Chapter 61 – Once a Tiger

Kat opened her front door softly, surprised to find it unlocked. She hoped everything was ok with Stacy and Kale. They never left the door unlocked.

She tiptoed into the house and peaked into the living room. She found Kale asleep on the couch, curled up into himself and Stacy asleep in the armchair, head lawling to one side as he snored softly.

She was going to miss taking care of them, she mused as she walked into the hall.

With a loving smile she pulled a few blankets out of the hall closet and spread one over Stacy and then with a sniffle she spread one over Kale, lifted his arm and crawled onto the couch with him, covering them both with the blanket. Kale groaned a bit in his sleep, wrapped his arms around Kat and settled his chin on her head.

With a small sigh Kat allowed the familiar feelings of one of her protectors holding her to comfort her and she slipped into a fitful slumber.

Stacy woke up at 5:30 to a pounding on the door. He jumped up and grabbed his Glock off the coffee table beside him. He noticed Kat was back and then headed to the door to silence the knocking before whoever it was woke her up. Stuffing the gun into the back of his pants he went to the door and opened it, snarling face a warning who ever was there not to mess with him if they valued their lives.

Two men stood on his doorstep. He'd never seen them before in his life and he had no idea what they could want.

They were a little well dressed for Echo Park. They were wearing the well cut but bland black suits that those in organized crime were partial to. They looked similar, like they were related.

"Who're you?" Stacy snarled.

"We're looking for Kat." The slightly taller and older looking man said assertively but cautiously. It was like he knew he was dealing with a loose cannon and a dangerous man but he still planned on getting what he wanted.

"Who...The fuck...Are you?" Stacy growled out again, more forcefully.

"I'm her brother, Josef." The older man finally answered after trying to stare Stacy down. He was taken aback when it didn't work.

It had been apparent to Stacy that the man wasn't use to having his requests denied and when the man admitted he was Kitten's long lost older brother Stacy knew why. The man was involved in fairly high levels of the mob so he no doubt was use to having his orders obeyed without question. Stacy hated to break it to him but they weren't in Brooklyn or Queens, they were in L.A. And the Tigers were the people to reckon with there, not Kat's brothers.

Then Stacy realized that every time Kat almost said the name of the brother who'd planned on giving her away she said Jay. J for Josef. Stacy threw his hardest right hook and it connected with the white man's jaw, dropping him like a stone.

Stacy shook out his stinging right hand and looked down and the prone form of Kat's brother.

"Believe that fucker." Stacy grinned at having gotten revenge for a despicable act he had figured he'd never have gotten revenge for.

The younger man looked at his fallen brother for a second in shock before looking at the irate black man in front of him.

"What was that for?"

"Who the fuck are you?" Stacy turned on his next victim, in the mood for a good old fashion fight.

"Kat's brother Ivan." The man answered and backed up a few steps.

"You have anything to do with his plan to sell MY Kitten to some old man in a business deal?"

"Come again? I do not know what you are talking about."

"You didn't know her older brother Jay...She'd never say his whole name...Was going to sell her to a business acquaintance of his fathers to solidify some deal? You never knew why she ran away?" It was clear from the look on Stacy's face he found that hard to believe.

"No, I thought she ran because she just got sick of living with us and because she was so heart broken about mama. I did not know Josef planned anything so sick. I loved my little sister, even if I did admire Josef too much and followed him a bit mindlessly. If I had known what he was up to I would have stopped him."

Stacy believed the younger man in front of him. He looked almost distraught. Josef was waking up from his forced and unexpected nap.

"What was that for?" Josef asked.

"That was for what you tried to do to MY Kitten and for making her have to run away so you couldn't go through with your nasty ass plan that's what. Now what are the two of you doing here?"

"Our father is in town and he's going to make a play to get Kat back."

"No shit. You're a bit late. He's already kidnapped our friend Sean and says we only get him back if Kat gives herself over to him. He's going to call again at 9 tonight to discuss it further. And Kitten plans on giving herself to him." Stacy growled, showing why he had been able to make it up so high as a tiger. He was both incredibly ruthless and able to act the part, snarling and ready to brawl.

"He's kidnapped her friend Sean?" Ivan asked, shooting a look at his brother.

"Yeah." Stacy sighed. Kat was so smart, how were her brothers so simple?

"Can we talk to our sister?" Ivan asked, being careful to put the fact that he knew how tenuous his welcome into the house would be into his tone.

"She's asleep. She disappeared last night after she got the news about Sean and she just turned up sometime this morning around 5 would be my guess."

"This is very important. We can help her get Sean back and not turn herself over to our father."

"Why didn't you say so?" Stacy said and led the two men to the living room. Stacy had a feeling there was more to the story then the men had let on to that point but if they could still get Sean back he was willing to hear them out. He had a feeling these men could be the inside connection that Kat had needed.

He walked up to the couch and crouched down.

"Kitten." He called softly. "Come on baby girl, wake up for me."

Kat's eyes blinked open.

"Stace?" She asked sleepily and yawned. "Did I fall asleep?"

"You must have. Where were you last night?"

Kat blushed.

"Across the street."

"Ah Kat. He didn't hurt you did he?" Stacy brushed 4 feet of blond hair out of Kat's face. He'd known it was coming but that didn't mean he had to be pleased about it.

"No. Of course not." Kat lied easily and changed the subject. "Did you hear anything else about Sean?"

