Page 46 of Bratva Menace

“Dostatochno priyatnym,” Pleasant enough, Father replied, voice clipped.

“English, Dimitri,” Sergei snapped. “It is rude to talk in front of another person in a language they cannot understand.”

Ahhh, so he is doing it for Mr. Average over there. Whoever he was, he was important enough for Grandfather to change something absolutely fundamental about himself.

That was slightly terrifying.

Autumn scoffed. She and Father looked at each other. Something unseen flashed between them. Something only they knew the meaning of.

Sergei’s gaze flicked to her. I held my breath, curious how he was going to play it.

“Nice to see you again, Sergei Lekovich Volkov,” Autumn said boldly.

Fuck. Okay. So she was just going right for the jugular. Had to love the woman’s style.

Grandfather looked her up and down, judgment clear as day on his face. “I don’t believe we have met, Miss?”

So that’s how he’s playing it, then. Plausible deniability.

A smirk played on Autumn’s lips. “My mistake. You look an awful lot like a man who attempted to do business with me. Autumn DeValos,” she said, placing a hand on her chest.

“I am sure I would remember doing business with a woman as lovely as yourself.” An evil look took over his face. “I must admit, I was surprised to hear my son would be bringing a plus-one to the wedding. He was so besotted with his dead wife, you see. I feared he would never move on. What was her name again? Oh, that’s right. Yekaterina.”

Autumn and I stiffened. That fucking bastard. The gall he had to bring up my mother like that. Like she was just a shot to take at my father. My hands squeezed into tight fists, and I had to hold myself back from launching at him.

Father didn’t rise to the bait, and I was thankful. He’d fought through all his demons when it came to my mother. Her name no longer brought forth those feelings of guilt and anguish within him.

The tiny bit of fear I could see in Autumn’s eyes, however, told me she wasn’t as sure about that as I was. I could understand, given what had happened the last time, but Father reassured her by grabbing her hand and giving it a tight, supportive squeeze.

“We all move on eventually. Yekaterina is my past. Autumn is my future. Now, if there’s nothing else, we’ve had a long flight, and would like to get settled.”

Grandfather took control and flat-out ignored what he said. “This is Vernon Miseris. He’s a colleague, and will be attending the wedding tomorrow.” He signaled to Mr. Average at his side.

“Hi, Vernon. It’s an absolute pleasure to make your acquaintance,” I lied out of my ass. “I’m Lukyan. That’s Dimitri, my father, and his girlfriend, Autumn. Now that we’ve been introduced, your boy is going inside because I am starving. You guys coming?” Without waiting for approval, I walked past Grandfather and into the house. “Love what you’ve done with the place, Grandpappy!” I yelled over my shoulder. “It’s giving nice old man vibes. Love it.”

I was only partly lying. It was actually a very nice McMansion. Plenty of lighting. Lots of space. Expensive furniture. Floor-to-ceiling windows I knew were bulletproof. Grand, opulent chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Large spiral staircase leading up to the top levels.

Fucking bingo. There was my out.

I moved toward the stairs⁠—

A hand on my shoulder halted me. “Where are you running off to, boy?” I barely managed to hold back a sneer at my grandfather’s touch. “We haven’t seen each other for years. Come. I’ve got food laid out in the kitchen for you. You said you were hungry, no?”

Well, fuck me sideways. I couldn’t exactly say, No, your presence disgusts me. I plastered on my fake smile and turned to face him. The look on his face told me I had no say in the matter. “Sure, Grandpappy. I’d love to.”

Father, Autumn, and Mr. Average were behind him.

“Excellent.” He stepped closer to me, keeping his hand on my shoulder. “Your father and Autumn may retire to their rooms. You are in the east wing,” he told them, gesturing with his hand to the left.

The intention was clear—they were not invited to dinner.

Father’s jaw clenched the slightest bit. He nodded. Taking Autumn’s hand, he led her through the large lounge room on the left. Four guards appeared as if out of thin air, following behind them.

Another tick for Father. He was right. Sergei was going to have him followed the entire time we were there.

Applying a bit of pressure to my shoulder, my grandfather signaled for me to go forward. “Let’s go.”

I sat across from Sergei at the dining table. It was huge. Far too big for one person, but that was how my grandfather liked to do things—grand and over the top. It was big enough to seat at least thirty people. He sat at one end, and I sat all the way at the other. The table was set, two tall candles in candle holders in the middle, and food laid out across the surface.