Brothers Forever

by Tawa M. Witko

  “I know.”

  “I wish you would have talked to me about this.”

  “You would have fought me on it.”

  “You’re damn right I would have. This is crazy, Mladshiĭ. Isn’t this the kind of thing that Nikolai is supposed to take care of?” I ask angrily. “I’m supposed to keep you safe. How am I supposed to do that if you purposefully put yourself in harm’s way?”

  He frowns. “I’m doing this, Bolʹshoĭ. Deal with it,” he informs me, stepping out of the car.

  I jump out of the car and walk around to his side. I glance at him and he gives me a slight smirk before his face turns hard again as the three of us walk inside the deserted building. Borovsky is standing there with four of his men. He has no idea what’s in store for him. I quickly look around the room, assessing my environment, and then turn back to Borovsky. I have fought one of his men before and when he sees me he narrows his eyes and his fists clench at his side. I smirk at him knowingly, which pisses him off even more.

  “Мы снова встречаемся,” Dimitri says with a smile.

  Borovsky stares at him and then says dismissively that he stands by what he said before, that Dimitri is an arrogant child trying to play grown up and that his father should never have put him in charge of the family. Dimitri doesn’t say anything but his face morphs into something lethal as he reaches inside his jacket, bringing my knife out. He stabs Borovsky in the gut before he has a chance to realize what’s happening.

  “Вы все еще думаете, что я ребенок?”Dimitri sneers as he asks Borovsky if he still thinks he’s a child.

  I watch in horror as Dimitri twists the knife and Borovsky sputters before falling limp on the ground. I quickly grab Dimitri and throw him behind me as chaos ensues. Borovsky’s men pull out their guns while I shroud Dimitri with my body, pulling my gun out.

  “Stay down, Mladshiĭ,” I whisper to him as we hear four quick shots.

  Chapter 21

  March

  Estelle six months pregnant

  The next couple of months had me constantly looking over my shoulder, paranoid. There was tremendous upheaval amongst the families after the incident with Borovsky. Dimitri and his father were called in to meet with the other families to explain Dimitri’s actions. I couldn’t attend that meeting, but I heard from Viktor that Dimitri carried himself well and without fear. He had explained how Borovsky’s son had stolen from him and that Borovsky was on a vendetta to destroy their family because his son was not man enough to defeat me when I went to collect. I had been shocked that he even brought me up, but Viktor said he was very adamant about it and told them that he had rightfully defended his family. He then challenged all of them, asking if any of them would have tolerated the kind of treachery that Borovsky had initiated. Oddly enough, Dimitri’s father stood by him and supported his decision and had actually praised him on his bravery. It was the first time that Dimitri ever felt like he was worthy of his father, that he had done something right and had made him proud. Because of what he did his father stood in front of everyone and said that he trusted him to take over for the family, and anyone who challenged that challenged him personally. Yeah, no one ever challenges Dimitri’s dad. That act alone made Dimitri feel like a king and unfortunately he started to act like no one could harm him. Suddenly he was the one that felt invincible, but me, I just felt worried and on edge.

  “So how is Estelle? Did she take her test yet?” Dimitri asks, catching me by surprise and drawing me out of my thoughts.

  He hasn’t asked about Estelle in a long time and I don’t bring her up that much anymore. It works well for me and helps me keep things separate. I stare at him for a moment and offer him a smile before I answer his question.

  “Umm, she’s good,” I say watching him nod. “She is waiting on her test results for her oral exam. So hopefully she will find out soon whether she passed it or not.”

  “Good. That’s good to hear. I am sure she did well. She is very smart.”

  I grin. “That she is.”

  “So, is it true the rumor that pregnant women want to have sex all the time?” He asks with a wag of his brows.

  I laugh. “Well, let’s just say that for the past several months I have seriously worried that, you know,” I motion my eyes down, “that it would actually fall off from extreme overuse.”

  He laughs heartedly. “Well, that is not a bad problem to have I suppose.”

