“Well, I hate to tell you this, but if you haven’t noticed, I am already in danger because of this.” I raise my eyebrows at him.
“No, you are simply a means to an end. But if you knew details, then yes, you would be in danger. Therefore, it is safer for you not to know.”
“They killed my parents,” I say angrily. Why is he being stubborn about this? How can knowing who did this place me in more danger than them wanting to kill me already?
“I know, and trust me when I say they will pay.”
That’s all they can think about. It’s always about retaliation. Maybe if they stopped with all this retaliation, there wouldn’t be so much death.
“And how does that bring them back?” I mutter, feeling my throat close with tears. I refuse to cry before him. Instead, I’m the one who leans my head back and closes my eyes. After a few minutes, I realize that he isn’t going to answer, but I don’t open my eyes. Instead, thoughts of my parents are rushing around in my mind. Vivid images of when we used to sit in the lounge simply talking to each other.
My mother was a lively happy-go-lucky kind of person. My father was a hard man, but he loved my mother. She wasn’t just my mother but my best friend too. When everything happened, she was there by my side every step of the way. She didn’t push me, but she supported me. I wonder what she would say now. Would she like Dimitri? She always used to tell me that it was difficult to be a wife of someone in the mafia, but that they took care of their own.
My father was always trying to get me to interact more with others after what happened, but my mother understood and supported me in taking my time. I had just agreed to having a small birthday party next week with mostly people we already knew, when this happened. I remember how happy my parents were when I told them that it was fine to have a small gathering. That evening, I overheard my father telling my mom how pleased he was that I was finally starting to live again. I know that what happened to me was a big blow to my father, as he always took his responsibility as a family man very seriously.
When I was first attacked, I remember my father holding me close and crying. It was the first time I ever saw my father cry. He asked me for forgiveness for not being able to protect me from that, but I never blamed him. I blame the whole Bratva for their mentality of retaliation, but not really my father, even though later I found out that it was because of him killing Chris’s father that this mainly happened. But I also believe that if Chris weren’t so inclined, he would never have gone through with what he did to me.
A shiver courses through my body when I think of his hands on me, how he held me down by my neck, cutting out most of my air supply. How he punched me on the face when I scratched him, but even like that, I fought. I can’t blame what happened on myself. I tried. I really, really tried, but there was no getting away from him. When he tore my shirt and squeezed my breasts painfully, I still remember the words of pleading I uttered, but to no avail.
My throat is closing with the need to gag, but I push it down, trying to forget, trying to make my brain blank of everything that happened before. Dimitri says I am his wife, and nothing will change that. I wonder if he would still say that if he knew what had happened to me. I’m sure he knows that I was raped, but he doesn’t know how utterly broken I am.
I never thought I would be with a man again, much less married to one. I lost that dream when everything happened, and now to be married to a man like Dimitri, a man who can have any woman he wants. My hand moves over the ridges on my stomach. I will let this play out as long as it can, but I know that sooner or later, he will let me go. After all, who would accept me now?
I admire his commitment to stick to his word, but I won’t hold him to it once he knows. It’s better for me to prepare for the outcome than to be reeled into this fantasy that this man could somehow someday come to want me.
DIMITRI 5
We are about to land. When I left here, I never thought I would be returning with a wife. A few things will need to change in my life now that Ruby has come into it. I knew the minute she finally fell asleep. I decided not to wake her for dinner. I think she needed her sleep more than she needed food at that moment.
I saw the expression of mental pain she was going through before she slept. I want to be able to slay her demons, not just because she is now my wife, but because no woman should have to go through life scared of her surroundings. I can just imagine the horror of what she had to go through, and now the death of her parents in such an unexpected way.
I’m impressed by how well she’s taking this; I can see the strength in the way she tries to hide her fears, her emotions. The way she stood up to the boss back in Russia was silly but showed me that she has courage, which is a requirement in this life. I can’t tell her about who killed her parents, because we aren’t sure yet but suspect it’s from inside the Bratva. If that is the case, then she would never feel safe around anyone again.
That is the reason I had to bring her here instead of her staying in Russia. The boss assures me that they will find the culprit and he or they will pay. It still puzzles me why they would kill Ruby’s mom, too, and want to kill her. It’s as if they are eradicating the whole line, and that only happens when its revenge for something personal. An eye for an eye, but as far as I know, which to be honest, won’t be nearly enough, we haven’t killed off a family, especially in our own Bratva. I could be wrong, though, as I am not always made aware of what happens in Russia.
I will ask Alexei if he knows anything, as the boss here in South Africa might have heard of something. Either way, I need to make sure that I check everyone here for any connection in Russia that might come back to bite us. I hear a noise and look up to see the air hostess walking towards us, her eyes not meeting mine. My anger rises when I think of last night when I walked to the front to speak to the pilot. On my way back, she stopped me, offering more than she should, with Ruby sitting just a few feet away.
I should never have had sex with her on the way to Russia, but I was angry and wanted to let off some steam. I made it very clear that what happened was a once off and she mustn’t ever approach me again in that manner. She wasn’t pleased, but I won’t have Ruby disrespected for something I did.
