A special thanks to my reviewers and those who put this story on their alert and favourite list, your support means the world to me. This is my take on an alternate bratva universe, I don't have a beta so all possible spelling and grammatical errors are solely mine and I hope you guys do forgive me for the very many possible errors. I don't know any Russian so please forgive me if there are any mistakes.
And most importantly… I don't own Arrow or any of the characters in it ….. I am merely borrowing them for entertainment purposes.
I
If the minions looked like they feared her father, they were almost pissing their pants in the presence of the scrawny man. The air in the basement seemed to have suddenly turned cold and silent; two minions looked downright terrified while the perverted minion although scared wore an anticipatory look on his face. Felicity could see the amount of fear that this physically unassuming man inculcated in these strong bulky men, even her father looked on edge.
She decided to remain seated in the chair she was earlier tied to, she really didn't trust her legs not to buckle under her. As the scrawny man made his way inside the room, the minions lined up in the far corner of the room with their heads hung low, she wondered if she had magically been transported to the medieval times.
She saw that her father held himself stiff with a calculative look in his eyes, she recognized that look because it was the same look that she wore when she was trying to figure something out.
A part of Felicity was repulsed that she shared any trait to the man who had borne her. She realized that the man she wanted to meet for so long did not turn out be the one she had expected, this man who was standing in front of her was clearly involved in some super shady things. She had unknowingly put him up on a pedestal and he fell well short of it. Hadn't Caitlyn warned her just last night, she almost let out a groan. She was going to get a loud told you so from her, Caitlyn was not a vicious person in nature but she did love being right.
The two men in the room were sizing up each other, each one determining how to throw the first punch. It was quite an interesting sight, like two bulls were about to lock horns.
"Что мы имеем здесь?" The scrawny man spoke first, he arched a brow in suspicion. Felicity was filled with frustration, she didn't know what they were talking about, it unsettled her but she could certainly feel the animosity between them.
"Что вы делаете здесь Анатолий?" Her father frowned giving the man a cold long stare.
She could deduce that these two men were definitely not friends and that spelt trouble to her. Whoever this Anatoly was seemed to have some sort of hold on her father, it was a dead give away to her from the way her father held himself in front of the man. He had a defensive posture; she wished she could understand what they were talking about.
Anatoly let out a slow sarcastic laugh which made her cringe inside. She tried to keep herself calm and composed; panicking would be counterproductive in this situation.
"Вы... Forgive me we are being rude to this young lady Mikhail." Anatoly looked anything but apologetic.
"I didn't know you had a daughter Mikhail." The scrawny man accused her father in his heavily accented English. She was grateful that she could keep up with the situation around her, it was annoying not to know what these men were talking about, especially when they were talking about her.
"It was a long forgotten mistake Anatoly." Her father replied steadily, she looked at him with shock and hurt. He looked at her nonchalantly; she didn't know what hurt her most, his words? Or the way he was disregarding her right now?
She clearly remembered her childhood, he had never once treated her like a mistake until the day he had abandoned them. She remembered all the bed time stories, the tickling on the couch. She was extremely confused as to why he would say something as spiteful as that.
"You have been lying to the brotherhood for..." Anatoly looked at Felicity "How old are you sugar?" he looked at her expectantly, raising his brows.
"26." Felicity managed to whisper her answer, she was proud that she hadn't quivered under his terrifying gaze.
"26 years." He let out a maniacal laugh. She saw her father clench his fists behind his back, she was the only one with a view to his back.
"You have once again broken the brotherhood's rules." He snarled at her father, she flinched at Anatoly's enraged reaction but her father stood his ground.
"I did not break any rule Anatoly." Her father responded coolly. Anatoly scoffed at him, unable to believe the defiance from his second in command.
"When Egor called me, he told me there was situation, I was not expecting this." Anatoly spat angrily.
"Neither did I." Mikhail retorted calmly.
"She is your daughter but not a bratva woman care to explain why Mikhail." Anatoly dared him, he wanted to know how many more lies he was going to hear tonight. This was turning out to be a game to him.
"Her mother was a bitch, a smart and sexy bitch, she would sleep with me only if I married her. I was young and all I wanted to do was fuck her but I got bored soon and left. They hold no value to me." He explained blandly making Anatoly smirk in amusement.
It was that moment that Felicity truly despised herself, she had put her mother through a crucible when her father had left them and she had blamed her mother for years. This man who was her biological father was truly a vile man.