  “No, it isn’t,” I answer chuckling.

  I reach for my drink and scrunch my eyes, noticing an unusual reflection coming off my glass. My eyes widen as realization kicks in. I quickly fly over the table and shove Dimitri down just as a bullet crashes through the window and hits me in the chest. I drop down on the table before rolling onto the floor, feeling a level of pain that I never dreamed was possible. My hand immediately goes to my chest and when I look at my palm, I see nothing but blood. I quickly glance around to see if Dimitri is okay and find that he is staring at me, tears in his eyes.

  “Bolʹshoĭ!” I hear him say distressed.

  I swallow thickly as Dimitri fades out of focus. My eyes flutter closed as thoughts of Estelle and my unborn son flash across my consciousness, my heart breaking at the thought that I will never see Michael, never watch him take his first steps, or say his first words. I won’t see him fall in love, get married and have children. I will never grow old with the love of my life. I will never see my best friend again. I am filled with a sadness that is literally suffocating, so much so that when unconsciousness finally takes me I am relieved.

  ~*~

  When I wake, I look around and realize that I’m in the hospital. I can barely move and my chest hurts. I wonder how long I have been here. I feel Estelle’s hand over my stomach and notice that her head is lying on the bed close to my side. I try to focus on what happened and slowly begin to remember… the bar, the gunfire, me getting shot, seeing Dimitri hoovering over me, me thinking that I was dead and worrying about Estelle and Michael. God! What she must have gone through.

  “I’m sorry,” I mumble as my hand touches her hair.

  She shoots up in the bed, tears streaming down her face, and in her eyes I can see just how difficult this has been for her. She shakes her head and brings my hand to her face, kissing my palm softly as her eyes close.

  “It doesn’t matter, Charles. You’re alive and that’s all I care about,” she says into my hand.

  “Es, come here.”

  Her eyes open and she stands, bringing her lips to mine, kissing me softly. “I thought I lost you,” she cries.

  “I’m so sorry, baby.” I stroke the side of her face gently.

  “It’s not your fault,” she chokes out.

  I can feel the weight of her words and know without a doubt that the person she blames is Dimitri. I won’t go there with her though, this is not the time or place. Besides, she has every right to be upset about everything that happened. I blink several times, trying to get my bearings.

  “How long have I been out?” I finally ask.

  “Three days, sweetheart.”

  “Are you okay? Is Michael okay?” I ask, suddenly aware that she is as pale as a ghost, her eyes are swollen and red and her cheeks look sunken in. Has she been eating?

  “I’m fine, he’s fine,” she says laying her head on my shoulder.

  I bring my hand to her hair and kiss her softly on the top of her head. I know there’s something she isn’t telling me. I can feel it but right now I don’t want to focus on that. I hold her tightly to me, as close as I possibly can with all these tubes attached to me.

  “I love you, Es.”

  “I love you so much, Charles,” she replies as she tightens her grip around me.

  ~*~

  I have been in the hospital for a little over two weeks now. Apparently, the bullet missed my heart by a smidge. The doctors went on and on about how lucky I am. Trust me, I know it. I am itching to go home but they won’t release me yet. They s
ay I need to recover some more.

  Estelle said that Dimitri came by while I was in a coma but I don’t remember it at all. She also said that they talked briefly but didn’t say what they talked about. While I was unconscious, I sort of had an idea when people were around me but it was as if I were in a dream. Everything was muffled and felt far away. So much for all the hype about people understanding what’s going on around them when they are in a coma.

  I look up as Estelle walks out of the bathroom rubbing her stomach and arching her back. She has been eating better the last few days and her color is back to normal, thankfully. She refuses to leave the hospital though, which is very frustrating to me. Don’t get me wrong, I want her here but I know she isn’t comfortable. She has been sleeping in that damn recliner for two weeks now which isn’t good for her or the baby. I am supposed to be going home sometime this week though, thank god!

  “Es, come here, baby.”

  She walks over and looks at me concerned. “Are you okay?”

