Chapter 171 171

Chapter 171 171
“You were a fool to come,” he replies.

“Why?” I ask. “I’m going to win.”

I have no evidence to back up that claim, but if all else fails, confidence can push you through. I make sure to meet his eyes. He needs to know that I will not falter when it comes to a fight.

Maxim shakes his head. “Are you forgetting one very important fact? I have your daughter.”

“Do you imagine that hurting Jo will help you win Camila back?” I ask. “Because I assure you, that’s not going to happen.”

Maxim shrugs. “I’ll spin a story. She’ll believe me.”

“She doesn’t fucking love you,” I snap. “She never did.”

“Then why did she agree to marry me?”

I smile slowly, making sure to speak as clearly as possible so that Maxim’s men can hear too. “Isn’t it obvious?” I say. “She couldn’t have me… so she picked the knock-off version.”

His eyes ripple with anger and his fists tighten at his sides. His men glance at each other, wondering if they’re about to get an order to attack.

“Did you come here just to taunt me, cousin?”

“I came for my girl.”

“How admirable,” he seethes. “How fucking noble of you.”

“Where is my daughter, Maxim? I won’t ask you again.”

He opens his mouth to retort.

But then a new voice slices in from beyond my line of sight. “She’s out of your reach.”

Maxim looks behind him as his men part to allow the speaker to pass. A woman walks through the gap in the ranks and stops at Maxim’s side.

Svetlana has aged, but not willingly. It looks like she’s scrapping and clawing to cling to her youth. Her hair is dyed a dark, unnatural brown that contrasts sickly with her pale skin. I see the telltale tension of plastic surgery in her face, her lips, her jaw.

Strangely enough, I see shades of Mama in her features. They aren’t related by blood, so it’s not genetics marking the similarity.

Maybe this life just takes its toll on those who live it.

“Svetlana,” I acknowledge.

“You want your daughter?” she asks, dispensing with the pleasantries.

“That’s the whole reason I’m here.”

“If you want something, then you have to be willing to give us something in return.”

Us. The word stands out. It tells me a lot about who might be pulling the strings behind the scenes.

Or maybe that assumption is giving Maxim too much credit. Maybe she’s pulling the strings out in the open and everyone fucking knows it.

“Maxim, I didn’t realize that your mother was the reigning don here.”

The annoyance in his eyes burns bright—but I’m fairly certain that this time, it has nothing to do with me.

“I am the fucking don,” he snarls, taking a step forward out of the shadow of his men.

I bite back a grin. Nothing has changed. He’s still so easy to goad. So easy to manipulate.

Svetlana seems to realize the same thing. She grabs his arm and tries to whisper something I can’t hear in his ear. But before she can finish speaking, Maxim shakes her off and pushes her back.

He speaks low, just like her, but his words carry over to me. “Don’t fucking interfere,” he snaps to his mother. “This is my fight.”

I notice the sharp spark in Svetlana’s eyes. She doesn’t like being talked down to.

Her shoulders brace upwards as she tries not to lose face. Mama was right about her. She is the more dangerous one of the two. Which means, when it comes to the fight, she’ll need to be taken out just like her mangy son.

I don’t relish the thought of killing my own aunt. It’s not the code I’ve lived by my entire life. But sometimes, tough choices need to be made.

Maxim clears his throat and speaks up. “You want your daughter, then I want something in return.”

“Yeah,” I jeer, “your mommy just said that.”

Maxim’s jaw tightens with fury. “Return what’s mine.”

“And what would that be?”

“My Bratva. And my fucking fiancé.”

I laugh in his face. “You are dumber than I thought you were. How stupid do you think I am? I gave you terms once before and you destroyed any chance at accepting them by attacking me.”

“Those weren’t terms. That was a fucking exile.”

“It was generous, considering what I had planned for you.”

“And yet here I am.”

“By my mercy,” I say. “I could have killed you that day. I chose not to.”

He scoffs. “I fought you off.”

Bogdan steps forward, clearly riled up by the conversation. “I was fucking there. I walked in to find you under my brother’s grip. He could have snapped your neck in two seconds. He should have, but he didn’t.”

“Stop bleating, little lamb,” Maxim hisses. “Your opinion is not wanted today.”

“Careful,” I warn him. “I’m not here to play nice. So you better watch your tongue when you speak to my men.”

Maxim nods in fake sympathy. “Always the protective older brother. It’s heartwarming, actually. Which one of you should I kill first? I think the little brat will be much more fun to watch suffer.”

The whole time we’ve been speaking, I’ve been keeping an eye on Svetlana. Her eyes are alert and frenzied. Cunning. She’s wary of this devolving in front of her.

She knows as well as I do: Maxim cannot be trusted to win.

“If you don’t cooperate,” she interrupts suddenly, “you will never see your daughter again.”

Maxim gives her a cursory glance. I seize upon his hesitation. “You want the Bratva?” I ask. “You’ll have to win it by blood. That’s the only way to prove you’re worthy.”

“And Camila?” Maxim asks.

I raise my eyebrows. “Do you imagine that Camila is some whore I bought at auction? She’s a woman, Maxim. Not a piece of property to be bartered or sold. If you want her, then she needs to choose you.”

“Pah! You’ve brainwashed her.”

“No.” I shake my head. “I’ve set her free.”

“Fuck you,” he spits. “Always so high and fucking mighty.”

His men shuffle and murmur. The tides are turning. Everyone can sense it.

Everyone but him.

“I never influenced her decision, you know,” I muse. “Even when you came for her at that safehouse… she called me.”

Maxim’s eyes are twitching furiously now. “You think you are a hero,” he snarls. “You think you are a god. But your daughter is inside with a gun to her head, cousin. How does that look from your high horse?”

“It will all be over soon,” I tell him grimly.

He’s not finished. He spits on the ground and takes another stride forward, away from the security of his men. “You’re the son of a killer. Did you know that? A sneaky, murderous little backstabber in the night. Poison—is there a more cowardly way to end a man’s life? His own brother! Do you know what your father did?”

He wants that to hurt. He wants to wound me so badly I lose sight of the bigger picture.

Instead, I shrug. “I know.”

Maxim stops short. “You… you know?”

“I found out recently,” I admit. “Which is exactly why I made you that offer during what was supposed to be a gentleman’s tête-à-tête. It’s also the reason you’re standing here today. If it weren’t for the fact that I owed you a blood debt, you’d be dead.”

The shuffling amongst his ranks continues. I can sense the unease like a storm cloud. I intend to use it to my advantage.