Ruthless Stranger by Maggie Cole

27

Maksim

Monday morning comes quickly.My krasotka and I went to brunch at Dmitri and Anna's. My brothers and Anna's family were there. After the party was over, Aspen and I came back to my place.

We avoided further talk of Jade, Wes, and her ex. Peter's still in my "garage." It's where my brothers and I take men who we need to deal with when we can't deliver our wrath in another location. It's an old building past the Chicago limits, almost in Indiana.

I didn't take Adrian's call on Sunday morning. He texted me immediately. Adrian: Want to know the contents?

Me: No. I'll handle it on Monday. Deliver the essentials.

Adrian: Got it.

The essentials were minimal food and water, along with intimidation. And once my brothers learned we had a guest in our garage, they didn't hesitate to visit at separate times. Well, Dmitri didn't because he left for his honeymoon.

Boris and Sergey didn't leave any scars or inflict any pain on Peter, but their mere presence made him piss his pants during both their visits.

When I woke up this morning, the growling in my head got louder. My beast is ready. It's time to take care of my issue, and I can no longer avoid it.

Sergey, Boris, and I work out first thing in the morning. I already told Aspen I wouldn't be back before she left for work. When my brothers and I finish showering, Sergey crosses his arms. "You going to take care of him now?"

"Yep." My beast is already awake. The intense cardio and heavy weights I lifted did nothing to sweat any ounce of rage out of me.

Boris slings his bag over his shoulder. "Is Adrian going to be there?"

"No. He's guarding Aspen." I'm still fuming over the events at the Cat's Meow, but Adrian is my best guy. A few days of being away from the situation made me realize there is no one else I trust as much as Adrian to watch over my krasotka. She also agreed not to give him a hard time today.

"You want us to come?" Boris's dark eyes shift, itching to be part of it.

I shake my head. "You two talk to our workers as planned. We can't let this coward sidetrack us from keeping our men safe."

"Are you going to kill him or give him a warning?" Sergey asks.

Boris grunts. "He threatened and stole from his woman. I know what I would do."

"What does Aspen think?" Sergey raises his eyebrows.

"She doesn't know anything about it." Guilt stews inside me for selfishly enjoying our time together over the weekend, living a normal life, and not dealing with problems.

"You aren't going to tell her he broke into her place? Don't you think the neighbor will talk when she goes back there?" Surprise fills Sergey's face.

It's a question I've been asking myself all weekend. As much as I tried to avoid thinking about anything except Aspen, it nagged at me. I should have told her, but so much had already happened in a short time frame. She was so happy on Sunday. I didn't want anything to interfere with it. "I will. We agreed not to have lies or secrets between us. But I want to know the entire situation first before I tell her."

"Back to the original question. Are you killing him? Do I need to prepare to come by later and help clean up?" Boris asks.

I inhale slowly then release it. The monster within me is ready to tear Peter to shreds, inch by inch, then hold his heart in my hand while it takes its last beat. I want to believe my krasotka won't hold it against me since I already warned her I would kill any man who touches her. But my heart is telling me she will never be able to forgive me. She already made it clear she didn't want me to hurt him. Killing him seems to be the one thing that could break us.

I take too long to answer, and Sergey advises, "You better be clear before you leave here what you are doing. In fact, we're going with you."

"No. We must stay the course. The war is not stopping for my personal issue."

"You hesitate about whether to kill him or not. It is better to teach him a lesson in this case. Without full surety, you will regret your actions. We will go with you."

"Our men—"

"A few hours will not make any difference. Our men are working right now. They have paychecks to feed their families. You do not have the restraint Sergey and I have. He is right. You are not doing this on your own," Boris states.

They know me better than I sometimes know myself. I'm grateful they see my weakness and are stepping in. I nod. "Then let's go."

We leave and pile into the back of my vehicle.

"Aspen has warned you not to harm him?" Sergey asks.

"I told her I wouldn't lay a hand on him if he left her alone, and it was his choice to heed the warning or not."

"She still didn't like your response?"

I sigh. "Little brother, you are not helping me be confident in the actions I will take."

He snorts. "I like Aspen. You two looked happy together. In fact, I've never seen you look so happy with any woman before. I wouldn't want you to destroy something good."

"I'd still kill the guy. But I guess it's why I'm with Nora and not someone like Anna or Aspen. Nora knows exactly who I am and how I respond to threats. Still wish Dmitri would have finished Anna's ex off," Boris states.

"Aspen knows everything," I blurt out. "And Anna may not have ever forgiven Dmitri. It's better he lived. And Dmitri and Anna are happy."