  “Of course, just sit,” I say moving over a little and tap the mattress. “Turn around,” I say as she sits down.

  She gives me a strange look but does what I ask. I immediately move her shirt up and start rubbing her lower back. I move my hands up her back and rub her shoulders and then move back down, letting my fingers trace along the sides of her breast before massaging her lower back again. After a few minutes, she is practically purring, letting out soft sighs as her head falls forward slightly, the tension slowly falling away. We hear the door open and I bring my hands down and out of her shirt, kissing her lightly on the shoulder before looking up.

  “I can come back,” Dimitri says, wagging his brows at me.

  I chuckle. “No, come in,” I gleefully reply, practically bouncing on the bed.

  I haven’t seen him since I was shot and not only do I miss him but I want to know what happened. I need to know what happened. What if there is something I should be worried about? Estelle looks at him and I see a slight frown on her face and I once again wonder what the two of them talked about when he came by before. She stands up and kisses me on the forehead.

  “I’ll give you two some privacy,” she says, touching my face.

  “I love you,” I whisper.

  She smiles before kissing me lightly. “I love you, too.”

  She walks passed Dimitri and glances at him.

  “Thank you, Estelle,” he says to her and she gives him a small smile before walking out the door.

  He turns back to me and grins widely. He makes his way to my bed quickly and once he’s there he grabs my face in his hands and taps his forehead to mine.

  “Bolʹshoĭ,” he whispers reverently. “Are you okay?”

  I nod as he pulls away from me. “I’m okay. How are you? What’s happening?”

  “I’ve been here one minute and you are already asking about business.” He tilts his head slightly and arches his brow.

  I roll my eyes. “Do we know what happened?” I ask, ignoring his remark.

  He sighs and takes a seat in the chair next to my bed. “It was one of Borovsky’s men. He was on the roof of the building across the street.” He shakes his head. “My father went crazy and met with the other families. He found out who was responsible and Viktor and Stephan took care of him. Nikolai wanted to do it but the boys wouldn’t let him. They wanted to take him out for what happened to you.”

  “You mean what happened to us!” I correct.

  He grins slightly and then asks, “How did you know?”

  “Know what?” I answer confused.

  “About the gun?”

  “Oh, that.” I run my hand through my hair and shrug. “When I picked up my drink, there was this flash of light that bounced off my shot glass and I don’t know, my first thought was that it was from a scope.” I stare at him intently. “I didn’t think, Mladshiĭ. All I knew was that I needed to make sure you were safe. That’s all that mattered.”

  He nods and smiles. “You saved my life, brother. I…” He looks down and appears sad for a moment.

  “Mladshiĭ!” I say to get his attention and when he looks up at me I reach my hand out to him. He looks at it and then takes it without hesitation. “Вы стоит экономить, брат.” I tell him he’s worth saving. And I mean that from the bottom of my heart.

  He nods and squeezes my hand firmly, then jerks me to him, hugging me tightly, forgetting that I am recovering, but honestly I don’t care. If something had happened to him, I don’t know what I would have done.

  Chapter 22

  May

  Estelle eight months pregnant

  I have been home for six weeks now. My healing is coming along as good as can be expected. The physical therapy sucks and hurts worse than the actual injury. I have not been down to the bar since I have been home but I have seen Dimitri. He has come to the house a few times and has been pushing me to start coming back out. When the phone rings and I see that it’s Dimitri I am excited as hell. He asks me to come down, that people want to see me. He teases me about having had a long enough vacation. I laugh hard and then tell him I will see him in a little bit. When I hang up I look over and see Estelle leaning against the counter watching me. She looks angry. I frown, expecting the argument that I am sure is about to ensue. I walk over to her and try to kiss her but she turns away from me. I sigh and lean against the counter, crossing my arms.

  “Es… it’s not like that. He just wants to hang out, have a few drinks. He doesn’t want me to ‘do’ anything,” I say calmly, hoping to diffuse this before it escalates.

