Page 17 of Nobody Wants Me
With that, Ivan left the room.I was now alone with Rage.
Anyone else might have been pissed about being reprimanded by their boss in front of someone else.As it happened, I didn’t give a fuck.
“What do you know?”I asked.
Freya had to live.It was my job, my duty to protect her.
“At least five people have checked into The Maiden Hotel within the last twelve hours.All of them people that do not exist,” Rage said.
I nodded.It looked like I was on the hunt.
Leaving the back room, I found Ivan at the bar, sipping on a large glass of dark liquid.It looked like a good aged whiskey.I got the bartender’s attention and ordered the same.I was not wrong, it was good whiskey.Ivan rarely drank vodka.His father used to be a vodka drinker, as was my own father.I didn’t touch the stuff.There were a lot of things I no longer did because of my father.
“I’ll protect her,” I said.
“What is so wrong with her?”Ivan asked.
This surprised me.He was not known for asking questions.Looking at him now, I was pretty sure I saw a sadness in his gaze.This took me aback.I wasn’t exactly sure what to say to him, or what to do.What did he want me to say?
“I told you I didn’t want to be married,” I said.“I told you I didn’t want to have children.”
“The only way the Volkov Bratva will continue to thrive is if we create the next generation.None of my Brigadiers had a choice.”Ivan took a sip of his whiskey.It didn’t even look like it burned him on the way down.“You don’t get a choice.”
“The way for the Volkov Bratva to continue is by you assuring the next generation,” I said.“You need to find a wife, have children.”
Ivan’s gaze landed on me, and it was like he was dead.There was no emotion, nothing.
“The line will fall to whoever I see fit.Harris needs to be stopped.Freya cannot die.She will make a good wife and mother, if you allow her the chance.”
“I’m not the kind of man that is a husband.”
“Well, maybe with The Butcher staying at your place, she will keep you in line.”
I choked on my whiskey.“What the fuck did you say?”
“You heard me.The Butcher is staying with you.She is Freya’s personal bodyguard until we have her name removed from The Grid.They’re coming, Victor, and when they do, there will be no stopping them.”With that, Ivan finished a second whiskey.
“If The Butcher knows who Freya is, and what that means, why do you trust her with Freya?”I asked.
“The Butcher doesn’t hold that kind of grudge.She is ...reasonable.”
I was so close to bursting out laughing, as it seemed laughable to think of The Butcher as reasonable.She was a killing machine.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“The Butcher wants to bring an end to Harris, but she also has a long-term goal.The irony is, The Beast also has a long-term goal, and it is the same.”
“What?”I asked.
“They want to remove The Grid, once and for all.”
This made me pause.
“That’s not possible,” I said.
“I think I have proven more than once that anything is possible, Victor.The Grid has too much power, and it needs to be removed.I’ve got people working on finding a weak spot, and the moment we do, it will come crashing to its knees.”
“Why do they want to remove it?”I asked.
