Gilded Tears: A Russian Mafia Romance (Kovalyov Bratva Book 2) by Nicole Fox (novels to read for beginners txt) 📗

towards her just as she turns to me, her gold eyes meeting mine freely now.

“Artem,” she gasps as my arms engulf her.

I hold her tightly for a long time. Eventually, I lean back so I can look down at her face. She’s got tears swimming in her eyes, but they don’t fall.

“Are you okay?” I ask, aware of the way her body is shaking.

“I… I think so,” she replies. “It’s… it’s a lot.”

I nod. “You’re okay now,” I tell her. “You were amazing.”

She smiles against the tears. “Did you believe me?”

I shake my head. “Deep down, I didn’t.”

She looks at me with a dazed expression and I know she’s still processing everything that’s happened. It’ll be years before she truly gets a grip on things.

But we have that time now.

“Esme,” I say gently. “Where’s Phoenix?”

“Svetlana,” Esme answers, to my surprise.

“What?”

“Svetlana found me in the room I was being held,” she explains. “She’s the one who killed Eagle Tattoo and gave me the knife. I told her to take Phoenix and keep him safe.”

She’s talking fast and erratically, but I don’t press her for more information. I’m content with the knowledge that Phoenix is safe.

For the first time, I glance down at Budimir’s lifeless body. I feel a snarl ignite on my face at the sight of his pale, bloodless face.

In death, he has been stripped of the power and strength he seemed to possess. He just looks like a sad old man now.

“His death was too quick and too kind,” I whisper, mostly to myself.

Then I feel Esme’s hand against my cheek. She forces my eyes from Budimir and back to her.

“He’s dead,” she says. “Isn’t that enough?”

“I wanted him to suffer.”

She flinches a little, but before she can say another word, someone clears his throat behind us.

I turn to see Adrik.

“Yes?”

“We’ve got Budimir’s men rounded up,” he tells me.

“How many?”

“Thirty-three,” Adrik replies. “A few fled while we were standing off against each other.”

I nod. “Take them outside,” I tell him. “You know what to do.”

“Wait.”

I turn to Esme, who’s looking at me with mild horror. “What is he going to do?” she asks.

I hesitate for only a moment. But I don’t want to lie to her, either.

“They are traitors, Esme,” I tell her. “They had a choice. They could have chosen me but they stuck to Budimir. There is a cost for that.”

“You’re going to kill thirty-three men?” she gasps.

“I have to send a message.”

“Yes, you do,” she agrees. “But don’t let that be your message.”

I frown.

“You see that man over there?” I ask, pointing to Yahontov. “He was Budimir’s man before now. But he and a few others chose to pledge their fealty to me instead. Those men will be spared. Those men will not face consequences for having chosen Budimir in the first place. But the others… there is a price that must be paid.”

“You can’t do it, Artem.”

“Esme—”

“No,” she interrupts fiercely. Her eyes blaze.

Then her face softens and she takes both my hands in hers. She glances over at the line of men that have been rounded up.

Their faces are somber. Some are resigned to their fate. Most have been a part of this world long enough to know what they’re facing.

“I understand now that violence is always going to be a part of this world,” she tells me softly. “I understand that sometimes… it’s necessary. I’ve accepted that. But I can’t accept unnecessary violence. Unnecessary death.”

I say nothing. She takes a deep breath and continues.

“Exile these men if you have to. Banish them, punish them. But don’t kill them. There’s no need for it anymore. Their leader is gone, killing them now would just be cruel and pointless. It’s a cruel and pointless world, Artem. You don’t need to make it more that way. That’s what my father did. That’s what my uncle did. You’re better than both of them.”

I stare down at her earnest face, surprised by how much her words are resonating with me.

I am the don now.

I have the power to change my world as I see fit.

To be a better leader than the men who came before me.

And I owe that to the world. To my men. To my family.

I turn to Adrik, who’s looking at me with raised eyebrows, waiting for my command.

I let go of Esme’s hands and walk over to the marked men who were short-sighted enough to have chosen my uncle.

“My wife has just pleaded for your lives,” I announce. “It makes me wonder: does that make her naïve or wise?”

I see hope blaze on a few faces, but the rest remain black with hopelessness.

“I’m inclined to believe the latter,” I finish.

I feel a collective sigh rise into the air, but the atmosphere is still tense and expectant.

“There will be consequences,” I tell them all. “But you have your lives at the very least, and you have my wife to thank for that.”

I turn to Adrik. “Take them to the garage,” I instruct him. “Make sure they’re contained there until I decide what to do.”

“Got it, boss.”

I turn back to Esme and she walks into my arms.

“Thank you,” she says into my chest.

“No,” I say. “Thank you. You’re stronger than you look, my love. Isn’t that right?”

She laughs, and when she does, the laughter seems to break open her face and melt away the fissures of worry and fear.

She looks like my wife again. Strong, brave, beautiful.

And I feel my heart expand.

I can breathe again.

Epilogue: Artem

The Regency Hotel—Six Months Later

“We’re glad to have you back, Don Kovalyov,” Maggadino says. He clasps my hand just before he walks out of the hotel suite.

I watch the elevator doors close on him.

When he’s gone, I breathe a sigh of relief.

Well, that’s done. Order has been restored. Alliances have been re-established.

I’d purposefully postponed a don’s council meeting until I had the Bratva fully back in hand. It took me almost six months to get everything in order, but I wasn’t about to rush it.

Budimir had done a lot of