The Bratva’s Bounty (Volkov Bratva #3)

23. Nicole

Chapter 23

Nicole

Slowly, I leaned over to Angel, who sat next to me on the couch. "Uhh, is this Igor guy really that much of a douchebag?" I whispered while keeping my eyes trained on Lev and his brothers as they prattled off in Russian.

Maintaining a calm demeanor, Angel nodded softly. "Besides the fact he tried to assault me in Nikolai's club, he's the oldest son of Ivan Petrov, one of the major conspirators who worked with Lady Qing to try and overthrow the Volkovs." Sipping at her water, she kept a steady eye on the group of Volkov men. "When we took down Lady Qing, Ivan and his sons disappeared with the wind, and we've been trying to locate them ever since because it's only a matter of time before they dig their roots somewhere and cause a huge problem for us."

Angel proceeded to explain the whole situation that the Volkovs had with the Petrovs, how the Petrovs tried to pull one over on the Volkovs and tried to get in their good graces when shit went belly-side up. Petrov's only daughter currently remained locked up in The Catacombs, but Ivan and his two sons, Igor and Nikita, were still running amok under everyone's noses.

Nikolai and his brothers didn't want Ivan to settle his business again and rise to power, given how twisted of a man he was under his old and charming smile. Also, they wanted to take care of him before he could strike them hard.

Word on the streets was that Ivan had a grudge against the Volkov Bratva for rejecting him and not sticking to the 'older' ways of the Bratva life. Something about how the whole situation was equivalent to the Volkovs spitting in his face from what some of their informants have told them.

Angel couldn't fully understand what the brothers were going on about because she couldn't keep up with their pace, but she got enough to surmise that they were frustrated about the new information.

" Blyat' !" Lev exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air with an angry growl. Stepping right up to Nikolai, Lev jabbed his finger into his brother's chest with his firm words. "Kolya, I know you want to maintain this stupid, unstable peace we have, but it's obvious that some of our supposed allies are starting to doubt us and push their luck."

Lev's chest heaved deeply with every flare of his nostril as his heavy breaths came and went. "We need to act. We need to show everyone that we mean business and that how we are running things will be the new normal." His raised voice died down to a low but calculated one as he continued, "We have too many new acquisitions and 'allies' who don't respect us because they don't see reason to, and it's about damn time we demonstrate to them why we are the ones in charge and why we should be feared and respected."

Easing back, Lev slowly took a few steps backward. "I know you don't like to do things that way, bratok , but sometimes a stern reminder is needed." Hooking his hands onto his hips, he gave his brother a hard and stubborn look. "If we don't, people are going to end up teaming with the likes of Igor and shit. Then, things will really get messy." Breathing deeply, he kept firm. "You let a rat fester enough, and it'll come back with an army for an infestation of biblical proportions. It'll be way too fucking late for us to do anything at that point besides surrender everything and flee."

"I don't know about you, but we have put too much of our blood, sweat, tears, and souls into all of this to just give it up because we wanted to keep the peace. There will be no peace if we let trouble stir and storm, which is exactly what you are doing with wanting to play it safe." Lev 's jaw ticked and tensed with a scowl. "You can try to be diplomatic about it all, take the long and tedious route. But I won't."

Okay, I did not like the sound of that one bit.

Shooting up from the couch, I closed the distance between Lev and me with a few big strides. My hand shot out, grabbing his forearm. " ??i ca , I think you need to take a step back and think about things after you've simmered," I suggested strongly in a very stern voice. "Starting a war over this stupid Igor person won't be a good idea for anyone." Given Lev's track record and from what I've heard from many others, nothing good would come from Lev going headfirst into things to prove a point. Yes, it would get the point across, but I fear it might do more harm than good in the end.

When his eyes landed on me, I could see his shoulders relax slightly. "I am not going to sit around and wait for them to harm you." His voice wavered with worry as he looked at me with sad eyes. "I won't wait around and risk losing you."

