by K. J. Dahlen
“You think I care what they do to me?” Gavril asked as he shrugged. “Forty years ago, it might have mattered. Hell, forty years ago it did matter. My son was almost grown and I was scrambling to set up the rest of my life. I was working to set up my retirement. I had to work harder and longer for things back then. Things that you took for granted I had to work hard to achieve. You were the Bratva’s golden boy weren’t you Sergi?” the old man asked snidely. “The rest of us had to strive to keep up, but not you… you breezed through the training, through the regiment of every aspect and you barely had to break a sweat, while the rest of us tried to keep up with you. We all hated you with a passion.”
Sergi stomped over to the other man and sneered in his face. “You think everything came easy for me? That I didn’t work my ass off to achieve everything I earned? You couldn’t be more wrong. I worked hard because I wanted it more than you did. I took the punishment because I wanted the honor more than you did. I was willing to do the work where you and your friends didn’t want it as badly. You thought being Bratva meant you were entitled but that wasn’t it was it? You thought it would be a cake walk to get in and that everything would be your right to take. Being Bratva meant hard work that you never wanted to do. I got the positions I got because I was willing to do the work to get it. I was proud to be Bratva at a time when that meant something, and now I will be glad to sit on the Council that will sentence you to death.”
“What about his family?” Nico asked. He looked over at his father and knew his concern was valid. “I was only seventeen when this went down. I didn’t have a choice but to leave with him that night. And my daughter, Anita wasn’t even born yet.”
Before Sergi could answer, there was a knock on the door.
Misha answered the summons and a moment later, Nikoli and several of his security team joined them.
Sergi glared again at Gavril before he turned to Nikoli. “I want this man, Gavril Turchaninov taken into custody until I can make arrangements to take him back to Russia under guard for a tribunal with the High Council on charges of murder.”
Nikoli’s head snapped over and he stared at Gavril. “This is a long time in coming isn’t it?” Nikoli knew who the man was as did anyone in the Bratva. This man has been wanted by their organization for a very long time.
“Indeed it is. “
“And the others?” Nikoli asked.
“They were not involved but I’d like them kept in custody until the transfer,” Sergi stated. “Nico can go with you now, but Anita and Levi can stay here. I have some questions that need to be answered.”
Nico shook his head. “I am innocent as are my daughter and grandson. You have no right to—“
Nikoli held his hand up. “I am unsure if you realize the… circumstances. Do you even know who this man is?” He gestured to Sergi.
Nico shrugged.” I am an American. I have been since I was a teen. I don’t care if he is Vladimir Putin’s brother. He has not right to—“
Nikoli’s men moved in to surround Gavril and Nico.
Nico glared at Sergi then at Nikoli but he kept his mouth shut as they led them away.
Two other men that had come with Nikoli went to stand beside the front door and waited in silence.
When Nikoli left with Gavril and Nico, the two men left to stand outside the room.
Then it was only Sergi, Misha, Anita and Levi left in the room.
Both men stared at one another while Sergi didn’t look at anyone. He poured himself another drink and then walked over to the window looking out over the city.
Tension in the room spiraled until Sergi spoke, “So I finally found you again. I often wondered if I would after you left me. What is it with you and members of your family, leaving in the dark of the night and disappearing?”
“That’s not fair,” she defended quietly. “My boss was done there and rather in a hurry to leave. I didn’t know that and was on my way out to meet you when he gave me thirty minutes to pack. I had no choice but to leave when he did.”
“You could have informed me you were leaving.” Sergi growled.
“How was I going to do that?” she asked. “All I had was your first name and in case you don’t know this…. Sergi is a common name in Russia. Besides, Adrian came in and told me we had to leave. What the hell was I supposed to do?”
Sergi turned around and said, “You could have sent a message or something. I came to pick you up and you were just gone.”
Anita hung her head. “I had no idea what was going on until we got on the plane and were flying home. That’s when he told me his deal for the oil had gone bust. He also told me I better keep my mouth shut about his business in Russia if I wanted to see another day. His business partners weren’t very happy about his failure. He told me once the Bratva got wind of what he was planning on doing, they shut him down in a hurry.” Anita paused then looked at Sergi as dawning came to her. “You shut him down didn’t you?”
Sergi nodded. “He was going to strip the oil from the Kara Sea and when I looked at his methods, they were not echo friendly. His methods were more of a grab and go and whatever he leaves behind is not his problem. I’ve seen this before and it leaves behind nothing but a gaping hole in the floor of the ocean that leaks oil for years afterwards. It would have ruined the oceans our people depend on for fishing and other products. So yes, I stopped his plans. The only one who would have profited would have been your boss and his partners.”
Anita gasped. She had had no idea Adrian would do something like that.
“What happened when you guys got back to the United States?” Sergi asked.
