AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Locked up…
The sudden reminder gnaws at me. A savage urge to kill Aleks for ripping me away from Yulia burns in the back of my mind.
But for now, the scene before me is a reminder that life in the mafia isn’t all blood and bullets.
I have a family – as dysfunctional as it may seem.
Chapter 22
Luka
“ALRIGHT MALYSHKA, ready to knead some dough?” I ask, my voice gentler than usual, reserved just for my little sister.
Her face lights up with a wide grin, her small hands already reaching for the mound of dough on the table. “Yes! I’m going to make the best pizza you’ve ever had!”
I chuckle, ruffling her hair affectionately. “I have no doubt about that, Yulia.”
Dimitri moves closer, immediately scowling at the doughy chaos in front of us. “Oh, what a disaster. You’re doing it all wrong.” He strides over and nudges Yulia aside.
“Hey!” Yulia is indignant, but she watches closely as Dimitri expertly kneads the dough, her nose crinkling in concentration.
Erik has taken over pizza prep duties. Intensely focused, he looks like he’s defusing a bomb instead of chopping vegetables. But his concentration is constantly disrupted by the bounding little dog.
“Max, no!” Erik laughs as the puppy makes a successful grab for the corner of his apron and bolts across the kitchen. “That’s not a chew toy, sobaka!”
The room fills with laughter at the sight of Erik, the feared mafia enforcer, playing tug-of-war with a puppy. The tough guy act slips away, and it’s just Erik – a big brother, an uncle, one of us.
“Stars have points, Yulia. Points! How are we going to cut that evenly?” Dimitri argues, his face a picture of exaggerated despair.
“But Dima,” Yulia retorts, her little hands on her hips, “you can just slice them from the points like a pie. Easy-peasy!”
Caught off guard by her logic, Dimitri blinks at her, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.
I laugh at the scene just as the kitchen door swings open. Anticipation surges, and…nothing.
Yet another fucking server marches in, armed with a bucket of fresh mozzarella instead of the woman I’m impatiently waiting for. My chest deflates a little. “Blyat,” I grumble, the curse barely audible.
Why the hell is she taking so long?
And why the fuck do I care?
Chapter 23
Sophia
MY HEART hammers against my ribcage as I shadow Svetlana through the labyrinthine corridors of the Ivankov mansion. Each grandiose room we pass reeks of power and grandeur, a glaring reminder of the perilous world I’ve been thrust into – a wolf’s lair.
“This is your room.” Svetlana grinds to a halt in front of an imposing door, brandishing a golden key as if it were a weapon. I barely catch myself before slamming into her broad back.
Shit!
Someone should stick a “sudden stop” sign on her.
Mental note: Don’t tailgate Svetlana.
The woman has the stopping power of a brick wall. My mental meandering comes to a halt as I pay attention to what she’s doing.
The door creaks open, unfolding a realm that’s more fairy tale than reality. Forget the typical nanny’s quarters – this suite is nothing short of a princess’s private sanctuary.
