Chapter Fifteen: Rurik
The kind, terrified lady dropped me off at the bar, driving away from me as fast as she possibly could, while I managed to pickpocket someone’s phone, choosing an older model because it was more likely to not have a passcode on it. I managed to make a few calls ringing Kir’s phone even though I was sure he didn’t have it anymore. I knew that the only way I was going to get in touch with him again if he was truly alive would be to meet up at a place we’d both first think of in the midst of something like this. My mind immediately went back to the abandoned clothing factory, the place that he’d brought me to in order to schedule his meeting with the men who all stood by me, but most of them were dead now. I was right back to where I started, but this time it was far worse because Luka had Marianna, and I could only imagine what he was going to make her do.
I wanted nothing more than to get to her, to rescue her from his grasp, keeping her away from such a vile man who wanted nothing more than to fulfill his own twisted fantasies. I needed to get to her before Luka asked her to take another life in the gruesome ways he’s asked us all to do it, because I could imagine that something like that would make Marianna want to shy away from this lifestyle forever, and that would be all he needed to see that she wasn’t cut out to continue on truly becoming an Andreyev. I drove down to the abandoned clothing factory in an old rickety car with the keys I swiped off of a young man that had far too many to drink, and it was probably best he didn’t drive anyway. I gulped, feeling my stomach turn at the thought of what I was again to do if I made it back to there only to find that Kir wasn’t present, that I was going to have to try to storm the Andreyev Family mansion on my own with nothing to my name, and I knew that I wouldn’t get very far.Please tell me that you’re still alive, Kir. I need to know that they didn’t hurt you, that Marianna’s word was as good as keeping you safe even if it’s just for a little while longer.
I pulled up, immediately getting out of the driver’s seat while I ventured off through the gates, starting to call out his name, hoping that he was going to answer me, but I didn’t get a response. I kept trying, opening up the doors, as I headed inside, hoping that he would be there, but when I reached for the light switch, I saw the most horrific scene before me. I looked up to see that Kir had been hanging from the lighting fixture overhead, and there was no telling how long he’d been there for. He was completely lifeless, his skin a pale blue hue as I rushed up to cut him down. I couldn’t believe that this was happening, that Luka returned Kir to the one place that we both knew to come to, only to kill him. I was distraught, wondering how everything could’ve been taken away from me so quickly, and it was then I realized the lengths that Luka was going to go to in order to get what he wanted. I no longer had the upper hand, I no longer had any say in how things were going to play out, and I had no choice but to figure out a way to get the help I needed without compromising any more of my friends.
I held Kir’s lifeless body in my arms, so upset that this happened to him, even though he had been the one to warn me about trying to take out each and every one of Luka’s spies. I’d been impulsive, the same kind of behavior I told Marianna that she couldn’t have if she wanted to see her friend again, and now she was in Luka’s company, being held hostage for some other reason that I still wasn’t aware of. The sheer thought of what she must be going through right now was tearing me apart, and I was filled with the kind of vengeance that I’d never felt before, realizing that I stepped foot into a war that I wasn’t even remotely prepared to deal with, relying on Kir’s help to get me what I needed to take Luka down.
Now, it seemed that Luka had everything he could ever want, and his plan had fallen into place perfectly, as though he’d been waiting for the right moment to strike for a very long time. I wasn’t going to let him get away with this, and I was prepared to do just about anything to make sure that I would get the chance to rescue Marianna, to keep her from going off the deep end, and delving headfirst into a world she’d have no idea how to navigate. I used to think that I was going to be okay, that I was cut out for that sort of thing when I first realized that I would be spending the rest of my days working under Luka, but the more men I killed, the more dangerous things I did solely for his praise, the more I began to see just how much of a toll it took on me, and I didn’t want Marianna to suffer that same fate. She deserved better, she deserved to have everything she could ever want in life, and I knew that the only way I’d be able to give that to her would be for me to finally swallow my pride and reach out to the people I was hoping I’d never have to face again until I was better equipped to have the necessary conversations.
I hadn’t spoken to any of my brothers in a really long time, and I had no idea if any of them were still living in their mansions, taking care of their businesses, just trying to live out a seemingly normal life. My mind went right back to Viktor, reminding myself that he was always the one that was there for me the most, and he had stuck around to make sure that I learned everything I needed to know in order to survive out there in the real world. I always kept myself from facing him because I could’ve only imagined how terribly disappointed he would’ve been in me once he learned that I had borrowed money from Luka Andreyev, and that I had no choice but to give up everything to play by his rules, but now I had no choice.
