Chapter 30
Dmitri
I’m not surprised when I’m summoned to a meeting with the Bratva Council.
By now, I’m sure enough word has spread for them to know what all went down at the farmhouse and the damage that was done. They’re pissed. I already know that.
With Isaak standing guard outside my penthouse, I leave Cara on the couch in my living room with a book in her hand, a blanket draped over her frail body, and a heating pad pressed to her lower back. She keeps insisting she’s fine, but her winces say otherwise.
I don’t like leaving her alone, but I won’t bring her in front of the Council. I just got her back, and the last thing that I’m going to do is endanger her by putting her in the presence of people who would prefer if she were dead.
Cara’s like glass to me right now, fragile in ways I can’t fix with guns or money.
And I’m terrified my anger will become the next thing that breaks her.
I’m worried that I’ll hurt her somehow, even if all I want to do is keep her safe.
Things are still so fucked up.
Before striding into the conference room where the Bratva Council is waiting, I pause outside of the double doors and take a breath, knowing that even stepping foot inside this building is risky. I’m not their favorite person right now.
That’s why I’ve planted loyal men nearby. If I don’t walk out in an hour, Luca and Andrei will know, and Sean will make sure Cara disappears somewhere safe.
I pull open the double doors and walk inside, setting my jaw as more than a dozen eyes fall on me. I take a seat in the empty chair at the end of the table, my gaze immediately going to Victor as he sits at the other end.
“Let’s get this over with,” I mutter.
Bitter murmurs echo up and down the table as disappointed faces surround me. I never expected to be the black sheep, but I might as well embrace it now.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing teaming up with the Irish?” Victor grits out.
“You know exactly what I was doing,” I tell him as I fix him with a challenging stare. “The Italians took Cara hostage because they were pissed off at me for allying with an exiled family member. They were torturing her, and none of you were going to help me find her. I had to find help elsewhere.”
“You have been burning bridges left and right, Ivanov,” Valentin warns me from my left, looking at me like I’m a misbehaving dog. “Why can’t you just do what you’re told?”
“You pissed off the Suyunovs. Now, you’ve killed Paolo’s nephew! The Ferros want blood,” Pavel adds, tossing a hand up in frustration.
“And why would you ally with someone on the Italians’ blacklist? Are you trying to start a war?” Anton questions me from my right.
“I did what you refused to do,” I say, eyes locked on Victor. “I found Cara. I brought her home. And I ended a war with the Irish that was bleeding us dry and made a new ally.” I lean forward. “You’re welcome.”
Victor scoffs. “As if we want to ally ourselves with the likes of the Irish. Sean O’Malley is trash. Do you truly believe you can trust him just because his daughter has you by the balls?”
I curl my fingers into a fist under the table, holding myself back from splitting his face open. It won’t do me any good right now. I’ve got enough on my plate trying to track down the Italians who escaped from the farmhouse.
“I’m confident in that alliance for now,” I reply in a steady voice. “We’ll need them if the Italians decide to strike back.”
“If?” Pavel scoffs. “Of course, they will! This isn’t a war that we wanted! You need to clean up your mess yet again.”
“He needs to do what he’s told. If he can’t prove himself loyal and useful, he shouldn’t lead anyone,” Valentin says. “Maybe he should be forced out of Las Vegas altogether.”
“Trying to remove me from the city would destabilize Vegas. You’ll lose more than you gain,” I warn them as my eyes sharpen. “I’ve built something here, just like Mikhail wanted, and I plan on staying for a while longer,” I say evenly.
Victor’s face hardens, his fingers pausing in their constant spinning of his family ring. “Built something? You could’ve built an entire empire if you’d just married Annika! That alliance is vital for the Bratva to flourish in this city!”
They’re still overestimating Artur’s worth, but all they see are dollar signs.
“You can still correct some of your mistakes. Grovel at Artur’s feet. Agree to marry his daughter and bridge the divide that you caused,” Anton demands as he jabs his finger toward me.
I can’t help the laugh that rumbles in my chest as I shake my head at them. Honestly, I’m more pissed off than amused. “How many times have I told you that I’m not marrying her? No, and that’s final.”
Victor stands abruptly, making the table shake. “You better watch yourself, Ivanov! You’ve been on thin ice for months now, and if you think that you can just sit there and deny direct orders without consequence, you’re mistaken!”
I don’t even flinch as he bellows at me in Russian, my face remaining stiff and unchanged. Whatever they say doesn’t matter. I’ve come so far that it’s too late to turn back, even if they claim that I can get back into their good graces.
Why the hell would I?
“I’m not trying to harm the Bratva. That’s never been my intention,” I say evenly. “But I won’t roll over and just obey any order. Not if it fucks me over. Throwing me into a marriage just to please one Bratva family isn’t even smart business. Think bigger.”
