Page 47 of Of Flames and Crows

“I killed Budimir’s son,”Vlad said quietly.

Mae’s eyes rounded. Nikolai, Violet, and Miles stared, equally shocked.

Tarang pushed his head under Vlad’s hand where he sat on the couch. A soft whine left the familiar. Vlad ran his fingers through the tiger’s fur, grateful as ever for his comforting presence.

It was past three in the morning. Cortes and Budimir had left the suite a short while ago, with the promise to catch up with them in the morning.

Vlad’s pulse thumped hard as he looked up into Mae’s face. To his surprise, he didn’t see the disgust he’d expected to find there. It gave him the courage to continue.

“Budimir had an illegitimate child with one of his prostitutes before he married Eleanora Vissarion. His name was Kaspar Petrovich. Kaspar was disowned by his father at a young age. Despite this, he still chose to join the Bratva Budimir worked for. I’m still not sure whether it was to spite him or gain his affection.”

Mae rose from her chair and came over to sit next to him. She took his hand wordlessly, as if to give him strength to carry on talking.

Vlad inhaled raggedly, emotion tightening his throat. All the feelings and the madness of the terrible night that had changed his life forever crashed over him, emptying his lungs of air.

It was almost a minute before he could speak again.

“Kaspar rapidly went on to make a name for himself in the Bratva ranks, enough that his reputation brought him to Yuliy’s attention after my uncle relocated to the U.S. and formed theBlack Devilswith the main syndicate’s blessing. Yuliy eventually chose him as his heir and the next leader of our group.”

“You mean, you were never meant to inherit his seat?” Nikolai said, startled.

Vlad shook his head. “Yuliy wanted me as far away from the Bratva as possible. He’d promised my mother he wouldn’t let me enter a life of crime, like he’d been forced to.”

Mae squeezed his fingers.

Anger stirred through Vlad as Kaspar’s face rose before his eyes. “Had it not been for Kaspar’s greed, he would still be alive today and I would be free of the shackles of the underworld.”

“What did he do?” Mae asked.

Vlad swallowed. “He tried to kill Yuliy. He poisoned him, in fact.”

Tension thickened the air.

“That’s when you killed him?” Mae probed.

“It wasn’t just him.” A bitter chuckle left Vlad. “I lost control of my incubus powers and annihilated him and fifty of our followers who had chosen to betray my uncle and sworn their allegiance to him.”

Nikolai drew a sharp breath.

Vlad shuddered. The scenes of gore and mayhem he’d woken to after the darkness within him had consumed his and Tarang’s souls for those infinite minutes were imprinted in his mind for eternity.

They had only been able to identify the bodies from their dental records.

“The Bratva didn’t punish you?” Nikolai said stiffly.

“No. Considering Kaspar almost killed Yuliy, my actions were justifiable.”

“And Budimir just forgave you?” Mae asked skeptically.

“I…don’t know,” Vlad said truthfully.

Despite dozens of men witnessing him ripping Kaspar’s heart from his chest with his bare hands, he had still not fathomed Volkov’s feelings on the matter to this day. Was it honor and the Bratva code that had stopped the man from seeking revenge for his son’s death? Or had he not cared for Kaspar at all?

“I did not sense any bloodlust from him during your interactions,” Brimstone observed. “Of course, if he does hold feelings of revenge toward you, they may be circumvented by his current desire to find his grandson.”

Vlad met Mae’s gaze steadily.

“You don’t owe Budimir anything.” He cast an awkward glance at Nikolai and the Nolan cousins. “Neither do you guys. You don’t have to do what he’s asking of you.”

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