Well, look who decided to post another chapter... yeah, I'm back. I've turned into that lil shit that hasn't posted in a very, very long time. I know that, you know that. You're probably a little ticked, trust me, I'm not pleased with myself either. But, here it is. Honestly, this story is gonna be a bit slow going because i just don't know where I want this one to go anymore! i had it all set out, but because so many things have gotten in the way, well, it's just gone all fuzzy. But, it will get done. Thank you all for you continuous support. You're all amazing.

P.S. I have an idea for an Advanced Warfare fanfic... are any of you interested or...? I want to know what you want :) Played the campaign in 8 hours(really should have taken breaks :P)

Enjoy,

AdmiralChirko

Slowly, I rounded the table and sat to Vlad's right. When I looked into the Inner Circle's eyes, it looked as though some were jealous. Well, who could blame them? I was sitting next to their leader. I felt a very cold and distant aura emanating from Vladimir. This was not new, for me. It was a part of his image. Below the table I felt him gently pat my thigh and glace at me from the corner of his eye. The table concealed this movement – he would never have done this if it didn't.

"Veta, explain to me what transpired." The tone of his voice spoke volumes. I could tell that he wanted me to tell him and the rest of them what happened. Honestly, I didn't see why. But, over the years, I've learned not to question Vlad – he always had his reasons. My eyes glanced around the room. These men had the coldest eyes I had seen in quite some time. Drawing in a breath, I steadied myself. This was going to be interesting.

"Mother and father left to go somewhere. They didn't tell me where. A few minutes later, I watched through the window the car explode. I knew it couldn't have been an accident. A car just doesn't explode like that. The explosion knocked me onto the ground. I got up and ran into the office. I heard men storming the house and I wanted to make sure there wasn't any incriminating evidence left behind. There was a portable hard drive that I managed to stash away before they came into the room," During all of what I was saying, I tried to keep my eyes focused forward. I didn't want to see the shame in their eyes, "Once I hid it, they stormed into the room. I tried to run but one of them tackled me to the ground and subdued me. In particular two men - Shepherd and a man he called 'Ghost' - tortured me. Ghost didn't want to but Shepherd made him partake. After a while, Shepherd knocked me out… then Yuri found me." Then… I ended up here.

I exhaled and looked down at the table. Even with leaving out the key details, it had been hard to tell. Saying it out loud and for others to hear had solidified its realness. The room was eerily silent. All you could hear was the gentle hum of the air conditioner. It seemed like an eternity before Vlad spoke.

"What you did helped the Inner Circle and I very much so. A lapse in judgement in part by one of my associates almost had a fair amount of shipment information in the clutches of the enemy. We are thankful for that, Veta."

"Who let it be left behind?" I looked up to see an older man sitting at the far end of the table. Volk was his name. I remembered seeing him twice when I was younger. Looking into his eyes, he looked tired. There was one thing that stood out prominently from his comment – why would he question Vlad so blatantly? These Inner Circle members are so loyal to Vlad. Sitting next to him, I can feel their jealously surrounding me. Finally, I found the courage to look back up. Everyone's eyes were trained on Volk.

"He's been taken care of." At the tone of Yuri's voice, I looked over at him. Was that the person he was talking about before? Was that man the traitor? I could see no other rational. Damn, these men can be so secretive. I tried to keep as still as possible. Drawing unwanted attention to myself would not be wise. Suddenly, Vlad stood up. Almost immediately, the other men around him including myself stood at attention.

"God is with us." The words tumbled out of his mouth.

"God is with us!" Under my breath, I whispered as the group roared in unison. God is with us – bullshit. That stupid statement has been uttered by Vlad far too many times. I don't know why he says it. For all the crap he's done – even if there was a God – I don't think that he'd have his back. As the room went quiet, the men who had gathered exited the room. As each one walked by me, I could see them glance into my eyes. They seemed quite intrigued by my presence. Looking into some of their eyes, it was as though they saw me as a threat… or a pawn. The remark Yuri had made about the traitor he had dealt with… that meant there could be another one. If they knew who I was, they could potentially use that against Vlad. These were the times that I could never be certain where Vlad's loyalties truly did lie.

Keeping my face sullen and my breathing calm, the rest of the men exited the room. Now, the only occupants were Vlad, Yuri and I. Inside, I knew I was safe. These three men would never harm me in this setting. My eyes followed Yuri as he took a few steps over to the door, making sure it was locked.

"Yuri." Vlad's voice commanded. Yuri turned to face him. Their eyes connected… I could not tell what was going on through those eyes. Both of them were thinking something – I had to figure it out.

"I understand."

"What? What do you understand? Vlad? Yuri?" Finally, Vlad faced me. The once hardened expression he once blazoned across his face took on a softer, more docile look. For what had seemed like forever, it felt like I finally had someone who was on my side. I had not seen Vlad look at me this way in sometime… not since I was a little girl.

"They thought I was at your house, Veta. That's why they attacked so forcefully. Your parents car was targeted because they thought that it belong to me and my associates." Vlad wrapped his arms around my body – I could feel myself start to tremble. It was Vlad's fault… but he was all I had. That text… it was meant for me. He was trying to warn me. My eyes started to sting.

