Page 97 of Savage Pakhan

He’s only ever done that a few times in my life like when I asked if I could go to college instead of marrying Ivan.

I’ve been abused in so many ways my entire life and it’s finally going to come to an end.

Alek catches my father’s wrist, then twists it in such a way, my father screams to the ceiling. Alek pulls his arm behind his back while Nikolai presses the gun between his eyebrows.

The men who have been loyal to Alek come from the living room, standing behind us in solidarity.

“I’m in charge!” Ivan slurs. “Me! He has sullied the family name by disappearing,” he hiccups. “All because of you.” He points his index finger at me, taking another swig of vodka.

I can’t believe there was a day where I loved him because looking at him now, nothing about him is loveable.

“Try to put your hands on my wife again and I will fucking kill you, Roswell.” Alek’s tone is level yet threatening.

“That isn’t what we agreed to.” My father’s voice shakes as he falls to his knees.

“We agreed in the contract—” Alek yanks it out of his pocket and tosses the papers on my father’s feet. “That Mia would marry a Bykov. My son broke a few clauses which allowed me to marry her.”

“I didn’t break any fucking clause!” Ivan tries to walk and stumbles into the coffee table. “Everything she did, she deserved, didn’t you!” He smirks at me, taking another large swig of vodka. “I’ll get what’s mine. I deserve it after putting up with you for most of my life.”

His hatred doesn’t hurt me anymore. It doesn’t surprise me.

Ivan throws the vodka bottle at me so fast, no one has time to react, and it hits me across my cheek. I reach for the sore spot, my fingers drenched in blood.

Alek releases his hold on my father and spins around, cupping my face to check on me. “Lyubimaya, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. It only hurts.”

Alek growls, it’s low and menacing, the kind you’d hear in a dark forest and want to run. I’ve never heard this sound come from him before. “No one hurts you,” he seethes.

He leaps over the decorative coffee table, lands on his two feet in front of Ivan, and wraps a hand around his son’s throat.

“You’ve hurt her long enough, do you understand me? I think you’ve lost your way. Here.” He slams his head against the wall so hard, blood drips down Ivan’s nape.

“Don’t even think about it.” Nikolai keeps the gun aimed at my father’s head when he tries to crawl away.

“You broke the number one rule. You abused Mia.”

“You have no proof.” Ivan struggles to breathe, his face turning an odd purple shade from the grip Alek has.

“I have an entire book of proof. I read every single heinous crime you did to her. My own son, abusing women he swore to protect. I know how you hit her, left her alone, locked her in her room, how you spoke to her, how you cheated. I know everything.”

“I didn’t!” My father yells in attempt to save his own life. “I didn’t know. I didn’t⁠—”

“Shut the fuck up.” Nikolai slams his gun down on my father’s head so hard, he collapses in an unconscious heap. Nikolai smirks at me before swinging the gun around to aim at Ivan. “Just say when, Boss.”

“You married her,” Ivan stutters. “She was supposed to be mine.”

Alek pulls his son closer, Ivan’s feet dangling off the floor. “She was never yours. You don’t abuse what belongs to you.” My husband tosses his son to floor and punches him over and over. “Like now, you are not my son. I don’t know you. You are no longer a Bykov. I’m going to drag your death out. It won’t be immediate. It will be slow and painful. You’ll wonder how your life will end so you know exactly what Mia went through every single fucking day with you.” Alek spits, literally, into his son’s face and the wad lands on his cheek.

“No. N-no!” Ivan stutters. “Please. I’ll do better. I won’t hurt her anymore.”

“You can’t. She’s mine.” Alek lifts Ivan up by gripping the front of his shirt.

Ivan coughs up blood and even from where I stand, I can smell the strong aroma of vodka.

“And unlike you, I protect what is mine.”

“Papa, don’t. Don’t. You can’t kill me. I’m… I’m your son.”