Fractured Ties by Bethany-Kris Page 0,28
asked.
He headed for the living room where his favorite baseball team was losing by five runs. Konstantin followed behind, although, not silently.
“The bear is in his new home—a sanctuary out west.”
Kolya didn’t care about details.
Just that it was handled.
“Khorosho,” he said gruffly as he dropped onto the couch.
Konstantin took a seat closer to the window. “Since when you do you use one of the safehouses?”
“Mind your own.”
“You could attempt to have a real conversation, brat.”
“I could,” Kolya agreed.
He left it at that.
“The good news for you,” Kolya added, his gaze firmly stuck on the television where the bases were now loaded, and the best hitter on the team was coming up to bat, “is that Vadim has been too fucking distracted with his latest guests in the city to notice I was avoiding him.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Konstantin lift a brow.
“Not even a call?” he asked.
Kolya shook his head. “Not one—yet.”
It would happen, though.
Soon, likely.
“That’s about to run out, then,” Konstantin stated, shrugging when Kolya looked to him for explanation. “Kaz headed back to New York today. Suggested his father was staying behind for a bit.”
Kolya scowled. “Vasily works every one of Vadim’s nerves.”
The two Pakhans put on a good show, though.
They managed that.
At least.
He fully expected his father would be in some kind of state—mood-wise—for the next little while. Or for however long it took for Vadim to get Vasily Markovic the hell out of his city.
“He still thinks Vasily is trying to make a move on the counterfeit business,” Konstantin muttered.
Yes, the bread and butter of the Boykov Bratva’s criminal dealings. Oh, sure, they had their hand in just about every pot, but their most and best dirty money was made in their counterfeit cash making business. It was a tradition, really. Passed down through their organization for generations and generations. Some called it an art form, and Kolya would tend to agree.
It was the part of business he liked the most, anyway.
Next to killing.
“That’s because Vasily is trying to move in on it, Konstantin.”
“You think?”
“Vadim won’t even give Vasily the satisfaction of a dollar bill to look at, never mind allowing him to enter the Compound because he knows Vasily only wants those things to have someone replicate our process. Vadim is a paranoid fucker, yes? He’s not a stupid one, though.”
“There’s no honor amongst thieves,” Konstantin murmured, glancing out the window.
“Not in this lifetime, anyway.”
“Huh.”
Kolya glanced over at his brother, but Konstantin’s gaze was stuck on something just outside the window. From his position, he couldn’t see what it was, though.
“Problem?”
Konstantin shook his head, and turned back to his brother. “No, I just thought—”
It was the front door of the townhouse opening and closing that cut off whatever his brother was about to say. Kolya figured he didn’t need Konstantin’s confirmation because he now knew exactly what had caught Konstantin’s attention.
Maya coming back from her walk.
With Sumerki.
She’d taken on the task—Kolya didn’t see the harm.
“Kept them both, did you?” Konstantin asked as the sound of footsteps neared the living room. “That’s cute, Kolya. You’ve found two new pets to take care of, yes?”
Kolya dead-stared his brother until Konstantin grinned back in that smug fucking way of his. Sure, he had heard the joking tone of Konstantin’s voice, but it still rubbed him wrong all the same. He might have snapped something right back at his brother—nature of his beast, and their competitive relationship—had Maya not come to stand in the doorway of the living room.
She made him check himself.
Attitude and all.
Maya didn’t even seem to notice Konstantin sitting in the corner as she bent down to unclip Sumerki’s leash from his new spike-studded collar. Something Maya had convinced him to buy at a pet store when she’d also suggested the pup might like some toys.
To chew on, or some shit.
Kolya figured Sumerki chewed on him enough for him to be the dog’s toy, but who was he to fucking say? Apparently, puppies teethed like human babies.
And one could quickly spend a small fortune on their pets, too.
Kolya smiled at the way Maya seemed far more comfortable into her new situation with him. Time could make all the difference for a person—he suspected her life was a hell of a lot better now than it had ever been before.
As long as she kept smiling.
He was good.
“Oh, privet,” Maya greeted, not unkindly, although still a little stiff, when she stood up straight and finally noticed Konstantin sitting in the corner. “Konstantin, right?”
Konstantin flashed