"Vladimir… you are the only one I have left." Once these words escaped my lips, I could not help but find myself on the verge of breaking down. My family was gone – the only one who remained was holding his arms around me. This man – wanted by more than a few people – was the only one who I could truly trust. If irony could be the embodiment of people, it would be Vlad and I. For all of the horrendous things he had done, I needed to trust him – this was a matter of survival.

"I know, Veta, I know... but you are a Makarov - we are tough as nails and smart as the oldest of scholars."

"That is you Vlad. You know me - I have always been the outcast in our family." I tried to take a step away from Vlad, but he simply held me tighter.

"Think about this - do you really think that I believe that? I have known you since you were born. Whenever I was with you, you would always copy me. Your parents use to have me watch you from time to time. I still remember the time I had to talk to some of my associates. I put you to bed in your room. I made sure you were sleeping. Once the conversation was done and they left, I went to the kitchen cupboard to get some food. That is where we were having the conversation, the kitchen. As I opened the cupboard, you were nestled in there. When I asked what you were doing, you told me that 'you were being like me.'" I could not help but laugh. Thinking back to it, I guess I really did have my 'Makarov' moments.

"Vlad, promise me you will protect me."

"I promise... but you do not need protection - you need education." Confused, I looked up into Vlad's eyes. In them, I could see pride… but why?

"I do not understand."

"I never want anything to happen to you like what happened those few weeks ago... neither do you. You need to learn how to be like your cousin. You never have to truly be what people think you are. You know what I have done... what I do... I trade blood for money... I kill, I torture.. I destroy... but you also know me. When people are not around, I do have a side of compassion. I will help teach you to hone your darker side... you have potential." Vlad's eyes were filled with such passion and fire that it startled me. Everything he was saying… made sense. I needed to learn to have a rough exterior. Not that it would have helped those few weeks ago…

"With you, I know that will be easy."

"I know you are still hurting from what happened, but you will get through this." The warmth of Vlad's finger tips brushed up against my cheeks, wiping away stray tears. I had not even noticed I had started to cry. I found myself laying my head against his chest. It felt good being able to do this. I would not be able to do this for some time. Even so, I could not just let myself turn into a blubbering mess… not here, at least.

A loud knock came from the other side of the door. Immediately, Vlad pushed me away from him and the darkness crept back into his expression. I took a step back and looked towards the flag that had been with me all my life. The door creaked from behind me.

"What?" Yuri commanded, annoyed.

"The Bird is ready." Intrigued, I turned back towards the duo. Yuri whispered something inaudible to the man at the door and closed it. With a nod, Vlad turned to me and caulked his head towards the door. As I walked towards him, he put his hand across my chest to halt me.

"Before you go, you'll need this." Vlad opened his suit jacket to reveal a bullet proof vest. Along the holster were two Five-Sevens. He grasped the handle of one and held it out towards me. He was giving me one of his personal weapons…? Either he trusts me… or some shit is going down…

"I… don't really know how to use one of these…" My hands grasped the barrel of the gun. The safety was on – that was for the best.

"You will learn – sometimes just having it sends a message. You will also need this." Vlad walked over to where he was originally seated. From beneath the table, he pulled out an extra bullet proof vest. Once he walked back over to me, he placed it over top of my head. From prior experience, I adjusted it the best that I could.

"This is kind of big, Vlad."

"That is going to be the least of your worries, Veta." He was not wrong. I needed to shut up and go along with whatever was happening. Yuri opened the door and my eyes immediately were drawn upon two heavily armed guards. Instinctively, I found myself wanting to hide and run, but I stopped myself. If I was ever going to fit in, I needed to be more like my cousin. Vlad started out of the room and I followed, following in line beside Yuri. From this point forward, I had to be another person in Vlad's world. Putting on a stoic face was harder than I thought it would be. With each person that I walked by, I kept thinking they knew about our relationship. Any of Vlad's kin would be in danger of traitors and enemies.

The building that I walked through looked unfamiliar to say the least. I could not even tell if I was in Russia. I would have no reason not to be… unless Vlad's base was somewhere no one would ever think to look. Where was I really? Now that I had a moment to think about this, I had been unconscious for weeks. It was possible that I could have been transferred to somewhere more than once. With each corridor we went down, I felt myself itching to know where I was and were we were going. Speaking up now would be unwise… I would simply have to wait. After a few minutes of constant walking, we were escorted up four flights of stairs. Where were we going?

Suddenly, we reached the top and a guard pushed a door open. Waiting for the three of us was a helicopter. This was the last thing I wanted to be doing. Yuri, I knew for a fact, my deal with heights – I just do not do them. Biting my lip, I followed Vlad as he walked towards the machine. This was not going to be pleasant. He easily boosted himself up and Yuri followed in suit. I could feel my body screaming out in pain. I had been trying to keep it out of my mind, but for all the shit I went through, it was not happening. Thank god I had stashed some of the painkillers from my room as I left.

Gritting my teeth, I firmly planted my foot onto the base of the helicopter. Yuri gently grabbed my hand and helped me up. Ugh… from the bottom of my stomach, I could feel my insides churning unhappily. As I sat down, I felt myself starring into my cousin's eyes. Very slightly, I could see Vlad shake his head. Feeling the helicopter take off, I closed my eyes. This was going to be a long ride.