Bratvas vow, p.10
Bratva's Vow, page 10
He didn’t wait for me to agree. He left, the door whispering shut behind him like he’d never been there at all.
I stood there, frozen. My head spun with a hundred thoughts all at once.
How did he know about my dad? And how did that tie in with Maxim? I clenched the edge of the sink again, dizzy with confusion.
Fuck. No. This was stupid. Maxim would be furious if I went to the rooftop with Bradley. He’d lose his mind if he knew I was even entertaining the idea.
But I needed to know. For so many years, I’d been left in the dark, clueless about my father’s disappearance. I’d called hospitals and checked in with prisons. He’d disappeared off the face of the earth.
“Shit,” I whispered. I wiped my face one last time, yanked the bathroom door open, and hurried toward the elevators.
Whatever this was, I needed to know.
I needed the truth.
The second I stepped out onto the rooftop, the wind hit me. The city stretched out below me, distant and indifferent. Far below, the hum of cars and the occasional wail of a siren signaled the presence of others.
Bradley stood near the edge, staring out like he belonged in one of those moody noir movies. His hands were shoved into his pockets, his shoulders hunched.
I hovered near the door for a second, my stomach tangled in tight, uneasy knots.
What the hell was I even doing here?
Bradley could be lying. Maybe Maxim was right, and he was trying to come between us. Or maybe he really did have answers. The kind of answers that felt too big and too dangerous to ignore.
I swallowed hard and stepped forward.
“You could’ve picked somewhere less horror-movie creepy for this little chat,” I said, sounding thinner than I liked.
Bradley didn’t laugh. He didn’t even look at me. He kept his eyes on the skyline. “Rooftop’s the only place Maxim doesn’t have cameras and hidden microphones. The whole office is bugged.”
That made me stop cold.
Fuck.
That sounded… extreme.
I shoved my hands into my jacket pockets and rocked back on my heels. “All right, you’ve got ten minutes or less. If Maxim realizes I’m gone again—”
Bradley spun around, his mouth curling in disgust. “Jesus, listen to yourself, Wren. Do you even hear how pathetic you sound?”
I blinked. “What?”
“You sound like a prisoner begging to get back to your cell before the guard notices you’re gone. Do you even realize how twisted that is?”
Anger sparked. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He took a step closer, voice lowering but sharper now. “Don’t I? I tried to warn you in the beginning. I tried to be friendly, but you pulled away. Then, surprise surprise, I start getting shipped off on bullshit assignments to keep me out of the office. That’s not paranoia, Wren. That’s control. That’s him isolating you.”
I didn’t want to hear this. I really, really didn’t want to hear this.
“So what?” I shot back. “You’re risking your job to tell me all this out of the goodness of your heart?”
Bradley’s smile was humorless. “I’m not going to have this job for much longer anyway. Either Maxim will get tired of me or… someone else will make sure I disappear. That’s how it works in his world.”
His world. That made me pause.
“What are you talking about?” I asked warily.
“Wren,” Bradley said slowly. “Do you know what the Bratva is?”
I stared. “Yeah. Isn’t that like… the Russian mob or something?”
“Exactly.” He took another step toward me, and this time his voice was urgent. “And they own this fucking city. Politicians, cops, judges. They don’t just exist. They run things. And you,”—he pointed at me, jabbing the air—“you’ve been sleeping with the man at the very top.”
I opened my mouth, then shut it again.
“No,” I said finally, my voice shaking. “No. That’s insane. Maxim isn’t—he’s not—”
“Pakhan, Wren. That’s what they call the boss. The head of everything. The one whose word is law. That’s him. Your sweet, overprotective boyfriend? He’s the fucking Pakhan.” He inhaled deeply, his face getting redder with each sentence. “He came to this country with nothing and is now on top of the food chain. Do you think he got there with clean hands? He worked his way up from being a thief. How many men do you think he killed to be on top, Wren? And that’s why people are after him. Not because he’s rich. Not because of his legitimate businesses. Because a man like Maxim has made enemies to get to where he is. Enemies who would burn this city to the ground to kill him, and now you’re exactly the leverage they can use.”
