Page 29 of The Umarova Crime Family

Lom doesn’t hold back his smile. “Do you take me for an idiot? I know how Anzor got to the United States. You used our shipping company and smuggled him here. You paid off the port guard, and the port guard told me. No one goes against the Umarovas, Kirill. Surely you know this, and yet you acted stupid.”

Kirill takes in a sharp breath and continues looking between Lom and me, then looks at Nazyr and Eset. “He took my daughter and promised she’d be returned to me once I got him here. None of us knew he was responsible for your capture, Ruslan. He took my daughter before you were out, and he still has her. He never came through with his end of the bargain.”

Eset clears her throat and looks right at Kirill. “Knowing him, he probably already killed her. It’s why he hasn’t come through on his end of the bargain. My father only cares about one thing: himself.”

Kirill’s mouth falls open as my sister’s words finally make him realize he’s been played. “Where is the girl, Father?” Nazyr speaks up and asks the old man.

Anzor cackles and thrashes his arms against the chains. “Let me down, and I’ll tell you.”

“It doesn’t matter where the girl is. Kirill betrayed us, and I will not stand for it. You were supposed to be loyal to me. You should have come to me when Anzor approached you. I could have helped you get out of this situation, Kirill, but now you leave me no choice.” Lom pulls back the safety on the gun, and we all know what’s about to happen. I don’t intervene with my brother’s business because Kirill was his second, the same way Danill is mine.

“No, please. My little girl could be out there somewhere. I don’t know where she is! She needs someone!” Kirill pleads, and when I have my own children, I might understand the emotion in his voice. They say there is no greater love than the love a parent has for their child. Sadly, I’ve never experienced such love.

Eset takes a few steps forward, and with each step, her heels clack against the aged concrete. “If your daughter is alive, I will make sure she’s found and that she’s taken care of. What is her name?”

“Meryem,” Kirill tells Eset. He clears his throat and then speaks again. “My family is dead. My parents and my late wife’s. She died last year from an infection after she gave birth. Meryem only knows me, and without me, I fear for her.”

“There is no reason to have fear. If she’s still alive, I will make sure she’s taken care of, but you betrayed my family, Kirill. You went against my brothers, and for that, you will pay the ultimate price.” Eset runs her hand along Kirill’s cheek and walks away. As she walks away, Lom pulls the trigger, and the bullet pierces his head, killing him instantly.

“This sucks. I liked him,” Lom comments, shaking his head.

Laughter comes out from behind him, and Anzor’s all smiles. “You’ve grown quite fierce, my little Eset. But why? You will be sold off to marry someone with more power. You know it, yes? Ruslan will arrange a marriage for you in an attempt to gain another ally. You are merely a bargaining chip to them, so why do you stand with them today? Hmm?”

Eset stops dead in her tracks and turns around. She glares at her father with the most might in the entire world. “I stand with them because I know what you did, and soon everyone else will too. You aren’t my father. All you are is a sperm donor. You disgust me, pig. I hope you suffer greatly.” Eset spits on her father and walks away from us before any of us can say a thing. I’m sure we could stop her, but I’m not sure I want to. It’s obvious there’s something she knows that I don’t.

“You are a naïve bitch if you think they will protect you!” Anzor screams after Eset.

“We will protect her because she’s our family,” Nazyr comments, now taking his moment to speak up against his father.

“Family is disposable, boy. You’d do best to remember that. These two will throw you in the garden when I’m gone. You’re a threat to them because you’re my son and many people are loyal to me, not their name. People will seek you out to go against your brothers. They’ll seek you out so you can start a new line in Chechnya.”

“I’m loyal to my brothers, not to you,” Nazyr screams at his father and pulls out his gun. He flicks back the safety and shoots him in the knee. Anzor releases a blood-curdling scream, and I smile at my brother with pride.

Nazyr and Eset might be his blood, but they’re my blood, too, and I know they won’t go against me.

“I should’ve had them kill you. You’re too much trouble,” Anzor hisses at me.

“I feel like I’ve heard that before,” I remember the men in Armenia telling me I was too much trouble. I’m beginning to feel as though it’s a compliment. I run my hand along my chin and look at Anzor. “Tell me, would it have been slow or quick?”

“Slow.” He wastes no time answering, but little does he realize he’s sealed his own fate.

“Perfect. Yours will be the same.” I smile and look at my brothers. They both smile back for a moment, and then we shift to tight-lipped expressions. I have a few hours to kill before I have to be at Jordan Steeles, so I’m going to make it count.

Chapter Seventeen

Amelia

I planned on leaving the suite pretty early today, but Emily told me she had to go in to work unexpectedly for a few hours. Now I’m at the mall waiting for her, and it’s just around dinner time. Danill’s with me also, just as he always is.

Sometimes Danill doesn’t sit too close to me, but other times he’s within a few feet. I can never really keep track of what he’s doing. I like to think I’m trying to find some sort of method to how he works, just out of pure curiosity, but so far, I haven’t figured it out.

I’m sitting on a modern plush yellow chair in the middle of the mall. Mothers with kids whiz by me, and laughter fills the space. With the way online shopping’s been in the last few years, I’m surprised malls are even still a thing. Now I’m not hating on them. I’d much rather go into a store and try on clothes as opposed to looking at something and clicking “add to cart”. There’s something different about trying on a little black dress and seeing how it looks in those dressing room mirrors.

This mall’s recently been renovated. I remember last year it was closed almost the entire time because they were having a complete overhaul. Now everything looks so much different. Before, it was bland, and there wasn’t anything special about it. With the updates, they changed all the floors, added skylights throughout the walkway, and updated the storefronts within the mall. I like how they added the skylights. It really brightens the place up and makes it seem cozier and more inviting.

Suddenly, I’m grabbed from behind, and I jump. I immediately look at Danill, who seems amused, so I’m not worried in the least bit. I turn, and sure enough, it’s Emily. “You’re going to make me pee my pants one day.”

“Oh, I’d kill to see that,” Emily playfully jokes, and I smack her arm while I rise. “Sorry about having to change things up today. I thought I’d be off, but they called me in for a shift this morning into the afternoon.”

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