"When I was 9 years old, I had bad luck trying to rob the wrong people... they were 3 women wearing clothes that looked perfect for the cold. I didn't think much and stabbed one in the neck with a piece of glass... I couldn't handle the others, they tied me up and beat me for a long time... after that they took me to some basement... I was drugged, raped, and tortured"
"..." The more Dimitri spoke, the more chills came to Christian, especially because of the nonchalant tone when talking about such tragic situations.
"Until one day they forgot to tie me up and fell asleep drunk next to me" Laughing lightly Dimitri continued "With the same knife they tortured me, I stabbed them over and over again... let me tell you I was happy, I had a new place to live, a bed and some food"
"..."
"But that happiness only lasted 1 day... the day after I killed them, I went outside to look for snow so I could have water, and when I came back to my new home. I saw many armed women outside the place, they looked angry... it turns out those women were part of a local mafia. I couldn't take anything out but a knife I went out with and had to run"
"I went back to the abandoned orphanage and stayed in that place for 2 days... but I had no strength left. I hadn't eaten and those people would keep looking for me outside, and as if fate wanted to laugh at me, they found my orphanage somehow and 2 women came in and searched the place"
"In short, I ended up with 2 bullets in me, but at the same time I killed those women... everything looked bad, I had no strength to stand and it seemed that at any moment I would die, even my mind gave up at that time"
"But life took pity on me, and a woman came to the place... she was wearing a military uniform and the first thing I saw from her was a look of pity... she carried me, took me to her house and took care of me while I was recovering.... It was the first genuine show of kindness I ever received" Smiling softly, Dmitri continued "In the orphanage I never received a name... the church people who ran it were always the worst. Most of the time children died from being beaten to death for committing 'sins' like stealing food".
"With this woman... I received my name, Dimitri Ivankov, while at the same time I gained a family.... Laika Ivankov became my mother" With misty eyes, Dmitri continued "She was a soldier... I lived under her care until I was 12. She taught me to read, she taught me to eat with utensils and not with my hands, she even taught me to count... I was happy, I had a home, I had food, I had warmth..."
Clenching his fists, Dimitri whispered in a hoarse voice "Until my past messes found us... those women found me with my mother while she was taking me for a walk... at first, they didn't attack her. She was military and the government didn't accept the death of their soldiers... but a week later, they set fire to our house... Laika was asleep and... burned to death"
Lifting up his shirt, Dimitri turned to Christian "That day I received burns on almost my entire torso"
Looking at Dimitri's wrinkled skin, Christian stared at the man's body in disbelief.
Everything on him was in a creepy state, his entire stomach had obvious burn scars, but it wasn't only that that surprised Christian, the old man had scars on every inch of skin, horrible scars.
"That day... I lost everything" Lowering his clothes, Dimitri continued "Being born with nothing is not so hard... you don't know any better, so it becomes a normality... but when you know something better, when you manage to have happiness and people who love you, to then lose everything... it's a real hell"
"I didn't care about anything anymore... after I healed my wounds, I was tired of everything. I just wanted to die... but remembering Laika, I just couldn't let go of my life... she gave everything for me, she died for me.... my life no longer belonged to me alone, but to Laika"
"So I gritted my teeth and did everything to survive... but I never forgot who caused my suffering, who caused my mother's death"
"At the age of 13... the city had new visitors" Smiling slightly, Dimitri continued "A mafia came to take over the place, a started a war with the local mafia"
With a twinkle in his eye, Dimitri's smile grew "I knew where the leaders of the local mafia were hiding. I knew the whole city like the back of my hand... so with nothing to lose, I approached the new mafia"
"I struck a deal... they would train me and I would work for them, in return I would give them all the information I had, while they would let me kill the head of this local mafia if they caught her" Laughing slightly, Dimitri continued "It was a crappy deal, I practically became their slave and I would make them win the war... but that was good enough for me"
"The local mafia fell; I stabbed the leader 57 times and a new stage of my life began"
"I killed and killed... they taught me how to use weapons and simple combat techniques... I worked for these women until I was 17... the government got fed up with them and they ended up raiding all their facilities... but again, I survived"
"The one in charge of the operation found me killing 3 of her people...she found it interesting and gave me the option to live if I worked for the military...I didn't hesitate, death was not an option"
"After that everything went in the direction of assassination... I was trained along with other people my age... I spent a year training until I was released along with a team to do missions in different parts of the world... we were in the middle of the cold war and there were many people to kill"
"It got to a point where not a day went by without me killing a person.... I even lost count after my 1000th kill"
"That's how it was until the Soviet Union fell... I was out of work and the truth is I felt lost, that's when I chose to join the mafia. I worked for different mafias for about 5 years, until I ended up becoming the guardian of the mafias in Russia... I honestly don't remember much of my life anymore... sometimes I feel like it wasn't me who lived it and I was just a spectator"
"You never thought about starting a family?"