I felt cold all over. My mind flashed back to the night I’d stayed late at the office. The night I’d accidentally walked in on Maxim surrounded by hard-eyed men speaking rapid Russian. The ones who’d asked if I was soft like a bitch in bed.
“No,” I whispered again, but it sounded weaker now because Bradley’s words made sense. They filled in the gaps neatly. The things I never quite understood about Maxim.
Bradley’s expression softened. “Wren… the reason he keeps you close? The reason he always has people following you? It’s not just jealousy. It’s because the second his enemies know you exist, you’re a target. You’re his biggest vulnerability. He’s putting your life in danger and not telling you the truth about it because he’s afraid you’ll leave him.”
The rooftop door banged open behind us, loud and violent.
I flinched, whirling around.
Maxim stood there, his face murderous, eyes burning hotter than I’d ever seen.
He looked at Bradley like he already had his hands wrapped around his throat.
“Do you know what happens to men who can’t keep their mouths shut?” Maxim growled, stepping forward like a storm about to unleash its wrath.
Bradley grabbed me—fingers tight like iron around my wrist and then my neck—and yanked me toward the edge so fast I stumbled.
“Don’t take another step, Maxim,” Bradley growled like a wild animal backed into a corner. “Or I swear to god I’ll pull him over with me.”
My heart shot into my throat as I felt how close we were to the edge. While there was a barrier, it was low enough for Bradley to fling both of us over.
“Bradley, what the fuck are you doing?” I gasped, panic twisting in my chest.
“Shut up, Wren.” He squeezed harder, and I winced.
Maxim’s entire body went rigid, but he stopped moving. “Let him go, Bradley. He has nothing to do with this.”
Bradley’s laugh was bitter, unhinged. “Doesn’t he? Because he’s the only way I’ll get off this rooftop alive, isn’t he?”
“I said let him go,” Maxim repeated, voice like ice cracking in winter. Deadly. Controlled. But underneath his chilling demeanor, he was unraveling. His chest rose and fell rapidly, and his fingers twitched.
This is all my fault.
“I will… if you admit it to him,” Bradley snarled. “Tell him the truth. Tell him what you are, or he falls.”
I stared at Maxim, my throat tight. My heart screamed “tell me it’s a lie.” I needed him to say it. To tell me Bradley was mistaken. That none of this was real.
But Maxim didn’t say anything.
He stared back at me… and didn’t deny it.
And that silence told me everything.
CHAPTER TWELVE
MAXIM
When I saw Wren standing in Bradley’s grip, so close to the edge of the rooftop, everything inside me went silent.
Not calm.
Not focused.
Silent in that horrifying way, like the seconds before a bomb goes off. Bradley had his hand clamped tight around Wren’s neck, his face twisted into something manic, something reckless. And Wren—Jesus—Wren looked terrified. His face was pale, eyes wide, body stiff as Bradley dragged him closer to the edge of the fucking roof.
That was all it took. Every ounce of control I’d been gripping all day snapped.
“Bradley,” I said, my voice low and sharp, but even to my own ears, it cracked with barely restrained panic. “Let. Him. Go.”
“Don’t fucking come closer,” Bradley barked back, tightening his grip. Wren flinched, his eyes cutting toward me, wide with disbelief and terror. That gutted me more than anything else in this fucked up situation. “One more step and I swear to god, I’ll take us both over.”
My throat dried. I couldn’t reach for my gun.
Couldn’t risk it.
If I missed—
If I so much as grazed Wren—
I wouldn’t survive it.
Not because Bradley would kill me.
Because I wouldn’t want to keep living if Wren wasn’t breathing.
I raised my hands, forcing my tone low and even, to negotiate with a dying man. Someone with nothing to lose. “Bradley, listen to me. You don’t want to do this. It’s not Wren who you’re after. You’ve made your point. Let him go, and we can talk.”
