Page 49 of Marked By the Mob

“Don’t,” he says quietly. “You don’t need to see this.”

“If you’re going to do it, then I’m going to watch.” I pull free from his grip, my chest tight with fury and something that might be fear.

The driver is on his knees now, his face wet with tears as he continues begging. One of the guards pulls a weapon, checking the chamber with practiced efficiency. The sound of the slide racking echoes across the courtyard.

“Please,” the driver sobs. “Please, I have children. My daughter needs me. Please.”

Rurik raises his hand. The guard aims. The shot cracks through the morning air, sharp and final.

The driver’s body slumps forward, blood spreading across the gravel beneath him. The guards move immediately, lifting the body and carrying it toward a vehicle waiting near the serviceentrance. Within seconds, the courtyard is quiet again except for the distant sound of traffic beyond the estate walls.

I can’t move. Can’t breathe. My hands are shaking, and I have to curl them into fists to hide it. I’ve seen death before. I’ve been at crime scenes, watched autopsies, and stood over bodies while collecting evidence. But this is different. This was deliberate. Controlled. An execution carried out with the same efficiency as any other business transaction.

Rurik turns to face me, his pale blue eyes steady. “Now you understand.”

“Understand what?” My voice comes out raw. “That you’re killers? I already knew that.”

“That we enforce loyalty,” he says quietly. “And betrayal has consequences.”

I explode. The fury I’ve been holding back since the moment the guards dragged that man into the courtyard finally breaks free. “He stole money! That’s not betrayal. That’s desperation. And you killed him for it.”

“He stoleinformation,” Artur corrects, moving to stand beside Rurik. His dark eyes are hard, all traces of his usual humor gone. “Shipping manifests, delivery schedules, and guard rotations. That information in the wrong hands gets people killed. Not just us. Everyone who works here. Everyone who depends on us for protection.” He pauses. “Even you. Especially you.”

“So you execute him without a trial? Without giving him a chance to explain?”

“He had a chance.” Eduard’s voice is calm but firm. “Three months ago, when he was caught the first time. He was warned.We let him keep his job. We gave him the opportunity to prove his loyalty, and he chose to betray us again.”

“He said he needed money for his daughter’s medical bills!”

“He lied.” Rurik’s tone is flat. “The medical bills aren’t even real. He was stealing to sell information to a rival organization.” He glances at Eduard and Artur. “We confirmed last night that he doesn’t have a daughter, much less one that has medical needs.”

The words hit me like a physical blow. “You knew? You knew before you brought him out here?”

“Yes.”

“Then why the performance? Why make him beg if you’d already decided to kill him?”

Rurik’s expression doesn’t change. “Because everyone who works inside this estate needs to see what happens when someone breaks the rules. Fear keeps people honest when loyalty isn’t enough.”

I want to scream. Want to tell him that fear doesn’t create loyalty, it creates resentment. That ruling through violence makes enemies, not allies. But the words stick in my throat because I know he won’t listen.

“This is exactly why organizations like yours deserve to be dismantled,” I say through clenched teeth. “You think you’re protecting people, but you’re just perpetuating the same cycle of violence that got your fathers killed.”

Artur’s jaw tightens. For a moment, I think he’s going to argue. Instead, he just shakes his head. “You don’t understand our world yet, sweetheart. But you will.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Then stop acting like you have the luxury of moral high ground.” His voice is sharp now, edged with frustration. “Theft inside our world isn’t about money. It’s about betrayal. And betrayal spreads fast if it’s not stopped immediately. One man steals today, three more try it tomorrow, and within a month we have a security breach that gets everyone killed.”

Eduard steps closer, his gray eyes serious. “The driver knew the rules before he ever accepted the job. Everyone who works here does. We don’t hide what we are or what we expect. He made his choice.”

“And you made yours,” I snap back. “You chose to kill him instead of finding another way.”

“There is no other way,” Rurik says quietly. “Not in this life.”

The tension between us is thick enough to cut. I want to keep fighting, want to make them see how wrong this is. But I can feel the futility of it settling over me like a weight. They’re not going to change. This is who they are. This is the world they’ve built.

And I’m trapped in the middle of it.