Chapter 147

Vladimir:

I walked out of the room before my mate could process what happened completely.

I didn’t want things to backfire, and I didn’t even know what got into me to have me kissing her. I just knew that I was more than a little happy doing it. I knew that she kissed me back, and that meant more to me than she could think of realizing.

Her heart raced against her chest, and I knew that she was most likely lost in a thousand thoughts as she tried finding out what happened. But what I didn’t know was what was going to happen when it did, and that was something that I knew was going to play thousands of questions in her mind. 

I walked down the stairs and out of the front door, knowing that I needed some fresh air before I went back to her, giving into the mating bond that was becoming too strong for me to try and control. I knew that my wolf could tell that she was fragile and even he didn’t fight me to claim her, but after tasting her, I knew that keeping my hands off her was going to be harder for me. 

“Where are you going?” Batrov asked, taking me off guard as he stopped me. The fact that he was daring to have the guts to even think of speaking to me amazed me. I knew that he saw me as a threat in front of Konstantin, and I knew that he wanted nothing more than to find a small chance to take the place that he was watching himself lose. The one issue that he was going to have was the fact that he wasn’t going to be living long enough to see my victory. I wasn’t going to leave any loose ends, and he was one of the first who were on my list.

“I doubt that it should concern you,” I said, looking the man dead in the eye. “Or do you think that it should?” 

“I am Konstantin’s right hand…”

“And I am his heir,” I said, stopping the man. “And I think that blood is always thicker than whatever it is that you are trying to be, do you not agree?”

“Who the fucking hell do you think you are?” He asked, and I smirked, knowing that I triggered a nerve. It was something that I wanted nothing more than to do. Annoying the bastard was something that pleased me, if anything, it showed the power that I had over him, and I knew for fucking fact that he was easily played. The man acted more with his emotions when angered, and that was a mistake that he made, more than once, since I met him.

“Vladimir Ivanov,” I said, and the man’s eyes hardened. “I was brought here by your boss, and if you have any problem with that, you can just speak to him. I am sure that he would be open to listen to what you have to tell him. Though I am not sure whether or not he would be favoring you over his sister’s only son.”

“A son that should be dead,” he said, noting out. “In case you forgot, your Ivanov boss believes you to be dead. I am curious about what he would be doing when he finds out that you managed to escape him.”

The mention of Killian made me frown and I knew that he believed that he ticked a sensitive nerve that I didn’t want him touching. Killian shooting me was an act of ‘treason’ in their eyes, especially since they believe that it was for Eleanor. “It is a shame that a man like Killian chose his woman over you. You know, he barely met her a few years ago, and you are a man who grew up with him. Yet, he simply chose her over you and you couldn’t say a word about it. I doubt that it is something that…”

It took everything in me not to growl, reminding myself that the man didn’t know that I was a wolf. His eyes were fixed on mine as he knew that he was playing with fire, and I could tell, by the way that he ate his words, that he knew that I was more than willing to have his head. 

“I doubt that my words are going to make any difference, would they?” 

“Not at all, but I am going to give you a small reminder, one that you might not like very much.” I said, and the man frowned in confusion as he tried to think of what I was going to tell him. I walked toward him, the two of us were of the same height, but I knew that being who I was, I was ten times stronger than the fucking bastard. I just doubted that HE understood that. 

“Your reminder is?” He asked, trying to act as if my stance did not phase him. His racing heart, which he didn’t know I could hear, gave him out. And though he LOOKED calm, I could tell that he was more than a little scared with what I was going to do to him. The man knew that he shot the wrong bullet, but it wasn’t one that was going to hit me.

“What Killian did, shooting me, was what brought me here.” I said, giving him a cold smile. “Be it for a woman or because the two of us hit the wrong button; it brought me here. And believe me, I know for fucking fact that it only makes me stronger. And that is not something that you like, is it?”

“What is that supposed to mean?” He asked, and I smirked. I knew that my response was the last thing that he expected to hear. The man was more than a little frightened with what I could do, and I knew that I didn’t need to voice out my message for him to understand it. He just needed to look me in the eye for him to know that he played the wrong man and the very wrong game. 

“I will leave it up to you to think.” I said, tapping his shoulder. I squeezed it and though I wasn’t even putting pressure, the man winced, thinking that I would. “But the next time you think of stepping under my shoe, I am going to be crushing like the roach that you are. I am going to leave it at that.”

“You really do believe that he is going to give you any power?” He asked, raising an eyebrow at me once I removed my hand from his shoulder. “You really are a fool if you do.”

“I don’t believe,” I said, giving him a cold smile. “I fucking know. Now, unless you want me to prove it, I suggest that you show yourself out of my way. That is, of course, if you have any value for your life. You know, it seems to me that might not, and that is a little too foolish of you…”