Page 2 of Kaid's Empire

I smile. “Finally, some good news.” I turn to the girl. “Go see Mila, she will pay you,” I order. She nods and gets up, straightening her tight short dress and walks out of my office. I don’t miss the way Oleg looks at her. “You leave her the fuck alone,” I snap. Oleg’s eyes snap to mine and he holds up his hands in defence. “I mean it, I am not cleaning up another dead girl because you're a sick fuck that can’t control yourself.”

“Won’t happen again, boss, you have my word,” he defends.

“Yeah, that’s what you said the last time. Do it again and I will fucking kill you,” I threaten as I walk past him. Mikhail whacks Oleg around the back of the head and I know without looking he is giving him the ‘don’t fuck him or me off’ look.

I walk out to my car and get in. Mikhail sits next to me as Oleg gets in the front. “So where has our friend been hiding?” I ask, lighting a cigarette.

“Our friend at the FSS called, it appears Pavel has been sharing one too many things,” Mikhail spits angrily.

“It is a shame he didn’t realise I own many of the FSS. Did he not think we would get to him?” I sigh, irritated that there is always one that thinks they can take us down, thinking that they can go to the law and I won’t get them. They seem to forget I own everything. Everyone is in my pocket, from police to politicians. They all answer to me.

I stand beside the river, in the cold, listening to the whiny snivelling and grovelling from Pavel.

“Please, I… I… I didn’t mean to say anything, the officers, they tricked me. I swear I didn’t tell them anything they didn’t already know.” He whines on his knees, Mikhail behind him with a gun to his head. I roll my eyes, tired of listening to his shit.

“Enough, Pavel, I have heard it all before. What I rule is a brotherhood, The Bratva! Within that is loyalty to me, to the brotherhood. So, you can understand my irritation when I find out that someone I thought I could trust betrays me––betrays us,” I state.

“I swear, I didn’t mean to, I have my wife and my kids. If you just give me another chance I––” I hold up my hand, stopping him.

“Now, Pavel, you know as well as I do that you don’t have a wife or kids. So, as well as betrayal, you're now lying to me?” I yell.

“No, I… I didn’t mean that… I meant that I have family, please, please…” he begs, shivering from the freezing temperatures.

I ignore him and light my cigarette. “It’s cold, warm him up,” I order.

Oleg nods, opening the boot of the car. “Thank you, Kaid,” Pavel snivels. Oleg walks back with a blanket in one hand and a canister in the other. He hands the blanket to Pavel who quickly wraps it around himself.

I walk towards him and I lean in closer. “Better, Pavel?” I ask.

“Yes, thank you, I…” He pauses for a moment, sniffing. I lean back and take a long pull from my cigarette. “What is on this?” He frowns, asking while sniffing the blanket. I look to Oleg who opens the cannister and pours it over Pavel. “Wait, what?” he asks, panicked. I don’t answer, I just flick my cigarette at him. “No! Please!” Pavel screams, but it’s no use, the petrol-soaked blanket and him are rapidly engulfed in flames. His screams pierce the air as I stand there, watching him desperately rolling around as he burns alive. The smell of burning flesh almost smells like meat on the grill. I hold out my hands, warming them from the heat of his burning body. It’s not long before he stops screaming and moving. “We will take care of it,” Mikhail states next to me. I nod and turn to get back into the car.

I sit there, staring out the window, watching as they roll what’s left of Pavel’s burnt corpse into the river.

Mikhail climbs into the car next to me. “Boss?” he asks.

“I am bored, I need a change,” I answer.

Mikhail pauses for a moment. “I can arrange that. Shall I call up the hotel in Monaco and let them know you are coming?” he asks.

I turn to him, forgetting about our business in Monaco. I don’t usually go there, I leave it to others to run as it is just the money laundering side of the business. I nod. “Yes, I need to check on our business there. I may as well fly out––doing business in the sun is always more fun.” I smile.

Mikhail smiles and nods. “Done. A change of scenery, a change in business, and a change of pussy it is.”

Two

Theia

I've been back home for nearly two months now, and that is long enough. I'm getting itchy feet. This time though, I have enough money to go anywhere I choose, and I am treating myself to an actual holiday. To Monaco, a place known for being pure luxury, no backpacking, no hostels, just me in a flashy hotel. I've spent most of my time volunteering in different countries––Tanzania, Cuba, Brazil, Syria and India. It was hard going; I cried a lot, and if I could, I would have adopted all of the kids––and dogs for that matter. But there were some highlights that outweighed the bad.

“Theia! Can you come down and help me?” Mum calls from the bottom of the stairs.

“On my way!” I yell back. It’s only temporary, it’s only temporary, I remind myself. Being twenty-eight and living back with my mum is not what I had planned, but its only short term until I can find my own place. I love her dearly, but she can be a bit much to handle.

I make my way downstairs and into the little vegan café my mum owns. “I need three green teas for the window table,” Mum instructs.

I nod and get to it. The café is bursting with people. Mum’s little café was one of the first vegan cafes to open in Bristol. Mum has been a vegan for pretty much her entire life, before it become a fashionable life choice. I smile at her and shake my head as she dances and jigs about behind the counter to Jimmi Hendrix. To say my mum is a hippy would probably be an understatement. She's a peace-loving woman of the world. But not to be fooled, she is a strong woman. My dad up and left before I was born, her parents had both passed away and she brought me up on her own while starting the café, making it into a successful business.

“Theia, wakey wakey!” Mum calls. I shake my head, snapping out of my daze and carry on with the teas. Mum always said my mind would wonder off to worlds unknown when I was a kid, and not much has changed.

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