Begin Again novel Chapter 228

Liam headed straight to his study as soon as they got home and spent almost an hour on the phone with his father.

Like he'd expected, Clarke was against the meeting and even more disturbed when he brought up the idea of dropping the charges.

"Are you insane?" His father barked on his end, and if they were in the same room, Liam knew he would have likely throttled him. "We almost lost you. You almost died! How can you even think about this?"

"What other choice do I have, Dad? He's watching Eden. We're getting married in three weeks. I don't want to keep looking over my shoulder. What kind of life will that be for Eden and our children?"

"James told you there's a way to handle this. Aleksei and his brother are dogs. They should be put down."

"And what will that make us?" Liam asked sadly. "I didn't call to ask for your permission. I was simply informing you the meeting with Andrei is happening."

He clicked off before his father could push with his insane proposal.

Liam sat on the edge of his desk and called James, and he was in his study within minutes.

"Arrange a meeting with Andrei," he told him tersely.

James refused outright. "I can't allow you to do that, Sir."

"I'm getting married in three weeks; I want to have a wife, my two kids and my life, James. Andrei wants something from me. I'm guessing he wants his brother out of prison. If dropping the charges means keeping my family safe, I'll do it. Make it happen."

"Your father won't agree to this."

"My father has his family, and I have mine. I have to do what's right for mine."

"Sir—"

"Enough, James!" Liam growled, upending the items on his desk, startling the other man with the level of violence he was displaying.

Since the shooting, he had gravitated between rage and apathy, moments of extreme sadness and agitation. The doctors had said it was all normal signs of PTSD.

Liam, though, didn't think it was PTSD.

It smelled a lot more like fear and helplessness and failure.

He was terrified he would never be able to keep his family safe if he didn't give in to Andrei's demands, whatever they were. And he felt extremely helpless at the lack of control over his own life.

"Get me that meeting, James," he grunted, still gripping the edge of the desk tightly.

Half an hour later, after assuring Eden everything was just dandy, they set off.

"When will it end, James?" Liam asked, his heart burning as much as his bullet wound.

"Tonight, Sir. It ends tonight," the other man replied as he pushed him inside the car, and they headed to the Ivanovs' compound in Linksfield.

The meeting took place in Andrei's study, and they got down to business as soon as they sat down.

Both men had a deep-seated disgust for the other, the hatred between them so thick, one would need a katana sword to slice through it. So niceties were not necessary, and they skipped all pleasantries and handshakes.

Surprisingly though, Andrei's staff was hospitable, offering Liam their most expensive bottle of bourbon.

"No thanks," he pushed the glass away and stretched out his legs in front of him.

"Ouch, I'm offended by your rudeness Anderson," Andrei snickered from his mahogany desk, touching his chest in feigned heartbreak.

"Screw you," Liam growled. There was no way he'd take anything from the Ivanovs. He wouldn't put it past them to lace his drink with cyanide or something equally deadly.

"You sent people to watch my fiancée just to get my fucking attention. So tell me what you want and make it quick!"

"I think there's been a misunderstanding," Andrei said as he poured himself a drink. He took a few sips and waved the glass at him to show him it's not laced with anything.

"I don't understand where all this hostility from you is coming from." Andrei continued as he stood up and paused in front of the massive French windows. They showed a beautiful desert oasis during the day. But at night, there was just desolate darkness, pretty much like how Liam's heart has been over the past couple of weeks.

"I always liked you, Anderson. I even betted on a few of your races. My money was always on you, of course. But you—for some reason, you hate me. Why is that?" Like a whiny little child, Andrei demanded his attention from the window as he turned, fished out a pack of Marlboros and pulled out a cigarette. His guard rushed to his side to light it for him. He took a few puffs and blew out a massive cloud of nicotine.

Liam snorted in disgust. "Your brother fucking torched my depot and burned my trucks. I lost half a billion in revenue because of him, and you 'always liked me'?"

"I had nothing to do with any of that," Andrei held his hand over his heart as if he was making some solemn oath. "You know I was handling things abroad, and when I found out what Aleksei did, I immediately came home to fix things."

"You call stalking my fiancée fixing things?"

"How else was I supposed to get your attention? Be glad it's me and not one of my partners keeping tabs on you." Andrei took another puff.

"I suppose you expect me to thank you?" Liam gritted his teeth.

Andrei ignored him as he crossed the room and sat down in the armchair across from him, throwing him a gentle smile when he finally spoke. "I ran after you like a little bitch for two weeks, Anderson. I was at the hospital daily, but your men kept turning me away."

"I'm sure you can appreciate their reasons."

"Here's the thing," Andrei murmured. "Aleksei told me you were close to signing over twenty percent of Lusso to us when you attacked him."

"I attacked him?" Liam shook his head incredulously. Aleksei had a seriously warped sense of reality. "He almost killed my son!"

"I didn't ask you here to rehash the past," Andrei said as he slid the bloody envelope in his direction.

Liam had tried so hard to ignore it since he sat down, but now he had no choice but to confront the crimson stains, and he wondered whose blood it was. His or Aleksei's?

"I want in!" Andrei announced. "My partners are eager to get to work. Two weeks is a long time to lose money. So let's bury the hatchet."

"Why would I give you a piece of Lusso when your brother tried to kill me? What's in it for me?"

