The Mafia and His Obsession, Part 2 by Lylah James

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter 15

 

 

Viktor

 

The next morning, I found myself facing the rest of the Ivanshov men. In one room. Full of testosterone and glaring matches. It was a game, you know.

I rolled my eyes, watching Lyov and Alessio argue. They were never on the same page, not really. Lyov didn’t agree with the plans to pit the Mexicans and Solonik against each other. He said it was too dangerous. Carlos was a mad man.

And his sons were more lethal.

Twins. Future Kings of the Mexican cartel.

They were men you should never cross paths with.

One was mentally deranged, crazy in the head—spent most of his life in prison and then an asylum.

The other was a psychopath who protected his twin with the strength of a hundred soldiers. Nobody crossed his path and stayed breathing for more than five minutes.

Inseparable at birth and inseparable through life.

And together with their father, they ruled with an iron fist.

Playing with them was playing with danger.

We were the Masters of the game, and this was going to be one hell of a ride.

After Lyov would stop bitching.

I cleared my throat, bringing their attention back to me. Lyov settled back into his chair, leveling with a cold look. “I don’t agree.”

“Last I checked, you are not the Boss anymore,” Alessio interrupted. “Meaning, you don’t have a choice.”

“Last I checked, I was the one in charge of this mission,” I announced, crossing my arms in the process. “Meaning, this is my decision.”

Wrong thing to say. Wrong time.

Like I said, testosterone was flying everywhere in the room.

Alessio thought he was in power.

Lyov wanted control in his hands.

I apparently was just the pawn. A pawn who was actually in power.

Tsk. These men. If only they knew…I was about to dance with chaos.

Another voice joined the conversation, and this time I scoffed, throwing my head back to lazily stare at the ceiling.

“You don’t understand us. We know Carlos. Actually, we know him very well. Just like Solonik, Carlos and the Ivanshovs go way back. Before you two were even born, we used to be partners, on the same side. We know him, and we know what he is capable of. You are putting yourself in danger. Not only that, you will start a motion we won’t be able to stop,” Isaak added from his position beside Lyov.

I lifted my head and found my father looking at me dead in the eyes. He silently dared me to say something, to argue.

“That’s interesting…” I drawled. “I was just thinking about that. And now that you brought it up yourself, Daddy dearest, how about we speak of this…recent information I found?”

Alessio leaned forward, placing his arms over his desk, and I watched as he interlocked his fingers together and sent a cold, curious look. The motherfucker looked intimidating, and I knew I was about to make this situation worse.

“What is it?” he asked, his eyes studying me, watching for any reactions. When Alessio would study his prey, he watched with stealthy eyes. He would watch for lies, the way their gazes moved and the way their breathing would change, the nervous movement…anything and everything.

I gave him none of that. I wasn’t nervous and scared. Actually, I was perfectly sure of myself. Unfaltering and confident.

You see, Alessio Ivanshov fed on fear.

And I didn’t fear him.

He also thought he knew everything. He was always in control, holding the strings of the puppets, and he moved them anywhere he wanted. His words, our command.

But this time…

This little information, he had no idea about.

And I was about to turn his world upside down.

“While I was with Solonik, I found out about something important. Actually, this is the foundation of his Empire. I haven’t told you this before, but I think now is the right time. This is also the reason why we need Carlos on our side. He and Solonik are in partnership, and if we break that tie, Solonik drowns. Plain and simple.”

“And what is this?”

Always impatient.

This time, I was enjoying it. Dragging the suspense. Making him angry and frustrated.

That’s for forcing me to make a choice, asshole.

One point for you.

One point for me.

I snuck a glance at Lyov and Isaak. Their neutral expressions seemed to change, switching to something that looked akin to…fear.

The unknown was always something to fear.

But Lyov and Isaak seemed to know what I was about to say. I watched as realization dawned, saw the way their eyes grew darker, colder…dangerous.

“Valentin is involved with human trafficking,” I confessed out loud.

Lyov sucked in a harsh breath and closed his eyes.

Alessio clenched his fists on the table and then sat back against his chair. He looked deep in thought, but there was no surprise in his expression. As if he knew.

“But I thought we took ourselves out of it,” Nikolay jumped in, finally making his presence known. He was always silent, always studying in the corner, making friends with the shadows. He said little, but his words always held power.

“We did. But apparently Solonik didn’t. He fooled us.” My eyes caught Alessio, and I watched him rub his chin with his thumb. “You don’t look surprised?”

“I had a feeling he was still doing business with Carlos when it came to human trafficking. But I wasn’t sure. You just confirmed my assumption,” he rumbled.

If only he knew…

“No. That’s not it. He owns the ring. Both him and Carlos. He is known as the Ring Master. He operates with a violence like no other and sells the slaves for a hefty price. Thousands and thousands of dollars. Millions. He has men all over the world coming to him to do business. They also hold an annual party, where they buy and sell. The wealthiest of them get the prettiest merchandise. Valentin’s words,” I added when Alessio seemed to bristle at my words. It made me sick too.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Lyov reaching for his glass of scotch. He downed all of it in one gulp and then pulled at his tie, loosening it from around his neck. Both he and Isaak appeared frustrated…guilty.

Little shits.