"Hold no value you say." He repeated contemplatively scratching his bearded jaw.
"She can become a part of the family now, it is not too late Anatoly." Her father told him hurriedly, unlike the times before there was a sense of urgency in his voice. He quickly composed himself but it was too late, Anatoly and Felicity had noticed his slip.
"You have run out of favours Mikhail." Anatoly told him maliciously.
"I am sure you can find a way around it." Mikhail responded almost pleadingly.
"We find ourselves in quite a pickle my friend." He taunted, enjoying the power he now held over Mikhail. He had been waiting way too long for something like this.
"Спросите у капитана в России." Anatoly barked at the minions who were silently standing at the back of the room.
"Ограждение их до завтрашнего заседания" He told minion number two, Felicity saw the resigned look in her father's eyes.
She knew something was horribly wrong, like she would never make it alive out of here wrong. She felt extremely foolish, her mother, her friends, her boyfriend all of them were going to be devastated. She had no one to blame but herself, she was reckless and now she was going to be punished for it.
"Ограждение их, а если они escape i будет иметь головы" He told them menacingly.
"Я не разочарует вас сэр" The minion replied with a hint of smile on his face, Mikhail's jaw ticked in restrained anger. Felicity noticed that the minion had somehow gained an upper hand over her father.
"I will see you soon sweetheart." Anatoly's saccharine tone made her almost blanch in repulsion.
With that he made his grand exit, her father let out a small disappointed sigh. He rubbed his forehead absently.
"Оставьте нам" Mikhail ordered, the minions looked at each other undecidedly.
"Я сказал оставить нас" Mikhail raised his voice, the minion in charge nodded at the other two.
"Пять минут" The minion told Mikhail, the response from Mikhail had been instant.
Mikhail had the minion pinned to the wall, he was choking him. Felicity yelped loudly, the sudden display of violence had her shivering in the chair. She saw the minion's face turning blue, Felicity was stunned into silence, she couldn't believe she was about to witness her father murder someone right in front of her. The other two minions moved forward to separate them but one glare from Mikhail halted their steps.
"Я все еще здесь заведующий, Вы хорошо помните о том, что" Mikhail spewed in anger, the minion sputtered and slumped to the floor unceremoniously. He struggled to catch his breath. The other two minions helped him up and out of the room. The footstep of the minions slowly faded into the distance.
Felicity got up from her chair, she was relieved that she hadn't crumbled to the floor. Her nerves were shot, it had been a long few hours. She walked to where Mikhail stood, he turned to face her.
"How could you say such horrible things about my mother?" She cried in anguish her eyes swollen with unshed tears.
"She loved you, a part of her still loves you." She refused to back down, her voice quaked with hurt and disappointment.
He locked on to her hateful glare. His eyes were sad, he was ready for anything that she had to say to him.
"Believe me I was just trying to protect you." He defended. He didn't like the idea of her hating him anymore than necessary. His answer irked her to no extent; the rage that had been simmering inside was ready to burst open.
"Now your fatherly instincts kick in? Where were you when I was bullied all through high school? Where were you when I almost died in college? Where were you when an asshole broke my heart? Where were you?" She went on a long tirade, she took deep long breaths and swallowed back the sob that was trying to escape her throat.
"By abandoning you, I gave you a chance at a real life." He replied softly.
"What is that supposed to mean?" She retorted in impatience.
"This is the Russian Mafia Felicity and I was all set to become the next leader in chief, the next Pakhan, there was no way I could have kept my family from being a part of it." He explained patiently but his reason infuriated her.
"Stop deluding yourself, you abandoned us for your greed, for power, for money so don't you dare tell me that you abandoned us for our well being." She snapped angrily.
"That is not true Felicity." He responded exasperatedly.
"If you truly loved us you could have walked away from them." She growled at him, unable to contain the disappointment and rage bubbling within her.
"It is not that simple, no man ever walks away from the bratva." He snapped back.
"So your solution was to walk away from us?" She relied on sarcasm to hide how hurt she truly was.
"Tell me how would you feel your entire life being controlled by the bratva, marrying a man you don't love, bearing sons who will follow their father into the bratva, bearing daughters who will be forced into the same fate as you." He was shaking with fury.
"Never being independent, never being appreciated." His eyes were filled with unshed tears. "Answer me." He roared.
"What's going to happen to me?" She asked, suddenly feeling too exhausted to fight.
"Nothing bad is going to happen to you I promise." He replied confidently but something told her that was not true.
