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Chapter 7
The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.
- Mahatma Ghandi
Anton
I look outside, through the large window that covers the back of the meeting room I am in, as I wait for all the other Clan leaders to leave. I have an important meeting with the king himself; Ion Petron. Well, also his queen, Mariana, since she went everywhere with him these days. She was a spitfire and technically the one with rights to lead the Clans, except for the fact that she is a woman, and this antiquated system means she doesn't actually get to take over. So, enter Ion.
I can’t say that I am looking forward to this meeting. Not only am I going to have to tell Ion that I did not get a clear confession or information out of Jan Constantine, but I also have a lot on my mind regarding Jan’s niece, my beloved Natasha. I left her back in Florida under the protection of my men. I will be honest when I say it is more for me than her that they are watching. I don't want her to escape, especially before we have had a chance to work things out. Our relationship is strained, to say the least. Truly, it is barely there at all. I know I fucked up, but there are so many things at play here. I can’t just pretend like none of this happened and that I don’t need her by my side for more reasons than one.
The room clears out, and the shades are quickly drawn so that I can no longer see the beautiful skyline of New York. I love Miami on principal, even Seattle is beautiful, but there is no other city in the world that looks like New York from high up. That part just cannot be beat.
I sit down in a chair much closer to Mariana and Ion, feeling the pressure as their eyes turn on me. If I am scared of any woman on Earth, it is this one. Her power scares me, and even more, her lack of care that all the men around her do not want to take her seriously. She makes them take her seriously, even Ion. I can see it. It is a potential I see in Natasha as well.
Ion sits there with his chin on his hand, leaning back in his chair. He looks comfortable, but I know better. This is intimidation. I would be scared shitless if we weren’t pretty close before all this went down with Mariana.
“I want an update on Jan Constantine and his Clan, Anton. I want to know what you have found out about the attempt on my wife's life,” he says calmly, bearing into me with his gaze.
“You are not going to like what I have to say,” I preface. There needs to be a warning label to make sure my head stays attached to my body. “Jan was not exactly cooperative, Ion. He told me nothing, even when we tried to beat it out of him and held a gun to his head. I had to take him out. At least he has paid for his crime,” I say, hoping that means something to the two of them. Mariana bows her head, her compassion showing. I am pretty sure when the Clans were warring over her she went on a few dates with the man. It seems Jan inspired love out of a few women, whether he deserved it or not.
“What does that do to the Clan?” Ion asks, and I know what he means.
“It leaves it under new leadership. Specifically, it is currently under no leadership,” I answer.
“So, you killed a Clan leader and left it without leadership just because he didn't confess?” Ion hisses out. This is when my fear comes in, making me sweat. I had to make a decision in the moment, and I thought that was the best one. Now that I am in front of the man who actually gets to make that decision, I am feeling a little unsure of my actions. Jan's death could bring all kinds of consequences down on me, even though I was not the one who ended his life. “We needed to know all of the information before you acted. There is a possibility that we did not find the right person here. It is a complete possibility Jan was not the right man, especially since he didn't speak when pressured. You are going to regret this, if and when we find the person responsible,” Ion barks.
“Anton, you shouldn't have,” is all Mariana says in that melodic voice of hers, her blonde hair a veil right now.
The king and queen are not happy, not pleased one bit. “Who is the next of kin? Is there one?” Ion asked with an exasperated sigh. He wants to make this an open and closed situation for me, but it isn't that simple, through every fault of my own of course.
“Jan has a niece, but no direct descendants. She is in her 20s’ and in my possession,” I confess. There is no hiding this from him, and I know he has no want or need for her with Mariana by his side. Mariana is worth much more to him than an indirect Constantine.
“I guess that is something, but Clan Constantine will need to have someone appointed until the next of kin has sons that become of age to take over.”
