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Laying my forearms heavily on the smooth wood of thekitchen island, I warned, “Bunica, it’s Tasa we’re talking about here. My little sister. For some insane reason, you don’t think she’s in jeopardy, but I happen to know exactly what our enemies are capable of. I know exactly what they do during a torture session. Once it’s out that she’s gone, finding her and using her to get to us will be at the top of their list. This is like a nuclear arms race, during the Cold War.” I tapped the watch around my wrist. “Time is ticking, and I can assure you that this won’t finish well. Least of all for Tasa. Who’s going to want to marry her if she’s tarnished? Think about that and come talk to me when you’ve regained your common sense.”
“Baietel, don’t speak to your Bunica like that. I wiped your bottom when you couldn’t even feed yourself. Any man should be grateful for the chance to marry my little girl.”
I snorted out an exasperated sigh. I hated it when she called me little boy. Deciding it was in my best interest to pretend I didn’t hear her last comment, I bent down low and dropped a kiss on the crown of her head. “Do you think I enjoy this? Do you think I enjoy having to lay down the law and act like an enforcer with the people I love?”
“You do enjoy it,” she shot back. “You always think you’re right. In that way, you take after your father. Regardless of what everyone in this family thinks, he wasn’t a saint, you know. He was human, and he made his fair share of mistakes.”
Yeah, right. She always said that, but it was never quite believable. The man was a brilliant businessman and strategist. He loved his family and was the paradigm of how to behave in our twisted world. He was honorable to his core. If I could live up to half of the man he’d been, I’d die content. Which brought me back to the issue at hand: Tasa’s marriage.
“I’ve been negotiating with Nelu on this marriage contract between Tasa and Cristo for years. It’s more than a simple wedding, as you well know. What’s going to happen when he finds out his future daughter-in-law ran away? It will be perceived as a stain on his honor. It could legitimately lead to war when we’ve only just begun our truce. Not only is business booming, but Tata would be disappointed in me. I gave him my oath that I would do everything in my power to make this happen. There’s too much on the line,” I finished with a frown.
The responsibility of taking care of my family fell heavily on my shoulders, but on days like today, the weight was crushing. Although Bunica was whip smart, the truth was she couldn’t relate. She’d always been taken care of. First by my grandfather, then my father, and now me. She could afford to focus solely on the personal, not the big picture. No, that fell on me.
“Pfft. And so you had to sell Tasa to do this? Of all people, you chose to sacrifice your little sister?” Reproval shimmered in her eyes at me.
“Tata would’ve commended me for it. He would’ve thought it was a brilliant move. With the Popescus, Tasa will be taken care of. She’ll be protected. And it would solidify a peace that’s eluded our families for decades.”
Bunica stared at me like she was about to spit on the ground. “Don’t make it seem like you’re doing this for Tasa, Alex. It’s beneath you to lie.”
“I am doing it for her,” I ground out, fists balling at my sides. Christ, this old woman was never satisfied. She was spoiling the girl with notions of love. Our life was based on duty and, for women, that included the duty to marry a man chosen by her family. As the boss or sef of this family, I might be given a leeway regarding this rule. But for a princess of marriageable age like Tasa, it was unthinkable.
“She’s the baby of the family. The Popescus, curse their name, are worthless mongrels. Animals. Unlike the Lupu clan, they didn’t gain power until the fall of Communism. That’s a blink of an eye in the span of history, and you sold your precious sister to those heathens?”
I snorted. “They’re powerful enough now; I can tell you that much. We can look down on the Popescu clan all we want, but only a fool would underestimate their potential to do damage. They’re vicious. Ruthless. You know this as well as anyone.” It was also common knowledge that their tempers were like hair triggers. One wrong move and kapow. I made a dismissive wave. “In any case, it’s done. My hands are tied. There’s nothing I can do but retrieve her and make sure her marriage goes off without a hitch.”
She stalked up to me. Barely five feet tall, she went toe to toe with me and spat out, “Then, you will get no help from me. I will do everything in my power to thwart you. The marriage be damned.”
“You’re impossible,” I heaved out, throwing up my hands. “You know the situation.”
When Tata was bleeding out in the ambulance roaring through the quiet streets, his dying wish had been for me to take care of the family. I’d already failed on that promise, with Tasa stranded somewhere out there, alone and vulnerable. Possibly hurt. My back teeth ground together at that last possibility.
The second oath had been to reconcile our family with the lowbred Popescus. I didn’t disagree with Bunica that every one of them was a bottom-feeder. No education, no class, no nothing. Violence was their greatest attribute. The two families had been at each other’s throats for generations, clawing their way to the top by throat-punching the other. We may be at the pinnacle, but they came in at a close second.
Nelu, their sef, and Tata were always vying to be the top dog. Tata often said that it was too late for their generation, that there was too much bad blood. But at his death bed, he declared, “There needs to be a marriage. It’s the only way.” Those last words were the proverbial nails in my coffin.
“Go back to your fancy apartment in Columbus Circle, Alex. I don’t want you under my roof until you come to your senses.”
Goddamn, this woman was impossible. She refused to acknowledge the possibility of a looming war. Instead, she was banishing me to the penthouse floors of the two towers of the Time Warner Center building in Manhattan, where my brothers and I lived.
Tasa had moved in with Nina a few avenues over, in a nice high-rise building overlooking the Hudson. Of course, Tasa, always with the rebellious streak, couldn’t share an apartment with her twin, Nicu. Oh no, our building was too snooty and fancy for her. And Tasa was as opinionated as the day was long. Thank Christ, she had her little best friend living with her.
My back teeth ground down harder, my fists flexing by my sides, but there was nothing I could say when Bunica got into one of her fits. Turning on my heel, I marched out of the kitchen, grabbed my coat from the hallway closet, and stalked out of the house. What in the ever-loving fuck?
Tasa gone.
Contract in ruins.
Potential war on the horizon.
Everything I’d worked for gone.
Gone.
I was an abject failure. No, I refused to let that stand. I didn’t care what it took to make this right. I’d fulfill Tata’s oath. I’d drag Tasa back by her hair to marry the Popescu if need be. I’d make my father proud if it fucking killed me.
