Page 54 of Depraved Royals
I believed Idina’s mercurial nature, smothering one minute and cold and distant the next, was to be expected in a mother. I thought Erik’s brutalizing of Simeon and favoritism of me was character-building, meant to make me strong.
And I thought women were to be used and discarded. I didn’t know I’d meet one likeher.
Dani Pushkin turned my world upside down and shook it fucking hard.
I was a man of purpose, ready to fulfill my destiny and forge a new empire in blood and suffering. She and her family told me some hard truths, and I had to acknowledge the bullshit I’d been force-fed for so long. They could have cast me out, but they gave me a chance I didn’t even fucking deserve.
And that’s why I’m here.
My siblings know about Dani. Just today, Vera said Simeon is trying to step into my shoes, and that’s a dangerous prospect because he hates me more than he loves our mother. Dani is his likely target unless I can get Idina to muzzle the fucker and get him back on his leash.
My mother appears in the doorway. She’s been crying, and her eyes look sore.
“You betrayed me, Kal. I never thought you could be so cruel.”
There was a time I’d have been drowning in guilt to hear her say that. Now it sounds hollow. She’s not capable of that depth of feeling.
My turn to be the manipulative one.
“What do you mean?” I ask. “We’ve achieved a stunning victory.”
Idina narrows her eyes, her lips a thin line. I sit down, but she doesn’t move.
“You aren’t looking at this logically, Idina. I marry the Pushkin girl and become the only man other than Fyodor in the immediate family. That gives me an automatic claim, but without any of the bloodshed. I don’t have to risk my life, and there’s no chance of a repeat of what happened to Erik.”
Idina’s eyes bore into me, her voice colder than liquid nitrogen.
“That isn’t good enough. I want Fyodor dead. I want all of them fuckingdead.”
The little kid in me is still so afraid of her, but I’m not backing down. My world is bigger now.
“I won’t do it. Do you understand?”
Idina tries to speak, but I cut her off. “No. Shut the fuck up. I’m sick of being lied to. I’m done. You have nothing to threaten me with.”
“I have Simmi,” she says. She has never called him a pet name in his life before now. “I can always depend on my Simeon.”
I shake my head. “Look at yourself. What are you talking about? Simeon can’t pick up where I left off. Without me, you can’t have your glorious fucking coup, so why keep this up? You could just let it go.”
Idina’s smile is a rare sight and never was it less sincere than it is right now. Her lips stretch over her teeth, and I try to hide my disgust.
“We’ll see,” she says. “But you can’t escape from fate, my son. And neither can little Danica Pushkin.”
I can’t kill my mother. No way.
Do I have any cards left to play?
“Dani is pregnant,” I say. “From the dates, it must have happened the first time we were together. Where does fate fit intothat?”
Idina closes her eyes. “Mark my words, Kal. I will have my revenge, with or without your help. Now get out.”
I head for the door, my heart heavy.
I may never set foot in this house again. Despite everything, it stings.
Just like the Pushkin mansion, our house has ghosts, but the specters are the ones who are happy and free. Everywhere I look, I see shadows of the family we could have been, living their lives with love and togetherness.
Idina’s voice pierces my sorrow.