Page 133 of Whispers in the Dark
For every woman he and his brothers have sold on the black market.
For everything.
My eyes spot the baseball bat in the back of the room, leaning upright against the wall. A bat I custom-made with nails that stick out all around it.
A grin breaks free as I stride over to it and grip the handle, tightening my knuckles around it.
This will do nicely.
Kazimir tries to hide the terror in his eyes as I approach, but I don’t miss the way he swallows nervously, or the way he shifts against the chains.
“You can’t kill me,” he states matter-of-factly.
“Why the hell not?” Vin asks, grabbing a folding chair and settling in for the show.
“I’m a Vasiliev. You kill me, you’ll start a war. One you won’t win.”
Vin spreads his legs, resting his hands behind his head. “A war is exactly what we want. But believe me when I tell you, we will win it. And we will kill each and every single one of you in the process. The Vasiliev name will soon cease to exist.”
Kazimir’s lips curl up, a sinister smile growing. “And what about Liliya?”
Vin stills. “What about her?”
“You plan on killing her as well?”
“She’s innocent in all of this, so no.”
“Ah, I see,” Kazimir starts. “In that case, the Vasiliev name will live on, whether you want it to or not. The name will never truly die unless you destroy all of us. And seeing that you’re currently in a contract to wed her, it’s safe to assume you’ll fuck her, creating children— ”
Vin stands abruptly and steps toward him, stopping right in his face. “There will be no wedding. I want nothing to do with your sister. Vasiliev blood runs in her veins, and I won’t let her taint our family’s name!” He turns and steps away, gripping the nearby table as he struggles to control his temper.
“I’m sure your dear cousins won’t be too pleased to hear that, especially since it will cause Mikhail to pull out of—”
“Enough.” Alex folds his arms over his chest. “Nothing you say will get you out of this little mess. In fact, keep talking, and you’ll only make things worse for yourself.”
Kazimir narrows his eyes.
Leo walks forward, tapping a finger on the gun in his holster. “You and your brothers blackmailed Alina for land that was never going to be yours. You held her father’s life over her head. And when she told you no, you decided to take matters into your own hands by kidnapping her and her father with the intentions of selling her.”
A fresh wave of rage washes over me.
“On top of all of that…” Eli advances toward him. “You and your brothers have been kidnapping women and children when Mikhail specifically told us you wouldn’t be following in your father’s footsteps.”
“Mikhail knew what you morons needed to hear.” He scoffs. “You really think we would give up something so lucrative? In the past six months, we’ve managed to pay off all the debt our father left us in and triple our profits.” He shakes his head. “Mikhail will never give up this business.”
“And that is why you will all die,” Vin says with not an ounce of remorse in his words. His eyes grow cold as he faces Kazimir. “Every single one of you will pay for your sins, but we’ll start with you.” He nods toward me. “Take me out of my misery and shut this fucker up. He’s giving me a headache.” Vin rubs his temple and steps away.
Everyone around Kazimir backs up as I step forward, placing the tip of the bat beneath his chin.
“For…my…wife,” I manage to get out as pain scratches its talons up and down my throat.
“I’ll see you in hell,” Kazimir declares, holding his chin high.
And those are the last words he voices before I start the war.
Chapter thirty-five
Alina
