Page 54 of Ruthless Bonds

He explained his brother had gotten shot in the shoulder and had also gotten a concussion. A Good Samaritan had taken him to the hospital as a John Doe. He’d been in good condition, but overnight, something had happened and he’d ended up in a coma. Now he was being cared for at Kreos’ estate so he could be protected at all times.

The whole thing sounded insane. Was this how my life was going to be? Constantly worrying if someone was going to shoot Kreos? Or me, Dove, anyone else?

Kreos stared down at his brother, a soft look on his face. “My mother tried so hard to pit us against each other our whole lives. As children, she’d tell him I’d stolen his toys, or I’d set them on fire out of spite because I was jealous. Then she’d tell me he’d poisoned my food, and I wouldn’t eat for days, fearful I would die. As we got older, her tales become more elaborate and deadly. On his thirteenth birthday she told him I was planning on killing him and hurting our sister Bela, andthat they should kill me first.”

“Why would she do that to her own children?” I couldn’t imagine the fear she’d put them through. No wonder he had trust issues.

“She hated my father because he dragged her into this lifestyle, then forced her to have his children. When having affairs didn’t deter his obsession with her, she became hell-bent on making everyone’s life as miserable as hers.”

I reached for him, placed my hand on his arm. “I’m sorry, Kreos.”

“It’s in the past. My relationship with my siblings is stronger because of it. My parents will be here for the wedding.” He looked down at me, searching my eyes. “I’ll keep my mother far away from you, but I need you to be aware of what she’s capable of.”

I nodded, unsure of what to say. So, his mom was a complete psychopath, and I should avoid her at all costs. Got it.

Seeing him with his brother made him more human, and not the enemy I was used to dealing with. It was a bitter pill to swallow knowing that I was in this situation because of things I had done. I’d stolen from him, and when my sister had killed someone to save me, I’d called him to clean up the mess. He could have killed me at any time, or refused to help, but he hadn’t. I wasn’t saying that any of this was OK, because it wasn’t. And the first chance I got to escape? I was taking it. But in the meantime, I had to remember we were all human; we all bled the same color blood. There was a heart inside Kreos, and even though it was twisted, a small part of me knew he was capable of being a decent man.

He placed his hand on my lower back and walkedme out of the room. My skin tingled where he touched me, wreaking havoc on my willpower.

“Gavriil mentioned that our apartment has been packed up, but there’s something I need to grab from there,” I said as we walked back to the kitchen.

“No.”

I stopped and turned to face him. “Why not? I thought it was all taken care of?”

“I’ll have someone bring you your things today. You don’t need to go back there.” His eyes searched mine and he took a step closer, crowding my space. “Unless you want to be punished, then I suggest you behave yourself.”

There was no mistaking the heat in his eyes. I distinctly remembered something about tying me up if I misbehaved, and my cheeks heated at the thought. He walked me back to the kitchen without saying another word.

Looked like I was getting punished then, because there was no way they’d found my secret box in the vent. And I wasn’t willing to tell Kreos or Gavriil about it because I didn’t want them to look through my box of secrets. No, I was going to get it myself. It was better to ask for forgiveness than permission, right?

After double-checking that Dove didn’t want to go with us, I met Tash and Grigori in the garage. And by garage, I meant a building that housed over twenty different kinds of cars from a Bugatti to a Lamborghini and even a Ferrari or two. There was also a fleet of armored SUVs and sedans. I tried opening the back door to the SUV myself and almost fell to the ground trying to yank it open.

“Miss Wolfe, please, let me get the door.” Grigoriopened it like it was nothing, explaining it was armored, that was why it was so heavy.

“Damn, Grigori, you must work out if you can open it so easily.” I poked his biceps jokingly, but his eyes widened and he stepped back.

“Please, Miss Wolfe, the Pakhan will cut off my arm if he sees you touching me.”

“You’re joking.” I scrunched up my nose and looked at Tash. She shook her head from side to side. “Oh, come on. He would never—” The words died on my lips at the serious look on Grigori’s face. “OK, I’m really sorry. We’ll act like this didn’t happen.”

His shoulders visibly relaxed. “We’ll act like what didn’t happen? I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“He’ll also cut out your eye if you wink at her again, Grig,” Tash scolded from behind me.

I held my hands up. “Nobody’s losing an arm or eye. Let’s just go before I get us all in trouble.” I jumped in the back.

We drove through the massive grounds that were beautifully landscaped and covered in oak trees and greenery. Tash pointed out the workout facility, along with a guest house that looked like a mini-mansion. The pool and jacuzzi I’d already seen, and the staff barracks were mostly hidden from view by the trees. Apparently, they housed Kreos’ personal security, some soldiers, cleaning staff, and gardeners.

The compound was surrounded by stone walls and electric fencing, which was monitored continuously via a state-of-the-art surveillance system. Armed guards at the metal front gate waved us through so we could leave.

We were about an hour from Brooklyn, in Westchester County, and I spent that time trying to get to know Tash and Grigori better since it seemed like I would be spending a lot of time with them.

Grigori, who liked to be called Grig for short, was twenty-five and had grown up in the Bratva. His father and uncles were captains back in Russia and served under Kreos’ father. He’d been in the States for a few years, and I got the sense that he was trying to prove himself worthy to Kreos. On the car ride he was constantly cracking his knuckles, making me cringe each time.

Tash, who was in her early thirties, claimed she’d learned to fight before she could walk. At eighteen, she’d fled Russia to escape her family’s influence and ended up serving with an elite unit in the military. She was an expert in hand-to-hand combat, but when I asked her to show me some moves, she said we’d have to ask Kreos first. So, I was guessing that answer was going to be no.

The closer we got to Brooklyn, the more my palms began to sweat. I didn’t know what there was to be nervous about. Oh, wait, maybe the family of the man my sister had killed might be waiting to kidnap me.

---