Page 71 of Savage Surrender

Oleg sighed. “Eva, we don’t know if Amelia left or if she was taken.”

“But if she needed a reason to run away,” Eva said, hands on her hips, “that would’ve been it!”

Boris shrugged, again lifting his glass to his lips, forgetting again that it was empty. “I think it was the last straw. It very well might have been a reason for Amelia to want to leave. To leave me for cheating, to leave this family.”

“You fucking imbecile.” Oleg turned from his brother to Viktor. “Handle this. Call Lev and update him.” The Boss looked at me, eyeing me seriously. “Igor will just have to deal with both of his children being Baranovs now.”

I gaped at him as he turned to leave.

That sounded a lot like a rough acceptance, even a coerced introduction, to his family.

I’d only be a Baranov if I married into the family, but I couldn’t think about that.

I had to smile at what else he’d said.

Maxim was a Baranov. By blood.

“Bring that boy here,” Oleg said over his shoulder, shaking his head as he walked out. “Tonight. OrIwill wage war against him for taking one of our own.”

31

VIKTOR

As shocked as we were at Boris’s admission of being Maxim’s father, I had to act now. Even if Oleg hadn’t ordered me to retrieve Maxim immediately, I would’ve wanted to do so for Irina. Oleg wouldn’t have turned the teen away. He wasn’t going to cast Irina out as an enemy anymore, either. I saw how he nodded at her with respect, appreciating her act of goodwill to help Eva and Lev like she had.

“Irina, stay with Eva while I help them.”

She nodded, still looking so shell shocked that I wondered if she ever realized what she was agreeing to. Eva wasn’t any better. She seemed mad, and shocked, too.

“Let’s just…” Eva didn’t finish speaking, gesturing for Irina to walk with her. “We can, um…”

“Show her the guest suite,” I suggested as I headed toward the door. “Prepare a room for us. And one for Max.”

The women stuck together, walking away, but Irina cast one more glance over her shoulder at me.

“I will find him,” I promised. “And we will bring him home.”

I ran out to my car, already calling Lev.

“Hey, we’ve got a good location for him, and?—”

“Donotlet anything happen to him,” I ordered.

“I know, but?—”

“You don’t understand. Maxim is the bastard son of Boris and Anna Petrov.”

I rendered him silent for a full moment as I sped down the drive.

“Boris… Baranov?” he asked, doubtful and so confused.

“Yes!” I held on for a sharp turn past the gates. “Give me the location. We need to bring him home. Safe.Now. Oleg ordered it.”

“Holy shit.” Lev didn’t waste any more time on his shock. He sent me the coordinates of where Maxim was held by Ilyin forces, and I didn’t waste any time getting there.

Lev hung back, but he ran up to meet me on the street.

“What the fuck is this?” I asked, gesturing at a whorehouse. It wasn’t one of ours, but competition.

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