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“You must either be a brave man or incredibly stupid for calling us here,” Ivan murmured, eyes piercing. “We don’t know a Grigory Lukin, and we certainly don’t owe you anything.”
A small wave of relief fell over me, but it only caused more agitation, hating how the man even sat in our presence, demanding his supposed reward.
While our father had once called the shots, Ivan was the head of the family in his stead. What he said went, and meeting with these so-called allies was a consequence of taking on that responsibility. More men than we could count showed up to claim their apparent deals, and most of them were nothing but frauds.
“I can assure you, in this folio, you will find my valid claim,” Grigory said, face stern despite Ivan and Aleksei’s clear amusement. He slid the dark leather folio across the table, moving with a scraping sound that grated my nerves.
Ivan’s brows came together in question, but he grabbed the leather cover and opened it over the table.
“I certainly hope you aren’t wasting our time,” Ivan muttered, sifting through the papers. “I’m sure you could guess what would happen to you in such a circumstance.”
Grigory didn’t seem impressed with Ivan’s vague threats, and he settled into the chair with his fingers laced over his stomach. “Just read it and tell me if I’m wasting your time.”
Aleksei shot him a glare for his tone, but he pulled away to look over Ivan’s shoulder. While I should’ve done the same, I couldn’t pull my stare away from the window. It was almost like saving myself the trouble.
Dread dribbled into my system, fearing the worst. This Grigory could’ve been nobody, but his calm composure left a sour taste on my tongue. It didn’t feel right.
As silence filled the room, the only sound came from Ivan turning a page, quiet while he read. The longer his silence continued, the tighter the knot in my stomach grew.
Ivan hummed a contemplative sound, and Aleksei grumbled under his breath.
“You may have a legitimate claim on your hands, Lukin.”
My head whipped around, unable to ignore it that time. “What?”
Ivan pointed at the large signature at the bottom of the page, written in blue ink. His brows remained tightly knit together in disbelief. “This is certainly dad’s signature.”
“I’d know it anywhere,” Aleksei mumbled, just as perplexed as Ivan.
As if vines tightened themselves around my stomach, I was too constricted for the breath to enter my lungs again. It couldn’t be true.
Ivan gave me an astonished look. “I hate to break it to you, brother, but everything looks right here.”
Seeing red, I clenched my jaw and ran a hand over my chin. I shook my head, refusing to believe it. “No, it can’t be. Dad never told me anything about this. You’re lying!”
Grigory wore his triumphant look, hidden behind his too-pleasant grin. “I would never lie about matters such as this. I uphold each bargain with utmost sincerity.”
I wanted nothing more than to wipe that smirk off his face. Growling my contempt, the fury surged inside my veins, and I charged at him.
But Aleksei’s hand pressed against my chest before I could, and he gave me a warning look, laced with an ounce of understanding. Of empathy.
“Easy, now.”
Ivan dropped the papers back into the folio and pushed it in Grigory’s direction, face settled with resolve. “You are just as surprised as the rest of us, Nikolai. But arranged marriages aren’t that big of a deal. Aleksei knows he’s destined to be in one too.”
Aleksei nodded his understanding, but I didn’t care to see it.
Gritting my teeth, I bit back, pointing a finger at Ivan, “You married who you wanted! Aleksei has known his whole life about his situation and could prepare for it!”
Ivan sighed and leaned in his chair, already decided. “You’ll have to live with it. I won’t go against the contract.”
“You are the head—what you say goes! Reverse the contract!”
Anger simmered beneath Ivan’s skin, but he maintained his calm demeanor. “Even if our father is dead, I need to uphold his word. I’m his heir, and it is my duty.”
“I don’t care! I will not have this!” I shouted back, feeling the tightness of my skin against the veins in my neck.
“Don’t you remember what we’re up against?!” Ivan barked back at me, finally allowing his impatience to get the better of him. He took a deep breath to regain himself before speaking. “It won’t hurt to have a new ally in the war against the Balakins. I’m still not convinced there won’t be backlash from the murders before, even if things have been quiet on their front.”
