Page 35 of Keeping My Enemies Closer: Pt. 2

“When I’d been a little boy, I had accidentally walked in on my father and a few brigadiers torturing a man,” I answered candidly.“I tried to drown out his screams by plugging my ears and singing the first song that had come to mind, and that’d been The Wheels on The Bus.I sang the song as loudly as I could until my mother found me huddled behind the kitchen door.”

“Oh, God...”she whispered, her hand covering her mouth.

“It was my fault,” I assured her.“I was supposed to have been in bed, but I’d wanted something to drink, and instead of just dealing with it, I’d gone down to the kitchen to get some water.When I’d heard some noises coming from the garage, I opened the door to see what was going on, and I saw a lot more than I’d been expecting.”

“And so...what?It’s a...like a security blanket now?”

She really was too sweet.

“No, baby,” I answered, keeping my grin under control, lest she think I was making fun of her.“Since I couldn’t outrun the nightmares, I chose to embrace them instead.Once I did that, it was a lot easier to get a handle on my life, even at such a young age.Now, while the song is more of a compulsion than anything else, it serves as a warning to my family of my current state of mind.”

“So, when you start singing the song, what does that mean exactly?”

“It means that I’m reaching a point where I’m becoming unreasonable,” I answered honestly.“It means that I no longer care about the consequences of my actions, and I will kill everyone in the area if someone doesn’t calm me down quickly enough.”I shrugged like it was nothing.“It’s a mood indicator.”

Her head reared back in shock.“A mood indicator?”

I shrugged again.“Pretty much.”

“Has...has there ever been a time when someone couldn’t talk you down?”she asked hesitantly, almost as if she was afraid of the answer, which she should be.

“A few times,” I admitted.“Usually, the only people who can talk me down are my brother and my father.Granted, they’re also the only people who know that they’re supposed to talk me down, so there’s that.Well, and Aurora.She’s aware of my compulsion now, though she’s not aware of the story behind it.”

Zoya just stared at me from across the table, dinner forgotten if the look on her face was any indication.She looked a bit shellshocked, and maybe I should have sugarcoated my answers a bit, considering all that she’d been through lately.Nevertheless, I didn’t like the idea of lying to her, and the sooner that she accepted all that I was, the better.I wanted my life with Zoya to move a lot faster than it’d been moving, though she’d probably disagree.

She didn’t say anything, just stared at me like she didn’t know what to do with the information that I’d just given her, and that was more than understandable when you considered how Viktor and my father didn’t know how to deal with it themselves.

“Well, since we’re on the subject of uncomfortable topics, while I decided to hold off putting you on all my bank accounts until we’re married and your new last name has been established, I did open an account for you with the three-hundred and fifty-thousand dollars that I owe you,” I finally told her.

“Wh...what?”

“You’ve got your money,lepestok,”I repeated.“You no longer need to worry about money or feel that you need to ask me for any if you need something.”

“The money that I slept with you for,” she remarked dispassionately.

“The money that was promised to you,” I corrected.

“The money that my mother was killed for,” she countered, which was true.

“Zoya, the amount isn’t going to matter once we’re married,” I pointed out.“You’ll have complete access to all my personal accounts, leaving you with millions for whatever you need.”

“I don’t want access to millions of dollars for whatever I need,” she snapped, which I could appreciate, never having been a fan of gold-diggers.“I just want to work and earn my own money.”

“Which you’ll be able to once you’re in a better place physically, mentally, and emotionally,” I replied evenly, not wanting to upset her more than necessary.“However, despite how you feel about the money, I entered into a contract with you at that auction, and even if I feel that it’s ridiculous when you consider that it’s my responsibility to support you in every way, Aurora doesn’t see it that way.”

Her brows furrowed.“Aurora?”

I nodded.“As far as she is concerned, no matter the reason, I acted as a participant, and for the sake of the auction’s integrity, she’s made it clear that she expects me to pay the money that is owed.She believes that the auction is a good thing, and she will not have anyone ruining what she is trying to do for women with little other choice.”

She didn’t say anything for a bit, but when she finally did, she asked, “Why does Aurora care so much about a bunch of prostitutes?I mean, she told me that she was in charge of the sex trade, and...I guess I’m just curious.”

After Aurora had spoken to Zoya, she’d been very forthcoming about their conversation.In a bid to make my life a little easier, Aurora had admitted to telling Zoya that she’d been the one to kill Armen, and while it hadn’t been necessary, I had appreciated her efforts all the same.Yeah, Viktor had been pissed, but it wasn’t like Zoya would ever report Aurora to the police.Plus, even if she did, nothing would come of it, considering that Aurora would have both the Marchettis and Korolevs supporting her.

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly.“At first, it’d been just to give Aurora something to do since she couldn’t work for her father anymore, but since my sister-in-law doesn’t ever do anything half-ass, she’s managed to turn a significant profit since taking over.”

“I just...you know, lions don’t concern themselves with lambs,” she remarked.

“Actually, lions concern themselves with all other animals,lepestok,”I corrected.“It’s the only way to make sure that they remain kings of the jungle.Otherwise, you give other animals the power to come for you when you least expect it.Besides, Aurora isn’t a lion.”