  We have argued a lot over the past several weeks about Dimitri and my involvement with him. She is no longer keeping her thoughts silent. No, she has made it abundantly clear that she blames Dimitri for me being shot and that she has concerns about what I do with him. Although she isn’t sure exactly what I do, she has a strong suspicion. And, at this point, I am struggling to keep the two people inside of me separate. A struggle I know I am failing miserably at.

  “I know he is your best friend but you are aware that he’s a gangster, right?” She says angrily.

  I can't help it; I roll my eyes. Of course, I know he’s a gangster. That has to be the stupidest thing she has ever said to me. I start to say something but she shakes her head.

  “And that you nearly died because you were with him?” She continues without falter.

  I sigh and look down, running my hand through my hair. Here we go again! She is trying a different angle this time it seems but the message is still the same.

  “And that although you aren’t ‘officially’,” she uses air quotes before continuing seamlessly, “in the mob, you act like you are?”

  Now she has my attention. I look up at her and frown. “That’s not true, Es, and you know it,” I state angrily.

  “It isn’t? Are you sure about that?” She fumes, utterly pissed off. “You strut around acting like a character in some mafia movie that everyone is afraid of.”

  “People ARE afraid of me!” I respond loudly.

  “And you’re happy about that?” She raises her voice another octave.

  “What do you want me to do, Es? Become some business man in some high-rise office? That’s not who I am. That’s who my father is!” My voice is getting louder and louder.

  “So this is about your father? You are going to ruin everything so you can get back at ‘Daddy’. That’s perfect, Charles, just PERFECT!” I can hear the disdain in her voice.

  I stand up straight and stare at her, and for the first time since we have been together, I am truly angry at her. I have never once dismissed her or her thoughts, but right now, I just want her to shut the hell up. I can’t believe she just said that. That she thinks that my relationship with Dimitri, my involvement with him, is just to get back at my father. She knows how much he means to me, that he has been my friend and brother for almost my entire life. I know she can probably see the anger in my eyes because she hesitates for a moment and then t
akes a breath.

  “I didn’t sign on to be a mob wife. This isn’t some movie, Charles. This is real life. Your association with Dimitri has almost made me a widow already. I won’t live in fear every time you walk out the door,” she states adamantly.

  I step back, stunned. Is she saying what I think she is saying? Is she saying I need to choose between them? He’s my brother. All of a sudden I can’t breathe.

  “What’s going on, Es? Are you telling me to choose between you and Dimitri?” I ask with panic and hurt in my voice. I can’t choose between them.

  “I don’t know, Charles. I can’t live like this. I have always stood by you and have ignored the obvious signs that your alliance to Dimitri is more important to you than Michael and I.”

  I immediately start shaking my head vehemently as fear invades me for the first time in my life. “That’s not true, Es. I love you and Michael more than anything.” I say, trying desperately to control the tears that I know are just under the surface.

  “It is true,” she says softly and I can see that her eyes are moist. “You consistently choose to be Dimitri’s right hand man over being a husband. Why would that change after I have Michael?”

  I stand there staring at her in disbelief, my breathing heavy, my heart racing. Her face is stoic. She is determined and I can tell that she has been contemplating this very conversation for a long time. I can’t believe this happening.

  “What do you want from me, Charles? To be some silent, dutiful wife who will clean your bloodied clothes and lie to people about what you do. What am I supposed to tell our son when you die protecting Dimitri when you could have been with us?”

  I continue to stare at her. I open my mouth but no words come out as I realize what is about to happen. My heart feels like it is being ripped out of my body, and as I stand here, I just want to die. She looks down for a moment and when she looks back up I am sure she can see the devastation on my face.

  “I was offered a position in Sacramento. I want to take it. I don’t want to raise our son in Chicago and I don’t want you sucked into a lifestyle that will take you away from me. I don’t want to live without you, Charles, but I will if you continue down this path. I can’t bear the thought that at any moment I could get a phone call saying you are in jail or worse, that you have been killed. I have to think about what’s best for Michael,” she says determinedly.