Page 45 of Dark Bratva Christmas
“Every debt you two have owed one another has been paid in blood tenfold,” Matysh says, looking between them both with a stern look in his eyes. “We won't talk about this anymore at this table.My vse dostatochno poteryali(We've all lost enough).My vse dostatochno pozhertvovali(We've all sacrificed enough). Eat dinner and be merry.”
The words seem to fall flat.
Matysh's eyes hit me again, and I feel a pang of sorrow in my chest.I'mhis sacrifice. It isn't news to me, but hearing it from his lips like that creates a dull ache I can't ignore.
Dimitri grits his teeth and turns his eyes away from my father. Dinner resumes moments later and we all sit in uncomfortable silence as the next course is brought out. This one is a whole baked sturgeon with fresh lemon. It smells delicious and Matysh stands up to slice each of us a portion.
How nice.
The only noise comes from our thanks to Matysh for serving us. It's strange, uncomfortable. Everybody just eats the food and, after a few minutes of not talking, I kick Matysh under the table. He glares at me.
I raise my eyebrows to silently ask him if it's time for our announcement, and he clears his throat, commanding attention from everyone sitting around us.
“We wanted all of you here today because we have something to say,” Matysh begins. He gestures to me.
“I'm pregnant,” I say, flashing all of them a soft smile. I couldn’t have said it fast enough.
I just needed the silence to end.
The first acknowledgment I see is from Polina because she smiles and jumps to her feet, walking around the table to wrapme in her arms. “I’m so happy for you two. That iswonderfulnews.”
“That’s great,” my father says, smiling and then looking at Matysh. I can’t interpret the expression or the silent conversation going on between them…
But there’s something.
And as for Dimitri? He doesn't react at all. His face is a hard, uncracked shell.
While everyone else is practically shaking with excitement, Dimitri stands up and looks at Matysh. “Can I speak with you in your office?”
Silence falls over the room once again as Matysh leaves with his father. A pit forms in my stomach, wondering what they're talking about. And if it involves me.
“Ababy,” my father says as if in wonder as he leans back in his chair, taking a long swig of his drink. “So it begins,our families being tied together by blood. How wonderful.”
I listen to Polina making small talk with my dad about them both being grandparents. I look between my food and the door, waiting for Matysh and Dimitri to come back at any moment.
Maybe he doesn’t want us to have the baby.
And when they don't come back after about five minutes, I excuse myself to go to the bathroom. I need to know what’s going on.
Despite what Matysh thinks, anything that has to do with the familydoesinvolve me.
Standing in the hallway outside of Matysh's office, I see a shadow moving under the door as someone paces back and forth. In Dimitri’s condition, I don’t imagine it's him. That means Matysh must be frustrated enough about something that he's pacing back and forth.
I quietly inch closer to try to hear what they're saying. Both of them are speaking in purposefully hushed voices, so it's hard to decipher. I have to press my ear to the door to make out any words.
“…do this to your brother!” Dimitri says on the other end. Even only catching the tail end of the sentence I know what this is about.
“How dare you bring him up right now!” Matysh replies, his voice seething with anger. “You know why I had to do this. I didn't do this because I wanted to betray my own blood.Ya sdelal eto dlya sem'i(I did this for the family).”
“What you've done is doom us,” Dimitri snaps back. I hear a hand slapping against the desk but I don't know whose it is. “You cannot trust that man. You should have come to me before goingthrough with this. I let them marry for love. You might be the Pahkan but you've undermined years of my—”
“You're not in control anymore,” Matysh interrupts, his voice sharp. “You can barely stand on your own.Mamahas to help you piss, and I was supposed to come toyou?”
A stunned silence follows. I can almost hear Dimitri’s slow, angered breathing through the door.
“You forget who built this empire,” Dimitri whispers, barely audible to me.
“I haven’t forgotten,otets(Father). But you built it with blood. I’ll rule it with power. There’s a difference.” Matysh's response is cold, calculated. And it sends a shiver down my spine.