"I can't leave, can I?" She knew she was going to be held here until they decided what was going to happen next.
"I am afraid not." He replied grimly.
"Then how can you promise nothing bad is going to happen?" She asked him, her voice was merely a feeble whisper.
"I have faith in the captain, he doesn't spill blood if he doesn't have to." He replied stubbornly.
"I am going to be killed aren't I?" She realized that they could have her killed, it all depended on that one person. A stranger was going to decide if she was going to live another day.
"No, just follow my lead tomorrow and just remember whatever I do or say is to keep you alive." He reassured her but it did nothing to the anxiousness that she was feeling.
"Alright." She nodded at him.
"How is Donna?" He asked after a long pause.
"She married a cop." She replied mockingly
"Trust Donna to explore all spectrums of society." He shot back with a hint of amusement.
"Do you have a family?" She asked him hesitantly.
"I have someone who I think of as a son." He replied, she instantly felt a pang of jealousy. In spite of everything that was happening she couldn't help but feel jealous, he doted on someone, loved someone, someone who was not her.
"Ее телефон сохраняет при звонке" Minion number two timidly made his way inside the room, he was carrying her beloved piece of technology. The minion quickly ducked out after giving her phone to her father, apparently the earlier display of violence from her father had scared him.
She flushed in embarrassment, she had totally forgotten about Barry and Caitlyn. They must be freaking out, she was flooded with immense guilt.
"Is anyone here with you?" Her father asked her.
"Yes, please don't hurt them." She replied with hesitation, she didn't want to put them in the line of fire.
"Ask them to leave the country now." He ordered, pacing in front of her.
"I am not sure they would leave without me." She replied, she knew her friends would never go back without her, they were really great that way.
"Convince them, their life may depend upon it." He barked making her jump out of her skin. She reluctantly took her phone
"Caitlyn?" She answered timidly.
"Where the hell are you?" She could hear her friend's panicked voice.
"We were just about to call the cops." She heard Barry rumble behind Caitlyn, she really hated being put on speaker.
"There is no need for that, I am fine." She replied as steadily as possible, she didn't want to raise any alarm bells.
"Where are you sweetheart?" Caitlyn asked her with a sigh.
"I couldn't wait Cate, I am with my father." She explained, it was the truth and hence very believable.
"We will be right over." Barry retorted swiftly.
"There is no need for that." She bit back, they can't come to her. Her body was stiff with anxiety.
"What do you mean?" Barry growled.
"I am going to stay back in Russia for a while, he wants to spend some time with me." She answered, again a lie but still so close to the truth.
"I don't think it is a good idea." Caitlyn replied patiently, she could hear banging noises in the background. Barry must be so furious with her, she really hated herself for lying to them.
"Barry please, I need some space." She begged.
"Are you sure about this sweetie?" Caitlyn asked softly, still no response from Barry that stung a bit.
"Yes, it is exactly what I want." She replied firmly, she bit the inside of her cheek, she didn't think sobbing on the phone would be a good idea.
"Fine, have it your way." Barry snapped.
"Can we at least meet you before we leave?" Caitlyn bargained, she could certainly sense something was wrong with her. She looked at her father, she knew she would need his help to go see her friends.
"Can I go meet them once?" She mouthed softly, dreading this could be the very last time she saw them. She was replied with a brief nod.
"Why don't we have breakfast together?" She suggested a little cheerfully.
II
They were seated at the corner most table, she was suddenly no longer feeling hungry. Minion number one whose name she was yet to learn had accompanied her, she could feel his eyes on her, his words still rang in her ears "don't do anything stupid."
"Barry please don't be mad at me." She pleaded as she kept her eyes trained on the food in front of her.
"What do you want me to say Felicity?" He asked in exasperation.
"You gave us a real good scare." Caitlyn tried to appease them both.
"That was not my intention." She responded grimly.
"We know that." Caitlyn gave her hand a good squeeze, she never thought this would be so hard. It was taking all her inner strength to keep a bold front.
"You were reckless." Barry scolded once again.
"And I apologize once more for putting you both through that." She responded fiercely, she knew she had made a grave error but there was nothing she could do about it now. She was trying to salvage the situation as best as possible.
"You look tense, is everything alright?" Caitlyn shook her hand gently.
"Yeah everything is fine, I just have so many questions for him and I don't know where to start." She responded meekly.
"I am sure you will do fine." Caitlyn reassured her.
"What do you want me to tell your boyfriend?" Barry teased her, she looked up into his face and found he was not so angry at her as before, she let out a silent sigh.
