Page 41 of Zafira

“You said that no one knows where I am and that we made sure this place is secure. Just who the fuck is behind my abduction, shit face?”

“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that your mouth is as filthy as your mother’s.” The voice sounding from the doorway shook Vanya to the core.

“Marek Cermak and... Triska... what is the meaning of this?” She shook her head to clear her mind. Yes, she had found information linking them to the Czech and Russian Bratva groups, but she would never have believed they would hurt her or be in cahoots with the likes of Luciano Maranzano. She and their daughter, Azja, were best friends.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Luciano’s irritation was evident in his grating voice.

Vanya knew it was a sign that he hated his authority being usurped. Clearly, there was a power play going on here.

“I thought we agreed that you would stay away. What if the Guzuns are watching you?”

“They’re not, so you can relax.” Marek stared at Vanya. “A cage, Luciano? Is that really necessary?”

“Keep out of this. We discussed this on your boat. You wanted to draw Zafira Guzun out, and I set in play a way to get her here. Your and my objectives were achieved by taking this bitch. What I do with her is my business. You just cast the bait when you’re ready, and the Comare will come running.

“Yeah... except she’s not gonna wait for any of you to throw the line.” Vanya smiled gaily as the three people looked at her. “It seems you don’t know my mother as well as you thought, Mr. Cermak... See, my mother is a much better fisherman than you.”

Chapter Twenty

“Get her out of that fucking cage, Andrei.” Zafira’s voice sounded foreign, filled with fury that threatened to bubble over from finding her beautiful daughter filthy and underfed, locked in a steel cage like a wild animal. The gun in her hand was steady as she aimed it at the three people. “I suggest none of you move. I wouldn’t think twice about pulling this trigger. Blyad’! She can’t even stand,” Zafira’s resolve threatened to collapse as she watched Andrei catch Vanya when her legs crumbled the moment she attempted to stand.

“You heard the Comare,” Bogdan growled as Marek Cermak’s hand crept toward his waist. “She might shoot, but I won’t think twice about ripping your fucking head from your body.”

“You better listen to the big guy,” Luciano smirked. “He’s been sniffing at the Guzuns asses his whole life and doesn’t make idle threats.”

“Something you seem to have forgotten, fuckface,” Arian sneered. “We all warned you what would happen if you ever came near Vanya again. It seems the year you spent in exile dulled your memory.”

“Baby, are you okay?” Zafira’s voice quivered. Her attention was now solely on her daughter, but she had full confidence in Bogdan and her sons to protect them from further harm.

“I’m fine, Mamochka. This dickless Sicilian mobster isn’t likely to ever get the better of me. I’ve been indulging him to keep my babies safe. Otherwise, I would’ve kicked his nut sack up his ass a long time ago.”

“That’s my girl,” Zafira sniffed away the tears that burned behind her eyelids at the sight of her bedraggled daughter. Her gaze shifted to the three people in front of them. “So, who’s got the guts to spill the beans?” She walked closer, aware of Bogdan hugging her side to keep watch over her. “You’re the First Vice President of the Czech Republic, Marek. We’ve been friends for as long as our daughters have been alive. Never in all those years have you shown any sign of resentment toward me or my family.”

“Your family. Now see... there’s the kicker, Zafira. YOUR family,” Marek sneered with hatred spitting venom from his eyes. “You have everything. Money, power. You grew up in the lap of luxury while I suffered in poverty, abuse, and hunger.”

“I am hardly to blame for how you grew up, Marek.”

“Oh, but you are to blame... my dear big sis!”

“What the fuck!?” Vadim and Arian growled simultaneously.

“You didn’t know? I’m not surprised she never told you. See, your mother is one of twins.”

“We know that, but her brother died a couple of hours after childbirth.”

“Died? Hardly, my dear boy... since here I am. Alive and well.”

“I don’t understand,” Zafira was as confused as her children. “This is... you’re lying. This is nothing other than a bullshit story. You’re nothing to me. My brother is dead.”

“Our dear mother, before she took her final breath, bless her black soul, admitted it all to me, so no, it’s not a bullshit story.”

“What do you mean before she took her final breath?” Zafira struggled to remain calm. Her mother had been brutally murdered twenty years ago, but the authorities had caught the murderer. A young drug addict who had broken into her house in search of money to feed his habit—or so she had been made to believe.

“Because I was there. I finally found out the truth when the woman I grew up believing to be my mother died. Since she was dying, she didn’t fear repercussions from Agata Solovyov and told me what had happened that day. Yes, she was the nurse who was saddled with the son your mother didn’t want. Our dear father was furious when you popped out ahead of me since, as you know, the firstborn was his successor. That he would have to hand his legacy over to a woman infuriated him. He forced everyone to claim otherwise. That I was the firstborn. Agata hated him for that. In her eyes, it was deception of the worst kind, and she refused to let it go. She gave me away... like a useless toy.

“She handed me to one of the nurses and forgot about me. All because she was a feminist who believed women had as much right as men in the world of the Bratva.” He snorted. “That decision cost her dearly. Did you know...” His eyes glimmered darkly. “She was my first kill and, to date, the most rewarding.”

“You killed your own mother?” Vanya’s voice sounded teary as the past couple of weeks finally caught up with her, and she started crying.

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