Total pages in book: 147
Estimated words: 148949 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 745(@200wpm)___ 596(@250wpm)___ 496(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 148949 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 745(@200wpm)___ 596(@250wpm)___ 496(@300wpm)
“Yes.”
“Your safety—”
“Is your top priority.” She raised on her toes and kissed me on my cheek. “I’m on it.”
I raised one eyebrow. “You are not going to fight to keep Giorgio in Russia?”
“No one said Giorgio is leaving Russia.” She lowered into her throne. “He just won’t be my number two.”
Gritting my teeth, I sat down on my throne. The thick burgundy cushion sank deep beneath my weight.
I frowned. “Why do you want him here?”
“Because Blue deserves time to make her decision.”
“Blue’s only focus should be you—”
“Which is why I’m focusing on her.”
Knowing it was a lost battle, I groaned in annoyance and looked ahead.
Ten high-tech TV screens adorned the massive wall in front of the table. Five were on top. Another five were on the bottom.
Already, Misha sat on the top left screen. A chess board was on the table in front of him. Not realizing that I had entered, Misha studied the board, picked up a chess piece, tapped the top with his finger for a few seconds, and then placed the piece on another part of the board.
A beep sounded by the other side of the table.
What was that?
I turned in that direction.
The beep came from Max’s phone.
“Hold up, Blue.” Max pulled out his phone, gazed at the screen, and nodded. “I see you, Mosquito.”
I quirked my brows.
“Hmmm. Motherfucker took my knight.” Max rubbed his chin.
Misha spoke from his screen. “Your move, homey.”
Max grinned and gazed over his shoulder. “Yes, yes, I see. That was a bold move.”
“I thought you would appreciate it.”
“Don’t get too cocky just yet.”
Idiots.
I rolled my eyes and checked the other screens.
Oh.
Valentina waved at me.
I smiled.
Natalya sat on her lap. Her tiny fingers played with the curly ends of my sister’s hair.
My heart warmed. I raised my voice and switched to Russian. “Little Natashka. How is my precious ballerina?”
She turned my way. Her face brightened. She touched the screen as if to grab my cheek. “Uncle!”
Valentina sighed. “No. No. I said you can be on my lap if you are quiet.”
Natalya pointed at me as if trying to get her mother to understand. “Uncle!”
All resolve and rage melted away from me.
My niece gazed around. “Emilio?”
“No, Natashka.” I smiled. “He is not here.”
She loudly giggled. “Baby sleeping?”
“Emilio may be. If he is, I will send you a picture.”
She laughed and looked around. “Polo?”
I smirked and slowly pronounced his name. “Paolo is not here either.”
“Eating ice cream?”
“He may be or munching on cookies.” I made a fast motion of eating tons of cookies like a mad man. “Yum. Yum. Yum.”
My niece shrieked and then doubled over with laughter.
Valentina grabbed my niece’s attention and placed a finger on her lip. “That is enough. Shhh.”
I glared at my sister and switched to English. “We are talking. Do not shush my niece.”
“Kazimir, I am teaching her manners—”
“My niece does not need manners.” I pointed at their screen. “She is a lioness!”
“Actually she is a mosquito.” Misha assessed his chess board and then stared my way as if daring me to argue the point further. “And if her mother wants her to be silent, then I support that.”
I sneered at him and was about to respond.
Emily whispered, “Leave it alone, baby.”
Lioness.
David entered the room with several men from the Brotherhood.
I spotted Roman and Tisha walking behind him.
I nodded their way.
It has been a long time, cousins.
At ten, I’d already had a little gang. Of course, Valentina was in it. My five cousins were a part of it too—Pavel, Zahkar, Abram, Tisha, and Roman.
That gang had given me my few happy childhood memories of winter in Siberia.
We would stand around a trash can full of fire and sneak sips of vodka that we had stolen from our uncles. There, we boasted about all the money we would one day have.
In our adult years, the gang shifted to real power with me at the helm.
Now there was barely any members from my earlier gang.
Before we left for Italy, Emily had stabbed Zahkar due to his murdering her man, Yuri.
Then, I got rid of Abram. Emily discovered that he had a disgusting brothel of little girls within my mouse’s Kapotnya district.
Honestly, I had done Abram a favor by slamming the back of his head into the ground over and over until his skull had misshaped into nothing.
Had Emily or Lunita been there. . .
Then in Italy, I shot Pavel for being a traitor and putting my mouse and unborn baby in harm.
Now you two are the only ones left from the gang?
I watched Tisha and Roman head over to the table.
I assessed Tisha. He had been born Tikhon. When we were barely five, Pavel had been the one to start call Tikhon, Tisha.
Perhaps, Pavel couldn’t get a handle on the proper pronunciation.
Either way, everyone else followed suit, until many nowadays didn’t even know that Tikhon was his actual name.