“Fucking bastard,” he hisses. “You’re going to stand there and talk about people taking things from you. Let me enlighten you, motherfucker. Your father took away our livelihood, and with that the woman I loved.”
“You have a strange way of treating those you supposedly love.”
“Fucking shut up. Gabriella was supposed to be mine. Jeshero promised her to me long before she met you. We had a business alliance that would benefit us both. But when your father ended business with us it all fell apart for all of us.” He pauses for a moment, moving closer to the balcony rail and tightening his grip on Aleksei. I continue to aim, looking straight at Jude to see if I can get an opening to take a shot, but there’s none.
“I lost out on a million dollar contract with the Syndicate. They pulled the deal just on your father’s word because he didn’t like the way we did business. Jeshero wasn’t allowed to hold his end of the deal because your father knew you loved Gabriella,” he adds with disgust.
“I’m sure my father had his reasons for cutting you lose like the dog you are.”
“I don’t care if you think I’m a fucking dog. I ended up with better opportunities when I started working for the Order, and I grew from strength to strength. Your father was a dictating asshole who kept people under his thumb. That’s why Jeshero helped us. He knew he couldn’t get further in the Bratva because those roles would always be filled by the Romanov men. So when your father told him, his trusted friend, what you did, believing he was protecting you, Jeshero used the knowledge of your mistakes to our advantage. He knew I was part of the Order and when I did well, he’d do well. He was always better off with me.”
I was right. What I thought happened is exactly what happened. Now all the pieces of the puzzle are fitting together to form the picture of what happened.
“You talk like you won. Gabriella died that night not me.”
He laughs and it infuriates me. “My heart is full for her, but I still got to be a leader in the Order. You no longer mattered to me because Gabriella was dead and you to destroyed yourself in grief. I kept Jeshero and provided him protection because he was asset to the Order, and an asset to me.”
“Until you killed him,” I point out. Even from here I can see how shocked he looks at my knowledge of that.
“Looks like know all.”
“I know enough.”
“I killed him because of his love for your son. It stood in my way, and I won’t risk Eric Markov for a foolish old man who is no longer useful to me. Just like your father he opened doors for me.”
“Why the fuck didn’t you just give me back my son?” I bellow.
“It would have been too suspect to hand over the boy. Then you would have known who was responsible for Gabriella’s death. Jeshero also wanted to keep the boy because he was the last piece of his daughter.”
“The daughter he killed.”
“The woman you killed.” He correct me and the sting of guilt bites me. “This is still on you Aiden Romanov. Your greed got you here. You were going to be punished the moment Igor found out you were responsible for losing him so much money. I merely saw an opportunity and took it. The same way I did when I met the Markovs. Eric Markov has been a major asset to the Order for the last five years, and even before that when I recruited him. I was rewarded handsomely. I own him and I’m not about to allow anybody to mess with my plans.”
“He won’t give you your son back,” Eric mutters in my ear.
“I know,” I answer back, under my breath. “I need something to get him away from Aleksei.”
“I have an idea, be ready to move when it happens.”
I fucking hope it works. The conversation has run out and I got nothing else up my sleeves.
“I need your answer Aiden,” Jude calls out but I keep quiet and chance a glance at my son.
His eyes, like Gabriella’s plead with me to save him, and he feels like my redemption if I can get to him.
Once again I’m near but so far away, and now more than ever I have to focus because this is my chance to be his father.
It’s my one shot. Whatever happens after this will be defined by what I do now.
So I have to be ready for whatever Eric does to help me.
“Now,” Eric blurts and suddenly a loud explosions rocks the room. it comes from beneath us and fire lifts past me in one big whoosh.
I don’t pay attention to it. through the flames I see my opening when the sound makes Jude jump and I fire a shot that gets him in his chest.
He drops the gun and releases Aleksei.
“Aleksei run!” I call out and he does. right down the path they’d been pursuing before.