"The truth." She replied despondently.
"He is going to be pissed." Caitlyn laughed at her misery.
"Well he knew what he was getting into." She tried to brush it off.
"That he did." Caitlyn was doubled over with laughter, if she only knew.
"How long are you planning to stay?" Barry asked her, she was hoping he wouldn't ask this question.
"I am not sure yet, a week maybe." She lied easily.
"I hope you find whatever you are looking for Felicity." He gave an encouraging smile.
"I do too Barry." She responded weakly.
III
"My friends they are going to be fine right?" She implored her father once again, she was a nervous wreck. Her phone and tablet were seized once she got back, she felt quite distressed without them, she had no way of knowing if her friends had made it back safely.
"Nothing will happen to them." He reassured once again
"Earlier what did Anatoly mean by you broke the rules once again?" She asked the one question that had been bothering her for awhile.
"You are observant aren't you?" He replied with a wry smile.
"Don't dodge the question." She shot back seriously.
"Someone is out there to get me." He replied with a sigh.
"What? Who is it?" She asked him.
"I don't know, he's been sabotaging me for years, I should have been the Pakhan but the bratva choose Anatoly over me. Whoever it is wants me out of bratva or dead." He explained.
"Could it be him?" She asked.
"Who Anatoly? No I have already checked him." He shot her suspicion down.
"One of his loyalists then?" She asked him again.
"Not them either, I have checked all of them." He replied making her growl in frustration.
"You must have an inkling." She demanded.
"It could be the triads." He replied evenly.
"Who?" She asked confused, it was an unknown term to her.
The Chinese mafia." He answered.
"What did you do to offend them?" She questioned him gently.
"I cleansed the triad presence from every European country." He replied, he seemed a little smug about it.
"No wonder. But the bratva must realize that casting you away or killing you is stupidity." She reasoned.
"I never said that the bratva were a clever bunch." He sighed deeply making her feel a lot more dejected than before.
IV
She was given the guest bedroom in her father's house, she tossed around unable to sleep the entire night. Early next morning she was roused with a knock on the door asking her to get ready, she had brought her bag back from the hotel yesterday. It had been an embarrassing few moments when the pervy minion went through her bag, she had itched to sock one on his face. Her father and her had been separated for the night, apparently the minions didn't want them to hatch a plan together.
She quickly got ready, this uncertainty needed to end.
"Where are they taking us?" She asked her father once he joined her in the car beside her.
"To the bratva headquarters." He replied calmly.
"Don't show them an ounce of weakness." He told her when he noticed how nervous she looked.
"Got it." She bit back.
V
"Welcome my friend." Anatoly greeted them with wide open arms.
"I don't feel very welcomed Anatoly." Her father shot back as he notice the amount of men present in the room or the lack of men present in the room to be precise.
Her father had explained on the ride over, decisions as important as this the entire bratva community in Russia was to be present and they will be allowed to put forth their side of the story in front of them before any decision was derived upon and Mikhail had been quite confident that there were enough members who were still loyal to him. They won't let Anatoly run rampant.
As soon as she entered the large room she knew Anatoly was not going to let them walk back alive. Anatoly stood by five of his men who were heavily armed but other than them there was no one present. He had turned out to be quite the bastard. A chill surrounded her, even her father who was quite confident before looked glum. He had trusted Anatoly to follow the code which he conveniently didn't.
"You know both of your fates are not sealed yet." Anatoly told them salaciously.
"Is it not Anatoly?" Her father bit back, he was shaking with rage.
"I will leave the decision to the captain, I promise, no matter what he chooses I will follow his decision." He told them cheerfully.
"He is just a kid." Her father growled irritably, he was physically restrained by his minions when he tried to approach Anatoly. She stood behind him unsure of what she could do to help.
"That kid is the heir to my throne."Anatoly responded.
Just then she heard someone enter.
"My favourite lady American." Anatoly greeted the person. She had her back to that person.
"It is been a while kynazev." The person responded, she knew the voice so well but it couldn't be.
"It is." Anatoly seemed genuinely happy to see the person, there was no fake cheeriness in his voice.
"Sara?" She turned around to confirm her suspicion, she blurted out the name before she could think.
"Felicity?" Sara looked equally stunned if not more to see her there.
"You know Mikhail's daughter?" Anatoly asked Sara.
"Mikhail's daughter?" Sara asked him, as she looked at Felicity.
