Page 143 of Emerald Malice

When I enter the gym, Viktor is stirring on the rubber flooring, surrounded by my men. Natalia’s entire security detail is here. So are Yuri and Efrem. Shura stands removed from the rest of them, his arms so tense that I can see the veins running through them.

“Efrem,” I bark, “wake him up.”

Efrem flings a bucket of frigid water onto Viktor’s face, and he splutters awake.

Water drips from the end of his crooked nose and blood is congealed along the side of his face. He squints into the light, but he sees only me. I’m kneeling down, close enough I can still smell the liquor on his breath.

One glance around the room is enough for Viktor to realize there’s no way out. He’s surrounded by men who will kill him without hesitation as soon as I give the order.

His chest rises and falls erratically as he looks at me… and waits. When it becomes clear that no one’s going to breathe a word until he does, he opens his mouth.

Nothing but hot air comes out.

He tries again. “I am your brother,” he finally croaks.

“And you think that will protect you?”

“This is beneath you,” he says. “It’s beneath me. This tradition is reserved for?—”

“Traitors,” I spit.

His eyes narrow. “I have done nothing.”

“You put your hands on what’s mine.”

His face ripples with anger. “You let my wife fuck that—” He points at Leonty without looking at him. “—traitorous piece of shit and you claim this is my fault! You’ve made me a laughingstock! You’ve fucking ruined me!”

It’s clear that the last few weeks haven’t been kind to Viktor. He looks like an empty shell of the man he used to be. But any pity I might’ve had is nonexistent in the face of what I just witnessed.

“I never needed to lift a finger to turn you into a laughingstock, Viktor. You did that all by yourself. If you want to blame someone for ruining you, look in the fucking mirror.”

Drool slicks his chin as he draws himself up on his knees as tall as he can. “I know my worth.”

“Then you’ll know that disposing of you would cost me nothing. In fact, I would only stand to gain.” I get to my feet. “So don’t fucking tempt me.”

The whites of his eyes have disappeared behind thick, red veins.

“I know things,” he blurts out, more spit flying from his mouth. “I know your secrets, brother. Don’t forget that.”

“Are you threatening me?” I ask in pure disbelief.

“I’m reminding you that I have the power to destroy you if I wanted to.”

I take two steps forward, forcing Viktor to crane his neck back to look at me. I squat down in front of him and take his hand. “Then it’s incumbent on me to remind you—” My hand tightens around Viktor’s wrist and his eyes flare with panic. “—that you have no power at all here anymore. You made sure of that the moment you touched my woman.”

Grabbing his index finger, I snap it back hard.

He screams.

His wail pierces through the quiet of the gym. But I’ve already moved onto the next finger. And the next. I don’t stop until all five are mangled and useless.

If he acts fast, he might be able to put them back together. But they’ll never be fully functional again.

He’s still howling with a mixture of rage and alarm when I kick him back against the rubber flooring. I gaze down at him with revulsion. “You’re no longer welcome in this manor. You’re no longer welcome in my sight. Stay the fuck away from me and you might live.”

Viktor is clutching his hand at the wrist, staring at his mangled hand. But I know he can hear me over his steady whimpering.

“You were right about one thing, though,” I concede after a moment of thought. “You are my brother. So I will allow you to live in my safehouse in Hunts Point.”

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