I have a man on the inside who is loyal to me and not my father. It's a high risk to contact him; the cost being his life if he’s discovered. That's why I’ve refrained from contacting him until now.
Pulling out my burner, I dial from memory. The other end picks up in two rings.
“Yeah? Who's this?”
“Sabir, it’s Aleksey. I heard my mother may be missing. Can you tell me anything?”
Sabir is one of my father’s closest soldiers, but he declared his loyalty to me years ago. He hates the way my father runs things. He knows I’m striving to make things better. He's been counting down the minutes to hear from me. He knows when I do, it means I’m closer to taking my bastard father out.
He hums a moment, then says, “She is here, but locked inside her room. She's not allowed to come out for any reason. She always has at least two guards on her door.”
“Why? What the hell is going on? Is she alright?” I gnaw my lower lip.
“She seems fine enough, though she is heavily medicated. The doctor makes regular visits.”
Fuck. Why are our mothers being silenced?
“Where is my father now?”
“Out meeting with distributors, I believe. Aleksey, I say this as your friend. Do not come back here. I'm afraid your father will have you killed. He's beyond angry that you disappeared.”
Shit.
“Do you know anything about these supposed arranged marriages?”
I’m only bothering to ask this to have answers for me and the rest of the Six. It's not like we are going to comply, anyway.
He clucks his tongue. “I haven’t heard anything about that. Sorry, Aleksey.”
“It’s alright. Thanks, Sabir. Please be careful.”
Hanging up, I pause, knowing if I do what I’m thinking, it could end very badly. Fuck it.
I dial my father’s number.
He answers on the first ring. “Who is this?”
“Your son,” I say bitterly. “I just want to know if you’re planning to marry me off.”
My father starts cursing in Russian. “You little piska. How dare you disappear, and call me demanding answers to anything? You better come home immediately.”
I ignore him. “You didn’t answer my question.”
“Yes. You will be marrying a lovely Russian woman. You’re very lucky this deal was just struck recently. She is royalty among the families. You need to spend time with her. This is not negotiable. Get back here, or the consequences will be irreversible.”
I give a hollow laugh and disconnect the call. Then I jiggle open the SIM card drawer, remove the card, and snap it in half.
Fisting the useless phone, I head to Jax’s office for a new one.
I don’t get far before I’m accosted by Harris and his sister, Cynthia.
“What’s wrong?” he inquires.
“My mother is drugged and locked inside a guarded room. And my fucking father is marrying me off to some Russian woman.”
Harris pauses before speaking, eyeing me sharply. “Who did you talk to?”
“A loyal confidant, and... my father.”