"No...it would only make me weak.... my only source of entertainment was learning new ways of killing or studying new professions, but I never got out of that lifestyle... but it's not all that bad. At some point, I saw the mafia as my family... I saw many girls grow up and become great people in Russia, it's a rewarding feeling"
"..." Looking at the old man silently, Christian really felt his heart tighten, but knowing that the old man was not talking about his life to give pity, he simply turned his gaze skyward and said "It was a hard life"
"It could have been worse. You don't know the things I saw in my missions... in those moments I felt grateful for having an orphanage in my early years of life"
"..." Looking sideways at the old man, Christian bit his lips for a few seconds, then clenched his fists and said "Old man..."
"Yes?"
"I..." Not feeling the strength to ask, Christian began to sweat from nervousness, but remembering everything he experienced over the years with the old man, he took a deep breath and steeled himself "M-may I call you father?
"..." Opening his eyes wide, Dimitri robotically turned his gaze to Christian, watching the nervous young man in silence.
But after a few seconds, Dimitri's eyes softened and he smiled warmly "I would be happy to have you as my son"
Relaxing his body, Christian sighed with relief.
Smiling, Dimitri reached into his clothes and pulled out a medium sized wooden box, then handed it to Christian "Happy birthday"
"Thank you..." Taking the box with misty eyes, Christian opens it and looks at his gift for this year.
"Desert Eagle" Taking the weapon in his hands, Christian's eyes sparkled at the sight of its design.
The gun was completely gold with fine designs on the barrel in the shape of roses, its grip was ivory with his initials inlaid in gold, while, in the center of the barrel, it had some words engraved in English.
"The world is yours..." Christian murmured with a faint smile, then turned to the old man and said "It's beautiful"
"I knew you would like it" Dimitri smiled, then pointing to the box "You have two gold plated magazines inside, they are with bullets with no code or registration, so they are not traceable, I also left you a legal purchase permit to avoid problems"
Checking inside, Christian saw the magazines, noticing that even the bullets had the casing plated in gold.
Turning his gaze skyward, Dimitri spoke softly "You've already learned everything I could teach you; you've completed my training so I'll tell you certain things"
"..."
"To begin with, in my entire life I taught 3 people personally, one is the heiress of the mafia who is about 3 years older than you, and the other is a woman from a certain organization in your country, in the future I will tell you about her... as for the third one is you"
"..."
"You are the one who received all my knowledge and you are the one who spent the most time training with me"
"I would like you to meet those two girls in the future. I've taken a liking to all three of you and I would like you to get along well, if you can, help each other"
"Good..." Christian nodded hesitantly.
"Now I want to ask you a favor from my heart"
'So if you need anything' Sighing in relief, Christian thought.
All this time Christian felt a slight suspicion with Dimitri, that one day to another someone decides to show you his life's work just out of curiosity, is something Christian never ever believed, that's why he always worried about Dimitri's intentions. But now knowing that he wants a favor, Christian felt a relief inside him, knowing that somehow, he will be able to repay his teachings.
"Come closer" Patting his side, Dimitri smiled softly and spoke.
Nodding, Christian moved over and sat down next to him.
"Christian... I know you are here because of problems with certain people, I even know who they are... I know these people put your family at risk and caused you suffering, but... I want to ask you to forget what happened with them"
Frowning slightly, Christian looked at Dimitri and waited for him to continue.
"I taught you to kill and defend yourself, but... I don't want that life for you" With a complex expression, Dimitri stroked Christian's hair "The life of revenge, of death, of killing... is not something that can be called a life... that's why I want to ask you this one favor... please, don't engage in killing for every situation, and only use your skills when you have no other choice"
"..." Staring at Dimitri in a daze, Christian remained silent.
"I want you to be happy, to live a good life and make the most of every minute of it"
Smiling softly, Dimitri continued "Don't let your life fade away in blood. Because when you get older, your wild heart will calm down and you will regret not having lived your life to the fullest, smile, love, enjoy, and take the risk of experiencing new situations"
"And if you ever feel afraid, think of me, because no matter where or when, I will always be here" Pointing towards Christian's heart, Dimitri smiled as he turned his gaze skyward "Someday you will leave this world behind, so live a life you will remember fondly, because those are the days that will never die"
"That is my only request for you, my son"
Looking at Dimitri in a daze, Christian's eyes reddened quickly, then turning his gaze and nodding "Well..."
"Hoh, the arrogant boy turned shy" Fluffing Christian's hair, Dimitri laughed mockingly.
"I'm just tired" Pushing his hand away, Christian refuted with embarrassment, then turning to Dimitri and asking "But are you sure you don't need anything else? I don't know, finish off some enemy or something?"
"Child, my enemies are at the bottom of the sea or 3 meters under the ground, it is an insult to me that you talk about living enemies"
"What an arrogant old man, how come you are not in a home for the elderly?"
"I killed them all and escaped"
--------------------
Edited By: Joy_a
Visit freewe𝑏no(v)el.𝘤𝑜𝓂 for the best novel reading experience