“Yeah,” I answer, my breath still uneven. “Just… used.”
His mouth curves. “That’s the point.”
We pull on our clothes, both of us moving slower now, the post-adrenaline crash settling in. When I tug my shirt down, he steps in to fix the collar and smooths his thumb along the faint mark on my neck. “That one is staying.”
“Good,” I answer before thinking, and his eyes warm at the admission.
“Come on, we need food before we fall over. I can hear your stomach from here.”
We walk out together, Viktor’s hand settling at the small of my back in a way that feels familiar and safe. Nikolai and Lev are already in the kitchen when we get there, arguing over the takeout menus.
Beside the island, a man with wary eyes and a split lip scrubs the counters. He doesn't look up, but his shoulders are tight, his hands moving with frantic precision. This is Misha, the one Nikolai refers to as his property. Nikolai looms over him while reaching for a glass, a predatory light in his eyes. Misha flinches, but Nikolai doesn't grant him a glance.
“There you are.” Lev points a fork at us. “I was about to phone you. The food has arrived and Nikolai is trying to eat all the dumplings.”
Viktor grabs the bottle of vodka from the counter and lifts it to his mouth, but Nikolai swats his arm. “Use a glass, animal. We’re in a mansion, not a trench.”
I catch the way Viktor and Lev are watching the man at the island. Nikolai catches it too. He looks toward the sink and lets out a dry huff. “That’s what happens to people who steal from me. They learn that my debt is never truly square.”
“I earned the bottle.” Viktor takes another swallow anyway, leaning against the counter with a lazy grace.
Nikolai rolls his eyes but doesn’t fight it. He tilts his head toward the foyer. “Babushka sent someone down while you two were... 'unpacking.' She is pleased, and she says it is good to have the family lined up the right way again. No more fragmentation.”
Lev adds, “And she said not to bleed on her carpets tomorrow. Apparently, the wool is from some rare sheep and she doesn't want it ruined by your lack of coordination.”
Viktor huffs a laugh. “Tell her I’ll try.”
Viktor sits and pulls me down beside him on the bench, and Lev drops a takeout box in front of each of us. “Eat,” Lev says, his tone turning more serious. “We’ve got planning to do. The city doesn't sleep just because you got laid.”
The conversation shifts quickly to the south side, focusing on the shipping lanes and harbor roads where Sokolov’s crew once thought they owned us. I listen to them speak. The names and places still feel like a map of a foreign country, but it’s a country I’m starting to live in. I clear my throat. “I’m going back to work tomorrow.”
The room pauses for a beat. The clatter of forks stops. Viktor answers without looking away from his food. “Fine.”
I blink, surprised by the lack of an argument. “Fine?”
“You are not staying locked in this house forever, malysh. You are a nurse. You belong where the blood is.” He takes another bite, his tone pragmatically flat. “Sasha will pick you up in the morning and stay with you for every shift. She’ll sit in the waiting room or follow you to the cafeteria. I don’t care if it's annoying.”
I swallow the protest, knowing the look in his eye. “Okay. Sasha is… nice.”
“She’s the best shot we have,” Nikolai says. “Also nice, but mostly she’s the gun. Don’t let the smile fool you.”
Viktor’s hand settles at the back of my neck, his thumb tracing the hairline. “You want your old life back? Good. You will have it, but you get it with protection now. You are a Morozov asset now, Jonah. Act like it.”
Nikolai lifts his drink. “To the south side, and to Sasha babysitting a trouble magnet.”
Lev snorts. “And to Babushka. The woman who built the city and still scares the shit out of it.”
Viktor fills a glass finally and nudges mine with the rim. “And to us, who get to live in what she left behind.”
We drink. The vodka burns a path down my throat. But then Nikolai’s eyes slide to me, the humor fading from his face.
“There’s only one more thing. Your father’s debt. And the price he was willing to pay to make it disappear.”
My stomach tightens at the mention of Dad. Viktor puts his glass down, the sound heavy against the table. “Not to worry. I’ll handle him next.”
Lev nods. “He sold you to us. And though Viktor here is grateful, we won’t leave that standing. It’s a matter of principle.”
“I don’t want him dead,” I say softly, my voice small in the large kitchen.
“We will handle him the way you want, but he answers for what he did. Our father raised us to protect what is ours, and I’mdone letting anyone tear at what he built. He valued justice, not just revenge.”
Viktor turns fully toward me, his finger hooking under my chin to lift my face until I’m looking at him. “I will bring you justice, Jonah. Not revenge, but justice. The way my father would have wanted. You are with us now, and that means your past gets closed properly. No loose ends.”
Viktor’s hand settles at the small of my back as he looks at me. The heat of his palm seeps through my shirt. His hand stays at my back. “After that,” he says, “you stop surviving. You start living. With me.”