"You told Aspen everything?" Sergey asks, surprised.

"Yes."

The car goes quiet. I glance out the window at the blur of buildings passing us by, wondering what the best route to deal with Peter is.

Sergey lowers his voice. "How did you date Jade for eleven years and never tell her but meet Aspen and disclose all our secrets within under a month?"

I can't help but notice the worry in his voice. I don't blame him, either. If Aspen weren't mine, and he told a woman he just met about our secrets, I would be concerned, too. "It wasn't fair for me not to tell her. And she's not Jade. We can all trust her. She would never betray us."

"You always felt Jade would?"

Sergey's question takes me by surprise. Is it the real reason I never told Jade? Do I believe Jade would ever cross me? I glance at my knees, thinking about when I put Jade in the elevator the other night. Her glare, usually reserved for everyone except me, was exceptionally cold. I assumed it was from how hurt she was from me rejecting her.

"What aren't you telling us?" Boris asks.

I shake my head. "Jade was lying on my couch in lingerie when Aspen and I got home from the wedding."

"Ouch," Sergey blurts.

Boris whistles.

"Yep. Jade wasn't happy when I sent her on her way and reinforced we were over."

"Well, it's good she doesn't know our truth, then," Boris states.

Several minutes of silence pass.

Sergey asks, "So what are we doing to this dickhead?"

"We aren't doing anything. I'll be dealing out his punishment," I claim.

Boris groans. "You take all the fun out of it."

"Okay, so what are you going to do? What is the point Boris and I need to step in and stop you?"

My monster stirs. I fight him, not giving in to what he wants me to do. I begrudgingly admit, "I can't kill him."

"There are a lot of things before death," Boris points out, his eyes gleaming with ideas I probably wouldn't even think about.

"Simmer down. Maksim said he's the only one touching him," Sergey reminds him.

Boris grunts and taps his fingers on the armrest. "What's the hard limit? Organs? Limbs? His tongue?"

I want to say it's all available for me to do with as I see fit at the time, but I know myself. If I don't give Boris and Sergey a line I can't cross, I'll end up killing Peter.

"Fingers and toes."

"Right. All of them?" Boris asks with hope in his eyes.

I don't answer, not sure where I want to draw it.

Sergey shakes his head. "You just told a woman you've only known a short time all of our secrets. I think it's best if you think about what she would want in this situation."

I groan. "Sometimes, I wonder if you're the only smart one out of all of us."

"Speak for yourself. Smart would be finding a woman who understands how you operate," Boris replies.

"Enough. Figure out your limit, Maksim. We're almost there," Sergey demands, annoyed.

My phone rings. I glance at it and answer. "Everything okay, my krasotka?"

"Maksim, Peter broke into my apartment Saturday. My neighbor left me a message. Since I didn't turn my phone on yesterday, I just listened to it."

My stomach flips, and I stay silent.

"Maksim? Are you there?"

I clear my throat. "Yes."

Her voice dips several octaves. "My neighbor also said a guy with a Russian accent questioned her. Do you know anything about this?"

She asks in a question, but we both know the answer. "We will talk about this tonight."

She inhales sharply. "Maksim..."

"He was warned. He stole from you."

"What did he take?"

"I don't know. I will find out shortly."

"Where are you?"

"We will discuss this tonight," I repeat.

In a stern voice, she says, "Maksim, please. Don't...don't..."

I can picture her squeezing her eyes and trying to get the words out with distress smeared across her expression. It tugs at my heart and weakens my resolve to inflict massive amounts of pain on him.

I hate she still cares about his well-being, but I don't want to hurt her.

"He will still be breathing when I am done with him," I state.

"What does that mean?" she whispers.

"This is the man I am. I will not let others harm you in any way."

Sergey raises his eyebrows, as if to tell me he told me so. Boris crosses his arms and taps his elbows.

"This is not the same as the situation I got us in on Friday night."

The visual of her on Wes's lap riles my inner beast. I struggle further to tame him, trying not to make a decision I'll regret.

Silence fills the line. My pulse continues to increase. She's right. Peter isn't anywhere close to the caliber of Wes or any Petrov. But he's still a threat to my krasotka. And he hasn't respected her wishes to stay away or taken Adrian's warning seriously. I cut through the quiet. "I cannot let his actions go unpunished."

My brother's eyes are so different. Boris is annoyed. Sergey is worried. Neither gives me any comfort. I turn toward the window.

"Maksim, I'm begging you..."

I can't ignore the desperation in Aspen's voice. It tears at my heart. And I don't want to lose her. The thought is all it takes to set my limit. "There won't be any permanent damage. You have my word."

