The Mafia and His Obsession, Part 2 Read Online By Lylah James - Read The Mafia and His Obsession, Part 2(17) Online free

Chapter 16

Viktor

I followed the melodious sound of the piano playing. It was so serene, calm…beautiful and exotic. My lips quirked up in a smile as I stopped in front of the piano room and silently opened the door. Inside, I found Ayla and Maila.

Princess was sitting beside her mother, listening to Ayla play with rapturous attention. Her eyes were big and bright. It was clear she was a happy baby. My gaze found Ayla, and she had her eyes closed, a sweet smile on her lips.

She looked happy too. Really happy. The type of happiness that came from the soul and shone on the face.

I wanted to protect this. Them. This beautiful moment.

I wanted to be the reason for their laughter.

As their protector, I wanted to make sure they would always have a reason to smile. Alessio. Maila. Ayla. This family. My family.

They were the King and Queen.

I was the soldier.

And I bowed to them.

Ayla had borne enough in life she didn’t need to go through more pain.

She deserved this—her happy ending.

It was my duty to preserve this…their happiness.

Their love.

Walking further into the room, I closed the door behind me and watched them. Princess noticed me, and she giggled, waving her hand high. She slowly stumbled off the piano bench. I couldn’t help but smile when she started to bounce her feet to the melody. She tried to go on her tip-toes like a ballet dancer, and then she clumsily twirled around.

Ayla opened her eyes and she glanced at me, smiling at my presence before turning her attention back to her daughter. She didn’t stop playing, her fingers still moving over the piano as she filled the room with a piece of heaven.

She would always play for Alessio, and now I saw why he was so mesmerized by her. An angel. She truly did look like one in this moment. A fallen angel.

She belonged in heaven but fell down to earth to grace us with her sweet soul.

Leaning against the wall, I watched her play. Watched this moment.

For a brief moment, I thought how it would be if I were in Alessio’s place and Ayla was my wife.

If I were sitting on that couch across from the piano and watched her play every night.

If Maila were my daughter.

If Ayla were my woman and every night she was in my bed and I was wrapped in her embrace.

This had been my vision of happily ever after for so long. My vision of love. I was jealous of Alessio. Angry and hurt that he had what I wanted…needed.

For the longest time, I wanted to know what it would feel like to have Ayla’s lips on mine. To have her smile at me the way she would at Alessio. I used to imagine she’d walk into my arms instead my brother’s.

She would be mine.

And I’d had everything I ever wanted.

Right now, I thought of it again. I forced myself into this moment. My heart squeezed and my lungs clenched with every break I took. It hurt.

It hurt because I could no longer imagine myself like this.

Months ago, it had been easy to put myself in Alessio’s position. It was so easy to envision Ayla loving me.

But now…it felt as if there were an invisible barrier stopping me.

My heart refused to succumb to my delusion. My soul refused to sway with my fascination.

My breathing stuttered when a gasping realization dawned to me.

Ayla Ivanshov used to be my infatuation, an addiction that had sunk deep into my skin.

But not anymore.

She had lost the shine I used to see around her. She was still beautiful. I still found myself drawn to her sweet voice and her sweet smile, her innocent soul. Yet…

Ayla was no longer the light, the sun and stars of my existence.

All I felt for her had disappeared into thin air. It had been gone for some time. I was only seeing that now.

The realization cut me deep, and I almost sank to my knees. My eyes closed and I inhaled.

Peaches and sunshine. The scent hit me like a bulldozer, and warmth spread through my veins.

Valerie.

She was my moon.

It was a simple fact that slipped into my head, and I felt it all the way down to my toes. At the thought of her, my heart did a strange dance, a beat that only belonged to Valerie.

A strange dizziness settled over me, and I could almost feel Valerie touching my skin, setting my soul on fire with just a simple kiss of her touch.

My sweet myshka.

My once silent myshka.

Opening my eyes again, I found Ayla still sitting at the piano.

There always came a time in your life when you realized that not everything seemed to be what it was. It was fate’s favorite game to play. It twisted you in knots, forced you to feel something for a moment, and then it ripped everything away, giving you something else before you could even blink.

Sometimes it took you a long time to realize what you had…what you felt…where you really belonged.

Sometimes we still lived in the past, refusing to see our present and future.

We were blinded by what we thought we wanted.

Fate only laughed at us.

Just like that, I was given a new beginning.

I always wanted what Ayla and Alessio had.

Fate gave it to me.

I was just realizing it now.

Smiling, I walked forward to Ayla and sat beside her on the piano bench. She stopped playing and glanced up at me. “There is something you want to tell me,” she said with a knowing look in her eyes.

“Yes,” I confessed, looking down at the piano keys.

Ayla let out a small laugh. “Tell me your secrets, Viktor.”

“I met someone—”

“I know.”

I stiffened, and my head snapped up to find her smiling. “Alessio told you?”

She shrugged before taking my fist into her hands. A year ago, I craved her touch. And now, the feel of her warm hands around mine, it was only for comfort.

Two friends spilling their secrets to each other.

