Page 5 of Miki

When we discovered the relationship between her and Romi, my brothers and I reacted badly. Especially me.

Carrying on a relationship with each other had seemed wrong on so many levels at first, and I had been bloody furious.

Romi was our cousin through his mother’s marriage to our late Uncle Petior. Technically, it wasn’t an issue because there was no blood connection, but morally, it had felt wrong. Also, he was older than her by seven years, and it seemed like he had seduced her. I now know it was more likely the other way around. However, at the time, all I could see was my innocent little sister with an older, more experienced man.

Then there was the fact that Romi had sworn an oath as a Bratva Blood Brother. Years ago, when we were all young, a bunch of us took a blood oath to always protect each other and our families, especially our sisters. All of us Blood Brothers—me, Ash, Marko, Romi, my best friend Luca, and Ash’s best friend Anton—all felt different levels of betrayal when we found out Romi was sleeping with Sonia. That was not the type of protection we had vowed.

Also, indulging in a relationship with Sonia while she was technically engaged to Glowacki’s son was a massive issue for me as Pakhan. The problem was that such arrangements were unbreakable once shaken upon by two mafia leaders, unless a suitable alternative was found.

Breaking the agreement without an alternative arrangement would have been an insult. Glowacki would have had no choice but to retaliate or be seen as weak among the rest of his Brotherhood. That would definitely have threatened, if not completely shattered, our alliance.

Luckily, we had kept the arranged marriage agreement quiet because we had been busy dealing with the war with the Malia Boys and Broxys. So, when Glowacki and my aunt Marta became close as she helped nurse him back to health, he had agreed to amend the terms of the arranged marriage to them instead. It had been a godsend.

Especially after Sonia had been kidnapped, and Romi was shot while rescuing her. None of us could deny the depth of his feelings for her then, nor hers for him when she was inconsolable and refused to leave his side until he was over the worst. It was then we realised that nobody else could be better for her than Romi, our cousin, friend, and brother.

My folly could have ruined our family forever, something I didn’t want to contemplate. I vowed never to make such a foolish, inconsiderate decision again, no matter how overwhelmed I sometimes felt as Pakhan.

The music ended, tearing my thoughts back to the present.

As Sonia took her place beside Romi, the joy on both of their faces made my heart clench. I wished my parents were here to see this; they would have been overjoyed at seeing her wed.

Stepping back from the pair, I went to stand by Uncle Maxim, who smiled and placed a hand on my shoulder, squeezing it slightly. He was probably thinking about my parents, too, especially my dad.

Uncle Maxim was Dad’s twin, just a few minutes older. They were identical, so spending time with him always gave me mixed feelings. I loved my dyadya and seeing his face was comforting, but it always made me sad, reminding me of happier times when my dad was alive.

Watching today’s proceedings made me wonder what my dad would have thought of the double wedding.

Before we came to the UK and my father became Pakhan, the Polish and Russians had been rivals who barely tolerated each other. When Glowacki took over as head of the Polish Mafia, he was young and ambitious and tried to muscle in on our territory several times.

My father had subdued him quickly each time, and despite their rivalry, my dad had always treated Glowacki fairly. Eventually, they both came to a truce that grew into a grudging respect for each other, and the semblance of a friendship had begun just before my dad was murdered.

When I’d become Pakhan, I had felt way out of my depth, and often still did. However, Glowacki had offered me his hand in friendship, and I had taken it.

I was glad I had.

United in our grief, we formed an alliance, took on the Albanians, and thankfully won. Glowacki had been a good friend to me since and acted as a mentor. I respected him.

Dad had respected him too, but would he have agreed with the continued alliance and uniting our families?

“He’d be proud of you today and happy with how things have turned out,” Uncle Maxim said, as if able to read my thoughts.

The registrar started the service, and Glowacki’s smile widened as he gazed at my aunt. She beamed back at him, looking radiant as always. Aunt Marta was my dad and Uncle Max’s younger half-sister and, at thirty-eight years old, was twelve years younger than Glowacki, but they were a good match. They had a lot in common.

My heart warmed as I nodded at Uncle Maxim. Yes, I’d made the right decision.

My gaze flicked to Sonia, who looked equally radiant, standing beside Romi, who was grinning like a buffoon. I’d never seen him look so happy.

Thank god, things had worked out.

As I observed the proceedings, I couldn’t help sporting my own huge grin. Ash’s fiancée, Gracie, was Sonia’s bridesmaid and Glowacki’s daughter, Magdalena, was Aunt Marta’s. They all looked beautiful in their dresses.

Glowacki’s son was his best man, and Ash was Romi’s. Marko and Glowacki’s other sons, Daniel and Sebastian, and our friends Luca and Anton, were the groomsmen, looking very distinguished in their finery. If I didn’t know better, I’d even believe them to be the civilised beings they currently looked like. I smirked.

Outwardly we looked the part of polished businessmen, but underneath the veneer of civility lurked a darker place we often inhabited. The same place our enemies operated. That thought brought my light mood crashing down.

Scanning the grounds of my large estate, our home, I checked our security was in place, as expected. We’d gone a bit overboard for the wedding because even though we’d recently eliminated a huge chunk of those enemies, I refused to take any chances.

As the couples exchanged rings, I felt a pang of envy. I wanted someone who looked at me the way Aunt Marta looked at Glowacki and Sonia looked at Romi. Not that there was anyone in my life at the moment. In fact, there hadn’t been for ages. It just never seemed to be the right time for me to pursue a relationship.

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