Page 5 of Cruel Promise


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“None of your fucking business—” I start to say.

“She’s twenty, Vadik. Now leave her alone. Please,” Pops says in a weak voice.

Vadik’s eyes widen. “Damn. I thought when I saw you at my father’s funeral two years ago you were jailbait for sure. Shit, you were eighteen. I could have hit on you if I didn’t have all those losers sucking up my time, supposedly paying their respects.”

I wince at his vulgar words and remember. I did see him that day at the funeral I went to with my dad. It was for a man he did business with and his wife, who both died in some sort of tragic accident. On the sign outside the funeral, the name was Alekseev, and there were tons and tons of people, far more than there were at my mother’s funeral. And they were very dressed up, not simply, like my mother’s friends were.

Pops told me the Alekseevs were from Russia. Guess the name stuck because I’d never heard a Russian name before.

“I do remember you. Your dad…” I trail off.

What am I doing, engaging with this man?

He lights up at my recognition and breaks into a grin. “Yup. Papa burned up in a house fire, along with Mama. Didn’t he, boys?” he asks, looking at the other two men.

Who bear a slight resemblance to him.

Because they are brothers.

It’s all coming back now.

What do they want from Pops? And what is this man doing speaking so cheerfully about his father’s death? What is wrong with him?

“You’re the Alekseevs then, right?” I give the guy holding my arm a dirty look.

“My head hurts,” my father wails from the floor, distracting us all for a moment.

But only a moment. Seems these guys have done this before. “That we are, Miss Gates, the Alekseev brothers. I’m Vadik, the man on your arm is Kir, and that over there is Niko. The baby of the family.”

I look at Niko to see how he receives this acknowledgment. He just shakes his head with a small laugh.

“Why did you hurt my father? What do you want?” I demand. I want answers.

Yeah, right. Like I can force these men to do anything, much less answer a simple question.

Kir loosens his grip on my arm, not entirely letting go. “Why don’t you tell your daughter what’s going on, Mr. Gates? She deserves to know what kind of person you are.”

Anger swells in me. My dad will never win any Father of the Year awards. But heismy dad. And I want to know what the hell is going on.

“Oh, honey,” he groans, reaching for me, but just brushing the hem of my blue jeans. “I… I have some debts.”

Vadik drops his head back with a loud roar. “Somedebts, Mr. Gates? Sounds like you are downplaying the mess you are in, sir. Do we have to show you again just how much trouble you’ve gotten yourself into?”

Debts? Pops has debts? While we’re pretty much middle-class, my father makes a modest living from the pawn shop and we’re not wanting for the basics in life. I can’t imagine why he’s in debt.

And why these men care.

Unless…

I turn to him. “Pops, do you owe these men money?”

* * *

CHAPTERFOUR

Charleigh

Victoria continues her pacing, avoiding my gaze. Yup. She knows something.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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