“We will be landing in the next half hour. Is there anything you need before we do?” the air hostess asks.
Ruby groggily opens her eyes, a confused look on her face.
“Bring us two coffees,” I say. She nods and then turns and leaves. I turn to Ruby. “Morning. I let you sleep instead of waking you up for dinner yesterday. Hope you don’t mind, but you seemed to be so peaceful.”
“I can’t believe I slept right through.” Her voice is raspy from sleep, which has an interesting effect on me. I would have to be dead not to notice how beautiful she is. Her hair down around her shoulders, her sleepy, beautiful eyes, her luscious lips pouting from sleep. I have a craving to lean over and taste those lips to see if they are as sweet as they seem. I hope she doesn’t look down and notice the bulge in my slacks, as that would send her running.
“We will have breakfast at home. It won’t take long. I’m sure you’re hungry, as you hardly ate lunch and missed dinner,” I say to try to distract my otherwise sexual thoughts. Our coffees are brought out just then, and Ruby smiles as she sips her coffee, once again bringing my attention to her lips. Damn, I really need to get hold of my thoughts, because I doubt she will appreciate knowing what I’m thinking, but the thought of those lips around my hardness have me wanting to take her right here, right now.
“Dimitri?” I realize she asked me something I didn’t hear and now is looking at me curiously.
“Sorry, I was thinking of something,” I mutter.
“I was asking if you live alone.”
“Yes, I have someone come in and clean twice a week, but besides that, it’s just me.” Contrary to most of the others who live at the Bratva headquarters, an apartment building that only holds Bratva families or our men, I have an apartment just out
side the city but close enough to be where I’m needed in minutes. I have lived there for years even though I have an apartment at the Bratva apartment building, which I use only when I meet with Alexei and finish late. I think that now that Ruby is a part of my life, we will be staying at the Bratva stronghold, as it’s safer for her and will give me a greater peace of mind knowing that even if I’m not around, she will be safe.
She will also have others to talk to and will hopefully make friends. I will introduce her to Jade and Raven, which will also hopefully help her through this change in her life. I’m away sometimes when I travel with Vlad or Alexei, so I won’t always be there with her. Therefore, it makes more sense to have her somewhere I know she will be safe, and where she will have people to call in case she needs help with anything.
“Have you got any family?” At her question, I shake my head.
“So, you’re all alone, like me?” I see the sadness in her eyes when she asks that question, and I know she’s thinking of her parents.
“Well, we have each other now.” Her eyes widen before she lowers them to hide her thoughts. “Buckle up. We are landing in a few minutes,” I say to get her mind away from her thoughts. I know this is going to be quite a transition for her. It will be a transition for me, too, as I have always done what I wanted when I wanted without having to consider anyone, but now I can’t do that anymore. I have her to think of too.
I have a dangerous life, but who of us in the Bratva doesn’t? But even though it’s dangerous, we try to keep that danger away from our families as much as possible. Keeping everyone safe is my job, and I take it seriously. If I see that someone might be in danger, I will do everything in my power to keep them safe. Even though my priority has always been Alexei and Vlad, I now have Ruby, and I will make sure she is always kept as safe as possible.
I look out the window and see the airport approaching. As this is a private plane, we don’t go through the same customs as everyone else. I know a car will be waiting for us to take us to the Bratva stronghold and our new home there. I look across and see Ruby also looking out the window with a surprised look on her face.
“Not what you expected?” I ask.
“I wasn’t expecting anything, as I never thought I would come here, but it seems like a huge city, and it looks like it might be hot outside.”
That has me grinning. She has no idea what a difference the weather is. Looking at her long-sleeved shirt, I realize I need to get her new clothes as soon as possible. “After you have settled, you can start looking at your new wardrobe. You will definitely need cooler clothes here.” At that, she grunts, making my grin widen. I see that she is still upset about leaving all her clothes behind. She did throw up a fuss when I told her that she couldn’t bring her clothes, and she was not happy when I said that I would buy her anything she needed from now on. She made sure to tell me that she had her own money and did not need me to pay for her things, which was quite funny—such a petite little thing standing up to me.
A few minutes later, as we are walking from the plane to the car, I see Vlad step out of the driver’s side and walk towards me with a raised eyebrow. “Dimitri, welcome back.” He looks at Ruby. “And this is?” he asks with a wink at her. I know he doesn’t mean anything with it—he is just a flirt by nature—but the fact that he’s flirting with Ruby is irritating, and I won’t stand for another man to flirt with my wife.
“This is Ruby, my wife.”
At my words, his smile disappears, and he looks at me with a serious look on his face. “Dimitri!” His voice is a growl of anger when he says my name. “What the fuck is going on?” He’s not happy about this news, that’s clear. Vlad knows about Monica; he knows that I would never have married a woman unless I had to.
“Let’s go,” I say, as I see Ruby is looking uncomfortable. Vlad looks like he’s about to argue, but then thinks better of it and turns, making his way towards the car. We make our way without a word spoken. I can tell Vlad isn’t going to give me much time before I must give him the details of my marriage. His cell rings, and before he answers, I see that it’s Alexei on the other end.