Bradley’s laugh was cracked and sharp as glass. “Talk? Fuck talking to me, Maxim. Tell him the truth.”
Wren looked between us, his lips parted, trembling slightly. “Tell me what?”
“Tell him why you’re really protecting him like he’s the fucking winning lottery ticket.” Bradley’s spit flew, his grip bruising Wren’s throat now. “Tell him who you really are.”
My stomach twisted violently.
Not here.
Not like this.
I needed more time to find the right words. But whether then or later, could there ever be the right words for the secret I’d been keeping from him?
Wren’s eyes locked on mine. Pleading. Shining with hurt and confusion.
“Maxim,” he whispered. “Is it true? Are you… working with the Bratva?”
Fuck.
I couldn’t lie. Not anymore. Not when his life hung in the balance.
“Yes.” The word fell from my lips like lead, heavy and inescapable. “I’m the Pakhan.”
Wren reeled like I’d slapped him.
Before he could speak, I rushed forward, words tumbling, desperate, useless. “I don’t deal with petty crime. I don’t push guns or pimp women. I’m the head of the family, Wren. It might not be the conventional blood family but that’s what we are. That’s what I built, and I’m the strategist, which is why I’ve stayed out of the public eye for anything that doesn’t have to do with my legitimate business. I’m the one who makes sure the others play by the rules. I rarely get my hands dirty.”
Bradley snorted, full of venom. “Rarely? Rarely? That’s a fucking joke.”
“Shut up, Bradley.” My voice was a razor, cutting sharp through the night. “Haven’t you done enough? I’ve overlooked your betrayal long enough because of your father.”
“You think he’s the good guy, Wren?” Bradley forged on, ignoring my words. “You think because he wears suits and makes sweet love to you that he’s somehow better than the rest of them?” He shifted slightly, forcing Wren closer to the edge. My heart dropped to my knees. “Let me tell you a little story.”
“No—” I said, but Bradley cut me off with a vicious smile.
“There was a boy. Grew up thinking the world was safe, even though his mother abandoned him. It was okay because he had a dad who loved him. Who read him bedtime stories and kissed his forehead at night. Until one day, his dad didn’t come home. Until one day, he disappeared.”
“Like my father,” Wren whispered.
“That boy bounced through foster homes, somehow always having enough to get everything he needed to make it in life. He got a scholarship. Got his degree. Got a steady job. Right here… for Morozov Holdings.”
Wren stiffened. His breath hitched audibly. I saw the wheels turning in his head as he made the connection to his story and Bradley’s. Too much of a similarity to be a coincidence.
“That boy was me,” Bradley hissed, tightening his grip on Wren’s throat so hard Wren coughed. I saw red but forced myself to stay still. A little bruise could be healed, but life once lost was gone forever. “I never stopped looking for my father. Turns out, dear old Dad worked for Maxim. Loyal to the end. When he got caught in a sting, rather than be forced to give up his Pakhan, he swallowed a bullet.”
Wren’s eyes filled. He shook his head violently. “No. No, that’s—”
“He killed himself,” Bradley growled, face twisted in rage. “Because Maxim Morozov makes them promise. No loose lips. No witnesses. If you’re caught, you end yourself. In return, he takes care of your family. That’s the deal of working with the devil.”
Wren’s voice broke apart, trembling so violently I barely heard it. “Maxim… Maxim, is this true? You knew my dad?”
Fuck.
I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t lie.
“Yes,” I said hoarsely. “Your father… he worked for me. He died on the job.”
Wren let out a choked, devastated sound. “No.” He shook his head over and over, like he could rewind the whole conversation. “No, no, no, no, no.”
I swallowed hard. Each word burned my throat like fire. “He came to work for me on his own. He knew the risks involved, and I kept my promise, dammit. I made sure you had everything. Your education. Your scholarship. Your job. I kept you safe. That was supposed to be the end of it. You weren’t supposed to know.”
