AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I find my men in the furthest reaches of the basement. When I walk up, the ones who are sitting rise quickly to their feet.
“Gentlemen,” I greet.
It’s returned by a chorus of greetings, but that doesn’t mean I don’t notice the ones that mumble along, eyes wavering skittishly from side to side.
Fucking Gennady.
He stands lost in the center of the group, as per usual. That’s by design: he’s not a man who likes to stand out. Observe and listen without ever catching anyone’s attention is how he operates. His looks work for him in that regard—boring and forgettable. There is a place in my world for men with that kind of skill set.
Right now, though, I’m having a hard time remembering why I need Gennady at all.
“Pakhan Egorov,” Pasha says with a smile. “It’s been a while since we had a meeting.”
“Some would say too long,” Gennady adds. His smile is fixed. It looks like he’s screwed it on.
“You included, Gennady?”
His smile grows wider and much less natural. “I’ve been trying to talk to you for over a week now. I was always told you were too busy.”
“Because I was busy. Do you assume that what you had to say was more important than what I had to do?”
The atmosphere has shifted dangerously. The smiles have dropped by half and all the men have tensed. Gennady seems to realize this, too, because the coward in him starts to take over. “I-I didn’t mean to offend, Dmitr?—”
“You will address me as Pakhan Egorov,” I growl. “Especially since it seems you need to be reminded of who I am.”
Gennady’s mouth snaps shut. His beady eyes lower to the ground, but only for a second. I can understand his conundrum—were I in his place, I wouldn’t want to piss off the top dog. But I also wouldn’t want to look weak in front of my brothers.
“Forgive me, sir.” The words come out jagged and reluctant, like each one costs him dearly. “I simply wanted to convey that there are rumors circulating—dangerous ones.”
“If you hear rumors, shut them down.”
“We don’t know ourselves what’s true and what’s not. We’ve been in the field trying to do damage control while you’ve been locked away with your new toy.”
He didn’t mean to say so much. His nostrils flare with panic the moment the silence settles. The men closest to him inch away, sensing what’s coming next.
Apparently, so does Aleks, because he takes a step to my right. “Brother…”
“Wren Turner is no toy,” I say politely. “She holds the future of this Bratva.”
Gennady glowers at me. It seems I’ve succeeded in making him think that there won’t be consequences for his loose tongue and lack of respect. “You said that once about the Italian princess. Now, she’s six feet under and you expect us to believe that some nobody slut is the future of?—”
I swear I meant to keep him talking a little longer. I meant to make it clear that my judgment would only ever come after careful thought and deliberation. Anger is not always the trigger. But the way he talks about Wren…
I’m not willing to just stand there and listen to him run her down to my face.
There are consequences for badmouthing my woman.
I pull the gun out so fast that Gennady doesn’t even register the weapon until I pull the trigger. He’s still talking when the gunshot rings out with a thundering report…
And then he drops dead, his sentence left forever unfinished.
I hear Aleks’s muttered “Fuck” as I start scanning the faces of my men. Some look shell-shocked; others simply resigned. A few look like they’ve gotten an early birthday present. I stare down all of them. “Does anyone else have reservations about my leadership?”
“No, sir,” several of them chime in at once.
The few who stay silent just nod warily, chancing glances down at Gennady’s body. I understand my brother’s trepidation. It’s never good news when a pakhan culls one of his own. Vors are meant to be protected by the inner circle. If the king starts turning on his own court, then how can loyalty be expected?
But I’m not about to let fear stop me from protecting my family. The time has passed for careful action.