"Sort of. There's someone here to see you."

"Who?" Kat looked puzzled.

Stacy moved so she could see her brothers.

Kat jumped up and hid behind Stacy. Kale woke up and grabbing his gun off the end table stood behind Kat where he still had a view of the strangers in his living room.

"What are they doing here?" She was clearly terrified.

"They say they can help us get Sean back and make sure you don't have to go through with your plan."

"But Josef is the one who wanted to sell me in the first place." Kat whimpered.

Kale growled and cocked his gun. Stacy steadied him with a glance as Kat's brothers looked at each other, contemplating how safe they were.

"But the other one didn't know anything about it." Stacy informed Kat.

Kat looked up at Stacy and he wrapped an arm around her to make sure she knew he was there for her.

"Why do you care to help me now мой брат?" (my brother)Kat addressed Josef.

"Because there's been something shocking come to light that I didn't know before and it made me realize just what an asshole our father is. I am sorry for what I did to you Kat." Josef stumbled over the unfamiliar name, having never called his little sister anything less then Ekaterina before.

He didn't believe in affectionate names because they allowed you to get too close to someone who might end up leaving you or being taken from you. Such was the life of a high echelon Mobster.

"I know that sorry will never be enough but I was young, and just following my father's orders. I though I wanted to be just like him. I've been slowly realizing that even for a mob boss our father is purely evil."

"What brought about this startling change of heart Josef?" Kat was finding it hard not to talk with a Russian accent when faced with her brothers, who had heavy accents themselves. She fought to remember that Stacy and Kale deserved to hear this all, so she couldn't switch to Russian herself.

"Kat, our mom did not die. Sergei faked her accident and took her. She'd been planning on leaving him again for your father and he was not having it. He's been keeping her under lock and key all this time and we did not even know." Ivan broke in.

"My mom's not dead?" Kat whispered, shocked.

"No. And we can rescue her at the same time as we get your friend Sean back."

"Mama is alive?" Kat couldn't believe it. She'd spend the last 5 years of her life believing her mother was dead and gone. That she was alone in the world other then for her brothers. To be told the mother she'd spend the last 5 years mourning, and talking to for strength was not in heaven as she'd believed but alive in the custody of her ruthless step father made her want to break down and cry. It made her want to fall to the ground and sob, to hug her knees to her chest and weep. But she knew now, as she had when the same feelings had overtaken her as a tiger, that giving into the sorrow would solve nothing.

"Yes EKater..."

"Vanya, it's Kat or Kitten. Nothing else." Kat didn't want her brothers to start calling her Ekaterina. She didn't see it as her name anymore and she didn't want people to use it. She leaned heavily on Stacy.

"Vanya? I thought his name was Ivan."

"Vanya is a familiar form of Ivan. I grew up calling him Vanya like mama." Kat answered.

She'd loved Ivan. She knew he wasn't like Josef. She also knew perhaps he wished he was more like Josef but Kat knew deep down he wasn't the same sort of person, wasn't as ruthless. She'd even known if she'd told him what Josef had been up to he may have even tried to help her. She just hadn't been willing to take the chance with something as important as her life.

"So Kat, do you wish to try and work with us to get Mama back?" Ivan asked. "We will only have perhaps 48 hours to create a plan and put it in motion."

"He's calling me at 9 tonight, how will we have 48 hours?"

"He is going to call you at 9 tonight to make a plan for the exchange. He is not going to want to make the exchange until two days hence." Josef answered. "He does not know we have jumped sides on him because he does not know we found out about mama."

Kat looked like she might not be sure if she could even trust the two men from her past that were standing in her living room.

"Kat, you have to believe we want to help you." Ivan implored. "It's our mother he has too; we didn't know what Sergei had done to her. I swear we didn't know."

"I believe you Vanya, it's him I don't know about." Kat answered, pointing a finger at Josef.

"Ekaterina I swear to god I did not know about mama. I knew what I was doing to you but I was young and father had just given me more responsibility and it went to my head. I was following him blindly and it was stupid. I can't say that I will not take over his holdings if he should die two days from now, but I will not be evil like he was. Kat, I've come to realize how important family is, or should be, to everyone. And it's not important to my father. He would kill either of us for a deal too and we are his sons. That is a hard thing to accept about your own father."

"Alright Josef, if you can remember to call me Kat and accept the fact that you'll be following the orders of the three of us," Kat made a gesture that encompassed her and her two friends, "then your in and we'll take all the help you can offer."

"Take orders from you?" Josef looked shocked. "But you are just a little girl. We are the ones who know what is going on."

"I'm not a little girl anymore." Kat answered. "And Sergei has Sean. That makes this a Tiger concern and therefore the Tigers will be running this show. We need to call Connor and then head down to his place to gather the troops."

"The troops?" Ivan asked.

"Our gang, the Tigers." Kat replied, and for the first time since she left pride could be heard in her tone. She'd been a Tiger, toughest of the tough. She could do this.

She had to.

"You are a member of the Tigers of L.A.?" Josef asked in shock.

"We all were, we left but I guess we're all going back." Kat answered.

"Hell yeah!" Stacy and Kale answered in unison. They'd figured the Tigers could handle the situation from the start and they were glad Kat had finally agreed.

There was another banging on the door. Stacy and Kale both put hands on their weapons and went to answer the door together.