Right Behind You

Chapter Fifty-Eight: Passionfruit

"Listen, seeing you got ritualistic

Cleansin' my soul of addiction for now
Cause I'm fallin' apart
Yeah, tension between us just like picket fences
You got issues that I won't mention for now
Cause we're fallin' apart

Passionate from miles away
Passive with the things you say
Passin' up on my old ways
I can't blame you, no, no
Passionate from miles away
Passive with the things you say
Passin' up on my old ways
I can't blame you, no, no

Listen, hard at buildin' trust from a distance
I think we should rule out commitment for now
Cause we're fallin' apart
Leavin', you're just doing that to get even
Don't pick up the pieces, just leave it for now
They keep fallin' apart." 

-Drake (Passionfruit)

Alexei: 

Never in my life did I think the torturer would become the victim. I had lived in my head basking in the thought of bringing others pains, seeing them pay for the crimes they committed against my family, my blood, the oath they vowed to keep to us. Yet, here I was sitting in a damp, cold, dark, underground cellar-like some sort of war criminal. I barely was fed or given anything to drink and quite frankly I had been used as a human punching and torture bag courtesy of none other than Omid himself. It was easy to be fooled by his aging self that he wouldn't be able to deliver blows, but I was gladly mistaken. I knew there would be trouble once he took off his shirt, the first couple of days.

I had open wounds and slashes from where knives had cut into me that needed to be cleaned soon or I would be meeting my make faster than I anticipated. I didn't even know what day it was, it was dark in here unless someone came in and turned on the light; barely any sound traveled down here and it had me wondering just how deep into the earth this cellar resided.

Maybe I was closer to Satan than I thought.

As weak and vulnerable as I felt at the moment, I did my best to mask it. I was Alexei Vasiliev a leader, I couldn't show weakness; I would never show it! Once my men back in Atlanta knew I went missing they would wage war for me, they would come barging at his doors demanding me back, they would never betray me. That was the hope I was clinging onto as I patiently waited in the dungeon for what would happen to me next.

There wasn't much to do in here, there wasn't anything in here besides myself and the chains that kept me hooked up to the wall. My wrists were sore from being kept tightly bound to them and every effort I made to release myself from the steel cuffs just injured my body further. Each day passed, my body grew weaker and weaker, my mind a constant circle of the ones who had betrayed.

Nikita.

And most importantly my own blood brother... Andrei.

When I got out of here I was going to rip him to shreds with my own hands, how dare he betray me! I was his boss, he took a blood oath and he easily dismantled that for Omid; the same man that put me here! Andrei claims that I had betrayed him, but I hadn't done anything to Kae, my men did. What responsibility fell on me? I thought she had been the mole, I would never admit my faults in front of my clan because it showed weakness and I could care for their thoughts on how I handled the situation.

That's what she got for rejecting my advances.

Maybe a bit more sympathy would be handed to her if she hadn't fallen for spineless brother.

What did he have that I didn't?

I was stronger, smarter, I could provide all the things her heart desires, yet she continuously went for him. Just my luck, she happened to be the daughter of the kind of guy you didn't want to have problems with if you wanted the best for your empire. But I did have faith in my men that nothing would hurt them or what we had built. I left Kirill in charge while I was away, the thought of being away for a few days would be enough before returning but I'm sure it had been a week now; they had to be worried for me.