“The one to blame is your mother.” Yuri scoffed. “She’s the one who never told him about her sons did she?”
Iosif shook his head. “No she never did but I think he showed her the error in her ways.”
Yuri frowned at Mikial but neither man said a word. “We’d better get inside.” They all grabbed some luggage and headed into Roman’s house.
They got inside to see Timor release Roman from a hug. That didn’t seem too bad. Then Timor ruined everything with his next question, “Where are my grandsons? I want to meet the next generation of Maxims.”
Roman snapped his head over to Iosif and glared at him. “Timor, their last name is Salizar, not Maxim.”
Timor growled. “Your last name should be the same as mine, Maxim. You are my oldest son, not some vagabond off the street.”
“Father,” Iosif broke into the conversation in order to sooth the painful confrontation. “Both Roman and I share the same last name and that is Salizar. That was the name we were born with.”
“No!” Timor growled. “You are both my sons and should carry my name. You both carry the blood from my ancestors the same as I do. That’s Maxim blood not Salizar.”
“We carry both and as you and our mother never married, we carry her last name,” Iosif pointed out. “Now are you going to ruin this trip before we even get to see Roman’s sons or are you going to behave yourself?”
Timor glared at his youngest son. His nostrils flared and he looked ready to strike someone. He took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. The past belonged in the past, yet he couldn’t help but drag it into the present. He wanted his place in Roman’s family well established to make what he knew was going to be painful, easier for his oldest son to comprehend. “Of course, I came all this way to see Roman and his sons.” He turned and searched the living room. “Where are the boys?”
“They are with their mother and youngest uncle in the nursery. Benny is watching over them while Stevie rests,” Roman told him.
Timor briefly had a sneer on his lips when he thought about Stevie resting. That was the sign of a weak woman. He let the sneer slip and pasted on a smile when he turned to his sons. “Well, let’s go then. I want to see them.”
Roman led the way down the hall and opened the door closest to his and Stevie’s bedroom.
When the door opened Ben turned to see who was there. Stevie was busy changing one of the boys and when she saw her husband, she smiled.
Looking over his shoulders, her smile widened when she saw Iosif standing there. Her smile slipped a bit when she saw Timor there as well but she turned her back and finished changing her son. She picked up Dimitri and turned with a big smile on her face. She went to stand beside Roman and held out Dimitri to his uncle Iosif. “This is Dimitri.”
Iosif smiled hugely as the tiny baby was handed off to him. Timor already had Aleksei in his arms and was grinning at the small baby boy.
“Such a handsome son you have Roman,” Iosif noted. “They both truly are a gift aren’t they?”
Stevie chuckled. “I’ll remind you of that tomorrow morning when they’ve kept the entire household awake all night.”
Iosif grinned. “It does take some getting used to doesn’t it? I can’t imagine what that’s like. No one else I know has tiny babies.”
“Back home, babies are often left in the care of nurses,” Timor informed the room. “Do you have a nurse lined up for their care?”
Roman felt Stevie stiffen at his side. He glared at his father. “No Timor, we don’t. Here, it is the fashion to take care of your own children. Stevie, Benny and I are all they need. Occasionally, their other uncles will take them in the future but for now we will take care of our family.”
Timor ignored his son’s outburst. “And what is this young man’s name?”
“You have Aleksei,” Stevie spoke up.
“Aleksei and Dimitri?” Timor repeated their names. Before he could say anything, he caught Iosif’s eye and slight shake and he wisely held his tongue. “Those are good names.”
He went over to Iosif and exchanged babies. He searched the features of both boys and seemed satisfied with them both. As they were clothed in long sleeves he was unable to see if they bore the mark on their shoulders as he did. The mark of the Maxims. He went over to Roman and handed him the boy. “You do indeed have handsome sons. We need to have them blessed by the church right away.”
Roman gave Stevie the baby and drew his father out of the room. This was something they needed to discuss. He glanced over at Iosif and saw him handing off Aleksei to Benny. They all went out to the living room where Yuri and Mikial were waiting for them.
“Timor,” Roman began.
“I’m your father Roman, address me as such,” Timor informed him with a glare. “It’s not my fault you didn’t grow up with me guiding you.”
“Nor is it mine,” Roman told him with a shrug. “But that’s not the point here. Stevie and I want to make the decisions about how we raise the boys. Neither of us attend a local church, so we haven’t spoken about having the boys blessed.”
Timor frowned. “Well, of course, they will be blessed by the church. Generations of Maxim have been born and within three days, they all received the church’s blessing. That’s the way it’s always been and that will continue for generations to come.” He looked over at Yuri and asked, “Is there a Russian Orthodox church nearby?”
“And if we don’t want that?” Roman stood his ground. “I certainly wasn’t blessed and while Stevie was abandoned on the steps of a church, she never attended the institution as a follower.”
“You should have been blessed,” Timor insisted. “Maxims are a very strong influence in the church.”
“Dad, Roman and I don’t share that name. We never have,” Iosif reminded the other man.
“That was your mother’s fault, not mine.” Timor growled.