"You get to go on your honeymoon and live out your pedestrian life of marital bliss," Andrei smiled. "Congratulations, by the way. Your impending nuptials are the talk of the town."

"We would invite you, but—" Liam pointed at his side where he was shot.

"Now, let's talk business," Andrei said seriously. "I want that twenty percent."

Liam laughed, unable to believe his ears.

"What's so funny?" Andrei narrowed his eyes at him, his mouth hardening into a thin line.

"I thought you wanted me to drop the charges, so your brother can walk," he murmured. "I thought that's why I'm here."

"Why would I do that? I hate the idiot!" Andrei growled. "Do you have any idea how much money we've lost because of his erratic behaviour?"

Liam didn't since he was not privy to their finances. But he knew there was some discontent between the brothers. He'd assumed it was healthy brotherly rivalry, more so on Aleksei's part because, as the youngest, he had lived in Andrei's shadow all his life. But now, it seemed the rivalry he had imagined was much more than that.

Andrei seethed as he carried on with his rant. "I don't care if Leks doesn't make bail. Aero has decided not to intervene. We've distanced ourselves from the situation, and to be honest, he's safer inside. He's pissed off a lot of people, and they all want him dead. Myself included."

"He's your brother."

"There's no family in business, Anderson! He fucked up, and I'm here to clean up the mess and salvage relationships."

Liam nodded, took the empty glass and poured himself a shot. He raised it at Andrei and gulped it down.

He should give him all of Lusso just to get the Ivanovs out of his life. But he would be a fool to let them out of his sight. He had to keep them much closer than his other enemies. After all, they were far deadlier.

"You want twenty percent," Liam began after a brief pause. "But here's the thing, I still don't see how it benefits me."

"You don't, do you?" Andrei smiled. "I had a nice life overseas. I didn't want to come back to this shithole. But, you see, our partners are very angry because they lost a lot of money. And when people lose money, they do crazy things. I'd hate for your wedding day to turn into a massacre because that's exactly what will happen if you don't give me what I want."

The man's words turned Liam's blood to ice. Having been shot, whether accidentally or on purpose, he didn't doubt that the massacre Andrei spoke of could easily turn into a reality.

He poured himself another glass even though he'd already reached his limit of zero a long time ago.

"I'm adding a few conditions to the deal," he announced as he sipped his drink, reached for the bloody envelope and took out the agreement his legal team had initially drawn up.

He snatched the shiny Parker off the table to scribble his conditions, pushed the document back at Andrei, and finished his drink while the other man read through the new terms.

"Of course, we won't touch your family; that goes without saying. And I'm happy to keep the shipping and storage as separate entities."

"Good," Liam replied. He wanted no part of Anderson Logistics getting tangled up in shady activities. The previous deal had made them partners, but now outsourcing the shipping side of the deal to Aero made better sense.

"My legal team will be in contact with you with the new contract," Liam said as he stood up and threw on his coat. "Let's not see each other again, Ivanov. I've given you what you want. Just make sure your business doesn't fuck with my eighty percent or affect Anderson Logistics in any way. And the minute I feel my family's safety is under threat. I won't hold back. There's something about almost dying that changes you."

"There's no need for the threats, Anderson!"

"It's a promise."

"And I also have a condition."

Of course, he should have known, Liam thought as he paused to listen to the man's demands.

"Keep Aleksei behind bars. I don't want that asshole coming out and ruining my business."

"You know damn well it's not up to me. It's up to the state to oppose his bail."

With that, Liam turned on his heel and made his way out of the room. But Andrei stopped him yet again.

"Your woman—"

"Stay away from her!" Liam turned back from the door and snarled. The rage he'd put aside long enough to work out the deal was back and showed no sign of cooling.

"I would never have harmed her." Andrei insisted. "I love women."

"You fucking twisted her wrist, had your guards point guns at her head and then sent someone to watch her. Why? Why would you do that?"

"I think we've already covered that!" Andrei shrugged dismissively.

"What happened to you?" Liam asked. His history with the brothers dated as far back as their school days. They attended the same boarding schools, university programmes and masterclasses, and they weren't this crazy or vicious.

"Aero happened," Andrei said, a look of regret in his eyes. "I've always envied you, Anderson, but after seeing you with the little lady—"

"She's not little. She's a fucking grown-ass woman. Have some goddamn respect!"

"That!" Andrei clapped his hands. "That's exactly what I'm talking about. That fire in your belly, that devotion and commitment. That love! I hate that you've found it! You've found something I can never have."

"Why can't you?" Liam asked, baffled at why his relationship with Eden had become the subject of their discussion.

"Because love is weakness," Andrei said sadly. "And a man hated as much as I am cannot have any weaknesses. Hold on to the little lady. She's a lioness. You'll need her by your side."

Liam stared at him for a while, searching for some meaning behind his words, a hidden threat perhaps or a clear promise.

He found nothing but resignation and sadness and regrets in the other man's eyes, though.

"We choose our own path. It's never too late." He said over his shoulder, but he knew his words meant shit where the Ivanovs were concerned.

"Not if you're an Ivanov," Andrei said. "There is only one path."

Liam nodded and eased out of the room, feeling drained and exhausted by it all. But he felt lighter, too, like one is bound to feel when a disturbing chapter in one's life finally reaches a conclusion.