Page 17 of Owned By the Bratva

Leon came back later than expected. I wasn’t called upon for supper and didn’t go down when the time came either. I waited until Leon returned. I didn’t want to intrude if not asked to join them. Leon returned with supper. He had bought us Chinese carryouts. It was a nice change to the regular suppers.

He was quiet and drawn back.

After supper, we watched a movie and went to bed. Leon kept to his side of the bed, and it felt like I had done something wrong.

At breakfast and lunch, I sat quietly, watching the four people interacting. They appeared to be more like a family and not just colleagues. Supper consisted of more carryout meals, and the next two or three days were more of the same.

Despite the comings and goings as they went along doing their Bratva business, they appeared in all other senses to be close-knit. I was starting to settle and assist where I could. I mostly helped with house chores and meals as I was no hacker, killer, spy, or fighter. In fact, I was more of a lover or peacekeeper.

I’ve been here just a little over a week now, and I admit, I felt more at home with each passing day. I was no longer afraid of them and doing my part. Most afternoons, I sat by Leon’s bedroom window, staring out. I missed my life and wondered if things would ever return to normal.

Leon was gone when I woke up this morning, and I hadn’t seen him all day. Heading to assist with supper, I found Mila alone in the kitchen. She was peeling potatoes while the onions fried next to her in the pan. The smell was strong but alluring.

“Can I help with supper?” I said, walking towards her.

“Sure,” she replied, glancing at me. “I’m making stirfry. You can peel and julienne the carrots if you like.”

Everyone in the house has accepted my presence here except for Mila. She barely spoke to me except for the occasional greeting or, like now, when we did something together. Leon mentioned that she was charming when she wanted to be, but I have not seen that side of her yet.

I didn’t know if I ever would. She clearly didn’t want me there but had accepted that I wasn’t going anywhere soon, just as I had to. Coming to stand next to her, I started at my chore.

“Where’s everyone?” I asked curiously. Each time I came down, two or more of them cooked together. It was the first time that I didn’t hear or see the others looming around.

“They had business to take care of but would be home soon,” Mila replied without looking up. Her tone was cold and distant.

Glancing at her, I couldn’t help but ask as I had never seen siblings so close to each other as they were. “You must have grown up in a nice home, seeing that the four of you are so close?”

Mila laughed, but it was a dry, hoarse sound and not an excited kind of laugh. “Has Leon not shared anything with you?”

Shaking my head, I replied softly. “No, he only said you are all colleagues, but you seem more like family….” I hesitated for a moment and then continued. “You all have the same surname, so I presumed. Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Mila said in a lighter tone. “We all grew up in an orphanage, but it’s not something we discuss with outsiders.”

“Sorry, I really didn’t mean to pry,” I added quickly. I didn’t want to ruin the seemingly light mood Mila was in.

She faintly shook her head, her strawberry-red curls bouncing as she did. “No, it’s really okay; it’s not like it’s a state secret or anything.”

Mila had a soft smile forming on her lips and a sparkle in her hazel eyes as she spoke. I could now see the charm Leon had mentioned. Her charm in that moment enhanced her beauty. I could see men falling over their feet for her.

Mila rinsed the last potato and started chopping them as she continued. “As I said, we grew up together; we used to have loads of fun, as we called it.” She winked at me. “You know, teenagers, we vandalized and stole what we wanted. We took what was owed us as many children in our situations tend to do.”

“I’m sorry,” I added gently.

Mila looked at me. Her eyes appeared to be filled with a longing I didn’t understand. “It was good days, mostly. That was until Piotr almost lost his life.”

I gasped, dropping the carrot and knife to the counter as I pulled my hands to my mouth. Mila grinned at me.

“Yes, life on the outside of normal could be daunting. But….” She said, raising her tone. “We decided to make a change there and then!” She turned to me, swinging the knife in the air, and I had to step back.

Her mood lifted as she spoke, and I felt the love she held for the other three simply by listening. “We ran away and started our own little underground organization. We wanted to do better with our lives and our skills.”

Turning back to the counter, she chopped the potato on the board with force as she continued. “Each of us has unique skills, and we offer our services to those who need them. I won’t lie; it was hard in the beginning. That is also when we decided to change our last names. We took one for us all.”

Mila stared at the kitchen wall, seemingly in her own world. Shaking her head, she continued. “Once we started doing business with the Morozov Bratva family, things changed. We found stability.”

“It appears you found happiness to fight the sad,” I said. Slicing the last carrot, I continued. “Looking at all the four of you accomplished, I am sure you could do better, don’t you think?”

Mila tossed the potatoes and carrots in with the onions, swirling the pan a bit before facing me. “You’re one to talk. Look at the people you mix with and the company you work for. You have no right to judge unless your life is clean and your conscience clear. You need to take a second look at your own morals, as you don’t even know the kind of company you keep.”

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