Arranged Bratva Love

Andrei

An attack was imminent. I shouldn’t have let my guard down.

My only concern was getting Adelaide to safety. The attack took less than five minutes. I got the manager to account for everyone in the restaurant. There were no casualties, just a couple of wounds.

Adelaide and I were the main targets. The focus was on us, which told me someone within the restaurant had been asked to give our location. I got Adelaide to her feet and walked her out of the back of the restaurant where Leo and Terrance were already waiting.

Before I put Adelaide in the car, I force her to look at me.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine. I’m fine. What about you?” Her hands go to my arms, holding me.

“I’m fine. There’s nothing wrong.”

I quickly glance over her body and see no cuts, no bruises, nothing. She was fine. I got her to safety. Leo and Terrance had been waiting around the back, per my instructions, in case we need to leave privately, but of course, doing this meant they weren’t there to see who attacked.

“Take her home,” I said, looking at Leo.

“No, no, no, I’m not leaving you,” Adelaide said.

“Baby, you cannot be here for this, okay?”

“But, what about the cops?”

“I’ll deal with them.”

“Andrei?”

I cup her face and pull her into my arms. She’s scared. I get that. Shaking. I don’t care that my men are seeing me like this. If it had been anyone else, I’d have told them to get their fucking shit together, but everyone else, are not my wife.

“I’ve got to go and see what the fuck happened. They could come back.”

She shook her head. “Then come with me.”

“I’ve got to do this.”

Tears filled her eyes. “Please.”

I slam my lips down on hers, kissing her. “I’ll be fine. This will be easier for me if you go home. Please.”NôvelD(ram)a.ôrg owns this content.

I hate seeing her cry, and I wipe the tears away from her face, not wanting to be the cause, but knowing I am. Whoever attacked me today was going to pay severely. I was having a good, quiet day with my wife and they had come and fucked with it.

Adelaide holds onto my hand and I have no choice but to help her into the car. My heart, for the first time, is pounding. Is this what I thought it was? Did Adelaide care about me? Was she worried I might die?

I wasn’t sure what it was, but I kissed her and then looked to Leo. “Nothing happens to her, understood?”

“Yes, sir.”

I step away from the car and watch it drive away. Terrance is by my side. “This was an inside job,” I said.

“Sir?”

“I was the only target. Whoever did this knew I ate at this restaurant.” I didn’t believe Adelaide was the target. This time, I was.

I was annoyed that she had to experience that. Someone was going to pay for instilling fear into my wife.

Entering the restaurant, I take a few steps in and the manager Clifford is there. “Sir, follow me,” he said.

The cops would be arriving soon. Hopefully it would be someone on my payroll, and if not, they would soon arrive to deal with this mess. Heading into the back of the restaurant, Clifford takes me to the security rooms, where we have multiple cameras set up. I’m a stickler for security.

Watching the screens, Clifford leans forward and brings up the moment I enter the restaurant. Adelaide is with me and I’m not paying attention to anyone but my wife. This is a first for me. I never allow pleasure to come before business. The maitre d’ on the front desk changes, his stance becomes tense. He takes us to our table and leaves us alone.

I follow his movements, tracking him. The moment he’s back at the desk and out of earshot, he pulls out a cell phone and looks back, talking to someone. After a few seconds, he ends the call. Time passes, and then, the moment the gunshots hit, he takes off, running out of the restaurant.

“I want his name and details now,” I said.

I’m full of rage. This could be anyone-the drug dealer I took care of for Bethany, the Evil Savages MC. I wouldn’t put it past Rage to double-cross us. People were always after their own agenda, and right now I was so fucking pissed. I’d kill them all. I would have the streets dripping with blood if I had to. They nearly hurt my woman. There was no way anyone would get away with this.

I wanted to kill.

I wanted to hurt.

My thirst for blood was so fucking strong I could taste it. I was hungry for it.

Clifford arrived with the man’s details and I opened them up. It gave his address, which I had to wonder if it was real. Marcus Knight. I didn’t recognize the name, and glancing at his picture, none of his details rang a bell. I had nothing to do with this man, and he shouldn’t be trying to kill me, yet that was exactly what he was doing, and now I was pissed off. So fucking pissed.

The police arrived and it was someone on my payroll. I gave him a few tips, and then left, leaving him to clean up the mess. This is what I paid people for.

There was already another car waiting. One of the soldiers had brought it at Terrance’s request. I sat in the passenger seat as he drove, and I looked through the file. Pulling out my cell phone, I took a snapshot and sent it to my main computer guy, Edmund. He worked at the casino. He could crack any code and find all the dirt that was needed. He had a thing with numbers as well. I made sure he was protected. He was a good guy.

He used to be part of the Italian mafia, but because of his slender frame and the fact he faints at the sight of blood, they tried to kill him. I found him, killed the men who were about to take the final shot, rescued him, and he’d been loyal to me ever since.

Within minutes, my cell phone rang.

“What do you have?” I asked.

“Okay, so this guy makes next to nothing as a maitre d’ at one of your restaurants. However, an hour ago, fifty thousand dollars has just been wired into his account, but this is where it gets interesting. The wire comes from Oleg Pavlov’s territory, Mr. Belov. Someone in his territory paid for him to do something.”

I know exactly what he paid for.

“I want you to run a check.” I give him Bethany’s name and Edmund hangs up after he says, “On it.”

I press my cell phone against my lips. I need to call Ivan but I don’t have all the facts yet.

