Where the Sun Hides (Seasons of Betrayal #1)(86)

It had finally clicked in him, the difference her presence made. He was more relaxed, happy even, and despite that their relationship was mostly confined within those four walls, he didn’t mind it. Kaz didn’t need others to tell him she was his, he only needed to see the way her face lit up when she saw him to know the answer to that.

Kaz had only dropped her off a little more than an hour ago before he got a call from Vasily, telling him to come in. After their last conversation, he had done well to steer clear of his father, besides the few times they had needed to meet for Bratva business.

Though anytime Vasily called him for a meet, it was in the warehouse. Vasily had made a different request, texting him an address he wasn’t familiar with. It was still within the limits of Little Odessa, but Kaz had never had a reason to go to that side, especially when he had no business over there. But when the boss called, even if it was the last thing he wanted to do, he went.

The house Kaz arrived at was in the middle of nowhere, land as far out as the eye could see. It was a pretty secluded place, and for the second time, he wondered what purpose his father had in bringing him here. And unlike the last time his father had called on him for a private meeting, he didn’t go in unarmed.

“Good of you to finally join me,” Vasily said once Kaz was inside, reclining back in one of the two wing-backed chairs in the living room.

Raj was standing in the doorway of the kitchen, looking just as imposing as ever. The last thing Kaz wanted to do was put his back to the man, because while he was sure he could take Vasily, Raj was capable of things he didn’t even want to consider.

Vasily, noticing Kaz’s choice to stick close to the door, smiled, though the sight of it did nothing to calm him. “Is there a problem, Kazimir?”

“Not at all. You called for a meet, here I am.”

“Of course.” Vasily reached for the carafe of whiskey to his left, and the glass sitting next to it, pouring himself a drink. “When you were a boy, I didn’t expect great things from you. Your brother, on the other hand, he was the perfect son. Even with him idolizing Gavrill, I knew he would be exactly what any father could hope for in this brotherhood of ours. I knew the moment he’d sworn the words that he would be my successor, but that all came to an end rather quickly, no? When I caught him f*cking that man.”

Kaz didn’t react to Vasily’s words—it wasn’t like this was a secret finally being revealed. He remembered all too well the night Vasily learned that Ruslan was gay. That was both the day Ruslan had come out of the closet, and Kaz had learned to truly hate the man that spawned him.

Despite the changes to the Bratva, and the advances their organization had made over the years, there was still one concept that Vasily had refused to let go of—no man in his Bratva would be gay. Kaz was sure that if it were not for the blood that ran in Ruslan’s veins, his brother would be dead by Vasily’s hand. He had almost done it that night, using his fists to tell Ruslan exactly how he felt about his preference in sex.

Ruslan, for reasons known only to him, had not fought back, had merely taken the onslaught of hits until he wasn’t conscious anymore. Kaz had only arrived later to find the result of his father’s disgust. From that day forward, Ruslan had been practically disowned within their family, forced out as though he was nothing at all. He still had his place within the organization, Vasily hadn’t taken that away, but it had become quite clear that Ruslan was no longer Vasily’s intended successor.

“You, however,” Vasily said dragging Kaz back to the present conversation, “as defiant as you are, I was surprised you had made it to this point. I won’t say that you’re not good at what you do, you’ve obviously done quite well for yourself, but you lack discipline. You fail to realize that there are consequences to your actions and that no one, not even you, can defy me.”

Kaz pushed off the wall, striding further into the room. “What are you getting at, Vasily?”

“I was curious,” he went on as though Kaz hadn’t spoken, “as to why you haven’t been around as much lately, and when you are, you’re asking questions that are of little importance. So I did some digging of my own, Kazimir—and let me be honest, I almost wished you had the same predilection as your brother. At least that could be contained. But Violet Gallucci? I thought you knew better than that.”

Vasily withdrew a picture, and even from his distance, Kaz could clearly make out his own face, along with Violet’s. He still remembered that day … picking her up and grabbing ice cream on their way back to his place, before she had spent the night. It had been a good day, but he had never suspected that he was being followed, that anyone had gotten that close to him to take pictures.

How the f*ck hadn’t he noticed?

“I’ve been lenient with you, Kazimir,” Vasily went on. “I allow you your tantrums, your displays of defiance in the presence of others. You’re still young, after all. But on this, I have never, and will not ever, bend. This is your last chance to heed me, boy. Walk away. Do not go near her again. This is my final warning. If she means that much to you, think of an excuse, I don’t give a f*ck. But when you leave this place today, I want there to be no mistake. Violet Gallucci no longer exists to you. Am I understood?”

“Yeah, I hear you,” Kaz said, his voice steady, his eyes locked on Vasily. “But understand me. I’m not going to walk away from her because you command it.”