gunpowder, gelatine

“You act like people like coffee anymore than they like liquor,” Lavrentii said, leaning back in his chair to slide the flask back into his pocket. “Both are shit, but together?”

luther offered an even look down at ana kuya, he didn’t like children that much. they made too much noise, and a lot of mess. adults were annoying enough, he didn’t want a mini versions on hand. probably why he swore to never spawn. always careful he’d never accidentally become a daddy — god forbid. “by the sea?” the investor asks lulling his head to the side. he sometimes wondered the stories behind those who ventured through at the barlowe, most didn’t want to be memorable. for someone to come so often, and be known, was rare. its peculiar as it is of great interest to work out why, “reoccurring guests like you, we usually don’t see the same face twice.”

“Yes, little town. It is very small, streets only go up to ten,” Lavrentii said, waving away the manufactured facts he tossed with such ease. There was another city of Arkansas, by some water, but it wasn’t the sea. 

Ana Kuya threw his notecards in the air, and he leaned over to pick them up. He had learned to keep them on ring when he handed them to her for fun. They were expendable unlike his car keys. 

Anya had to let out a bitter laugh, because it was true that her baby boy hadn’t learned a thing about her. She didn’t know why the Vasiles hadn’t told him, perhaps that was just their own power play, wanting to forget the blonde that came into Dru’s life and sucked the life out of him, but Anya didn’t care. When he took her hand away from his cheek, she noticed the softness there and that she could play on. There had to be a softness, and maybe he could see that their eyes were similar, their noses, and the fact that she had information and evidence to back her up. If she was anyone else, perhaps he would have shot her point blank, but that was the thing - Anya had a gun in her own hiding place too. Perhaps they were more similar than she thought, but the weakness of this boy never having a mother until now - she could use. 

“Volkovas mean great deal in Ukraine and in Russia. You do not know, because you are too foolish and young. I kept eye on you, always eye on my baby boy. You are much like your daddy, aren’t you? Parties and women, but you are also soldier. Smart like me. You got that from me. Strength of a pillar. Strength of a thousand suns, shining brightly. You shine bright, darling. My kohlana. My Lavrentii.” She told him, stroking his cheek softly. “I did not want his name. I wanted my own name. Volkova is strong name, stronger than Vasile. You need to know that side of you as well. Volkovas are no pussies and you are blood. Whether you like it or not.” 

She took a sip of the vodka she had poured for herself, still offering it to him, but took it back into her hands. Anya smirked at his words at the end and sighed. “I have worked in this world for over fifty years, kohlana. I am this business. I respect you, Katerina and magician man, but I am not like everyone else. I did my first heist when I was four years old with my father. This world is in my veins, just like it is in yours. I have proven myself to Vasiles time and time again - that is why I am here. It is my gift, my retirement. I get to be with you.” She smiled, but it wasn’t a true smile. It was an Anya smile. 

“Where is my little онук? I want to see her, Lavrentii.” 

“Next to my family, you are just another dried up attempt. That’s why you went back to them, isn’t it? That’s why you got with Dru in the first place?” Lav asked. “Call me Volkova all you want. Call yourself Volkova. But here, know that all that matters is Vasile. If it’s as strong as you think, be weary of what buttons you push, Anya. You did a heist at four, I figured out how to survive at that time. I know what it means to be ruthless, and like you, I won’t hold a bias towards family.”

He filled the glass again and downed it, but he held it in his mouth to burn.

for what felt like too much of her life, tirzah had been forced to look at a person and read them. it began at home, when her mother would push away food and made excuses. then it carried to the shitty apartment they moved into on the west side, where she had to figure if her dad had won or lost his bets by the tension he kept in his shoulders. it snowballed after, from peers at school, to patrons at the diner, to clients whose beds she found herself tangled in. being safe was better than being stupid applied more than she cared to admit. 

as the baby chirped, tirzah felt a grin stretch over her lips, looking down at the baby with a soft laugh. “ana kuya, huh?” reaching for her own coffee, tirzah nodded, holding it up in a playful cheers to dink the spoon the child waved around. “well, i’m not gonna say she has good taste, but-” the escort shrugged, a playful laugh bubbling as she took a sip. “picky is good, though. she should never have to settle.”

Picky. Lavrentii never had the opportunity to be that fussy until he was much older, and by that time, he was more inclined to try it all and take what he could get. It was a double edged sword but the thought of Ana Kuya having just the chance to turn her nose up at something almost made him beam. She had better opportunities already. That had to count for something, right?

Nadia rolled her eyes, dramatically, as she usually did whenever anyone gave her orders that she didn’t agree with. Make no mistakes, the Vasile affiliated woman would do anything for the family, well almost everything, but her loyalty knew no bounds. She sighed, when the slobbery baby was put in her little playpen and Nadia made a disgusted face at her as she waved to the little girl. “Ew.” Was all she commented, putting her arms over her chest, getting close to Lav yet again. “Aww, my sweet baby boy. Don’t be so hard on the best killer you have, darling. We both know a gun is not my weapon of choice, not even close. There are many ways, even simple ways, on how to kill someone. I easily can, without a bang.” She shrugged, but leaned forward, and out of surprise and power, kissed the man right on the lips, pulling on his bottom lip with her teeth, digging in, wanting to draw blood. “No, no babysitter. Just a proper man that knows how to keep charge and keep up. Can you, sweet Lav? Mmm?” Her fingers went through his hair, pulling harder and harder, until she let out a playful giggle. “Whatever you, obshchk. Whatever you say. Are you driving or am I?” 

