Fall In Love Quick

(SERGIO)

Shortly after Ivanna storms out of my office, Maksim walks in. He looks anything but happy, but his news will have to wait. I point at a chair. "Sit. I have an errand for you."

"When? Now?"

"Karlen is taking Ivanna to dinner in town. Tonight. I want you to go with them."

"Of course. I'll play chaperone. That is more exciting than spending time with my family."

I can't tell whether that comment is meant to be sardonic or not. "Give them space. The idea is for them to get close." I have to admit however that the thought of them spending time together makes my chest burn with an emotion that I can't dare name. All the more reason why I need to push them together quickly. This girl has me contemplating on many stupid ideas and I can't afford to act on any of them.

"Does Karlen know about this already?"

"Nol but he will do as he's told." I grab my phone and text Karlen the instructions. "There. He is sleeping now, but he will see the instructions later on."

"Yeah. I hear he was up until later dealing with a delivery from our friends down south."

"He told me there were no issues."

"There weren't, until later."

I loosen my tie, taking a moment to compose myself before hearing the disturbing news. I'm already on edge from my little meeting with Ivanna. "What do you mean until later?"

Maksim sighs. "Sergey called. He inventoried the packages today and thought we were light, even though the men at the drop said that it was all accounted for when they left."

"How light?"

"About four hundred grams."

I do instant math in my head. "That's almost seventeen thousand euros worth, and it's missing?"

"Yes."

"Who was the last person to leave the storage site?"

"Karlen, I'm told."

"Jesus!" I pound my fist on the table.

"I know, but what would Karlen want with that much uncut cocaine? It makes no sense."

"He said he went out with friends after. Came back this morning when Lucia was serving breakfast."

"Did he look high?"

"No. And certainly not four hundred grams worth."

Maksim holds up his palms. "Maybe he went out and met a lot of friends. Who knows? Maybe they partied all night long."

Even so, I still don't like the idea. Karlen knows better than to take from the Dvina Vory. I have always made sure to provide him with everything that he wanted. Our wealth and power meant no stealing was required. And my son has never been into drugs. If he were, I would have certainly learnt by now.

I have always kept a close eye on him since his mother was killed? Though I loosened my surveillance a little in the last three years as he took on more responsibility. Something is amiss. "Tell Sergey to count again. I want every gram accounted for."

"he's already counted it three times, Sergio."

"It's not a lot, but it looks sloppy. What's even worse is that I can't have Karlen's name associated with any irregularities in the operation."

"I agree."

"Don't do anything yet. Not until I can speak to Karlen myself. If he admits that he took the drugs, then I'll tell Sergey that he was acting under my orders."

"Who would believe that you needed four hundred grams of coke?"

"Probably no one. Good thing is none of them would dare to question me."

"And what will you do if Karlen admits that he took the drugs?"

I tap my fingers on my desk. I have never figured that my son would need this kind of discipline. He was born and raised in the mafia world, meaning he knows the repercussions for such transgressions. He had even meted out quite a few times himself over the last three or four years. The responsibility for the punishment would fall on my shoulder, and I honestly don't know how I would handle the situation. "Christ! I don't know."

"Understandable. Considering. Either way, whatever happens, we keep quiet."

"Yes we will. And the sooner Karlen gets married, the better. He will have to settle down then and focus on fulfilling his duties as my heir."

Maksim smirks. "I can't picture you as a grandpa."

I cannot see myself as a grandfather either. But I guess that doesn't matter. "You won't be far behind me. Not with Damir's reputation." Maksim's oldest son is seventeen, and sleeps with anything with a pair of tits.

"Bite your tongue. I'm not ready to be that old yet."

"Just wait. I'll be a grandpa and I'll still be railing more women than you do."

"Go to hell." Maksim rises from the chair. "Let me know when the lovebirds are ready to leave."

A knot forms at the pit of my stomach. "Of course."

"Oh, and did you hear? Bogdan died."

I lean back into my chair as I take in the news. Bogdan has been the head of the Serpents, a bratva that I've been warned of severally in the past. My father brokered peace with them when I was a little boy, but not after two of my uncles and five cousins got murdered.

Nikolai, Bogdan's oldest son, is known for his unpredictability. Some say that he isn't in his right mind. This will require careful navigation. We have to get along with them without giving up any of our power, and that is a balance that seems so difficult of late.

"We will have to arrange a meet up in a neutral place." I say. "Make it look like we are willing to work with them."

"You want me to set it up?"

"No. Wait until they contact us. They need us more than we need them."

"That is true. With our control over the southern ports, they don't even come close to doing our business."

"I'll let you know what time Karlen and Ivanna leave tonight."

"And are you going to ask him about the coke before he leaves?"

I ponder about it. What I need is for Ivanna to fall in love with Karlen and accept this marriage soon as possible. That means I need him to be charming and happy. If we argue, we might ruin the evening for everyone. "I'll wait until tomorrow morning. Tell Sergio that I'm looking into it. Let Karlen and his fiancée have fun tonight."