Wren’s tears ran freely now, streaking down his face in rivers. His mouth twisted into something ugly and broken.
“You killed my father,” he whispered. “You killed my father… and then you fucked me like none of it mattered. How could you?”
His rage exploded. He yanked free from Bradley so violently I thought he was going to pitch himself off the roof. Instead, he lunged at me, fists flying, and I let them land.
Every punch. Every scream. Every broken sob.
I let him hit me because he deserved to.
Because I deserved it.
“I’m sorry,” I said raggedly, grabbing his arms. “Wren, I never meant for any of this to happen. When we met that first day at the coffee shop, it was pure coincidence. Then you showed up here, and I didn’t mean to get so close to you.”
“Shut up!” he screamed, collapsing to the ground and pulling his knees up to his chest. “You’re a liar! You lied to me about everything! Oh my god, I slept with you.”
Movement from the corner of my eye cut through the chaos.
Bradley. Slipping back. Trying to reach the exit.
I drew my gun in one smooth motion and leveled it at him. “Where the fuck do you think you’re going?”
Bradley froze, hands balled into fists. “What are you going to do? Shoot me in front of him? You want to confirm just how fucking evil you are? You can’t kill me. You swore to my father that in exchange for his life, you would protect mine.”
I curled my lips. All softness gone. All grief temporarily shelved behind cold, brutal necessity. He was right. I’d never hurt a family member of any of the men who worked for me. But Bradley was an exception. He couldn’t live. Not after threatening Wren’s life. Not after ruining any shot I had with Wren. His father could take it up with me in hell.
“I’m not going to kill you.” I took a slow, deliberate step forward. “You’re going to do it yourself.”
His face lost color. “Maxim—”
“You’re going to jump,” I said flatly. “Or I drag you from this roof, and you don’t want that because I’ll make it hurt worse. I’ll make it hurt for days. Weeks even. You’re done for, Bradley.”
“Maxim, stop!” Wren pleaded behind me, his voice cracking, but I didn’t take my eyes off Bradley.
“Did you fucking think for a minute that I’d let you walk away alive after you threatened him?” I gestured toward Wren, who was back on his feet, watching me, his cheeks pale, his eyes red and swollen. “Because of your father, I could overlook many things, Bradley, but not this. Wren is the one thing that I can’t compromise on. He’s the only thing that matters in this fucking world, and you threatened to take that away from me. That’s unforgivable. Now jump.”
Bradley’s lips trembled. His gaze shifted from me to Wren. “This is the monster you’ve been sleeping with. Wren, you owe me a favor for showing you what an absolute bastard he is. Please tell my husband I love him.”
“No!” Wren cried. “Maxim, stop it! Please.”
Bradley climbed onto the ledge and stepped off, disappearing into the abyss below. The thud of his body hitting the pavement didn’t come right away. But when it did… it sounded final. Sickening.
Everything inside me cracked.
Not for Bradley.
Not even for the life I’d taken.
But for Wren, who stood shaking behind me, crying like I had just broken something that could never be repaired.
Because I had.
I’d stripped him of his innocence.
And for the first time in years, I didn’t feel like the Pakhan. I felt like a monster.
“You killed him,” Wren whispered, taking a step back. For the second time since I knew him, I sensed real fear from him. “You killed him right in front of me like it was nothing.”
“I did.” I swallowed hard against the bile rising in my throat. Bradley’s death would never be a regret. But I did regret Wren having to see it unfold. Already, the commotion of voices from below reached us. “Because he threatened your life. That’s not something I can forgive.”
“So what now? You shove me off the edge too to keep me quiet?”
I scowled, his words cutting deeper than any blade could.
“Is that what you think?” The words came out low and rough, cracking under the weight of everything we were drowning in. I stalked toward him, fury and devastation blending into something sharp and ugly inside me. “That I could ever hurt you?”
Wren flinched, and my heart sank. This was worse than his fear. He didn’t trust me anymore. Not even to protect him from myself.
