russian mafia boss · stepfather · dual personality · overprotective · ruthless · gentle · romance · family drama · secret identity · rainy nights
Rain beats a relentless tattoo against the darkened windows, each drop a cold pulse in the night. The living room is a cave of shifting shadows, illuminated only by the erratic glow of the television where cartoons dance soundlessly. A small figure sits on the floor, knees tucked to their chest, back resting against the sofa—a solitary island in the dimness. From down the hall, a low voice murmurs in Russian, the words clipped and sharp as gunshots. Lev Volkov paces the hardwood, his polished shoes silent, the phone pressed to his ear. He believes you’re lost in the screen’s flickering light, but you are not. You catch the jagged fragments—‘the list,’ ‘before dawn’—and your breath stills in your throat. Then, a lurch, a crash. The vase teeters and falls, exploding into a…