It wasn’t a question, more of an incorrect statement, so I don’t answer him with a yes or a no. I want to first find out how he feels about it.
The waiter comes over, and I order a soda. Artur waves his hand, he’s happy with his black coffee.
When the waiter leaves, Artur stares at me. He’s waiting for me to say something, to explain myself in some way. Fine. I don’t mind taking the lead in a meeting.
“Artur, your sister is a bold, powerful, magnificent woman. She knows what she wants, and if you give her a chance to speak to you from her heart, you might like what she has to offer, for you and for your family. You’re new here, finding your footing, and still learning the ins and outs and how it all works. She has connections in this city that have value to you if you use them.” I’m hoping Katerina was right, that Artur will come around, or maybe he already has, and we can discuss an alliance between our families. My goal is not to discuss marriages, but to discuss possible business relations between us. Something that will make Katerina’s life easier.
Artur snorts loudly. Bitter laughter spills from him that makes me clench my jaw. I came here hoping for a positiveconversation, but already, within the first few minutes, I can see he hasn’t changed his mind at all.
Katerina’s hope for her brother might have been naive.
“Yulian Andreev, you are interfering with my family business, and I suggest you back off. My sister is locked into an arrangement with another family, another man, who will form an alliance with us in exchange for her hand in marriage. This marriage is going to protect the Kroliks from the likes of you. From the Andreevs.”
He spits his words at me, his eyes dark and angry.
“Artur, you don’t need protection from us if you listen to what I’m proposing. My offer will keep your family safe, and your sister won’t be thrown into some marriage she’s dreading. You won’t be snuffing out her spirit and her creativity by forcing her to do something she doesn’t want to do. What I’m offering will benefit both of you,” I argue, my patience slipping.
“Do you think I haven’t heard all of the stories about you, Yulian? How you and your family trick people into a false sense of security. You lie about alliances and then stab people in the back. You lure people into your lives, and the moment they are confident around you, you cut them down. You act with cruelty and vengeance and malice, and I won’t have any of thatanywhere near my sister.” He has his fists clenched on top of the table. I let my eyes drift over him. The squared-off frame of his shoulders. The rigidity of his spine. His jaw set firmly, his eyes dark and piercing.
With all hope lost, I shake my head. “You’re so wrong about us, but you won’t even consider this. You won’t consider that maybe your uncle fed you bad information. You are making a mistake, Artur, and it’s not going to end well for you unlessyou can take off the blindfold your uncle tied so tightly over your eyes.”
I stare at him, thinking about how Katerina looked, how she was shaking when I found her outside her brother’s house. How she told me about the arranged marriage, about her fears of being used. Being a tool. She doesn’t deserve it. But even as I think about her, I can see it in her brother’s eyes. He’s brainwashed. Whatever Boris Krolik has been feeding him all these years, it’s buried deep inside his brain, and this one, single conversation isn’t going to be enough to break him free from those lies.
Dammit.
Coming here without backup is suddenly not looking like the best idea. I should at least have told someone where I was.
“You started this war, Yulian. Don’t play innocent with me like I don’t know the truth about what your family did to mine.”
“The only version of the truth you know is the one your uncle told you. It doesn’t mean it’s the right one,” I counter.
He snorts. “Sure, and I imagine yourtruthinvolves you being the good guys?”
“No one gets to be the good guys in this world, Artur. We are Bratva. But there are people who are better than others. People who operate within a moral code, with respect, with a level head.” I watch Artur while I try to reason with him. It’s not difficult to see his hand gestures. A signal of sorts to someone outside, perhaps. He must think I’m a fool if he believes he can set a trap for me.
I was in this city long before he came.
I watch the reflections in the glass behind him.
“Yulian, you can say whatever you want to say. The words flowing from your lying mouth might sound pretty, but I don’t believe any of it.” Artur is starting to look smug. In the reflection of the glass, I see three men in suits walk in behind me. They walk past us, towards the coffee counter, but their eyes are on us. His backup, I presume.
Standing, I take my cue.
“Well, seeing as this conversation is getting nowhere, and you are not open to a reasonable discussion, I believe the meeting is over,” I say, the disappointment in my voice clear. “And for the record…I did not marry your sister. I was hoping we could come to a diplomatic agreement regarding that, but I see you are not a man I can reason with.”
Artur stands as well, pressing his hands against the table and leaning forward, his eyes menacing as he speaks to me. “So, you lied. Know this, Andreev, you had better watch your back. I’m not like other people. I don’t stand back and let anyone walk all over me for any reason. I don’t care who you’ve tricked into trusting you. I will come after you. Watch out.”
“I didn’t lie. I never told you I married her. I just didn’t correct your assumptions.”
I clench my jaw, biting back the other comments I want to make. There’s no point, and the men ordering coffee have slipped their hands beneath their jackets, ready for my reaction. Artur says nothing more, just glaring at me.
I smile, nod once, then turn away and leave the coffee shop. Not walking fast. Keeping a steady pace and an alertness about me.
Surely Artur is not stupid enough to come after me when he’s the one who invited me here for what was supposedto be a diplomatic conversation. But then again, he has been brainwashed by Boris.
Even in his death, Boris Krolik is still a thorn in my side.
Driving home, my head is full of all the directions this could take. Artur’s warning was clear. And while I don’t give a shit about him coming after me—he honestly doesn’t stand a chance against my family and our established position in this city—I do care about how all of this will affect Katerina.
