Page 4 of Mafia Christmas Vows

Apparently though, she did have a mysterious amount of money that would appear in her bank account occasionally through the years. She assumed it was from a settlement that she’d been in for a car accident years before.

Whether I believe that or not is not the point. The truth is that somehow, my bio dad knew about me.

And was providing for both of us for a while.

Me: Well, keep holding on. At least you don’t have to marry him?

I meant it to be a joke. I really did.

But my mom calls me, and I pick up.

“Hi,” I murmur.

“Sweetheart, I’m so sorry,” she says, tears thick in her throat. “You don’t have to do this. Really, you don’t. You say the word and…” her voice trails off.

I sigh.

“It’s okay, mom. Really. It’s fine. I mean it’s not like I have much of a life as an alternative, right?”

I hear her choke on some tears, and know that was the wrong thing to say.

“Mom. I’m serious. I couldn’t finish my degree if I was constantly running from some kind of rival mob or gang or whatever dad is into. And if you weren’t safe…”

“You don’t have to do this for me, baby.”

“I know. It’s my choice,” I say firmly.

All of that is true.

When dear old dad explained what was at stake, he did it completely factually. He, Victor Igor Kozlov, had made an enemy years ago. The enemy was a very powerful guy, and he never told us what his name was. The enemy had gone through all of dad’s connections, and then found us.

A woman he had a one-night stand with, and a daughter that resulted.

That apparently he’d been watching over.

For years.

He explained that he couldn’t actually be part of my life because of said enemy. That he knew this guy would try to use all connections against him. So instead, he donated money to my mom, and apparently helped arrange a very serious string of what we thought was good luck. I always thought it was a little odd that things just seemed to go perfectly well for us… my mom bought a house on a very low income, all my schools were always best in class, I got into whatever college I wanted, etc.

We really did just think that it was good luck.

The fact that I did, in fact, have a dad who cared about me is not something I’ve had time to process. Because in the same breath, my father explained the only way to get this other mob member— who had discovered my mom and me— off our backs, was to make an alliance.

And the only way to make an alliance was to offer myself in marriage to Alexei Orlov.

He explained it like I had a choice.

However, given the facts, and the fact that his enemies had already burned my childhood home to the ground…

It wasn’t really a choice.

I have no idea who Alexei Orlov is. He’s not searchable on the internet. He lives in Russia, which isn’t exactly a place with a ton of available information.

All I know is that in a situation where my mom and I are about to be torn apart by wolves, he’s the thing that keeps the wolves at bay.

Marrying the bigger monster isn’t exactly my idea of a great Christmas.

But, as the SUV speeds away into the Russian night, my resolve hardens.

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