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“Velvet Transport is the one thing I control completely, and I can shut down any and all non-legitimate cargo from leaving my docks on my ships or trucks.“ She raises her chin. “Without me, part of your power dissipates. So be very careful who you disrespect in my presence, including me.”
Grace Belov is truly a sight to behold when riled. Her blue eyes turn to chips of ice, and her tone drips with warning. While my father managed his side of the business—laundering money, protection, drugs, and weapons—my mother has always run Velvet Transport.
My father once told me it was better for Grace to have complete control and for him to stay out of it. That way, the company could maintain a legitimate front. Her expertise and firm hand ensured that Velvet Transport remained beyond his reach and any attempts to compromise its legitimacy. It also helped for the company to maintain the trust of the other crime families that used it.
Grace’s connection to her family’s shipping empire runs deep. She took over after her father was killed when she was in her early twenties. Despite her young age, she showed remarkable resilience and shrewdness, quickly earning the respect of the board and the employees. My father could never wrest control from her because she had solidified her position with an iron will and strategic acumen—only two people had the key to get into the biometrically locked system that ran the non-legitimate side of the business.
“Andrey,” she continues, her voice firm, “do not underestimate what I’m capable of. Velvet Transport remains untouchable because I have made it so. I made sure never to make the same mistake my father and my best…” Her eyes darken with emotion but it’s quickly gone. “Than others I have cared for did, and up until two years ago, I made sure that my sons and those I promised to protect remained safe by leveraging my position.”
Where is this going? My brow furrows a little more, watching my mother make sure I know her position now that I’ve taken over as Pakhan.
“Velvet Transport has transported goods for crime families all over the world,” Sergei reminds me. “Your mother can bring a world of hurt to every one of them, including Belov Bratva.”
The threat hangs in the air, a potent reminder of the power my mother wields. Grace Belov is not just a figurehead; she is the backbone of our legitimate and non-legitimate operations, a force to be reckoned with. She has obviously gained Sergei’s loyalty and affection by the way he looks at her, and he is my father’s most trusted underboss, brigadier, and advisor. My father relied on Sergei heavily.
Jesus! My heart jolts when it hits me just how powerful my mother’s position makes my father by association. I always knew he’d made himself basically untouchable, but it wasn’t him they were afraid of. I realize now that it was my mother.
Up until seven weeks ago, when Velvet Transport was hacked, no one dared cross my father. They needed to be able to transport their goods, but they also needed someone who knew how to handle their cargo to ensure they never got caught.
But then there was also the fact that my mother kept meticulously coded records. Records that a group of faceless hackers were trying to access as they held the rest of Velvet Transport and Strategic Packaging hostage.
At first I thought it might be for the records of the crime families or maybe Isabella. But now I’m not so sure as they would only communicate with Marco and, according to my contacts, were demanding Marco and Ivan give them something. I wonder if its the missing documents Marco and my father were talking about?
My father’s alliance with Marco Moretti, who not only was a mob boss but also the criminal defense attorney for a lot of major bad guys, also wielded the power to bring down whoever he wanted. With high-up judges in their pockets, they were a force to be reckoned with. A cold feeling starts to creep up my spine, and I’m beginning to feel uneasy about how quickly my father and Marco have stepped aside.
They hadn’t even tried to defend themselves to the council. Marco and Ivan had accepted defeat and bowed out, giving James and me their crowns with their blessing. My gaze turns to Sergei and narrows suspiciously. He, too, pledged his loyalty to me a little too quickly, switching sides without the blink of an eye. Fuck! He’s my father and Marco Moretti’s mole.
A mole I can deal with at any time and can use to my advantage. My worry is, who the fuck these hackers are that would dare challenge the likes of Ivan Belov and Marco Moretti? Could it be Zhukov? Did he get the hackers to send a crate of Painted Ladies his way to revert suspicion from him so Konstantin can extract Isabella and take revenge on Marco and Ivan?
The headache I still have from that NeuroVeil shit I was drugged with is starting to get worse with all the questions I have swirling in my mind. What a mess my father and Marco have us in. It’s a mess I’m going to have to clean up if I don’t want a war on my hands. At least not yet anyway, while I’ve just taken power and need to rally all the men, as well as Marco’s men.
While I’m sorting this mess out, I still have to find my wife and kill her brother, which is sure to bring the Zhukov down on us.
“Andrey!” my mother snaps, pulling me from my thoughts. “Have you heard a word I’ve said?”
“Sorry, Mother, I have a lot on my mind.” I sit back, resting my arms on the chair and steepling my hands.
“You have questions about NeuroVeil,” she says, her eyes meeting my surprised ones.
My father ruled over my brother and me with an iron fist. Although my father was a lot stricter with my older brother. My mother, while equally steely, governed with a touch of softness, her authority padded with velvet—her favorite fabric.
“Sergei was about to reveal information about two of the people who know about the shit.” My eyes travel questioningly to Sergei. “Well?”
He glances at my mother. Is he looking at her for permission? What the fuck is going on here? I’m starting to get pissed off. “I don’t who the new chemist is,” Sergei tells me. “But we had a suspicion who the previous one was.”
“Darling, calm down.” My mother’s voice has changed to the soothing, defuse-the-situation one as she must see the anger brewing in my eyes. The voice she used to use when my brother and I would get into a fight and try to beat the crap out of each other. “You don’t want to have a mini-stroke.”
“You mean a TIA?” I add. “Trust me, I’m fine, but I think my blood pressure is on the rise because of the anger boiling inside me. I’m tired of not getting the answers I’ve asked for, and I’m going to resort to more persuasive measures in a few seconds if I don’t.”
“Don’t threaten your mother like that.” Sergei’s eyes flash angrily. “She’s done everything to protect you at her own risk.”
“Look how well that worked out for her eldest child!” I point out, then turn to my mother. “Stop fucking hedging.” My eyes flip from my mother to Sergei. “Was my brother one of the people who knew about NeuroVeil, and is that what got him killed?”
“Yes, we believe he knew about where or how NeuroVeil is made,” my mother replies. “But that’s not what took him from us.”
“No, that fucking deadman walking Konstantin took him from us!” The growl rips from my throat. “Just like he took my wife, and when I find him, I’m going to enjoy painfully draining the fucking life from him.”
“You will do no such thing!” My mother stands up, kicking her chair back, and is at my side in a flash. Her eyes are blazing with an anger I’ve never before seen on her. “You asked why me bringing Velvet Transport up was relevant—because of Konstantin. You will not harm him, is that clear?”
