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“What do you want to talk about?” I ask after several minutes of silence. My tumultuous thoughts make it hard to hold a conversation. I have so many questions to ask Ben, and pressure builds in my chest as my concern wars with my anger.
“Mom told me you moved out.” He glances at me from the corner of his eye, his blue gaze sharp.
I shrug. “They gave me an ultimatum, and I’ve reached my limit on how far backward I’m willing to bend for Dad’s career.”
He nods, his brows furrowing as he watches his feet. “You could have come to me, you know.”
“What?” Stopping dead in my tracks, I turn to face my brother.
“I get how stifling our parents can be,” he says, stopping to face me. “But you shouldn’t throw away your future over it. I know you’ve been staying with Efrem, and I wish you’d have asked for my help over falling into bed with Pyotr’s bodyguard because you don’t want to live with Mom and Dad.” Scowling, Ben gives me a disapproving look, like I’m the one making poor decisions.
“Excuse me?” I demand, flushing as I cross my arms over my chest. “You let your boss trick me into thinking you were hurt and in danger. Then you took that opportunity to pull a gun on one of your best friends from high school and his wife and child. You killed people, Ben, men trying to protect an innocent woman—who happens to be my very good friend—and her toddler, and you want to question my life choices?”
Ben looks like I physically struck him, the astonishment on his face as stark as the deep hurt. “You don’t know what you’re talking about, Dani.”
“No? I might not have been at Pyotr’s house when your new friends sent a Molotov cocktail through his front window, but I heard plenty. And let me tell you, Ben. You might think Pyotr’s some monster, but I promise he’s not nearly as sadistic and evil as the man you call your boss.”
“Come on, Dani. Not this same fucking conversation again,” Ben snaps, stepping back as his eyes flash with anger.
“No? You don’t like hearing that your boss is a sick fuck, even though he sent you to mow down a family for him?”
“Stop pretending like Pyotr Veles is some innocent family man who’s never done anything wrong,” Ben snarls. “He and his family have killed more people than you could even dream. I don’t like the idea of shooting a woman and child any more than you do, but Pyotr’s the one who put them at risk by dropping them right in the middle of this conflict in the first place.”
“I can’t believe you’re trying to validate your actions. No one deserves to die, Ben. And if Pyotr’s such a bad guy, you should be letting the police handle him. He should answer to the law—not Mikhail Sidorov’s version of justice. Hasn’t Dad’s years of speeches on the topic taught you anything?”
Ben scoffs as he looks down on me like I’m a naive child. “The justice system in this country doesn’t even deliver justice. If it did, Pyotr would be in jail. Men like Dad are deluding themselves if they think they’re making a damn bit of a difference. At least Mikhail is doing something about the violence in New York.”
“Answering violence with violence?” I scoff.
It breaks my heart to hear my brother talk like he is. Mikhail has his hooks deep in Ben now, and it doesn’t appear like he has any intention of letting go. He’s brainwashed my brother until he’s unrecognizable. And the person who stands before me now makes my heart shiver.
“You know what, Dani…?”
I wait for Ben to finish his question that sounds dangerously close to a threat. Pressing my lips together, I tense, trying to keep my emotions in check as I feel my brother slipping through my fingers.
Then he releases a heavy sigh, his shoulders dropping. “Forget it. I came to see if you might want to come live with me. I’ve got a good setup now and was hoping you would want to spend more time together. But clearly, you’ve picked your side. If you want to make me out to be the bad guy, then I can’t do anything to stop you.”
“I don’t see how there can be two sides to this story. What kind of sick man would ask you to gun down a family? I don’t think you’re the bad guy, Ben. But you’re going down a path that I’m worried you might not be able to come back from. This isn’t you.” Tears sting my eyes as I try to reason with my brother. How can he not see how horrible Mikhail is?
But he just snorts, his lips twisting into a sneer that makes my brother’s face entirely unfamiliar. “Are you seriously going to try guilt-tripping me now?”
“No, I—”
“You’ve got Mom and Dad worried sick because you’re spending all your time with a known member of the Veles Bratva, and you want to lecture me on who I associate with. Mikhail is good for this city. He’s doing the dirty work that Dad can’t because his hands are tied by our stupid legal system. Mikhail might actually be able to help clean up the streets. And here you are, sleeping with the enemy. I’m sorry I ever brought Pyotr into our lives. I was young and stupid, but now I can see the truth. I can see how blind you are, and I just wish you would stop being so stupid and reckless because you’ve decided to rebel against our parents. You need to wake up, Dani, and sort out your priorities.”
My bitter hurt boils over as his sharp words cut me deep. Turning from my brother, I remove myself from the conversation as my tears start to flow. I’m so mad, I can’t even argue with Ben. I don’t know who this stranger is, but he’s not my brother. My brother would never say something like that to me. He’s always cared about my feelings, my opinion. He’s always been kind and caring above all else.
But he’s Mikhail’s puppet now. And I can hear the poisonous words leaving his lips that Mikhail has been whispering in his ear for months.
“Dani,” he calls after me, his tone chastising.
I don’t turn around. I can’t face him. I can’t speak in my defense. I’m so devastated by my brother’s transformation that I feel my heart crumbling in my chest.
“Dani!”
Breaking into a sprint, I run from my brother as a sob rips from my lips.
4