"What does that mean?" she quickly asks, her voice a mix of relief, confusion, and fear.

"We will not discuss this any further over the phone. Do not worry. I give you my promise."

"There is nothing I can say to make you turn around and forget about this, is there?"

I shut my eyes for a moment, avoiding my brother's stares. I will not allow any man to get away with what he has done to her. "I cannot give you more than I just did. We will talk tonight. I love you." I hang up, not waiting for her to respond, knowing there is nothing else to say. I have a job to do. It's to protect her. I've already allowed her wishes to reduce the severity of the message I will send.

The driver parks the car outside the building. I take a deep breath and turn to my brothers.

"What's the limit, Maksim," Sergey asks again.

Boris cracks his knuckles and raises his eyebrows.

"No long-term health issues. Scars are okay. Limbs are off-limits, including fingers and toes."

"Bones?" Boris asks.

"Acceptable," I state and open the car door. "Let's get this over with."

We go inside and lock the door behind us. The building has two parts. Both parts are nothing special with cement floors and walls. The front room has a desk. Peter's backpack sits on it.

I open it up and empty the contents. Aspen's laptop and charger, wedding rings, and a box of checks for her bank account are inside.

Nothing about the items helps to squash the growing rage I feel. My guess is he took the only things of value Aspen has and then planned to keep stealing from her.

"So, it's all about money, then?" Sergey asks.

"Lazy bastard," Boris seethes.

All the years she supported him, and he still wants to take from her.

"Limits still the same?" Boris asks.

"Don't tempt him," Sergey replies.

I take a deep breath. "Nothing has changed. I won't lose my krasotka over him."

Sergey pats me on the back. "Good choice."

I step forward and open the door. This room is the same as the front one, minus the desk, and has plastic covering the walls, floor, and ceiling. A rope hangs in the middle of the room, attached to Peter's wrists. He's naked and stands on his toes. Any amount of movement can cause him to twirl or sway, pulling at his arm sockets and risking to dislocate his shoulders.

His bloodshot eyes widen when he sees the three of us walk in. Exhaustion is all over his face and slowly morphs into fear. His light hair is greasy, and he smells like urine. Sweat pops out on his skin. He manages to ask, "Who are you?"

I step forward and hold my knife blade against his cheek. "I'm your worst nightmare."

He swallows hard then tears begin to fall. "What do you want from me?"

"What do I want?" I growl, pressing the knife lightly into his skin so a drop of blood pops out on his cheek.

His body shakes and begins to move in half circles.

"She's not yours anymore. You spent twenty years taking from her. Now you steal from her. There are consequences to your actions."

"You can have it all back," he cries out.

Boris begins to tsk, and Peter glances over at him with his eyes, not moving his cheek due to my blade. He cries harder. "Please let me go."

The man in front of me is a coward and thief. He's a pathetic waste of space. But he isn't a Wes Petrov. He doesn't have the balls to be a genuine threat.

My krasotka's face won't leave my mind. I want to inflict pain on him for the years of sorrow he gave her. But it's suddenly clear, no matter what I do to him, I risk losing her. She knows he's weak and nothing like the men I usually dole out punishments to. And the satisfaction of hurting him isn't worth risking her.

I thought I needed my brothers to stop me from crossing the line. I now can't seem to make a move. My krasotka is everything to me. The line isn't clear enough, and I won't let him destroy us.

I lower my knife and step so close to him, I can taste his stale breath. "You will never look at or speak to her again. You will leave Chicago. If you even think about reaching out to her, or taking another penny of her money, I will find you. Your death will be long and painful."

His lip quivers.

"Do you understand me?"

"Y-yes."

I shake my head in disgust and step back. I turn to my brothers and motion for them to follow me. When we get in the other room, I say, "Sergey, brand him to give him a reminder for life. Get him dressed and put him on a bus as far away from here as possible. I need to take the car. I'll send another one."

Boris growls. "You're getting soft, my brother."

"No. He is not the type of man we are used to dealing with. I will not destroy my relationship over a coward."

Sergey takes his knife out of his pocket and opens it up. "Where do you want it?"

"On his chest, so every time he looks in the mirror, he sees it." The nice thing about being an Ivanov is the letter I looks the same when you look in the mirror. You can't escape it.

Sergey nods and goes into the other room.

"Wh-what are... Please let me go," Peter wails.

"I'm going to watch," Boris says and leaves the room.

"This will be better for you if you don't move," Sergey seethes.

"Who are you?" Peter cries out.

I sling the backpack over my shoulder. The last thing I hear before I step out the door is Sergey reply, "The enforcer."