Terrance pulls up at an apartment building that had seen many fucking better days. It’s crumbling. Men and women are on street corners. The scent of poverty is heavy in the air. I’d lived in part of this world long ago.

Climbing out of the car, the men notice me, recognize me, and scatter. This is what the Volkov do. They instill fear. It didn’t matter the gang, they knew we had more power. Usually, it was only men with little dicks who wanted to prove a point or thought they could overthrow our power. None of them were here today.

Stepping up to the building, I tilt my head back. Marcus had made a very bad decision. Entering the building, I notice the elevator isn’t working. Not that I’m surprised. In places like this, elevators were always the first things to go. Diapers, used condoms, needles, dollies, and teddy bears decorated the stairs. The stench of piss and shit were heavy in the air. It was a smell I’d not encountered for some time, and it made me sick to my stomach, but I kept moving.

Marcus Knight lived on the fifth floor, and I had to wonder if Adelaide would still mark the area she could or couldn’t move to. I hadn’t gotten the floors cleaned in my penthouse. I rather liked the line she had given me.

We got to the fifth floor and there was no one around. Arriving at Marcus’s door, I see it’s partially open and someone is inside. I smiled. I couldn’t help it. Pressing the door open, I see Marcus scrambling around his apartment. He doesn’t notice me and I watch him. This man helped to nearly kill my wife. I stare at his body and all I want to do is hear him scream. In a place like this, no one would report it.

“Now, is that any way to pack a suitcase?” I said, alerting him to my presence.

Marcus spins around, catches sight of me, and literally pisses himself. He drops to the floor, hands over his head.

“Please don’t kill me. Please. Please.”

The apartment is a shithole. Mold is growing on the walls, and there appear to be old stains from a water leak. One of the windows has been smashed. This is not a place to be lived in. However, it does give me an idea for a business venture.

Going inside the apartment, Terrance grabs Marcus and slams him into one of the wooden chairs, but it was old and not designed to hold too much pressure, and it collapsed. Eventually, Terrance pushes him into a threadbare chair and holds him down.

I stare at Marcus. He’s weak, and he’s pissed himself again. The scent coming off him suggests that he might have also shit himself, which is so fucking nasty. I’m used to this reaction, though. He’s guilty. He knows what he’s done.

My cell phone rings and I see it’s from the casino.

“Any news?” I asked.

“Bethany took a flight over two weeks ago, and other than landing in Pavlov territory, no one else has seen her.”

“Thanks.”

So there is a connection. What I don’t know for sure is who reached out to who. The Evil Savages didn’t help put a hit on my wife. That was all Bethany. She would have met Oleg because of me.

All the brigadiers were at a function. Adelaide hadn’t met them all yet because Ivan had changed my wife after Bethany had been introduced to them.

Now I’m pissed off. I should have killed Bethany. This is what we needed, though. Oleg was no longer loyal to Ivan. That piece of shit was going to die.

I needed to contact Ivan. This is where it got a little trickier. Ivan wasn’t always easy to get ahold of. He might have heard about the attack on the restaurant. He had spies everywhere. I called his number. Nothing.

Marcus had started to beg for forgiveness and even prayed to whatever would help him. In the end, I had no choice but to call Slavik.

“What do you want?”

“I need Ivan.” I didn’t tell him about Oleg or give any details. Ivan hadn’t given me the green light to alert other brigadiers to what we had discovered.

“Hold on,” Slavik said.

I heard movement and then minutes later Slavik hung up. I didn’t have to wait long before Ivan rang my cell. He was in Slavik’s territory. I could only guess he was besotted with the little girl they’d had not long ago.

When Adelaide eventually gives birth to our child, I don’t want Ivan to start dropping by for more random visits. Not that I had anything to hide from him. I never did.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

I give him a rundown of everything that happened, from the attack to Bethany’s last known whereabouts, to the man in front of me.

“Put me on speakerphone and question him. I’ll remain silent,” Ivan said.

This is fucking news to me. Ivan can never be silent. He’s the kind of man who always has to get involved. I put him on speaker and hand my cell phone to Terrance.

“Now, Marcus, you want to live, right? To get to use that fifty grand.”

“Please, please, please, I don’t … I don’t … I was told that if you ever came into the restaurant I was to call this number and tell them exactly where you were.” Marcus started to sob. “She told me it would change my life.”

“A woman told you?” I asked.

Marcus nodded. “She said it was important. I had no idea they were going to kill you. I swear. I swear.”

“What number?” I asked.

Marcus’s hands shook so much and he did piss himself again. I didn’t even know anyone could hold that much fucking urine without drinking in-between. He handed me his cell phone and I didn’t want to touch it, but I had no choice. I’d be bleaching my hands by the time I was done here.

“The last number I dialed.”

I didn’t recognize the number.

“Anything else, Ivan?” I asked.

“Clean up. I’m on my way.” His voice was clear.

I pocket Marcus’s cell phone, and then pull out my gun. Terrance holds him down and I put a single bullet through his skull.

“Burn it,” I said, leaving the room, and pressing the fire alarm as Terrance starts a fire.

Screams fill the air, and before Terrance and I even make it out, the flames have already engulfed the entire floor. The people who live in the building are all outside, staring up. No one pays us any attention, all caught up in the chaos and drama of their homes being set up in flames. Once it was burned to the ground, I’d build it right back up. Another business opportunity coming my way.