Page 54 of Ruthless Son

Attempting to soothe the man who was quickly becoming irritated, I held my hands out in peace, I couldn’t let this go sideways, not when it was slowly turning in our favor. “You’re right, I was running from him. But not because I was scared… but because I was angry.”

I looked to Rex whose cheeks flushed bright red, shame washed over his face but he held my stare as I told my truth. Telling Fedir a broken down version whilst also highlighting my pain to the man that had duped me.

“I wasn’t supposed to get pregnant, it was a decision that Rex made on his own. I may have decided to stay if things had been different…” Rex’s eyes widened at my confession, he never knew that I had been thinking about staying and what it would be like to move here, but he stole my freedom when he stuck holes in the condoms and now my choices were limited. “And now I’m pregnant with a child that ties us together for the next 18 years, so I was angry and needed some space to breathe. I never expected you lot to… to…”

“Well, regardless of what choices you both have made, a child is a blessing,” Fedir stated, “and you both must work together to raise this child with love and respect.” I watched Fedir with shock as he preached the importance of a child having both parents together. “Rex did what he had to do, sometimes we have to do things we do not like for the ones we love, no?”

My mouth hung open as I stared wide-eyed at the man who had us kidnapped, who now looked at Rex with an inkling of respect. “Are you serious?”

“Of course, a man has to look after his family!” His fist pounded the table with certainty. “Now I will make you another deal, Solomia, one I think you and your ‘baby daddy’ will be amenable to.”

I held my breath as he tapped his fingers in a rhythm against the wood, the light shining on the thick gold that lined his hand. Rex lowered his head, watching me from under lowered lids, his chest puffed up with a sense of self-importance now a fucking crime boss had essentially given him a pat on the back.

“I will buy my drugs from the Street Kings. I will deal only with you, and you name your baby a good strong Ukrainian name… what do you say?”

“Does this deal mean I have to still come to you once a month?” I countered, the men shuffled on their feet, giving each other awkward looks as I tried to negotiate with their boss.

“No, no. A phone call will be fine. And we can brush up on your pronunciation at the same time.”

“Then I accept,” I held my hand out in a gesture of goodwill, and Fedir grasped it tightly, shaking my hand and entering into a deal that would alter the course of my future completely. Even if I wasn’t here, I was now tied to the Street Kings and the Ukrainian mafia inexplicably.

Fedir’s grin widened. “This is irony, yes?” I looked at him quizzically. “Your name, Solomia, it means ‘peace’.”

My shoulders dropped at the first hint of an agreement between us. But I still had something at the back of my mind, and now, I had an understanding with a mafia boss that could potentially help me out with a little problem. Especially considering he seemed to like me. “I have one more thing I’d like to add.”

Rex watched me curiously, his lips tightly sealed as he stared at me with a glimmer of respect. And although I cared about him and his safety, I wasn’t over the act that had brought me to this chair, sitting in front of men with guns, that had at one point, been pointed at both of our heads. These were all actions that could not easily be forgiven, but I didn’t have many options of revenge at hand, except… “I feel like I deserve some form of retribution…” I eyed Rex with a small amount of apology, but also irritation at the way he had handled things between us. “I want you to punch him for me.”

Rex

Mia sat there like a queen, her hair a halo of gold around her face. Where most people would have been reduced to crying and begging by now, she had a look of defiant resolve about her. Pride swelled in my chest as she negotiated with one of the most powerful men in the trade, and didn’t that make me feel like a big goddamned pussy. I was tied up, unable to help her, or protect our unborn child, and she demanded favors from him. And even though I had betrayed her trust, I could tell she was still worried for me too. Her eyes had traced over every inch of me, cataloging injuries and ways to help me get us out of here.

I never knew she was half Ukrainian, which just went to show that I didn’t really know her as well as I wish I did. Fuck, she definitely earned the title of princess as she bargained with Fedir fucking Sykyta, a man who had climbed the ladder in the criminal underworld by taking heads and giving zero fucks. It was said he cut the hands off of those who betrayed him and hung them around his house like fucking bunting.

“I want you to hit him.”

My thoughts quickly came to a halt as I took in what Mia just said. “What? Mia…”

“I deserve it, don’t you think?” she asked me, repayment for my sins coming back to haunt me in the guise of an angel with a thirst for my blood.

The men around us laughed, and my body jerked as Fedir slapped me on the back as if we were brothers. I held back my glare for the man that had our lives in his hands, and kept my eyes fixed on my woman. “I know I hurt you, and if this is what you need to make you feel better, then I’ll take every hit for you,” I whispered.

Her glare eased, and I saw through the anger to the hurt woman beneath. I could see her pain as if it was a mark on her skin, and I wanted to kick myself.

“Just do it,” I growled to Fedir, bracing myself for the hits.

“Just once,” Mia shot back, “one hit is all he gets.”

“Make it count, Bohdan,” Fedir snapped. The men pulled my chair back, swinging it around until I faced them. The heavier of the two, Bohdan I assumed, grinned at me and curled his fist in my face.

I looked at Mia grimly, before facing my judge and squared my shoulders, prepared to take my punishment. I saw his ham-fist swing at me before it landed. The crunch of bone resounded in my ears before the pain hit. My head flew back before I felt the gush of blood pour from my broken nose. “Fuck. You asshole,” I mumbled around the blood. Bodhan reached down and sliced me free, the ties giving way so my hands were free to pinch the bridge of my nose and try to stop the bleeding.

My head pounded already from the pistol-whip, and now the agony intensified with the busted nose. I breathed through my mouth, tasting the metallic tang of my blood on my lips. “Happy?” My words gargled free, and my sadistic woman smiled at me, a tiny hint of remorse glimmered in her eyes, but still, she looked like she enjoyed seeing me in pain.

“I’m happy-er.” She smiled. Finally, she had a grin on her face again, and it only took me getting hurt for it to happen.

Fedir placed my phone in front of me. “Call your president, tell him to come here and we can arrange your first drop off. I am out of drugs because I had to dispose of the shit that I bought from Felix’s people. I have many people waiting for me to provide for them, so let’s not take too long.”

My blood covered hand reached for the cell. Pressing the power button, the screen flashed dozens of missed calls and messages. “Shit, how long have we been here?”

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