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Dima’s chest is covered with arcs of clouds filled in with gray shading. The circles twist into themselves and around the lines of his body. He’s taking it well, grimacing when the needle passes over the sensitive area around the breastbone, but able to remain calm and still for the most part.
“What you were referring to isn’t how we operate anymore,” Adrik says with his back to me. “Vadim said it correctly. Most of the smaller Bratva groups know not to question Vadim’s authority, but we always need more men, and we need a way for them to prove they’re worthy of joining.”
I grab an empty chair, set it in front of Adrik, and sit down. “Makes sense.”
Adrik lifts his needle and moves to the crook of Dima’s shoulder, another sensitive area. The buzzing from his needle resumes.
“What happened to you after the attack?” I ask.
Adrik’s eyes stay focused on Dima as he continues to work, but the look in his eyes changes.
“We tried to rebuild what was lost, but…” he shakes his head as his answer trails off. “Things were moving quickly in those days. Gangs that existed only in the confines of a jail were suddenly allies of politicians. Your father made it clear how much money could be made with the right connections in the government. Criminals who swore to never again serve the State betrayed their vows. They bought their way to industries that turned them into kings. Scores of men far wealthier than your father ever became sprung up overnight.”
“And you?” I ask.
Adrik sighs and goes quiet for a moment. He tips his head to the side and tenses his jaw. “We tried to rebuild, but the men who worked for your father flocked to the next man who could pay them. I tried finding the people who were behind the attack, discovered the Ivanov man, and then a great wall slammed down before me.”
I narrow my eyes as Adrik continues.
“I caught the State’s attention. Someone didn’t like my investigation, and so the State pinned a murder charge on me. Some random unsolved case they could throw at me to keep me quiet and behind bars.”
Adrik sits up, giving Dima a break from his tattoo. Dima gets out of his chair and joins the men who have now congregated at the other end of the room.
“I was a few months into my prison sentence, and one day a guard stopped at my cell, told me I should look in on my brother, and walked off. A few weeks later, I got a letter from Fredek’s wife, telling me he was murdered.”
I hang my head at that news. It’s awful, but not surprising. If you try to uncover something the State doesn’t want you looking into, they will strike back.
“The State killed your brother, but kept you alive?” I ask.
“They thought they could intimidate me into handing you over to them,” Adrik says. “When I told them to fuck right off, they sent a few assassins over the years and…”
Adrik throws his hand up and we laugh.
Of course the attempts on Adrik’s life failed. The government makes convincing threats and follows them up by sending a barely trained boy to do the job.
The men at the opposite end of the room are sharing smiles and jokes with each other. Everyone looks like they belong in the room except me. I study their shields and look to my chest, over the old lines and faded ink.
“I could touch that up for you,” Adrik offers.
“Yeah,” I laugh. “And put a shield on me, too. Vadim would love that.”
Adrik smiles and catches my glances between the men and me.
“They’re wearing shields,” he says. He taps the center of my chest with his two fingers and looks back at me. “You’re wearing a crown.”
Chapter12
TATYANA
Itchy wool blankets scratch against my entire body. It’s uncomfortable, but I won’t dare leave the warmth inside these covers.
Viktor left the lights on inside of the cell, and there are no windows. I do not know what time of day it is, or how long I’ve been here. I have nothing but my thoughts and when you have nothing else, you lose all concept of time.
I curl my knees to my chest and wince at the sharp pain across my abdomen. My mind drifts to the belt lashes Viktor left on my body. I can’t bear to look at the corner where my father’s body was lying. Viktor was merciless as he was punishing me, and it was simply for the crime of being my father’s daughter. I know I’ve done much worse. I’ve betrayed Viktor, but as far as he knows, I’m just my father’s daughter. If this is the punishment I received for something so out of my control, I can’t imagine what he would do to me if he found out I was acting as a spy the first night we saw each other.
A tear falls from the corner of my eye, thinking over the cruelty Viktor showed me he’s capable of. He wanted to break me in more ways than just physically. I saw the monstrous look on his face as he pumped his hand in and out of my pussy. It was the look of a man determined to hurt, scare, and humiliate me by showing me that no matter what awful things he did to me, my body still craves his touch.
I clench my eyes shut, hating that I gave Viktor exactly what he wanted from me. He took my virginity and from that moment forward, I needed more of him. How can I still crave the touch of a man so cruel?
