33| sacrifice

ISAAK

[Flashback]

"I can't talk right now. I'm at the hospital with Diane," I say to Luciano on the other line. "Well you're going to have to do something brother because I sure can't," He says. I furrow my brows, getting up from my seat so I could get away from the ears.

"I'm sorry, Luciano," I started, my voice low and tense, "I can't talk to you right now. Diane is in the hospital, and I need to be here for her." Luciano let's out a sigh on the other end of the line. "I understand, brother," he said. "But you're going to have to figure something out, because I can't keep doing all of this by myself." I ran a hand through my hair, frustration building inside of me. "I know," I said. "But right now, I need to focus on Diane."

"I'm on my way to her house."

"Why, what are doing there?"

"I'm gonna stop Viktor's men from killing her sister." My head shot up and I looked at the back of me to see if Diane had returned and to my luck, she was still in the room. I clench my jaw. "Fuck," I mutter, hanging up. I scroll on my phone and find Viktor's number, calling him.

"Ah, Isaak. I didn't expect your call so soon-"

"Tell your men to stop what they're doing."  He hummed like he was thinking about it. "No," My jaw clenched.  "I let you decide, and you made your choice. You chose your little nurse at the expense of her sister's death,"

"I didn't chose anything Viktor,"

"Well, what a shame. Your father left this earth with.. a lot of unfinished business. And unfortunately for you, you have to pay for your parents mistakes," He says like it's my first time hearing this. "Trust me, this isn't personal."

I gritted my teeth, hanging up.

That bastard.

The door swung open, revealing a woman with her light hair tied in a perfect bun with a broad smile.

"I did it!" she exclaimed, jumping up and down with excitement. "I got into my dream job! They accepted me!" I couldn't help but smile as I embraced her in a hug. It had been her dream for so long and it was finally coming true. I could see the relief, joy, and excitement wash over her as she savored this moment.

"I told you so didn't I?" I say as we separated from the hug. Her blue eyes were sparkling with tears of joy. "I know but-"

"You doubted yourself." She sighs, knowing I was right. "Yeah but now, now nothing can make me doubt myself,"

"I guess you were right after all," she admitted with a smile.

"Does this mean I can get hurt and the first person I call is you?"

"No, no, no mister. This means that you stay out of trouble so you don't cause me any stress," she said with a mock-stern voice. "You know I don't like bad things  happening to you,"

"Of course, I'll be the most responsible person ever," I joked.

"I wish I could say I love the way you lie, but I can't, not at the expense of you."

□□□

(present time)

As I expected, Viktor had brought the boy back. The cherry on top is that he returned him exactly like I wanted, unscathed.

"All I need is  a name." I say, my voice low.

"If I tell you right now, promise you won't kill me Sir," The room falls silent. "I beg you Mr Rivera,"

"You don't need to beg me, I won't kill you- at least not now," I said. "But you're going to tell me everything. You're going to tell me every single thing you know about my organization, every single thing you know about the Zwane family, and if you hold back one piece of information, I promise you, you will suffer a fate worse than death."

He swallowed. "Yes, Sir."

"Now, tell me about the Zwane family. How did you get involved with them?" I asked. He took a deep breath, preparing myself for the flood of memories that were about to rush back to him. "The Zwane family runs most of the drug trade in the region," He began.

"They've been in the business for generations. When my father was still alive, he and I got involved with them, but we were only ever small players, we never had any real power in the organization- and I was way too young. After my father died, the Zwanes were quick to make their move."

"How and why did they invade my business? and why do they have a tie with Viktor?"

"Your business was thriving, Mr Rivera. They wanted a bigger piece of the pie, so they saw you as a threat,"

"They allied with Viktor because he was just as ruthless as they were. They used your rivalry to their advantage, they got Viktor to attack your father's empire which is now yours, knowing that it would take your attention away from them," He said. I remained quiet for a long moment, taking in the information I had just given him.

Oh Viktor, he didn't know what was coming.

"Boss, what if he's lying to you? and Viktor just told him to say all of those things?" One of my men say but I shake my head. "Viktor wants me on his side so he can overthrow me. Hence, my marriage to the Russian. He wouldn't risk me knowing any of this information, " I mutter the rest to myself.

"I don't know boss,"

"Mr Rivera, I swear. I swear on my mother's grave. I don't want to be a part of this anymore," He practically cried. "I want to get out, but I'm in too deep. I need help."

"What exactly do you need?" I asked. "I need protection, I need to be able to walk away from all of this without the Zwanes or anyone else coming after me," He told me.

"Don't worry, that's all secured. You have my word,"