Page 27 of A Silent Reckoning

“I will make you an offer. Please take some time to consider it, rather than outright rejecting it.” Krystoff held Jozef’s gaze. “Join me as a full partner, we will share our business interests. You will run all operations, as you used to do. I will approve all of our associates, unless you choose otherwise. You can have veto power, and I’ll leave the organization to you when I retire. All I ask is that you move back to the estate. I can provide you and your doctor with a separate home if you like. Similar to Leeza’s cottage.”

They both knew Krystoff would never retire. Regardless, the offer was incredibly generous. The Koba estate and all of its holdings amounted to a vast fortune. Jozef had never thought much about where the organization would go if Krystoff were out of the picture. If he wanted it, he could take it, but he would have to take his Aunt and cousins out of the picture first, not something he’d ever contemplated.

Finally, Jozef signed,the money means nothing to me.

“I know, it never has,” Krystoff said sadly. “Your motivation was always this family.”

Jozef nodded.

“Now you’ve switched your loyalty to her.”

Jozef didn’t say anything; he didn’t need to. Krystoff was correct. Jozef was now motivated by Shaun. He still loved his family, but he needed to make the move. Before Shaun he’d seen the world from a narrow view. She made everything richer, brighter, clearer.

“She won’t appreciate the things you do for her. The security, the jobs, it will all seem dangerous and illegal, which is not something she’ll condone. How do you intend to settle this situation in a way that will allow you to keep the woman freely?” When Jozef didn’t speak, he added, “We can keep her safe here at the mansion.”

For a trump card, it was a weak one.

She was almost killed in this house one year ago, Jozef pointed out, crossing his ankle over his knee. He took a long sip of his scotch, appreciating the burn of fine whiskey as it slid down his throat.

Fury crossed over Krystoff’s face, making him look more like the mobster he was renowned for rather than the kindly uncle he wanted to appear.

Jozef watched the older man steadily. He wondered if Krystoff was angry because Shaun had nearly died on his property or if he despised the woman threatening to bring down everything he’d worked for.

“Of course, you’re correct,” Krystoff said gruffly, ashing his cigar in a crystal tray. “I blame myself. I thought she would be safe in our home, protected by both the family and the security we constantly surround ourselves with. She should not have been reachable. I became complacent and she paid the price.”

Jozef believed his uncle was speaking from the heart. From the day Jozef was born, he learned about the importance of family; first from his own father, then from Krystoff when Jozef’s father was killed. It was gut-wrenching to now separate himself from the people, who, over the course of his life, talked to him about how family should stick together.

He didn’t have a choice. After Shaun’s poisoning, he couldn’t bring her back to the place that’d nearly killed her. And Jozef couldn’t live without her, which meant he needed to separate himself from the Kobas. Shaun aside, it was time for him to stretch his wings. Like the phoenix tattoo rising up his back, Jozef would rise from the shadows of his family and strike out on his own. His time in prison showed him how quickly and easily he could knock down the competition, replacing the Vory he took out with members of his own organization.

I will not come back, Jozef signed, finality ringing in his silent words.

Krystoff nodded his understanding that the topic would now be closed. Jozef was surprised to see a glint of pride in the older man’s eyes.

“I taught you everything I know,” Krystoff murmured, settling back into the plush leather of his chair and sipping from his glass. “You have exceeded all expectations. You’ll do great things, Jozef. Remember us while you’re out there, injecting fresh blood throughout an antiquated underworld.”

A smile stretched Jozef’s lips at his uncle’s praise. It was rare that Krystoff expressed himself in this way and Jozef was cognizant of the generosity his uncle was showing. He’d had to humble himself to admit he wanted Jozef back, and to further humble himself by admitting his pride in his nephew.

Yet, Krystoff was the type of man who could appear both humble and very much in control at the same time. As though his words were a gift given, not dragged through a mire of bitterness.

“I hope that we can continue to work together, building both of our interests,” Krystoff continued. “You’re still the best in the business, and I have several lucrative opportunities to explore.”

Jozef dipped his head in a nod.We are at your disposal, but our rate has gone up.

Krystoff chuckled. “Of course it has. I didn’t expect otherwise my boy.”

The two spoke at length about the jobs Krystoff wanted to commission out to Jozef and his team. Jozef was grateful that his uncle didn’t intend to hold a grudge against either himself or Shaun. The older man loved his family, but he was a hard man. If he chose to condemn the couple, they could’ve faced a difficult road to independence.

Chapter Fourteen

Leeza’s heels tapped against the garden stones in a hushed patter as she made her way back to the cottage, her home on the Koba estates. She wasn’t in a hurry to get back; not after the look Adam had given her. He hadn’t wanted to come to the mansion for supper, but Krystoff had made the invitation mandatory.

Adam hated the power Krystoff wielded over the family. Adam was often overridden as the head of his and Leeza’s house.

Krystoff took a personal hand in the lives of his daughter and grandson. Unfortunately, Krystoff didn’t bother to look close enough to see the horrors that went on inside the cottage, which was tucked away on the eastern edge of the estate. After her humiliating marriage to the Koba accountant, Leeza hadn’t bothered to educate Krystoff. Not because she didn’t think he would care. He would. If he knew what crimes Adam committed against the oldest daughter of the Koba empire, Adam would have become food for the rose garden years ago.

No, the reason Leeza kept the humiliation of her marriage a secret was to spite the man who’d cold-bloodedly married her off to a man she hated. It wasn’t the only reason, but whenever she was forced to kneel at the feet of her husband, her hands stretched across the bedroom floor, his belt raining welts across her skin, she thought of Krystoff. She thought of the way she’d tearfully gone to him begging him to let her marry another, of his refusal and the heat of his fury as he tried to discover who her lover was.

He would be horrified if he saw his daughter at the mercy of the sadistic accountant. It was this twisted thought that’d gotten her through the first gut-wrenching years of her marriage, the rapes and the beatings.

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