Page 45 of Forced Bratva Bride

“Did you hear that?” she whispers.

“I'll find out if it's true. I don’t even know who his father is.”

Once the guests have filtered away and the only people left at Kiril’s house are family, I find a chance to question him.

“Chiara had a conversation with Stefano this evening. Stefano believes that a Dubrov murdered his parents. Or possibly just his father. Do you know anything about this? Could it be true?”

Kiril scrunches his forehead and takes a sip of his whiskey as he sits on the patio, looking over the garden and the remnants of the party.

“His father. I never knew his father, but I did know of him. Our uncle, Baranov Dubrov, had an affair with Stefano’s mother. This was long before she met Angelo, while she was still married to Stefano’s father. I know that it caused a huge tear in the family, and his father wanted to divorce his mother. It can’t have been a pleasant situation, but as far as murder goes, there's no evidence that leads me to believe Baranov killed Stefano’s dad.”

“Our uncle slept with his mother while she was married?” I ask, shocked.

“Yes, it was a long time ago.”

“I guess I can understand why he would make the assumption that Baranov was responsible for his father’s death, but even the affair alone, Baranov being the reason that his parents were divorced, would have affected him negatively.”

“True—that's if he even knows about the affair. But honestly, I don’t think our family had anything to do with his death. Baranov was not a man who overreacted or behaved aggressively. He was more like you.”

I chuckle. “More like me, you say?”

“A lover, not a fighter,” Kiril laughs.

We sit outside in the cool evening air, finishing our drinks, my mind swimming with this new information. Could it be that our uncle killed his father? I can’t make sense of it. I'm shocked enough by the affair. I wonder if Stefano knows about that.

I feel Chiara’s hands running across my shoulders as she comes up behind me. “Max, I’m really tired, can we go home?”

“Of course, my love. I’m ready as well. Kiril, my brother, thank you for hosting a successful party.”

On the drive home I am quietly lost in thought. Chiara reaches out to twine her fingers through mine. I smile, but I am not sure how to tell her what I found out tonight.

“What's on your mind? You’ve been so quiet since we left the party,” Chiara says as we climb into bed later. I pull her close to me as I lie on my back, and she rests her head on my chest. Her bright eyes look up toward me, the light shining in the dark chocolate pools of her irises.

“I found something out, and it’s important, I guess, to this situation.”

“Well, tell me.” She props herself onto her elbow so she can see my face more clearly.

“Stefano’s mother, while she was still married to his father, had an affair with my uncle.”

I pause, waiting for her to process it.

“His mother cheated on his dad. And your uncle was the man she slept with,” she whispers, horrified. “Did your uncle kill his father?”

“No, Kiril tells me there's no evidence to suggest that. I don’t think so, either. My uncle wasn't that type of man.”

“This is crazy. I can’t believe it. Does Stefano know about all of that?”

“I don’t know. But if he doesn’t, and he finds out, then it would be all hell breaking loose, I'm sure. And if he does know, well, that would be motive to come after my family.”

“Why does everything have to be so complicated?” she whispers sadly.

“We are going to figure this all out, my love. It won’t be like this forever.”

She snuggles back against me and I hold her tightly, trying to comfort her, but then I realize that she's the one who is giving me comfort. Just by having her here with me, my thoughts are calming, and my mind is not so frantic.

I kiss the top of her head, my heart feeling content.

We drift off to sleep like that, wrapped in each other’s embrace.

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