"He had a secret family that we didn't know about." Anatoly explained to a still stunned Sara.
"Do you know her?" Anatoly asked her again. Sara collected herself, now she was wearing a mask of indifference.
"She is my step sister." She replied indifferently, Felicity was too exhausted to be hurt by Sara's attitude.
"What a small world." Anatoly speculated.
"Indeed." Sara chuckled.
Felicity was still recovering from shock but nothing could have prepared for what was about to come next.
"Anatoly." He walked in with strong and confident steps.
Felicity watched him saunter in like a dangerous predator, she felt faint, she must be surely stuck in her own personal nightmare set to torture her to the limits. He was the American Captain? She felt like she had been hit by a sledge hammer. He walked in with a large African American man in tow.
"My favourite American." Anatoly moved forward to engulf him in a warm hug.
"Why did you summon us." Oliver asked him, he hadn't noticed her yet.
It had been ten long years since she was in the same room as him, yet she felt the nervous tingling in her stomach whenever she was near him.
Felicity had realized that his voice had grown thick and deep, there was a velvety richness that was not there before. She realized the paparazzi shots and the tabloid shots didn't quite do him justice. Every trace of boyishness was erased from his face, the shaggy blonde hair shorn away. He was sporting a buzz cut that made him look slightly dangerous, he stood there tall imposing in the room.
"Straight to business, that's why you are my favourite." Anatoly grinned at his favourite pupil.
"Anatoly." Oliver warned him lowly.
"Relax Oliver, meet Mikhail's daughter." Anatoly pointed to her direction, at first he failed to recognize her. His eyes simply glanced over her.
"Mikhail has a daughter?" He asked Anatoly confused by the new revelation.
"One he hid from us." Anatoly spat in anger.
"Felicity?" It was a moment before he realized it was her, if he was surprised he hid it extremely well.
"You know her too?" Anatoly asked him irritably.
"I have seen her with Sara." He replied offhandedly. Felicity really didn't know what to make of all of this? She was quickly reminded of how much she hated him with his reply. She clenched her fist in anger.
"Why are they here?" He asked Anatoly calmly.
"He broke the rules Oliver, she should have been inducted as soon as she was born, now she knows too much without being a member." Anatoly was too eager to be done away with them.
"Why am I here Anatoly?" Oliver demanded.
"When you become the Pakhan you will have some tough decisions to make, your training begins today." He told Oliver. "Their fates rest in your hands."
"She is not a part of anything, let her go Oliver you can have me." Her father yelled out, startling everyone around him.
"I must be stupid to let her go." It was Oliver who spoke those sarcastic words.
"Oliver?" For the first time Felicity addressed him, she couldn't believe Oliver would be ready to kill her. They had been friends a long time ago, hadn't they?
"She has the capability to bring us all down with the snap of her finger." He continued as if she hadn't spoken yet.
"So what is it going to be Oliver?" Anatoly asked him for his decision, making her heart almost lurch out of its place.
"She is intelligent she can help us branch out, you must be stupid to have her executed. Think smartly Oliver. Your father would never do this." Her father pleaded, his desperation quite evident now that all his plans had failed.
Felicity realized she had no chance to begin with, her fate had been sealed the moment she had stepped out of her hotel that fateful night.
"You are right my father would never kill a woman, he would never kill someone he could use." His words were venomous, she staggered a little. She had nothing to say, she felt like she was in a twilight zone.
"You don't mean that." Her father pleaded.
"Let's get on with it Oliver." Anatoly urged once more.
"I vote to kill her." Anatoly began.
"I think you are right we should kill her." Oliver responded to Anatoly. Felicity felt her blood run cold, she felt numb, she could hear her father's loud protest. She stood rooted to her place behind her father unable to understand what was happening around her.
Translation
Что мы имеем здесь? - What do we have here?
Что вы делаете здесь Анатолий?" - What are you doing here Anatoly?
Спросите у капитана в России - Ask the captain to come to Russia.
Ограждение их до завтрашнего заседания - Guard them until tomorrow's meeting.
Ограждение их, а если они escape i будет иметь головы - Guard them well, if they escape I will have your head.
Я не разочарует вас сэр - I will not disappoint you Sir.
Оставьте нам - Leave us.
Я сказал оставить нас - I said leave us.
Пять минут - Five minutes.
Я все еще здесь заведующий, Вы хорошо помните о том, что - I am still in charge here, you will do well to remember that.
Ее телефон сохраняет при звонке - The phone keeps on ringing.
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