“Da,” he answers curtly. “They are with me. Did you know?” I can’t hear what Alexei says, but I can see Vlad frown. “Know what? I’ll tell you what, Dimitri married the girl.” I can’t tell what Alexei is saying, but from Vlad’s expression, I guess their father didn’t tell them his plan. After another minute of one-sided conversation, Vlad disconnects the call.
“Alexei wants to see you,” he says, which isn’t surprising.
“Are you in trouble for this?” Ruby suddenly asks. “It wasn’t his fault,” she says before I can answer. I look over my shoulder at her and see a worried look on her face.
“No, don’t worry about it.” I see Vlad looking in the rear-view mirror at Ruby, and then he glances at me and nods, his eyebrows raised in surprise. He doesn’t know the extent of it. That Ruby would talk out to defend me to another man, especially someone like Vlad who isn’t small in any form of the word, surprises me too. It looks like my wife has more to her than meets the eye.
When we arrive, I take Ruby to my apartment while Vlad continues to Alexei’s penthouse, letting me know they will be waiting for me. Once inside, instead of looking around, she turns towards me, a concerned look on her face. “I can go talk to him and explain everything. If you’re in trouble with him because of his father’s order, I will let him know that you didn’t want this.”
I lift my hand and stroke her face, which makes her freeze, but she doesn’t move back, and I don’t pull away. Her skin is just as soft as I imagined. “Alexei won’t be upset; he just wants to know what transpired. Thank you for wanting to protect me, but I think that is my job, don’t you think?”
“Are you sure?” she asks instead of answering my question.
“Yes,” I say, finally dropping my hand, which causes her to immediately take a step back. At least she held herself without pulling away, which is a good start. “Now, I’m afraid that I will have to leave you, but you can go ahead and make yourself comfortable. I will be back as soon as I can.” She frowns but doesn’t say anything.
I turn to leave, but then stop at the door and look back to see her looking around. “There should be food in the kitchen. If there is nothing you want, you can use the phone over there.” I indicate the phone on the wall by the entrance to the kitchen. “Dial zero and order anything you like. Just ask them to bring it up to the apartment.”
She nods before turning away and walking towards the floor-to-ceiling windows that have the view of the city. I wish I could stay and talk to her, but I need to go update Alexei and Vlad before they come looking for me.
A few minutes later, I enter Alexei’s office to find him sitting behind his desk with Vlad standing before him, an angry look on his face. “Am I interrupting?” I ask, but instead of answering, Alexei nods towards a chair for me to take a seat.
“Sit, Vlad. You are making my neck sore,” Alexei grunts as he looks up at his brother. Once Vlad is sitting in the chair opposite mine, Alexei once again looks at me. “Now, tell me how you left here a single man and came back the day after married.” I can see the concerned look on his face.
“The boss thought it would be a good idea to marry Ruby and bring her here,” I reply with a shrug.
“What the fuck are we, the Dark Ages?” Vlad snaps as he stands again. “I told you this was his fucking idea.” He starts to pace, which has Alexei scowling at him.
“Why did you agree?” Alexei asks.
I lift a brow in question. He must be joking; we are talking about his father, the Bratva Fury boss.
“I still relish living for a few years longer,” I mutter, and I know I’m exaggerating. He wouldn’t have been happy, but he wouldn’t have killed me over it. The truth is that once I saw Ruby, I couldn’t imagine letting her marry anyone else and going through who knows what.
“I will talk to him; we will get it annulled,” Alexei states,
already leaning over to pick up his phone.
“No.”
His hand stops as he picks up the phone and looks at me curiously.
“You don’t have to be married to someone you don’t know or like just because my father said so,” Vlad says as he comes to stand before me. “This is crazy. How could he ask this of you?”
It is touching how upset they are for me.
“You want to be married to her?” Alexei asks with a raised brow as he leans back.
“I will get used to the idea.” At my words, Vlad snorts and starts to pace again. “She has no one left. Besides, her life is still in danger. I would rather it be me than someone who won’t be able to keep her safe.”
“Are you planning on ending it once the threat has been neutralized?” Alexei asks.
“No, I’ll stay married.”
“Fuck, Dimitri, you don’t even know her. Marriage is more than pity,” Vlad mutters.
I can feel myself tensing. Do they know about her? Do they know about everything she has had to endure, what it has done to her?
“I don’t pity her,” I reply, but I can hear the snap in my voice. I don’t like the idea of people thinking the only reason we are married was for circumstance’s sake.
“Well, you can’t say you love her,” Vlad snaps back. “I know you want to do the right thing, but damn, Dimitri.”
“No, I don’t love her, but I like her,” I say as I sit forward. “I married her, and I’m going to stay married. This might have started differently, but it’s going to be a normal marriage.”
“Are you sure about this?” Alexei asks. “We can protect her another way if need be.” I’m shaking my head before he finishes.
“I made a promise. I’m going to keep it,” I state, which has Vlad swearing and storming out of the office.
“He’ll calm down. He’s just worried about you,” Alexei states as he looks after his brother. “Now that we have established that you’re going to stay a married man, why don’t you tell me about this situation.”
Mayhem: Bratva Fury (book 3) Page 4