Page 80 of Savage Little War

Something tugs on the back of my mind as I stare at the symbol, my brain working overtime to figure out why this design looks familiar. The sketch is a little rough, so I just have to imagine this symbol in a cleaner, sharper state and on a ring of all things.

“What color was the ring?” I ask her as I pick up the paper, inspecting every detail.

“I think it was a dark blue . Navy blue or black,” Cara replies as her eyes sharpen in thought.

The hazy image in my head becomes clearer, and realization knocks the air out of my lungs.

“I know that mark,” I tell her, tapping the page. “That’s an old Bratva family symbol.”

Cara touches her fingers to her lips in shock. “Are you saying a Bratva man was down there… hurting me?”

Rage has me ready to explode at the mere thought, but I think she’s right. And it’s worse than what she thinks.

“I think it was someone from the Council. They all have rings with old family crests to represent their position,” I tell her, seeing the color drain from her face.

Cara lowers her hand, concern flooding her features. “They knew that the Suyunovs were involved.”

“And they still pushed me to marry Annika while you were being held hostage,” I grit out, pulling back the curtain on all the betrayal and corruption that has been hiding under my damn nose all this time.

I knew that they didn’t support my union with Cara and the Irish, but I didn’t think their hatred went as far as to torture her.

“Don’t they hold the most power?” Cara asks me, her voice growing quiet. “What if they’re all in on this? What else could they do to us?”

I get to my feet, my vision nearly hazy because I’m so fucking furious. “They’re not going to do a damn thing because I’m going to remove them. If one of them was there, the others knew.”

Cara rises from the floor and walks around the coffee table over to me, her hand clamping down on my arm. “But they have supporters. What if going after them makes us more enemies? What if they win?”

“They won’t,” I say sharply. “I’m not the only person who doesn’t like the men on the Council. It’s about time those old bastards were ousted. Vegas is overdue for new leadership.”

I’ve followed the Council all my life, just like my father, obeying their orders and letting their needs and desires steer my actions and decisions. Just like so many others. Where does that get us?

Still trapped under their thumb as they reap the rewards and praise for our hard work.

“You have to think this through, Dmitri,” Cara says as she rests her hands on my shoulders, grounding me as I threaten to float away and get lost in my plotting. “Are you really going to take them all out?”

A smirk plays out on my lips as I grab the sides of her face and lean close to her. “Not by myself. I have the support of the Irish and a good bit of the local Bratva.”

“I would say you have me, but this probably isn’t a fight that I need to be involved in,” Cara says as a bittersweet expression appears on her face.

She’s right. This is a fight I have to handle.

“You and the baby are my main motivation,” I tell her as I nudge a few loose strands of hair away from her face. “It’s safer for you to stay out of this part. It could get messy.”

“Messier than what we’ve already been through? That’s hard to imagine,” Cara says with a light scoff of disbelief.

We’ve experienced a lot of bloodshed lately, and I’m about to add more once I’m done with the Council.

They thought they could push me around and bark orders at me and that I would obey, but they were wrong.

“I don’t know how deep their involvement is in this. They’ve been outspoken about their disapproval of us since the beginning,” I tell Cara as I take her hands. “They could’ve encouraged your kidnapping. Hell, they could’ve been a direct part of it. I doubt they just asked some questions and went about their day.”

“I wish I could recall which one hurt me that day.” Cara sighs in disappointment.

“It doesn’t matter. The Council is finished,” I state in an unwavering voice. “If one of them knew, they all chose silence. They’d never allow our marriage to happen anyway. They need to be handled before they try to kill us first.”

Cara breathes in sharply before exhaling slower as she grapples with her worries. “I’m sure my father and his men would help you.”

I give her a small smile and shake my head. “Your father is still recovering. I’m not going to endanger him or his men over this part. I have a group of people in mind who could help me.”