Page 90 of Bound to a Monster

“I had my brothers talk some sense into my cousin.” Carmie spreads her hands in awhat-can-you-dogesture. “I guess it worked.”

Valentin grunts. He turns his teacup in a slow circle. When he speaks, there’s no trace of emotion in his tone, like he’s giving a lecture to a class of bored teenagers.

“I’m angry with you, Lev. You killed a very useful member of my organization without asking me permission first. You did this during a very sensitive time when he was dealing with a very frustrating issue. Now, I’ve been left scrambling to find a way out.”

“What can we help you with?” Carmie asks.

“We’re beyond that.” Valentin stares at me the whole time. I meet his gaze and refuse to back down. If I show any weakness right now, he’ll pounce on me like a young silverback gorilla taking down the injured alpha. “There are men that believe I should kill you. I haven’t because I know you have potential, and I understand that what you did had nothing to do with me. Still, it was disrespectful, and I cannot abide it. So I chose a silence order, hoping you’d get the message. You murdered Jovan instead.” Valentin holds up a hand before Carmie can jump in again. “Self-defense or not, I don’t really care. That man was useful.”

“I agree,pakhan. He’ll be hard to replace, but I’ll find a way.”

“No, you won’t. You and your wife are going to leave the city. I’m giving you this chance purely becausemywife likes the pair of you, and she’s my better half, and also as a favor to Adriano. But don’t mistake this clemency for weakness.”

Carmie looks panicked. She stares at me then at Valentin. “We can’t go anywhere,” she says.

“You can, and you will.”

“Please, this is our home. Lev can fix this. What was his father doing in Canada?”

Valentin looks annoyed. “Don’t push your luck.”

“Lev can take it over. You said there’s a problem and you’re having trouble dealing with it. Let Lev figure it out.”

“Why would I do that?”

“Because it would make Adriano and the Marinos happy, and it would also take care of everything else. If we fail, we’ll stay in Canada and never come back here. If we pull it off, you’ll have a good excuse to bring us back into the fold, and everyone’s happy again. For you, it’s win-win.”

I stare at my wife in awe. The nerve of this woman. The girl I married would never have gone toe-to-toe with thepakhanof the Zeitsev Bratva, and yet here she is, negotiating.

It’s remarkable. It’s unbelievable. And it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.

This is the Carmie I’m falling for. This is Carmie the warrior.

“She’s right,” I tell Valentin, leaning forward. “I’ll take on my father’s problem. Let me fix it for you. If I can’t, you’ll never see us again.”

Valentin shakes his head but doesn’t say anything. He’s visibly frustrated. “This is Bratva business. You’re not Bratva.”

“I was and I can be again. I didn’t betray you. I took care of my father because he deserved what happened to him. Give me the opportunity to make amends with you.”

This is as close to begging as I’ll ever get. If Carmie weren’t here and she wasn’t involved, I would’ve left the city already instead of stooping to this.

But she loves it here. This is her home. Her brothers live here, and her fencing coach is here. This is where she needs to be, and if that means putting myself at Valentin’s mercy, at least for a little while, then I’ll swallow my pride and do it.

Valentin finally looks at me and nods. “You have one chance,” he says.

“Thank you, Valentin.” The relief in Carmie’s voice breaks my heart.

“I need you both on a plane to Quebec City tonight.” He gets up from the table.

Carmie’s eyes go wide. “Wait, what?”

“That’s where you need to be if you’re going to solve my problem. Get to Quebec City and wait for further contact. Do you understand?”

“Yes,pakhan,” I say, motioning Carmie for quiet. She’ll miss a week or two of fencing, but that’s a small price to pay.

“Don’t make me regret this.” Valentin turns and storms out of the house. I watch him go, and once his car is pulled down the street, I lock the door and face my wife.

She seems tentative. “I’ve never been to Quebec before.”

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