Mariana’s head shoots up, and like that she is back in the conversation. I think I know what is coming next because we have all heard it out of her mouth before now. “This is so ridiculous and sexist that you still do not allow women to be Clan leads,” she spits out with venom. She is not someone I want to be on the bad side of, but I don't exactly have the power to change this mandate at all. “It is time to make a change. We need to. Let’s be honest, things like this could keep happening.”
Ion shakes his head at his wife, letting her know that he is not going to give any weight to her comments. I bet that he feels for her, that she is in his ear about to every day, but he knows just what I know; that it’s impossible. “So many of the Clan leaders are older, you should know that from having to look through them to date.” He spears her with a look, and this suddenly feels private. “They are traditional, Mariana. They will never vote to pass something like that even if we tried.”
Mariana sighs angrily, her face turning sour as she looks between the two of us. It sends a chill down my spine, and suddenly, her father is in my head, the thought of that ruthless man chilling me to my core. He was quite a leader. We are still feeling his loss.
Ion looks at me again, his focus shifting back to the task at hand. “You will have to take over Clan Constantine in addition to Clan Balan. You can see it as a sort of punishment for acting so irrationally when it came to Jan. I know many men might find this a happy time to be running two Clans, being given more power, but it is hard work, especially getting men who don't believe in you to answer to you.” I chuckle darkly, knowing that if anyone had experience with that matter, it is Ion.
“Now, tell me about Natasha, the one who is the sole living heir to Clan Constantine. What do you know, and what does she know?” I know what Ion is actually asking me. He needs to know if she could have been involved with this at all. Luckily for the both of us, I can tell she hasn’t touched any of this with a ten-foot pole.
“She was closer to Jan, possibly living with him, or growing up with him considering she just walked in the door uninvited when we were in the middle of torturing him,” I say. “She was very confused and devastated with the whole thing when she saw us. She doesn't know anything about the clan or even about what Jan does. She thought he was innocent, until I mentioned that we had possible proof. So, she had no part in this whatsoever, just an innocent woman mixed up in the wrong family and in the wrong place at the wrong time,” I explain.
“Then, why in the world are you keeping her as your own personal prize? Why would you not just let the girl go? I doubt she is going to talk if she saw what happened and believes there is a chance that Jan has committed the crime. I would have let her go,” he emphasizes, turning everything back on me. I will give him this; from an outside perspective, he is right. There is no reason to take her into our custody now, and it could have been to our advantage to let her live out her life. We would have come to her when she had sons who were older to make sure they were a proper part of the Clans. That's it.
I have to tell Ion the truth, even if I kind of hate myself for it. “We were actually dating before this all happened. I had no idea who she was, or her me for that matter. It was the most ridiculous case of happenstance I have ever experienced,” I spit out, annoyed at hearing it from my own lips. Just my fucking luck. “I don’t want to lose her because of the call I had to make for the Clans, for the Clans’ safety. She doesn’t get it, and I have to make her understand. I just couldn't walk out of that house and possibly let her go forever.” I would never admit this to other men, but Ion is my friend, not just the king of the Clans. I can tell him almost anything, and he will give it to me straight.
“How is she holding up?” Ion asked, true concern in his voice. Ion is a good man, even if he has to hide that part of him away to bring down the hammer most times. I believe it is only myself and Mariana that truly know of his character.
“It’s not very good,” I say honestly. “She sleeps in a room across the hall and avoids speaking with me most of the time. She looks at me like I am something evil, and I don't know how to change it.” I shrug. I am not sure if there is anything other than time to fix these things, or at least to give me a shot to.
“Then, why have you had your men spread the rumor around that she is your prize and before you try to weasel your way out of this. I have already heard.” Ion tells me, and I flinch. I actually hate that I have to do that. “Wait,” he says before I can respond. “You don’t want her to know she can leave.” He has guessed exactly what I am playing at, but I hope Natasha doesn’t catch on so quickly. She is a smart woman, though.
“If she knows she can go at any moment's notice, she will leave and never look back. What Natasha and I have together is too good for me to let her just slip away. I just need time to make her remember and see through the large hiccup we have come across.”