Anita sat down on the sofa, as she looked rather lost. After a moment, she looked up at him and told him what had happened, “Adrian dropped me off at home and then disappeared. Before I got out of his car though he gave me another warning to tell no one of where were had just been or what our business was over there. He said he owed people on a promise he gave them before he left and because he failed, they would come looking for him. I was to tell them nothing. I didn’t know what he was talking about until three weeks later. I’d gone to work the next day and found the entire office just gone. Everything had been cleared out, even my desk was gone. I had to find another job and then three weeks later someone found me. When they asked if I knew Adrian… I had to tell them I didn’t. When they informed me they knew I’d gone to Russia with him, I told them I’d never left the country. They watched me for weeks but Adrian never made contact with me after that, so they found nothing.”
“And your son?” Sergi demanded. “Who is his father?”
Levi growled. “That is none of your business.”
Sergi turned to look at the younger man. “I believe it is my business.”
“Who the hell are you anyway?” Levi wanted to know.
“My name is Sergi Constantine and I am leader of the organization known all over the world as the Bratva,” he told the younger man proudly.
“And he is your father,” Anita injected. “Only I never knew his last name or who he was. I met him briefly twenty-four years ago when I was in Russia.”
Levi turned his head slightly to look at his mother. In all his years of growing up, he’d never known her to be interested in any man and she spoke about the one time she visited Russia with almost an awe in her voice. Now, he knew why.
Turning back to Sergi, he studied the older man carefully. From the top of his bald head to the bottom of his slacks. He saw an older man but he was still strong and held himself with a dignity very few men had nowadays. His shoulders were still broad and he filled out his suit nicely. He was an imposing man.
Then Levi looked over at Misha. If his mother was telling him the truth and he had no reason to believe otherwise, he and this man were brothers, well… half brothers anyway. Misha looked like his father only he had a full head of dark hair. He too, was an imposing man. As tall as Sergi and possibly just a tad bigger, but he was twenty years younger than Sergi was too.
Levi went over to where his mother was sitting and sat down beside her. Taking her hand, he whispered, “This is what you could never tell me before wasn’t it? About my father I mean?”
Anita grasped his hand tightly and nodded. “Yes, it was. I met him briefly and I do mean briefly, we were only together for three short days. But in those three days, he came to mean something special to me. It didn’t matter that I never knew who he was back then, what mattered was just being with him. When I found out you were a part of me, I wished I could let him know but I just didn’t know how to get in touch with him. There are a thousand things I wished I could change about my life but you were never one of them. I loved you from the moment I felt your heart beating inside me and I don’t regret my time with your father.”
“You could have come back to Russia and told me about him.” Sergi glared at her.
Anita raised her head and stared at Sergi with tears in her eyes. “No I couldn’t. I was too busy trying to earn a living with a young child to provide for. You see when I got back and my grandfather found out where I’d been, he packed up his belongings and he and my father left town. They didn’t tell me where they going or how long they’d be gone. I was left behind with no support and no family to fall back on.”
Misha frowned. “They left you and the baby you were carrying, alone in the city like this? Why?”
Anita shrugged. “They never told me why. I didn’t hear back from them until Levi was three years old. By then, I didn’t need anyone to help me. I learned the hard way not to rely on them and that lesson has worked out for me over the years.”
“How did you manage all alone?” Sergi asked.
Anita shook her head. “You just do what you have to do. You work hard, you keep your head down and mind your own business. After that bit of trouble with Adrian’s business partners, I moved and changed my name to keep myself safe. I didn’t go out and I didn’t bring any attention to myself. They eventually forgot about me and I was free to live my own life. I didn’t have time to worry about them or what my family was up to. I had a baby to provide for. Levi has been my life for so long now, I just didn’t have time to worry about the rest.”
“And your father and grandfather?” Sergi asked.
“I didn’t have time for them either,” Anita told them honestly. “They came and went in my life and whenever they were here, I worried. They never seemed to work, yet they always had money. When they tried to share their wealth with me, I told them I didn’t want or need it. There were times in my life when the money would have helped but I didn’t want it. There were always strings attached to it and to them.”
“Why were you with them tonight?” Sergi asked.
“Levi graduated college recently and tonight, we were out to celebrate him. I haven’t seen them in a long time before this in fact. As I said, I kept my distance.” Anita lifted her head with pride. “My son is going places and I couldn’t be more proud.”
Levi shook his head. “You might not be so proud if you knew what great grandfather wanted me to do with my degree.”
Sergi focused on the younger man. “What did he want you to do?”
“My degree is in chemical science. He asked if I could design and manufacture designer drugs. I told him I probably could but there was no way I would ever do that.”
Anita looked upset at this news.
Levi felt bad about this, but he hadn’t had the chance to tell her until now.
Sergi snorted. “It figures. Gavril was always one to take the easy way out. He hasn’t fallen very far from respectable. Always did like to show the world one thing, yet on the flip side, he always was a snake.”
