Ruthless Mafia King: A Dark Bratva Arranged Marriage Romance
Ruthless Mafia King: Chapter 34

I’m in the middle of putting together a business plan for my own record label when Nik unexpectedly comes home. I rise from his office chair, which I’ve been using as mine. My brows furrow in confusion as I wonder why he’d leave work during the day, especially with so many things to take care of in order for us to start our life together.

He stops in the middle of the room and studies my expression. His blank, unreadable gaze gives me no hints, though it’s clear that something’s wrong.

“What’s going on?” I ask nervously.

“Something’s happened,” he starts, and then pauses, searching for words.

“For fuck’s sake, Nik. Just spit it out,” I demand.

“Your brother came to see me,” he says. “He claims the Gargarins attacked them. Your father got hurt. It’s . . . not looking good.”

“I don’t understand,” I mutter, shaking my head in disbelief. “What do you mean he was attacked? Attacked how?”

“Shot. He wants to say goodbye.”

The blood in my veins turns into ice, my body stiffening. For a moment, I forget to breathe, incapable of understanding how my situation changed so rapidly in such a short amount of time.

“I have to go.” I snap out of my haze at last, my voice cracking at the finality of my words. “I have to see him. He’s dying, Nik.”

“It’ll be dangerous to go. Are you sure you want to risk it?”

“I’m going,” I declare, and wince, regretting my harsh tone.

Nikolai doesn’t protest or react. He watches me and remains strangely quiet.

“It’s going to happen whether you approve of it or not,” I add in a gentler voice. “I don’t need your permission anymore to leave the house. You gave me your word, remember?”

“I won’t go back on it, serdtse,” he says softly. “But I will go with you.”

“What?”

“You’re not going alone,” he repeats, as if his words weren’t clear enough the first time. “I’m going to drive you to your father’s house so you can see him.”

“But what if they kill you?” I breathe, realizing that it’s now him I’m worried about.

“For you, I’ll risk it.” He shrugs and takes a deep breath, then places a possessive kiss on my lips.

“Nik, they’ll kill you,” I whisper against his lips. “I’m the only reason you’re still alive.”

I pull away and stare him in the eye.

“Let’s hope you’ll be able to stop them before they pull the trigger,” he muses, but I don’t find it funny.

“You can’t joke about that,” I warn him. “I’m not taking you with me just for them to blow you away.”

Nikolai shakes his head, dismissing my warning. “That won’t happen. They’ll understand that if any of them even point their weapon at me, they’ll be signing their own death warrant. They won’t dare harm me because they know damn well my men won’t stop until they’ve ripped them to shreds. Today’s no exception.”

Reluctantly, I go get dressed while Nikolai makes a phone call. I start putting on the heels I kicked off earlier, and within minutes, I’m ready to go.

“Everything will be alright,” he promises, and kisses me on my forehead. “I’ll make sure of it.”

“Do you promise to be careful?” I question with a worried look. “I don’t want to raise this child alone.”

He doesn’t respond, probably because he knows that no promise he could make is guaranteed to be true. In our world, a violent ending is a possibility for everyone.

I’m jittery and shivering on the entire drive over, blood pounding in my ears. Nikolai is constantly glancing at the rearview mirror, checking if we’re being followed.

As we drive, I turn to him. “Tell me the whole story. What happened?”

“I’ll tell you what I’ve figured out so far,” Nikolai proposes, keeping his eyes on the road. “But I can’t guarantee it’s the whole truth.”

“Fair enough.”

“Your brother went off the rails. He was seen in Solanum drinking and who knows what else. As luck would have it, Anastasiya Gargarin also decided to go out that night,” Nikolai relays, giving me a good idea where this story is going. “Igor went after her again, but this time not as a lover. They had a heated argument. It was bad, and the police showed up.”

“Fucking Igor,” I mutter under my breath.

“When Igor came home, the Gargarins were waiting for him,” Nik continues. “Yakov led a group of men who attacked your brother in front of the house. They beat him up and did quite a number on him. That’s when things get a bit fuzzy. It could be that after Yakov did his thing with Igor, the Gargarins left. Or your father came out with his men and began shooting left and right.”

“Dear God,” I breathe. “Those idiots will kill each other!”

“Once again, Igor lived up to his family name.”

“What about my mother? Is she okay? And Aleksander and Mikhail?” I ask.

“Everyone’s fine and accounted for,” he assures me. “I know that they’ll love to see you.”

It gives me hope, and I start fidgeting in the passenger seat. I try to remain focused on the story, even though there’s a tinge of impatience bubbling inside me.

“The Gargarins’ feud is with your old man and Igor,” Nik explains. “They’re Bratva, and they have their own sense of honor. The only reason Yakov went after you is because the women became fair game after what Igor did to Anastasiya.”

“Fucking Igor,” I mutter again. “If he wasn’t such an idiot, none of us would be in this mess.”

“It also means that you wouldn’t be pregnant with my child,” Nik points out. “Bad things followed his actions, but I like to think that they were good for something.”

“You mean me?” I murmur softly.

Nikolai gives me a pointed glance and smiles gently, though he’s still vigilant. Every corner is treated as a potential place for an ambush, but so far, we’re safe.

“We’ll count our chickens once this is over,” he mutters before turning his attention back to the road ahead of us.

“This is all so confusing,” I whine. “I once thought you were the bad guy for taking my freedom away, but that’s changed. Who’s the problem now? Is it my brother? After what he did, I can’t blame Yakov, but I do hate him for drugging me. Is my father the bad guy for betraying you? Am I one of the bad actors in this story?”

“It’s not that black and white,” Nikolai whispers, his hands tightening on the steering wheel. “Right and wrong is relative. It’s a matter of who’s pulling the trigger and the reasoning behind the action. We think we know who’s in the right and who’s in the wrong, but that’s just blind hubris. We’re all villains in someone’s story.”

“I’d rather be the heroine,” I muse, and gaze out the window.

The world passes by me in a blur, no one minding my presence or my problems. Here in New York, the lives of ordinary people carry on without the taint of our underground world.

My attention shifts and rests on Nikolai.

Where would I be now if Igor hadn’t made the Gargarins angry? Would Nikolai and I have found our way to each other despite everything that separates us?

I would’ve definitely gone for him if I’d seen him in the club. He’s handsome and classy. His entire presence screams power, and his gray eyes hold a promise of infinite pleasure. Those strong hands of his are skilled like no others. His entire being speaks of experience. He carries himself with confidence I haven’t seen before.

Yes, I’d definitely want to be with Nikolai. But that’s my body speaking. Does my heart agree?

I don’t have time to follow that train of thought, because we’ve arrived. Hopefully, we’re in time for me to say goodbye to my father. While I’ve never been known for my punctuality, this is the one thing I wouldn’t forgive myself for being late for.