I wasn’t done.

“How many?” Alessio’s face blazed with fury, and his lips pulled back into a snarl.

“Hundreds. So many you will lose count.”

“Fuck!” Lyov roared, standing up. He paced the length of the room, mumbling under his breath. His chest rose and fell with each haggard breath he took.

“It goes by many names. The arena. Bloodhound. But the club itself, where all the ringmasters sit, it’s called The Kingpin. Previously known as The Royalist,” I declared.

Raising an eyebrow, I fixated Isaak and Lyov with a look that said…I know. I know the fucking truth.

I didn’t give anyone else a chance to speak, to think, before I continued. “Also, previously owned by the Ivanshovs.”

Annnnd bullseye.

Lyov looked frantic, his hands clenching and unclenching at his sides. He stopped pacing now, staying rooted in the spot. Looking lost…and was that fear?

I almost laughed. Shaking my head, I tried to fight back the chuckle threatening to pierce out from my chest.

Oh no. I wasn’t done yet.

“Ask Lyov. He knows about this very well. Also, ask Father dearest…where did he meet your mother for the first time?”

Sick. Sick. Sick.

We weren’t the good guys. We were far from it.

When someone would tell a story, we were the villains. We were feared, and I’d done things that would make even hell bow to me.

But it appeared Lyov and Isaak, they were going to take the trophy home.

When Alessio and I took over the Ivanshov family…the Bratva, Lyov and Isaak had passed on all the little details we were supposed to know.

Alessio and I had done our research well. But apparently…there were things we missed. Or rather, there were things that were hidden very well.

Secrets our fathers kept from us and secrets that they tried to bury over the years.

But you see, secrets never stayed secrets when more than one person knew it.

Secrets never lasted…

And secrets could consume and destroy.

“What?” Alessio slowly said, his head snapping toward his father. His eyes narrowed on Lyov, causing the other man to realize that he was at a disadvantage. His truth was out. There was no escape. No more lies. No more secrets.

I shrugged and watched the chaos unleash.

Alessio stood up to his full height, looking intimidating as fuck. He owned the room with only one word. The air turned brittle, and it felt like all the warmth had been sucked out, turning the room into a freezing slaughter-house. A vein bulged in Alessio’s throat, and I watched his jaw tick with each second.

“Alessio—” Lyov started to say, but his son cut him off.

“I’ll give you one chance to explain what Viktor means. One chance only, or else I’ll forget you are my father,” he sneered, moving closer to Lyov. His steps thundered around the room. A depraved look was now on his face.

Lyov swallowed hard and tried to pacify Alessio. But it was no use.

Untamed. Vicious. Cruel. Violent. Dangerous.

Many words could describe Alessio Ivanshov in this moment. He was livid.

I slowly got up and backed away, my lips quirking up on the sides as I watched the feud between father and son.

An Ivanshov business meeting or dinner was never complete without a little drama.

And my job here was done.

Nikolay and Phoenix seemed to realize this was about to turn bad. They did the only thing they could. They stepped back and walked out of the room.

Bringing my fist to my mouth, I tried to hide my laughter. Fuck. This was good.

Giving them one final glance, I walked out of the room too. My father followed closely behind, and he closed the door.

Before I could get away, he gripped my arm and pulled me back. My gaze went to the hold he had on me, and I looked up, leveling him an empty look. “Let go of my arm or I’ll make you regret it.”

He ignored my words, his fingers pinched into my muscles instead. “Why the fuck did you do that?” he snarled in my face.

“Watch it, old man,” I forced through gritted teeth.

“It took years. Years for Alessio and Lyov to fix their relationship. I’m not saying they have the best father and son bond, but they were getting there. Ayla was helping them. She was fixing them, and you just fucking destroyed years of hard work,” he hissed, almost spitting into my face.

A growl rumbled through my chest, and I pulled my arm away. Stabbing a finger into Isaak’s chest, I moved forward and crowded his space. “I did what I should have done the moment I found out the truth. Alessio deserves to know. Alessio deserves to know what fucking sick bastards you guys are.”

My father glared at me, his eyes spitting venom. “The past is none of your business. The past should stay in the past. Lyov did the right thing thirty years ago. He ended it when he found Maria. He’s not the bad guy here.”

That I also knew.

Solonik told me everything.

How he had owned Maria first. And then Lyov apparently stole her away. He bought her, and that night, The Royalist changed. It was never the same, and a few months later, Lyov had ordered to shut it down.

Then Lyov and Maria had lived happily ever after for eight years until tragedy struck.

From the other side of the wall, we heard crashes. Alessio was snarling something, and Lyov shouted something bad. All we heard was a jumbled mess of words. And I boomed a rapturous laugh.

“We are all the bad guys here, Father. We aren’t any saints. And none of us play by the rules. I just played one tiny little game,” I sneered back, smirking.

Isaak pushed me away. “Fuck you.”

I laughed even harder, waving a hand in the air and then turning around. I ignored my father and walked away, leaving a hurricane in my path.

Last night, Alessio fucked me up in the head. He betrayed me as my brother when he asked me to choose between the girl I need and the family I worship.

And today…today was payback.

One point for Alessio Ivanshov.

Two points for Viktor Ivanshov.