“And it’s over now.” Iosif tried to calm him. “You found me when I was two and took me home with you. You became my father that day and I grew up not knowing what my brother was going through. I was just too young to tell you about Roman but now we found him and you have to understand that he was already a grown man. You can’t turn back time to give him the life you wanted for him. He’s had to make his own way in this world and now he’s got everything he wants right here. It wasn’t his fault, the same as it wasn’t you’re fault, or mine. Now we all have to learn how to cope with the past and hope we can have a future together. IF you don’t calm down and accept this then he won’t allow either of us in his life again. And I’ll tell you right now, I want to be in his life. He’s my brother and I want to know him as such.”
“But he could have so much more as my son,” Timor insisted.
“Did you ever have to struggle for what you wanted?” Iosif asked. “Did you ever have to struggle and fight to get anything? If you haven’t, then you don’t know about his struggle. You have no idea what he and his brothers have accomplished in this new country. They had to fight for everything they have and the feeling they have when they look over what they have must be incredible.”
“But he could have all of that and so much more as my heir, don’t any of you understand that?” Timor roared.
“Father, he’s got all of that and so much more right here, right now,” Iosif told him quietly. “He’s got a nice home, a nice life, a very good woman, sons to carry his name and he’s got good men who he calls his brothers.” Iosif paused then added gently, “He doesn’t need you and me. I hope he will ask us to stay in his life but he doesn’t need us if he chooses to shut us out.”
“I would never ask you to stay away,” Roman protested. “But I won’t be bullied in my own home either.” He glanced over at his brother. “I’m so glad you grew up in a safe home with the man who calls himself our father. I was barely surviving on my own, at least you didn’t have that horror.” Then he turned to Timor. “I can acknowledge you as my father but until a few short months ago I didn’t know anythin
g about you. You were just another rich man I would pass on the streets. Now you come here and tell me I’m your son and you want me to return with you to a country I left as a very young man. You tell me you didn’t know I was alive, well ok I can accept that. I didn’t know about you either. But the only name I’ve ever know is Roman Salizar, not Roman Maxim. You have to understand that.”
Timor growled but held his tongue. He could see the struggle Roman was going through, it almost matched the same one he was going through only in reverse. He wanted to give the world to his oldest son but he didn’t seem to want it.
“Fine, I’ll yield this time but don’t expect me to do it every time.” Timor growled.
Roman closed his eyes and then glared at the man who claimed to be family. “I don’t want you to yield old man, I want you to recognize that I’m a grown ass man and I don’t have time for this kind of bullshit. If you want to be in my life then you have to accept I am my own man, that there is nothing you can give me that I can’t get for myself.”
Timor raised his hands and backed off a step or two. “Fine. I can accept that but you’re wrong about my not being able to give you anything you can’t get on your own. I can give you your history. I can tell you about your family. A family of strong men and women who have come before you. I can give you that much.”
Iosif smiled then chuckled. “You know it’s almost comical to watch the two of you when you clash. I can’t tell which of you is more stubborn.” He glanced over at Yuri and Mikial. “Tell me something has Roman always been this stubborn?”
Yuri smiled slightly then nodded. “Yes, he’s always been like this since I’ve known him. He’s always refused to give in to anyone. Caused us to get into more trouble than we were looking for more than once.”
Mikial snorted but didn’t say anything.
Iosif shook his head. “Well, that much I think he got from you father.”
Roman glared at his brother for a moment then shook his head. Finally, he chuckled. “At least, I know where it comes from after all these years.” He held out his hands to Timor.
Timor stared at his eldest son then reached out to shake his hand. “Da, it’s a curse at times for me as well.” Pulling his son in an embrace briefly he took a step back. “I really did not come here looking to cause trouble. I was hoping I could at least give your sons what I could not give you.”
Roman smiled. “My sons will always have what they need. I will see to that.”
CHAPTER THREE
Over the next week, Timor behaved himself to the best of his ability. Which at times stretched the boundaries of Roman’s nerves a great deal. He found that Roman’s sons did carry the Maxim birthmark and that gave him great pleasure.
Stevie and Benny stayed out of his way which was fine by Timor but was causing problems with Roman. Stevie urged him to let it go, so he did as much as he could. Then it all came to a head the last night Timor and Iosif were supposed to be there.
Timor had gone into his room to pack, leaving Roman and Iosif alone in the living room.
Iosif took a drink of his beer and looked over at his brother. “What would you say if I asked to stay a little longer?”
Roman scoffed. “Does Timor have to stay as well?”
“No, I think he’s worn out his welcome long enough for one trip.” Hesitating he continued, “But I would like to stay a little longer. Father can handle business for a little while on his own.”
“He might not think so,” Roman said darkly as he stared out into his yard. He’d been standing by the window the whole time with his back toward Iosif. He slowly turned and studied his brother then asked, “What’s this really all about?”
