Page 137 of His to Own

“But maybe we should. I hit him, Mom. Doesn’t that upset you?”

“Of course it upsets me,” she hisses. “You could have killed him and then where would your sister and I be without your father’s protection and money? I am so angry with you, Elena.” She takes in a large inhale and exhale. “But… you’re also my daughter. And I wanted to come support you tonight. We always supported Lana when it came to her ballet. I wanted to do the same for you. After what you told me… how I left you to your father so I wouldn’t have to bear the burden of my actions… I realized it wasn’t fair. So I came. And I am proud of you. You looked strong and confident for once. But I am also angry. I don’t want to see you for a while after this. At least until your father calms down.”

“When will he do that?” If he’ll ever do that…

She shrugs. “I’m not sure. You know your father.”

I know my father very well. I clear my throat and offer her a small smile because what else can I do. “Still… thank you for coming. I do appreciate it.”

“I know things have been hard for you and I know it’s my fault. I know, Elena. I know.”

Tears prick at my eyes but I hold it back. I can’t cry. Not right now. “Thank you for saying that.”

She offers me a sad smile. “I should get going. Your father will wonder where I am.”

As if on cue, a car pulls up to the sidewalk and my father storms out. The sight of him makes my stomach drop right to my feet.

“Gregory,” Mother gasps.

“You,” Father growls at me, pointing his finger right in my face. Maxim immediately comes over to my side and places himself between me and my father.

“Stand down, Gregory,” Maxim warns.

“And you.” He sets his eyes on my husband. “Being her protector. When you forced my hand into giving her away. I hate you, Maxim. I fucking hate you.”

“So you’ve made that very clear to me time and time again.” Maxim chuckles. “Say something new and original for once, Gregory.”

“She did this to me,” he seethes, pointing at the scar on the side of his head. I can’t help but flinch. “She hit me.”

“You had it coming. You’ve treated Elena like shit all her life.”

“And then I find out my wife and daughter came to this place.” His eyes rake over the small theater like it’s the most dirty place on this planet. “All to support her.” I can feel the weight of my father’s eyes on me. It almost makes me buckle to the ground.

“Come on, Masha,” he growls. “We’re going home. Adriana! Now.”

Adriana flinches. Lana opens her mouth to object but what is there to say? Our father is a force to be reckoned with as Adriana said before. There’s no getting through to him once he has his mind made up.

“Let’s go,” he snaps.

Fight. My body is moving before I can stop it. I brush past Maxim and look my father square in the eye. “I hate you. I’ve always hated you. But I would have loved you if you had just loved me.”

His eyes widen. For just a moment, I see doubt there. I see… something like sadness. It’s the most vulnerable I’ve ever seen my father.

The sound of a car screeching causes everyone to turn and look. In one fast motion, another car – a large black van – pulls up to the side of the road and multiple men jump out… all with guns.

Maxim throws himself on top of me, pushing me to the ground as the men begin to fire their guns into the sky.

Nikolai has Lana and Adriana beside him. My father is frozen in shock. Mother looks terrified. Poor Polina screams and runs away.

One of the men points his gun at her and fires it. The bullet hits her in the leg, knocking her to the ground.

“No,” I gasp.

Maxim jumps to his feet and pulls out his gun and begins to fire at the men. He manages to hit one in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Nikolai joins the fight.

I scramble away and press myself against the building, covering my ears from the loud sound of gunshots. Who are these men? My husband is the mafia. He has a lot of enemies I’m sure.

A man appears beside me so fast before I even have time to blink and grabs my arms, lifting me off the ground. I gasp and struggle but I can’t cry out. My voice is stuck in my throat again.