When she pulled away, he resisted the temptation to pull her right back. His hands itched with the urge to find her waist and the small curve he could claim as his. Instead, Lavrentii took her small self praise and let it glaze over his features, soften himself with a tease. Nadia always responded better to games, and quite frankly, so did Lav. It was the reason they got along so often. There was something to be said about a thrill.

chicago was one of the most ‘american’ places to her, besides washington d.c and new york. so of course every experience was memorable to her as she began the process of assimilation. besides her sister and the lady at the donut shop nearby her apartment, there weren’t any familiar faces and the girl was in desperate need of some sort of friendships. she picked up on the man’s accent instantly which brought a slight smile to her face.

“звучит достаточно справедливо. i’m interested to see which vodka here is the best, i trust your judgement.”

Lavrentii looked up at the painting, the corners of the wooden frame covered in soot. He should have cleaned it up a bit more before hanging it up, but it was almost as though the grime served as a reminder of the details of their victory. When Evie had tugged it free from the flames, Lav had been her getaway car. He was convinced that the painting and it’s figure had rubbed off a bit of luck on them, maybe even a little bit of holiness to get them out of there. Stealing was surely a sin, but it meant saving Jesú, it was all worth it.

luther was well aware of the strange man who often frequented his second hotel. despite the barlowe’s famous lack of care of who they let into the hotel, that didn’t mean that the staff didn’t gossip. and those whispers eventually would make it to the boss. and so the day luther chose to make his visit to the barlowe, the famous larry and his child were enjoying the vast emptiness of the hotels pool. luther stands at the edge of the pool, glancing over at the small child in a floaty. “you must be the famous larry.” he turns his attention to lav.

The direct attention had nearly startled him, but it was masked by Ana Kuya’s sudden shriek at another person for her to force into the audience of her gurgles. The baby kicked her feet out, spit sputtering in excitement. Sometimes he found it cute, other times a little worrisome when it came to just how much saliva a little thing like that had.

evelina knew many people the world over; she’d danced and paraded around for every person who cared to taste her kind of art. she gave them an ethereal fantasy on the tips of her toes and drew them down to the edge of swan lake. everyone loved her, they adored the curve of her bones and the aesthetics of her talent, but no one knew her as her family did. no one knew her as lavrentii did. it was probably a little sad from an outside perspective, but evelina couldn’t have counted herself more blessed by the notion. she knew how people, even his own father, had regarded him and it always bothered her. now forged into the weapon they made and relied upon, she only hoped he’d gained the respect he had always deserved.

the shot slid down her throat with warming ease. alcohol always tasted better when it was shared with another, especially when the other was the missing half of the whole idiot they created. setting the little glass down, evie’s smile brightened as his words drifted over the quiver of the bar speakers. “pupsyasha is real? i just thought she was mass family hallucination.” evie teased. she had heard tell of the infamous basket baby, but her time in chicago was hard to spread evenly and always cut short. now there was some semblance of permanence, the ballerina had opportunity where there wasn’t any before.  “yes! i want to see the little baby lav. she needs to know her tetya evie!” beaming smile and small bounce on her toes, evie swayed a little to the music, reaching for the bottle again. “we drink to pupsik!”

Evelina was Lav’s lifeline to Russia and back, the one constant in the juggle of his nonsense and the severity of the affairs their shared name was attached to. She was there when he was wiping spilled alcohol off the floor, and there when he was brushing out blood from a white button up shirt. There was a small falter in seeing her there, no back in his life, where he was forced to reflect on the last few mistakes he had made. Ana Kuya still bounced between a blessing and nuance every so often, even more so with the change in hierarchy. But in the end, the concept Ana Kuya was in a bet placed between him and Evie at a young age was simply a means of proving that they were getting old. All that mattered was that they were still together. There was pride in the thought that they were both still kicking and drinking long enough to see the prodigy of the other.

“No, very real,” Lavrentii said with a grin, pulling the bottle between them and twisting off the liquor cap. He took a swig before returning it to her. “We drink to pupsik, we drink to you, we drink to me, we drink— and then tomorrow, sick, we sip and sip and be big adults together, yes?”

He clinked the bottle softly between his forehead and hers as he leaned close, embracing her again. The night would stay dark for a few more hours and be swallowed by the light, but the inside of Fable would hide that time moved faster than anyone anticipated between flashing lights. Lav would indulge himself a little more than before, a softer farewell to the man he had been for so long with his cousin at his side and his daughter in the back of his mind. There was no use pretending he would have one more day before it felt real, or even a few hours. He would simply have to learn to balance it all.