I felt her support, and I knew she cared.

There was nothing more than a respect we shared for each other.

When she spoke, I knew Ayla understood me. My fears. My dilemma. “Even if he didn’t, I would have been able to tell. There is something different about you. You seem wound up, as if you’re missing someone. I look into your eyes and it’s the same way I feel when Alessio is away from me and I can’t reach for his warmth.”

I swallowed, a lump now forming in my throat. “I do miss her. A lot. And it’s only been two days. How is that even possible?” I murmured.

“She means a lot to you?”

I nodded silently. “So much. She means so much to me, Ayla. I can’t…I don’t know what to do without her. I need her.”

Ayla brought our hands to her lap. “Do you know what love is, Viktor?” she said, giving my hands a gentle squeeze.

My eyes closed for a fraction before I opened them again and fixated Ayla with a stare.

I didn’t answer, my throat feeling clogged and my emotions overwhelming me.

“Love is freedom. Love is when you find both escape and shelter in one person. They become your home,” Ayla confessed quietly. Her voice was soothing, and I imagined Valerie in this moment.

Ayla was right.

Love was when you found home in one person’s embrace.

I thought about how Valerie had a way of calming the raging storms in me. How I could breathe better in her presence. She compelled me in a way no one had ever done.

“Viktor,” Ayla said, bringing my attention back to her, “the best love story is when you fall in love at the most unexpected time, with the most unexpected person. It is the type of love that burns the brightest and lasts the longest.”

I wanted to rebut her. Tell her that love stories didn’t exist in this world.

I wanted to tell her that Viktor Ivanshov had no weakness…

“Thank you,” I choked out. The sincerity rung clear in my voice. Reaching forward, I hugged Ayla to my chest. “Thank you.”

For a moment we clung to each other. I couldn’t speak, my sudden frenzied emotion making it impossible to continue a conversation.

It was quite hilarious. Men like me…we didn’t deserve love.

In a life like this…love didn’t belong.

Yet, amidst the chaos we caused, our demons had found Angels.

Ayla patted my back before pulling away. She palmed her pregnant belly, smiling. “I can’t wait to meet her.”

“I’ll bring her home soon,” I vowed.

“Good.”

She stood up, and I followed. “Are you leaving?”

“Yes. Soon. I have to go back,” I replied.

Ayla palmed my cheek and gave me a tender smile, almost motherly. “You’ve never disappointed me, Viktor. Whatever you do now, whatever your choice will be now…do what your heart feels is right.”

I nodded once before taking a step back. Ayla bent forward and she opened her arms for Princess. Maila instantly fell into her mother’s arms, and she giggled loudly when Ayla swung her up.

I started to leave the room, but Ayla’s voice stopped me.

“What’s her name?”

I paused at the doorstep. “Valerie.”

“Solonik?” she asked.

I felt my eyes narrow at the filthy name. Hatred spilled through my veins with a fury to match. “Not for too long,” I announced.

I couldn’t see her face, but I knew she was smiling behind my back. Ayla didn’t say anything else. She continued to play with Maila, my presence no longer of importance to her.

I walked away with a smile, my heart feeling lighter and my chest no longer hurting.

***

When it was time for me to leave the estate, Alessio was outside beside the waiting car. I approached him with cautiousness. I was almost scared he was going to shoot my ass again.

“How pissed are you?” I asked, stopping in front of him.

He stared at me coldly. “I’ll survive.”

“And Lyov?”

“He is alive too.”

I heard myself chuckling at his words before I quickly replaced it with a fake cough. Alessio pierced me with a deadly glare, and I pushed the laughter back.

The feud I created between father and son wasn’t meant to last long. Yes, I wanted a reaction. A fight. My revenge. Like Isaak said, Lyov wasn’t exactly the bad guy.

I knew they would push their differences away soon enough. If not, Ayla would have some fun pushing both of them into the doghouse together. For all we knew, she would lock them there for a whole night.

I wouldn’t be surprised.

She was as savage as she was sweet.

He came closer, crowding my space. Alessio brought his hand up, and I almost flinched away, expecting him to punch me, but instead, he placed a hand on my shoulder. He squeezed, hard enough to almost make me wince, but I only returned his deadly stare.

“This is your last chance, Viktor. You are going back to Solonik and you won’t have this chance again. You’ve won his trust, exactly like we wanted. I don’t care what you have to do…I want you to ruin him. In every way possible. I wanted to do the honors, but this time, I’ll let you do it.”

“I know,” I drawled dryly.

Solonik’s death belonged to me.

For every pain he inflicted on my Valerie, he would bear it ten times worse.

I’d burn him until his flesh would melt away. The rancid smell of burning flesh would probably make me gag, but I’d watch it all. His screams would be my favorite music.

I was going to make sure he would suffer.

After all…the game had just begun.

I would honor my family in the only way I knew how.

We said our goodbyes, and I left the Ivanshov estate behind. I watched as Alessio faded away from the rearview mirror. Closing my eyes, I leaned against the backseat.

It was frustrating. Going back and forth. Being Viktor one day, and then Konstantin the next.