I had to reach out, hope that he would even want to see me after not having checked in for so long, but Marianna was in danger, and it wasn’t just her life I was worried about, it was what he must’ve been planning on doing to her mind, swaying her to mesh with everyone else that had shown him blind loyalty, forgetting the fact that he did terrible things on a daily basis in order to get what he wanted. He didn’t care about any of them, but he had a great way of pretending like he would drop everything to save them in a crisis, making them trust him without fail as time went on. That was exactly the kind of thing I faced when I started to get comfortable around him, and my wishful thinking was cut short the minute I had requested him to give me my freedom back, so I could start building a life for my own after I was sure that I had paid my dues, but he refused me. He told me that I was to work under him for the rest of my life, that I owed him for all the trouble I caused by not taking time to consider the terms of our agreement before I accepted the money from him in the first place. I wished I would’ve been smarter back then, because I knew I wouldn’t have been in this position now, having to drag my friend’s dead body out of an abandoned warehouse, holding him while I had the chance to prepare a proper funeral for him when this was all over.
Even Kir deserved better and he knew the stakes. He was well aware of what he was getting into, of the people he was going to have to hurt to get ahead, and that’s why he became so good at his job. There was absolutely no denying that he shouldn’t have been the one to pay for my mistakes, and Luka should’ve taken me instead, but he had to honor Marianna’s terms, or at least some of them to sway her to come with him willingly, and his plan had worked. When he was done, and he had her right where he wanted her, he didn’t even think twice about killing Kir, about placing in a spot that he’d know I’d find him, and that alone made me incredibly sick.
I felt sicker than I had when I was carrying out Luka’s orders, tearing his enemies to shreds, even bringing some of them back with me so he could enjoy the fact that they’d never be able to double-cross him again. I always wondered how one man could do so much damage, and how he managed to maintain such a high level of power, when his world seemed to collapse around him any chance it got. He seemed to keep things afloat just long enough to secure his next recruit, reel someone in so that they could carry on where the last person left off, and I was afraid that Marianna was going to be that for me. It was no secret that Luka saw potential in her, that he may have never wanted a daughter in the past, but now that he saw just how much he could gain from having one, there was no denying that she was going to be useful to him.
I worried about her safety, about all the false information he must be feeding her in order to get her to trust him. That alone made my stomach turn, but I had to hold out hope that she was going to remain strong enough to keep pushing, to not let him stand in her way, while she tried to figure out how to hold on just a little longer until I figured out a way to get to her. I had to swallow my pride, rescue the girl that had single-handedly showed me a better life, so I could do the very same for her. I dialed Viktor’s last known cell phone number on the stranger’s phone I swiped from the bar, listening to it ring, knowing that there was the chance that he’d never pick up. He could’ve screened the call after not recognizing the number, and I would’ve had no other way of contacting him, or anyone that could help me, but it was time I stopped letting my pride get in the way of what needed to be done, of the people that needed to pay the consequences for all the chaos they’d caused. I wanted to hear his voice again, remind me that I was still a Volkov, and I had the potential to make things matter again. I wanted him to tell me that everything was going to be okay, and I truly never needed to hear anything more in my entire life.
“Hello?”
We shared a few choice words,and I could hear the shock in his voice when he finally realized who he was speaking to. It was like he’d hadn’t truly thought about me in a very long time, but to hear my voice again made everything come flooding back like it was yesterday. I didn’t divulge the secrets of my past on the phone, because I was so afraid that he was going to shut me out, but I asked him to meet, because this was the kind of thing that I needed him to see for himself. I was shaking, unable to drive anywhere knowing that I had to look over to see Kir’s dead body, and remind myself that everything was slowly being taken away from me. I’d given Viktor the location of the abandoned clothing factory, and he’d seemed to recognize it, as though it was a place that he’d used many times before, as he got to me much faster than I thought he would. When the doors finally opened and I saw him standing there, looking like the older brother I remembered, I knew that too much time had passed.