HER EYES FLICKER TOWARD HIM, manicured brows arched in incredulity. “ you didn’t know that? ” monika laughs then, the chime spilling freely from rose-petal lips. perhaps she had her schooling days to blame for having a skull full of pointless tidbits—apparently, the quirky details of poets, scientists, artists and the likes glued themselves in her memory quicker than actual academic details did. nude lips purse around the thin edge of her champagne flute then, the bubbles fizzing against her tongue. “ they all seem to slip into a madness they never recover from. a shame, really. ” the blonde ponders her words for a second, then vibrant blues return to the male. “ i assume you’re not a big van gogh fan? more of a michelangelo man? ” she quips archly, the ghost of a smirk gracing one corner of her mouth.

“Maybe? It is embarrassing to admit, but I have never had time to... ah, appreciate art. Life always moving too fast,” Lavrentii explained, looking up towards the painting before him. It was almost brutally honest. He didn’t care much for art and never had the chance to cultivate the respect for it. “Michael? Angel? He does the angels, yes?”

“she’s beautiful,” tirzah offered, complimenting the child as she shifted focus to her father. the pair looked alike, even down to the little facial ticks and mannerisms that gave way to their expressions. she and her father never shared much when it came to visual similarities, save for her eyes, but this baby and this man seemed quite the opposite. brushing a hand up to swipe her dark hair over her shoulder, tirzah’s shoulders moved in a slow rotation, a shrug as she watched out the window again. “eh, what can i say?” the quip sat on her tongue a moment, followed up by her next breath of a reply. “i like to people watch.” her face broke into a smile, coy and vivacious. she had an inclination that if he had half a mind to call her on just how much she knew, even as a pretty face in a diner, he would also know that she had even more to hide.

it became increasingly apparent as he spoke that the man knew from experience what it was like to read people. she could have wondered about whether or not he was a cop, or some sort of army guy, but it wouldn’t matter much in the long run. he would be as passive in her life as she would be in his. “raw, yes,” she agreed. taking advantage as he carried on his conversation, tirzah reached for her own coffee, taking a slow sip as she regarded him. “the camera only has one eye, y’know? it only catches half the story. no one knows what all the rest is unless they’re looking for it. sometimes looking for someone’s hidden motives are the difference between being safe and being stupid.” 

That he could agree with. He always recognized potential but he was never obsessive about it. It was easy to get lost in the details and his work was rooted in being able to sift through them all and determine which were the most important. Work smarter, not harder had been repeated to him more than once, but it took time to learn. 

Who is this mysterious character? incredibly attractive but he’s definitely hiding something. Mercury’s brain was spinning as he listened to the attractive male speak. His eyes were squinting as he sat up in his wooden chair. The question felt like he was already being seen as suspicious by the citizens of the town. It was understandable but there was also something unwavering about this male. Even the way he was speaking made Mercury’s intention go into high alert. “Well, there’s no reason for me to come into this town and hold some boring press conference. I don’t want everyone to see me as some no holds bar Commissioner who’s here to change everyone’s way of life.” He started, leaning down on table and folding his arms to give off a more serious demeanor. “But, trust me, I don’t need a trick to read anyone. I’ve been at this a long time and have put away tons of people. I can spot a criminal from a mile away.”

There may have been too much clothing for Lavrentii to do the best of his assessments, but he would manage. Typically he was able to feast in the simple trust between certain relations where he could pretend the goal was shared. He would then get what he needed in that vulnerability, and more importantly, get some fun out of it. Lav had been notorious in his lower ranking for gathering secrets and sealing black envelopes with information so many thought was difficult to obtain. Pillow talk was his speciality. 

Oh, how Nadia loved to see her precious little Lav there, get so angry, get so worked up and it was adorable. So what if she killed the man she was supposed to keep an eye on? He was worthless and Nadia had her anger that she wanted to get out. Who cared about a grimy little guy anyway? Nadia got close to Lav, teasingly, moving up against his body, tracing her fingers over his trousers buckle. “You said keep an eye on them, then he called me stupid little girl. I got angry and he want, bang! In the head! Just like he was supposed to. Who cares about a little nothing like him, darling? Are you afraid of mean mean man and the others close him, hmm? Are you scared, little Lav?” She pouted, looking up at him and kissing his lips, briefly. She opened her eyes, pouting. “I can kill them all by myself, darling. Who says I need a big strong man to be there for me, hmm?” 

“When I say do not kill, you keep finger off the trigger,” Lav told her, jaw clenched tight. “No bang unless I say so. Next time, you go without gun. Maybe then you’ll give your target a fighting chance and yourself the opportunity to reflect on the orders you were given.”

Lavrentii placed Ana Kuya into her play pen and immediately she grabbed at the necklace around his neck, choking him if he dared to part ways with her He kissed the top of her head, disheveling her red hair. She had learned the routine of his goodbye already. This wasn’t an attempt to give his arms a break from carrying her, but rather his way of putting her away while he went to attend to other matters. Soon enough the woman who lived downstairs would come up and replace him, and Lavrentii would return the next morning and kiss her cheeks that were sticky with tears. She would stay in his arms the whole day to make up for it, but that had yet to ease the anticipation of him leaving her.