Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
Andrei
The wedding kiss ended between Lilith and me.
From the corner of my eye, I caught Luca in the back row. His face flushed red, then drained white. He sat there like someone had ripped his soul right out of him.
I pulled my gaze back to Lilith.
She was looking at Luca too. I saw the corner of her mouth lift. Then she turned and buried her face in my shoulder, her body trembling with laughter. I held her close.
Good. My sweet little wife was pleased.
Seeing that beautiful smile made everything worth it. I took her hand and led her down from the altar.
The ceremony wrapped up. The photographer was waiting in the church's side hall.
He positioned us in front of the stained glass windows.
Afternoon sunlight poured through the colored panes, scattering jeweled fragments across Lilith's white veil—like someone had crushed a box of gemstones and dusted them over her.
So beautiful I barely dared to breathe.
My hand rested at the small of her back. She looked up at me, beaming. I bent down and kissed her forehead. The shutter clicked.
The photographer fired off several shots, then had us change positions.
Lilith sat in a velvet high-backed chair. I stood behind her, one hand on her shoulder. She covered my hand with hers, the ring catching the light in tiny flashes.
"Perfect," the photographer said from behind his camera.
Lilith smiled, reaching up to tuck a stray lock behind her ear. Light played across her profile like something out of a dream. I'd always thought Lilith was beautiful, but today, dressed like this, her beauty could kill.
"Darling," Lilith stood, gathering her skirts. The train pooled on the floor in layers like whipped cream. "I need to change out of this gown. The train's so long I can barely move."
"Need help?"
"No, no." She winked at me. "If you come along, we'll just waste time."
I chuckled, watching her lift her skirts and head toward the dressing room. She walked awkwardly, needing both hands to manage the fabric, eyes on the ground, muttering "careful, careful" under her breath.
Look at my bright, lively wife. Overwhelmed by happiness—probably the only way I'd ever want to see her overwhelmed.
I stayed outside, clinking glasses with guests.
Old Ivan approached with his whiskey, clapping my shoulder with a booming laugh.
"Andrei, your bride is stunning, but... you couldn't give me a heads-up?
I thought I'd be six feet under before I saw you married.
" He clinked his glass against mine. "Congratulations, you lucky bastard. "
"Thanks, Ivan. Now you can stop sending me those assassination-list-looking spreadsheets full of women's names."
My joke got laughs from the guests.
Some Italians came over too, probing in their pleasantries, fishing for hints about the Volkov family's next move. I deflected with a few pleasantries, but part of my attention stayed fixed on the dressing room.
Lilith still hadn't come out.
I checked my watch. She'd been in there nearly ten minutes. Changing clothes shouldn't take that long.
My stomach dropped. I set down my glass and headed for the dressing room.
I'd just reached the hallway when I heard Luca and Lilith arguing inside.
That bastard had the nerve to go after Lilith. Fury blazed in my chest. I ran.
"Lilith, this is revenge, isn't it? I cheated, so you married him. You're doing this just to disgust me, aren't you?" Luca's voice was nearly a shout.
"He's just some old bastard who doesn't deserve you. Lilith, if you take it back now, I can—"
"Shut up, Luca. Andrei is your father! You can't talk about him like that."
Lilith cut him off. "And you're flattering yourself. You're not worth sacrificing my whole life over. But I should thank you, Luca. If not for you, I never would've met Andrei. I never would've learned what love actually is."
"Now I understand. What I felt for you was dependency at best. Nowhere near love. But Andrei—I love Andrei."
Her calm, steady voice extinguished the rage Luca had stirred up, replacing it with something else entirely.
I pushed open the door.
Luca stood there gripping Lilith's wrist, his face purple. Lilith wasn't struggling much, just frowning slightly—like tolerating a tantrum from a child.
My gaze landed on his hand. My voice came out cold as ice. "Luca. Let her go."
I stepped forward, staring him down. "She's your mother now. Learn how to speak to your elders. Let go."
Luca flinched at my appearance. My words lit a fuse in him. He glared at me, defiant.
"Mother? What bullshit mother! Andrei, you don't deserve to be my father. You stole your own son's woman. You're a bastard!"