Anita shook her head. “Now, I know where all the money came from. They both have been dealing illegal substances all my life.”
“And you didn’t know what they were doing? Is that what you’re claiming now?” Misha asked with a doubtful expression.
Anita looked up at him with tears in her eyes. “I never knew what they did for a living. Growing up, they kept so many secrets. They always had people coming and going from our house but I never knew what they were doing there. I guess I didn’t want to know. I kept to myself and stayed away as much as I could.” She shrugged. “I guess maybe I did know but didn’t want to acknowledge it. I don’t know. Then Adrian asked me to work for him I took the job because I needed to get away from them both. I should have known better I suppose but I just wanted to get away from the pair of them. When Adrian left me high and dry, I broke out of the hell I felt trapped in and became my own person. To be the type of person who could hold my head up instead of down. I might have struggled on my own but at long last, I could hold my head up.” She looked over at her son. “I raised him to be a real man, not a reflection of my father or grandfather. He is a good man now.” She turned to Sergi. “And that’s because of you.”
“Me?” Sergi frowned as he looked at the son he never knew he had. “How is it because of me? I didn’t even know he existed until now.”
“I took the words you told me before he was born and I lived by them. I raised him to be the kind of man you were. I taught him to treat women with respect in the same way you did.”
Levi chuckled. “I always wondered why you taught me those lessons, where you learned them because even as a child, I could see you didn’t learn them from your own father or grandfather.” He got to his feet and looked over at the man he now knew was his father. “So now what happens to us?”
“I don’t know yet.” Sergi shook his head. “I need time to think about this.”
Levi turned to Misha. “And you?”
“Me what?” Misha asked. “I’m as much in shock as you are. You didn’t know you had a father out there, well I didn’t know I had a brother either, all these years. Believe me when I say if my father had known about you before, you and your mother never would have had to struggle. He would have been there for you.”
Levi shook his head. “That doesn’t matter now does it? We did the best we could and when all is said and done, that’s all you can do.” He looked over at Sergi. “My mother did what she had to do all those years ago and you have no right to be mad at her for that. Maybe you didn’t like it but that’s on you not her. What little she told me about you now makes sense.”
“She told you about me?” Sergi asked.
Levi shrugged. “She never told me your name but she did tell me about the kind of man you were when she met you.”
“She didn’t know what kind of man I was back then, but she will find out now,” Sergi vowed grimly.
Levi took a step forward to protect his mother. As he stood in front of her as if to shield her, his fingers turned to fists while he glared at the other two men. “I do not care what you are. How powerful you are… if you hurt her in the slightest, you’ll have me to deal with. And I don’t care if you are my father. I will always protect her.”
Sergi stared at his second son with pride in his eyes before his expression went blank again.
Chapter Four
It was later that same night when Anita stood in the darkness of the room Sergi insisted she take. She was staring out the window looking out over the city she called home. Her head was still spinning with the events that happened in the last few hours.
She was still trembling at the idea of seeing Sergi again. She had thought about him often in the past twenty-four years. Wondering if he remembered her or not. He meant the world to her once upon a time and if she had to be fair, he still did. But she had seen the scorn in his eyes tonight, the rage and she feared for not only herself but for her son.
Whatever her father and grandfather did to him, they deserved his rage. But that was another issue altogether. She couldn’t nor would she say a word to help them, either of them. After what she learned tonight, she would stay away from both of them again. She did have her own life and now she could live it. The only question she had was would Sergi want to be in her life or would he remain as just a distant m
emory?
She heard the door open and close. She didn’t need turn and look to know he was there. She could feel his presence. She continued to stare out the window but she knew just when he came up behind her. His arms went around her waist and he pulled her to him.
Anita didn’t say a word as she rested her back against his chest. He was still broad and strong as he’d been back the first time she saw him. Life hadn’t turned him into a weak man.
“Dragotsennyy… I so wish I would have known you needed me back then,” he whispered in her ear.
“I had that little piece of you in my heart,” she whispered back. “I’ve always had that little piece of you. From the day we met, I carried it. I carried more than that too.”
“What you carried was a small piece of my heart.”
“I’m sorry,” she told him in the dark.
“Sorry for what?” he finally asked her after a long moment of silence.
Anita hung her head and let the tears fall. “I’m sorry that my grandfather ruined your life. That it took you all this time to find him. I’m sorry I didn’t do more to find you to tell you I was leaving and that I never got the chance to tell you about Levi.” She sobbed.
So many years had been wasted. She saw his son Misha. He seemed like a good man. Sergi could have been the father Levi had needed. She so wished she had known even his last name at the time. She could have found a way to find him. But she never knew Sergi officially, only through how she felt about him at the time. She never asked him questions and maybe she should have, but it had never occurred to her that they would have to part the way that they did.