I did my best to reassure him with a smile, but I couldn't muster up the strength to give it to him fully. "I'll be fine. It's not like they can get me with you around or while I'm here." I wanted to sound confident, but the pressure gripping at my chest shook my words.

Which was strange because I was completely safe here at the estate. I was also safe outside of it because I had Lev literally at my back. There's no way anything bad could happen to me anywhere… Right?

Something in his eyes snipped at the safety blanket I'd wrapped myself in. It was as if he wanted to assure me otherwise, but deep down, he knew otherwise.

With a longing look of doubt, Lev sighed heavily as his head swung back and forth. "No, you're not ever truly safe." His eyes flickered over my shoulder to Angel. "They almost succeeded in kidnapping both Angel and Kolya while they were out together in public." Then, his eyes darted over to his brother, Stepan. "Hanna's family managed to kidnap her while she was with Stepan."

Okay, he had some fair points, and I couldn't argue with him there. If something managed to happen to those before us, then his doubt and wariness for my safety were more than valid. I mean, Angel and Nikolai were the head honchos, yet someone was gutsy enough to pull such a stunt. I couldn't say much about Stepan and Hanna, but I would've thought their reputation would be enough to keep people cautious and at bay.

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I pulled myself closer to Lev. "Then we'll figure out some other plan that doesn't result in you going out there and starting a violent blood bath." As much as I loved chaos, there had to be a good point and end to it.

"Is it wrong that I somewhat agree with Lev? Kind of?" Angel pipped up, making all of us look at her with wide eyes and aghast expressions. "Okay," Angel backed track, holding her hands out, "I agree to an extent, I should say. I mean, as much as I want to keep the peace, it's evident that some aren't too happy with the changes to the Volkov Bratva. Yes, they may still be in line with us, but I can still see the apprehension in their eyes." Taking a deep breath, she slowly let it out. "We do need to reassert our dominance with everyone, really give them a demonstration as to why they shouldn't even think about trying their hand with us."

Sighing heavily, Nikolai rubbed his temples. " Lisichka , if you want to torture someone, we have a whole dungeon full of people in the desert." Nikolai groaned, almost seemingly in pain. "We are not going to be shooting or beating people up, nor are we going to be trashing businesses just to make a fucking point when there are better ways to do so."

"I said I agreed with Lev, not his methods," Angel retorted with a roll of her eyes.

Honestly, the more I weighed things in my head, the more I leaned toward Lev and Angel. It'd take way too much time and effort to sit down with people and talk with them; actually, it'd be a big waste of time, in my opinion. "Why don't you just figure out who's iffy with you all or is thinking about other things, gather them, and just give them a real good scare or two… That might or might not send them into a heart attack." Maybe a few deaths gotta be enough of a shock to others. Besides, not like the people dying were innocent, so personally, I wouldn't lose any sleep over any of it.

"Actually…" One of the twins spoke up. Don't ask me which because I sure as hell didn't know how to tell them apart one bit.

To be fair, I haven't had much exposure to the twins. Sure, I've looked them up online, and if Alexei was in his scrubs or white coat, then I could tell him apart from his more charming half. Otherwise, it was a good fifty-fifty shot at who was who.

"Fucking hell, not you, too, Alexei," Nikolai grumbled under his breath while glowering at his younger brother.

Throwing his hands up in defeat, Alexei shrugged with a flat smile. "I don't see the problem with Nicole's little idea. It'll help us clean up some trash before it starts to rot, and it'll be a grand example for our doubters."

The soft sounds of feet dragging across the floor turned our attention to Stepan and Arseny as they slowly shifted more toward Lev's side. "You fucking traitors," Nikolai bit out harshly but almost playfully at the same time. "You know what?" His full attention was locked on Lev. "Since you came up with the brilliant idea, you handle its planning and execution."

"Fine." Lev took on the challenge with a puffed chest. "Just don't get pissy when my idea actually pans out well."