Page 1 of Bratva Prince
Chapter One
The door to Alexei’soffice swung shut behind Dmitri with a muted click.The room smelled faintly of cigar smoke and expensive whiskey.Rain tapped softly against the tall windows overlooking the estate’s garden.
Alexei stood beside the bar cart instead of behind his desk, one hand braced against the crystal decanter as he poured himself another drink.Even though their father, the old Pakhan, had died years ago, Dimitri sometimes caught traces of the old man lingering in the room.
Every time he entered this office, Dimitri was reminded of expectation, the weight of the Volkov name pressing against a man’s throat until he either carried it or choked on it.
Alexei glanced over his shoulder.“You’re late.”
“Three minutes,” Dimitri pointed out.
“In this family, that counts.”
Dmitri ignored the remark and crossed toward the desk, loosening the cuff of his black coat.Outside the office walls, the mansion remained unnaturally quiet.
Their home had never been warm, even before their father died.It was too large, too cold, too full of armed men who constantly patrolled the hallways.
Alexei slid a glass toward him.Dmitri left it untouched.His brother studied him for a moment before taking a slow sip.
“You know why I called you in here,” Alexei began.
“The Marino meeting,” Dimitri supplied.
“The marriage.”
Dmitri gave a single nod.Alexei exhaled through his nose, already looking tired.Being Pakhan suited him in the same way wearing a crown suited a man heading toward execution.
“You’ll be on your best behavior today,” Alexei reminded him.
Dmitri nearly smiled at that.
“My worst behavior tends to involve corpses.I assumed that was discouraged during diplomatic negotiations.”
Alexei’s mouth twitched, but only briefly.“I’m serious.”
“So am I.”
Silence stretched between them.Rain continued whispering against the windows.
Finally, Alexei set his glass down with a quiet clink.“You don’t need to like her.You just need to keep her under control.”
The words settled heavily in the room.Dmitri’s expression remained neutral, but something cold shifted unpleasantly beneath his ribs.
Control her.Alexei made it seem like Sofia Marino were already property waiting to be managed.Then again, marriage in their world didn’t mean anything but that.
He didn’t challenge Alexei.There was no point.Their father had spoken the same way about women for most of Dmitri’s life.Wives were leverage, daughters were bargaining chips.Love was an infection that weakened judgment.
The Volkov men had been raised on lessons carved from violence and obedience, and yet, Dimitri’s thoughts drifted unexpectedly toward Maksim and Lena.
A quiet irritation flickered through him at the memory.
No one had expected Maksim’s marriage to survive.Least of all Dmitri.Lena had started as a witness to one of Maksim’s kills, then instead of killing her, Maksim decided to keep her.
Dmitri still remembered the chaos of it.The way Maksim had looked perpetually one bad decision away from strangling someone.Now somehow the bastard looked happier than any Volkov man had a right to be.
Lena laughed in their home, and Maksim actually smiled around her.The difference was unsettling enough Dmitri preferred not to examine it too closely.
A dangerous thing, envy, especially when directed toward your own brother.Their mother had once smiled like that too.Before years with their father carved the softness out of her.