Iosif took another sip of his beer before he answered his brother, “You know I don’t really know. For a long time, I thought I was happy, working under him, but since we found out about you and your family, I can’t say that anymore.” He shrugged. “All my life, all I’ve ever know is that man was my father and where I lived that meant everything. Timor taught me what I needed to know and for a year, I studied the laws of the Bratva. When I was accepted and earned my place Timor was very happy and proud of what I had accomplished. I’ve worked hard to fit into this lifestyle. I thought it was what I wanted.” He paused then added, “Then we found out about you.”
“What about me?” Roman frowned.
“Timor found out about an older son, a son that should be the one taking his place when he retired.”
“And that made you angry, didn’t it?” Roman surmised.
Iosif shrugged. “If you want the truth, it actually didn’t. Not as angry as I thought it would. In fact, I think I was relieved.”
“Relieved?” Roman questioned with a snort.
Iosif nodded. “All my life I had a feeling there was something missing I just didn’t know what that something was. Then I found out I was missing you. When we went to Sergi’s office that night and I saw a picture of you I knew who you were immediately. I was too young to remember much but I remembered you. You were what my life was missing all these years. You were always there in the shadows of my existence, but I never knew who you were. He might have wanted to find you for his own purposes, but I wanted to find you too. I had to know if you would remember me after all the years we’d been separated.” Iosif smiled. “You did remember me and at that moment I wanted nothing more than to be around you. I didn’t care what Father had planned. IF he wanted you as his heir that was fine with me. I never wanted that place to begin with.”
“And now?” Roman dared to ask.
“Now I want it even less,” Iosif admitted. “I look around your home and your life and I want what you have here. I want a home that I built myself. I want a life not governed by anyone else, just myself. You have a freedom that you earned by hard work and good friends behind you and that’s what I want. I want to find a woman who will look at me the way Stevie looks at you. And I want a son to call my own.”
“And how does Stevie look at me exactly?” Roman asked with a raised brow.
“Like you hung the moon and the stars just for her.”
“What is Timor going to say when you tell him you want to stay longer?” Roman finally asked after moments of silence.
Iosif frowned. “He isn’t going to like it one bit.”
“That’s what I thought.” Roman nodded. “Good luck telling him. You’re welcome to stay if he allows it. But please do not bring world war three to my home.”
Iosif nodded and got to his feet. “Well, I’d better face the bear and let him know he’ll be going home alone.”
“Good luck with that.” Roman snorted.
The next morning, Timor came out of his room in a black mood. The entire house had heard the disagreement he’d had with Iosif the night before. When things settled down after that, the boys cooperated and were quiet the rest of the night.
This morning, he was headed back to the airport alone. Roman offered to drive him there and the trip was a quiet one. When they arrived, Timor made one last plea to his oldest son, “You need to think about coming home to me one day. I know it won’t be today or tomorrow but one day, I would like to see you and your sons return to the land you really belong to.”
“Timor, I belong here with my brothers. I am a grown man and this is where I belong. I have a wife now and sons of my own. I belong where they are. You cannot change that.”
Timor tightened his lips but didn’t say anything about this statement. “You tell your real brother that I expect him home within a week. He has a job waiting for him at home.” Then he turned, walked to the plane and disappeared inside.
Roman watched as the plane taxied off and then he turned to go home. When he arrived, he found his brother sitting at the kitchen table waiting for him. Looking down at the younger version of himself Roman noted the bruise on his jaw. Iosif didn’t say anything about the bruise and neither did Roman.
“Did he get off?’ Iosif did ask.
Roman nodded and poured hims
elf a cup of coffee. “Yes, he got off. He wanted me to remind you that he expected to see you home in a week. He said you had a job to go back for.”
Iosif nodded but didn’t say anything.
Roman studied his younger brother for a moment then asked, “So what are your plans?”
Iosif smiled. “For the first time in forever, I have no plans for the day. I suddenly feel free from everything and I have no idea what I’m going to do. Does that sound weird or what?”
Roman grinned. “Not at all brother, it’s called freedom.”
Stevie came out and joined them. She smiled as she sat down. Roman went to pour her a cup of coffee and she smiled when he gave it to her. She took a sip then looked over at Iosif. “I hope you can find whatever it is you’re looking for in a short amount of time. Your father likes his stranglehold on the leash, doesn’t he?”
Iosif nodded. Looking over at Roman he asked, “Where can I find one like her?”
Roman laughed out loud. “There isn’t another woman on this planet like my Stevie.”
“I almost believe you.” He smiled. “But I’m very happy she’s yours.”
“So am I brother, so am I.”
Iosif got to his feet. “But I would like to see more of the city, if that’s possible.”
Roman nodded and reached inside his pocket for his car keys. “It has GPS installed. If you get lost, just look up home and it will bring you back.”
Iosif smiled. “Thanks brother.”
Iosif got behind the wheel and took off down the driveway. Turning right, he headed for the city of New Orleans.
As he drove through the city, he marveled at the sights of the old town. The cities and towns back home were much older than they were here, but this place held its own charms. He parked the car on the sidewalk and for a moment just watched the number of people walking down the street.
With the river basin on his right and the River Walk on his left, Iosif shook his head. Even with all the people rushing here and there and the noise of the river boats and street cars there was a familiar longing in him. The sense of being home was even stronger now.
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