"I warned you. You didn't cherish Lilith." I moved Lilith behind me. "You hurt her. You degraded her. You don't deserve her."
"That's not a reason for you to steal her!" Luca was shaking. "Give Lilith back! Or I'll go out there and tell everyone what a sick fuck you are. I'll make sure they know how you stole your daughter-in-law!"
"Luca, enough." Lilith stepped forward, standing beside me, frowning. "The sick one is you. Have you forgotten what you did to me?"
"You're defending him?" Luca stumbled back two steps, eyes full of hurt. His finger shook as he pointed at Lilith. Then he roared, "I hurt you, fine—but you think he's some saint?"
"Let me tell you about Andrei Volkov. He's a pakhan! A mobster! He's killed people. His hands are covered in blood. You married him, and sooner or later he'll kill you too! Maybe tomorrow—one bad mood and he'll put a gun to your head. You think—"
"Luca!" My face went dark. I cut him off.
I looked at Lilith instinctively. The calm composure on her face was cracking. Her pupils contracted sharply. Her lips parted, then closed again, like she wanted to speak but something had her throat in a vise.
My heart plummeted.
Damn it.
I lost control. My fist landed square on Luca's face with a crack. Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
He staggered sideways, bracing against the wall, hand on his cheek. He turned to glare at me. "What the fuck—who are you to stop me? Did I say anything wrong?" His voice cracked.
"Get out." The muscle in my jaw jumped. "Now. Immediately."
"Or I don't mind blowing your head off right here." I'd never wanted to kill Luca more than in that moment.
Luca's voice turned hoarse, like it was torn from the deepest part of his chest. He shot Lilith one more bitter look, then fled.
Only Lilith and I remained in the dressing room.
"Lilith, let me explain."
I turned to face her. I took one step closer. She backed up two steps, fear and sorrow flooding her eyes.
She clasped her hands over her chest protectively. "Don't come near me!"
"Is it... is it true? What he said?"
"Yes." My voice was raw.
Her lips trembled. Her teeth bit down on her lower lip until it turned white. She retreated inch by inch until her back hit the wall.
I tried to explain gently. "Lilith, I am in the mob. But I won't hurt you. I promise. Please don't be afraid of me."
The way she looked at me nearly shattered my heart.
"No..."
The sound barely escaped her throat. Lilith's eyes reddened. Tears spilled down her cheeks. She didn't wipe them away. "How could you be a mobster?"
"I knew—I knew maybe your identity was dangerous, but I didn't think..." Lilith nearly broke down. "I didn't think I'd fallen in love with a mobster. What am I supposed to do? People like you hurt my sister. You ruined her life..."
"You kill people—I'm scared... please, let me go. Don't hurt us... please..."
Lilith was nearly incoherent.
And every word was a knife slipping between my ribs, stabbing straight into my heart.
She wasn't wrong. In her world, this was what mobsters were. We killed. We destroyed lives like hers and her sister's. The man who hurt her sister was one of us. Her fear was real because she'd seen that horror firsthand. Not in movies—on her sister's body. Real scars.
And now the man standing before her—the man she'd just vowed to spend her life with in a church—was the pakhan of those people.
She stood there looking at me with nothing but terror in her eyes. Pure, primal terror that made her whole body shake.
I forced down the agony of my heart tearing to pieces and reached up to touch her hair. She flinched away reflexively. Her shoulder hit the wall with a dull thud.
My chest echoed with crushing pain. I worked to shape my expression into something gentle. "Lily, listen to me..."
I'd barely started when a gunshot rang out from outside.
That shot opened the floodgates. Then came rapid-fire bursts mixed with panicked screams, pouring in from the main hall. The entire building became an out-of-control powder keg.
Lilith went deathly pale. The gunfire nearly dropped her to the floor.
"Lilith, don't be afraid."
There was no time to deal with what had just happened. I pulled Lilith toward the far end of the dressing room, to a row of wardrobes. I shoved one open. A narrow corridor appeared—the escape route Dmitri had prepared, leading to the parking lot behind the building.