Victor scoffs at me and drops back down into his chair, his face red.
“If you truly care about your family and the Bratva, you need to do some damage control before we’re all doomed from your mistakes.
Either marry Annika or at least give up the exiled Italian to cleanse this bad blood with the Ferros. ”
I told Luca that I wouldn’t throw him to the wolves. He helped me get Cara back, and I don’t plan on rewarding his aid by stabbing him in the back. What kind of man would that make me?
“I won’t do either of those things,” I tell them, hearing a collection of frustrated, disbelieving groans and grumbles.
“Do you understand what kind of danger you’re putting the Bratva in? Unnecessarily?” Valentin snaps at me.
“The Italians have always been a threat!” I bite back, my anger starting to crest. “They’re not innocent. They’re not our friends. We were bound to clash with them eventually, and they are the ones who declared war by taking Cara from me!”
“She is not one of us!” Victor says as he slams his fist against the top of the table, making it shudder from the force.
“If she’s with me, she is,” I grit out before casting them all a warning glare. “And if anyone touches her again, I won’t hunt for proof. I’ll start with this table.”
Eyes widen in bewilderment as silence fills the room. Just for a second, though. An explosion of angry voices follows, demanding that I be exiled or punished for the blasphemy that I just spewed.
I’m tired of hearing it.
“I think this meeting is over,” I say as I stand from my seat and button my suit jacket. “Remember what I said. Don’t even think about going near Cara.”
“Dmitri!” Victor shouts after me as I stride toward the double doors.
I ignore him and all the rest yelling after me. If I go back in there, they’ll just tell me the same shit that they’ve already spouted. Marry Annika. Give up Luca. Toss aside Cara.
I won’t do any of that.
Maybe I was obedient before because I cared about titles and positions, but obsessing over those things has gotten me nowhere.
The only thing that has given me power and strength is falling in love with a woman that I shouldn’t have.
Loving her didn’t weaken me. It showed me exactly what I’m willing to burn down.
Once I leave the building, I walk over to the next street where Mark is behind the wheel of a black sedan waiting for me. I get into the passenger’s seat and shut the door, nodding for him to drive off.
“Take me back to the penthouse. I’m canceling all my other meetings today,” I tell him.
After that unproductive talk, I don’t want to be away from Cara for too long. I trust Isaak to defend her if anything happens, but no one will protect her the way I will.
Mark nods as he pulls away from the sidewalk. “Anything else you need?”
“I need you and the others to discreetly keep an eye on the Council members,” I tell him.
Mark glances over at me with widening eyes. “The Council members? Why?”
“I don’t trust them,” I state as I text Isaak to get an update on how things are at my building. “They’re not very happy about what went down with the Italians. They want me to give up Luca.”
Mark draws in a deep breath before sighing. “I don’t typically trust those outside of the Bratva, but Luca did help us.”
“Loyalty doesn’t mean what it used to,” I tell him as my eyes sweep from window to window, checking our surroundings.
“You’re supposed to be loyal to your family and direct allies.
Now, you can’t even trust those who are supposed to have your back.
You can put more trust in the man who used to be your sworn enemy. ”
Mark taps his thumb against the top of the steering wheel, fidgeting as he waits at a stoplight. “When did things get so goddamn complicated?”
“When power and money became more important than family and trust,” I reply, remembering back in the day how tight-knit families were. Now, they’re all splintered, torn apart by greed.
“Do you think there’s any way to get back to that?” Mark asks me.
“Only if the people in charge stop feeding on everyone beneath them,” I say.
Mark lets out a little scoff as he presses down on the gas, heading in the direction of my penthouse. “I don’t see how that can happen. Not without a bunch of people dying.”
“Sometimes, you have to cut out the rot,” I tell him as I glance in the rearview mirror where the building I just came from looms in the background.
The men on the Bratva Council have been around since I was a kid. They made the rules that they hold the rest of us to, and they punish anyone who steps out of line. The only reason they’ve been dragging their feet to do anything to me is because they know that I’m supported.
I have money and allies. I have men who are more loyal to me than them. And they know that I’ll stick to my word and rain down hell on them if they try anything.
My phone buzzes with a new message from Isaak.
Everything is quiet here. All good.
I quietly exhale, releasing some of the tension weighing down my shoulders. As long as Cara stays safe, I can focus on what’s ahead.
If I have to wage war in order to track down and kill every single person who hurt her, I will. According to Cara, it could be dozens. She doesn’t even know the exact number of people who questioned her and tortured her.
The rot is deep.
And I’m done pretending it won’t spread unless someone starts cutting.