There was no time for pleasantries, and the fact that he even agreed to help me, made me feel quite guilty that I hadn’t reached out before. I let my ego and pride overshadow the fact that above all else, we were family, and it was time we remembered how to act like one. He stared at Kir’s dead body in my arms, and I could see the hurt in his eyes, as though this was not the kind of thing he was expecting to deal with. Nothing could prepare any of us for losing someone we cared about, and it never seemed to get any easier the more times we seemed to go through it.
“I need you to tell me everything, Rurik. Start from the very beginning, because I have a feeling that this story is only going to get uglier,” said Viktor, and he read the room perfectly, because when I began telling him everything that I’d been dealing with for the last few years of my life, he truly couldn’t believe it. I knew that he was going to get angry with me for not reaching out sooner, but he didn’t seem to show it. He looked at me with such care and kindness, that I forgot how nice it was to have him around. I had to admit to needing his help, accept it if he was willing to give it to me, because it was going to be the only way I’d ever see Marianna again, and there was nothing I wanted more than to save her from a life of utter turmoil, having to question everything she’s come to know about herself.
She was going to feel conflicted, and I wouldn’t blame her, because I was in that very same position just a few years back, accepting the terms without reading the fine print, and I paid for it every day afterwards. I wasn’t going to let her go through that, and I knew that it was going to be quite the fight to get her back if Luka succeeded, but I just had to make sure he didn’t get the chance to poison her mind. He was a powerful man, but he also had a powerful daughter who was truly nothing like him, and that was the only thing I could truly count on in all of this.
He looked at me like he couldn’t process all that I was telling him, but there I was begging for him to help me even though I was well aware that I didn’t deserve it. He’d done everything in his power to teach me everything I needed to know to succeed, and I threw it all away because of my greed, because I didn’t know how to become my own person without the Volkov name following me around, but now it was the only thing I could count on. He rested his hand on my shoulder, looking deep into my eyes, and I knew he could see the pain that was hiding behind them. I’d heard the rumors about what my brothers had been through in the past, and where Viktor was concerned, I’d seen it for myself, so there was no doubt in my mind that he didn’t understand exactly what I was feeling.
“You should’ve come to me earlier, Rurik. I would’ve helped you, we would’ve given you anything you needed. I never thought that you of all people felt that way, because you were always the first one to help any of us when we were in a crisis, and then one day you just disappeared never to be heard from again. I remember the note you left telling us that you needed to find yourself, that you needed to experience things on your own before you could settle into what being a Volkov truly entailed, but I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to sacrifice that part of yourself anymore. You deserve happiness just as much as the rest of us do, and it’s not too late to right the wrongs, and make sure you get the girl back. She seems like quite the character, and it seems that all of us Volkov men get wrapped up into very difficult situations with our women, but we always come out on the other side, and you’re going to be no different. I’ll help in any way that I can, I just need you to promise me that you’re not going to shut me or anyone else from this family out, okay? We’re here to help you,” said Viktor, and it felt so good to have him here, to have him help me now that I was truly about to lose it all.
“I promise, Viktor. Thank you.”
Viktor helped me with Kir’s body, as I got into his car, allowing him to take the wheel because I truly couldn’t imagine getting behind it myself. My mind was running wild with all kinds of thoughts and worries about what was going to happen now, and what I’d be walking into once we decided it was time to band together, getting our men ready, so that we could storm the front gates to the Andreyev Mansion and make sure that they all faced the same torture that they put us through for days on end, taking the best parts of our lives away, making us suffer to the point where we couldn’t take it anymore, only to reel us back in to do it all over again.
I owed it to Marianna to save her from that kind of life, to get her back before she’s sucked into the allure of it all, so she could remember who she is and what she wanted out of life. There was truly nothing more important than making sure she had everything she needed to move on from all of this, because I could understand the trauma that would come from having to pretend to be someone that she wasn’t. I wondered how long she was going to be able to keep it up for before it swallowed her whole. I could only hope that once I managed to see her again, that I would be meeting with the very same girl that I’d come to care about, the very one that had changed my life from the moment she walked into it, and the one that I was falling for.Hold on just a little longer, Marianna. I’ll be there before things get worse, before you lose yourself in all of this. I’m going to make sure that your biological parents suffer the same pain they put you through, before we can all finally manage to walk away from this. That is all I want, because you and I still have so much of our lives left to explore, and I’m not giving up on that. I’m not giving up on us.