"Lilith, go this way. Dmitri will meet you at the exit." I looked back at her. Her face was terrifyingly pale, her eyes full of endless panic.
Tears fell. Her chest heaved. She shook her head hard. "What's happening out there? Why are there guns..."
"What about Elena? I need to find my sister—"
"Lilith!" I cut her off. "Listen. After the ceremony, I had people take Elena away. She's safe. I promise no one can hurt her. But you need to leave now. Leave here."
"What about you?"
She kept shaking her head, biting her lip white, wiping at the steady stream of tears. She grabbed my sleeve. "Let's leave together, okay?"
My heart softened unexpectedly. I hadn't expected Lilith to still care about me when she was so terrified.
"I'll be fine. You go first—now."
I pushed her into the passage, watched her figure retreat, and closed the wardrobe door.
Listening to the chaos growing outside, I took a deep breath, checked the gun at my waist, and pushed open the dressing room door.
The main hall was complete chaos.
Guests scattered. Tables were overturned. Flowers and broken glass littered the floor. Even the wedding cake had been knocked over, white frosting smeared across the carpet. The scene was grotesque and absurd—nothing like the wedding I'd planned. My gut clenched.
I'd prepared for this, but watching it destroy the wedding Lilith and I had looked forward to still filled me with regret.
A line of armed men stood by the entrance. Big, burly, pale-skinned. All of them with full beards. I recognized them instantly. Irish.
A man with a dark aura stepped out from behind them, standing center stage. Declan Lynch. My mortal enemy.
A black eyepatch covered his left eye—the eye I'd personally destroyed seven years ago. His remaining eye fixed on me, burning with hatred and the thrill of revenge.
"Long time no see, Andrei." He raised his gun, mouth twisting into a smile. "This is my wedding gift to you."
"Like it?"
I stood in the center of the hall. My men converged from various directions, forming a standoff with the opposition.
Sergei moved to my side with his gun, watching Declan warily, then whispered, "Boss, Pavel and Dmitri aren't here."
It took me only a second to identify the traitor.
Dmitri was helping evacuate Lilith. Why the hell wasn't Pavel here? The answer was obvious. The vein in my temple throbbed.
"Declan, looks to me like you want to lose your other eye too." I ground my back teeth together.
"You don't have what it takes. Today, you die here." Declan moved forward slowly, his men following. "Andrei, you've had it too good these past few years. So good you forgot—some debts have to be paid."
Gunfire erupted again. This time I fired first.
We clashed in the hall. Declan had brought plenty of men, but we had the home advantage. I'd studied the building's layout beforehand. All the exits were covered by my people. Getting in was easy for them. Getting out alive wouldn't be.
Part of my attention stayed on the outside. Had Dmitri gotten Lilith? Was Elena safely relocated? Those two questions weighed heavier on my mind than the firefight in front of me.
The battle dragged on. Suddenly, a gap opened in their rear line.
Dmitri cut in from behind the enemy. He was back. His movements were clean. He took out the two men closest to Declan in seconds, disrupting their formation.
I seized the opening. Aimed at Declan. Pulled the trigger.
A muffled bang as the bullet found Declan's body. It hit his head.
Declan fell backward. His guards caught him. In the confusion, his men began retreating toward the door. Declan looked at me one last time. Something burned in that good eye, almost crawling across the floor to my feet. But it didn't matter. I'd seen too many eyes filled with that kind of hatred.
Then Declan closed his eyes forever. His men scattered. Some were killed on the spot by my people. Some rats maybe slipped away in the chaos. But they'd lost. All that awaited them was Volkov justice.
The gunfire in the hall finally stopped.
I stood there, looking at the wreckage.
Dmitri approached. "Boss, your wife made it out safely. She's at the hospital."
The tight string inside me hadn't loosened yet. I asked tensely, "Why the hospital? I told you to take her to our place."
"Miss Elena is at the hospital. When your wife found out, she insisted on going to Miss Elena."
I pinched the bridge of my nose and exhaled long and slow. I holstered my gun. "Fine. You all clean this up."
I headed for the door, walking through the carnage. Right now, I just needed to confirm Lilith was safe.