. But I was older, so I remember things you two can’t.
” He leans back against the wall. “What I do remember is that you spent a month in the hospital. I went with Mother to visit you once. She said you were so badly malnourished the doctors weren’t sure you’d make it.
You had infections. Cuts all over. Whatever they’re keeping from you about your past, it’s bad. I can promise you that much.”
That picture haunts me. The hollow cheeks, the bruises.
All these small details are slowly connecting, forming a picture I can almost see. But the whole story still doesn’t make sense. Not yet.
Maybe we should stop looking into this. The bad feeling keeps growing stronger, and if someone did that to a two-year-old, starved them until they were barely alive, what would they do to me now that I’m digging into their secrets?
What would they do to Mikhail for helping me?
I can’t let him get hurt because of this.
That would destroy me. He’s become obsessed with finding answers for me, with uncovering the truth no matter what it costs.
That’s just how he is. He sees something broken and throws himself into fixing it without considering the consequences.
He’s relentless when he decides to do something.
The fact that they’re hiding it so carefully has to mean something though. You don’t go through this much effort to bury the past unless there’s something dangerous there. Something they need to stay hidden.
Calder opens his mouth, but Yulian shoots him a look and cuts him off.
“You know what? We can look into it. But only if you stop throwing things at me during family dinners and never step foot inside my house ever again.”
“You deserve everything that’s been thrown at you,” Mikhail counters.
“I don’t, it’s just fun annoying all of you. Alexei’s the worst. He has no control over his temper as much as he pretends he does. Things just fly out of his hands the moment someone says something he doesn’t like,” Yulian says and smirks. “It’s entertaining.”
He’s not wrong.
“Show me everything you have. Me and Calder found something the other day that might be useful.” Yulian pushes off the wall. “But if Father finds out about this, I’m throwing both of you under the bus. I’m not taking the fall for your mess.”
“Deal.”
Yulian’s eyes narrow. “And Mikhail? You owe me. Big.”
“Fair.”
He gestures towards the sofa, and we follow.
I set Tank down on the floor, and he trots off to lie by the fireplace.
Mikhail sits down first, and I drop next to him, close enough that our thighs press together.
His fingers brush against mine, hidden between us where they can’t see, and he extends his pinky.
We hook them together, and the small contact makes my pulse kick up.
We explain everything. Yulian writes everything down in his phone without looking up, then stands and walks outside through the back door, already dialing.
Calder’s been studying us this whole time, sitting across from us with his legs crossed. “You two are so screwed if anyone finds out,” he says suddenly. “Be careful. And if you ever need help, I’m here.”
Mikhail and I look at each other, confused.
“What?” Mikhail says sharply.
He glances toward the back door where Yulian paces with his phone pressed to his ear, then back at us. “I was the one who saw you in the stairwell.”
Mikhail jumps to his feet and glares down at him.
Calder sighs. “I don’t care about it. I’m not an Avrorin, and trust me, you two being together isn’t surprising. I’m not telling anyone, so sit down.”
Mikhail’s hands flex, knuckles going white. “You—”
“Relax.” Calder waves him off and drags both hands over his shaved, tattooed head, grinning. “I’m like a vault. Got all kinds of things locked up here, and yours is just another entry. Now sit.”
Mikhail sits back down slowly, still glaring.
He’s not going to tell anyone?
I trust him. We all do. He keeps secrets for the entire family, and no one ever questions his loyalty. He takes orders without hesitation, keeps his mouth shut, and cleans up our messes without asking questions. If Calder knows something, it dies with him.
“Just be careful. You know how Roman is.” He glances at the door again, then back at us. “Listen, Yulian’s going through some things right now. Something that’s eating him alive. I know he acts like an ass most of the time, but he’s stressed. Don’t take it personally.”
Mikhail opens his mouth, probably to ask what the hell that means, but the back door swings open and Yulian walks back in.
“I have a plan,” he says, pocketing his phone. “I’m sending a private plane to Germany with someone I trust. It takes off in an hour. They’ll dig into the massacre, see what they can find.”
“Thanks,” Mikhail says.
Yulian waves him off and crosses the room toward the couch. Before he can sit down, Calder’s phone rings. He stands, and Yulian snatches the phone from his hand, cursing as he answers it.
“Conference call,” Calder says, looking like he’s choosing his words carefully. “Be back in ten.”
Biting my lip, I look at Mikhail and shoot to my feet to grab him.
He raises his eyebrows at me. “What trouble are you going to get us into now?”
I push him into the bathroom and lock the door after us, then shove down my pants and put my ass out for him. “I need you to fuck me, but we don’t have any lube so you’ll have to use spit.”
“Ya ne mogu nasytitsya toboy,” he murmurs, then spins me around. I can’t get enough of you. I look down at him in confusion as he drops to his knees and takes my already hard cock in his mouth, sucking me deep without warning.