The only consolation I had was… all of this would end soon.

I just had to play all the cards right and it would all end the way Alessio—I wanted.

The moment Solonik was dead, my job in Russia was done.

Everything else wouldn’t be my business any longer. I’d be back here, in New York, with my family.

Only this time, I wouldn’t be coming back alone.

It was the only thing I could think about. All the way back to Moscow, it was the only thing on my mind.

Kill Solonik. Turn his Empire to ashes and dirt.

Ruin everything that belonged to him.

And steal my sweet myshka away.

But I still had to wait. Rein all my anger in, until it was time to unleash it.

When the car came to a stop, I got out and faced the Solonik estate.

I’d wait like a patient wolf, for the right time. Because in the end, everything would taste sweeter and less bitter.

The wait would be worth it.

I walked inside, each step speaking loudly. I owned this game. I owned this place.

The people bowed in my presence. Soon, I’d be the King.

I was the heir now…but soon, I’d be the most powerful man in Russia.

The people who bowed to me knew that. They knew they had to win my favor. They knew I could ruin them all with only a snap of my fingers.

I reveled in the power, and I let it fuel my dark soul.

Walking up the stairs, I paused for the briefest second. I should turn to the left, to where my room was. But I found myself turning to the right wing.

Where my woman lived and breathed.

I imagined her flush cheeks and her breathy sigh…her timeless beauty. I thought of the beat of her heart under my hand. How loud it sounded in my ears when I rested my head on her chest.

It belonged to me.

Fuck. It really was the most beautiful thing.

Valerie had changed my priorities, and the craziest part was…I didn’t fucking mind it. Not even one bit.

My steps faltered when I saw Yegor coming toward me. His eyes widened and my heart stuttered for the briefest second. I saw the fear in his gaze, the look of horror and the helplessness.

“You are home,” he said and then shook his head. “Nice timing.”

“What is it?” I walked past him, my feet taking me faster to Valerie’s room.

Something was wrong.

I felt it.

In the marrow of me…I felt it.

“Valentin wants to meet you.”

My fists clenched, and I tried to inhale, but my lungs seemed to collapse.

“Viktor, wait—”

I cut him off. “Where is Valentin?”

He was silent for a moment, and my skin started to crawl.

No. No. No. Please no.

“In Valerie’s room.”

His whispered words traveled to my ears, and my heart sank to the pit of my stomach. I almost tripped over my own feet and then I was running. Without thinking…

Without realizing the consequences.

There was a pain in my skull, my head was hurting…my body was going numb…

I couldn’t breathe.

The world was tilting…

I wanted to roar out. The urge to hurt something was strong.

The need to rip off Valentin’s limbs was intense.

An arm caught me, and then I was being pulled back. “Viktor!”

Yegor pushed me against the wall. He was breathing heavily, but he begged me with his eyes. “You can’t…you can’t do anything right now. Look.” He nodded toward Valerie’s door.

It was so close to me.

So so close…only twenty steps away.

I could reach her. I’d save her. I’d steal her out of this fucking hell right now.

I blinked, and that was when I noticed the danger. Four heavily armed men were standing outside her room. They were huge. And I knew…I just fucking knew.

These men were no normal bodyguards.

They were trained assassins.

One wrong move and I was simply a dead man.

Yegor made a choked sound in the back of his throat. He knew what this meant.

We were powerless.

This battle had just turned into a damn bloody arena.

Yegor pulled my attention back to him when he spoke in a low voice. “Valentin ordered you to leave all your weapons at the door before entering the room. You will be checked thoroughly before you step inside. No weapons. None at all. There are more men like them downstairs and outside. They are waiting for a fight, Viktor. Do. Not. Give. Them. A. War.”

A snarl threatened to escape past my throat. Valentin was a fucking coward. He knew he would never win against me singlehandedly. So he brought his assassins…his fucking slaves in.

“Listen to me carefully. When I left the room, Valentin was fully dressed. It didn’t look like he was…” Yegor trailed off. He took a deep breath, his expression twisting before he continued. “He’s trying to play with your mind, and you need to be in control. Maybe…maybe he won’t hurt her. At least not in front of you. Just think rationally. You can’t win in this moment. You are without power right now. Do you understand, Viktor? Trying to kill Valentin is suicide, and Valerie will only end up getting hurt.”

I forced myself to nod…forced myself to fucking think.

Taking a deep breath, I pushed Yegor away and walked forward. I stopped in front of the men. They were death.

So was I.

But I couldn’t…

Think of Valerie.

I stared at the four men dead in the eyes and stripped off all my weapons. My two guns and my knives.

“That’s all I have,” I said, raising my arms up and silently giving them permission to check me over.

They quickly patted me down. Satisfied that I was with no weapons and powerless in this situation, they stepped away from the door.

My heart thundered and my veins roared, as if acid had been poured directly into them. There was a bitter taste in my mouth, and I almost choked on it.

Every fiber of my being was fueled with the need to rage inside and save Valerie. Protect her. But I was stuck.

Weak.

Helpless.