• The Game of Life • | Book 1 of The Game Series

Chapter 1

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            Third Point of View

"Mom came?" The boy asked.

"Yes, but only for a short while... She's already planning her trip back, the bitch." Lunnova huffed, frustrated by the woman he had chosen to wed. She was a ne'er-do-well and a narcissistic one at that. Worst combination ever.

Lunnova thought about the life he built for himself. The clan -- or gang, whichever one does prefer, it all means the same anyway -- and his children, Nikolaus and Lillian, were the biggest reasons he could never move on.

But, maybe he didn't want that... Maybe. Lunnova wasn't sure what exactly did he not want or want anymore. It's the conflict of life, the hardest one to decipher.

He glances at his son, a seven year old now. Nikolaus looked a lot like his father, with his unsettlingly deep, hazel eyes and light brown, curly hair that stretched to his shoulders and almost fully covered his eyes. Well, Lunnova didn't have curly hair, but still, they looked quite alike. Both had stern faces and acted "too mature" for their age. Or so they were told.

"Nikolaus, come here, boy", Lunnova called after the child, who had ran off into the huge back garden of their house, while he was busy thinking.

The boy responds almost immediately, "I'm coming!"

You'd think Lunnova would go easy on his son, his offspring, but oh no, it's quite the opposite.
Nikolaus is to act and behave so, as if he was ruling the Ryzhov territory right in this very moment. 

Nikolaus knows how important it is to listen to his father. He's one of the most powerful and resourceful men through all Russia, who was and still continues to be feared by many. Everybody knows just how dangerous this man can be and Nikolaus wasn't about to become his next meal.

"Father, may I visit Mother tomorrow?" The boy approaches his dad slowly, standing exactly a meter away from him, as he should.

Lunnova thought about it for a second, deciding that, indeed, Nikolaus definitely shouldn't go and visit the bed chambers of that ungodly woman. Who knows what that devil has hiding in her room.

"No, you may not." He answers his son brusquely.

The boy doesn't even get the chance to frown, when Lunnova continues his speech on as to why visiting Mother would be such a terrible idea.

"First and foremost, do not call her Mother anymore. You might not remember, but she left us 4 years ago after giving birth to your sister. She left me to take care of you two. And all that while knowing the circumstances I was in at that point in time. So, please, refrain from calling her your mother."

Nikolaus stays silent, contemplating what he should say back to his Father.

"Furthermore, are you even aware of the fact that she's the literal spawn of the devil? She diseased your sister with her own illness, only so that you could survive and become "fierce" like myself. That fucking bitch, she ruined everything I had in plan. I thought we were working together, but ohhoho, was I in for a suprise." Lunnova grins to himself in pain, reflecting on the, for him, still quite recent past.

Nikolaus could sense that his Father was becoming irritated, so he chose to change the subject quickly.

"Alright, Father. I'll avoid making contact with Mothe-, uhm, I mean, with Mai..?" he queried his decision to call Mother by her first name, but he got pleasantly surprised when his Father didn't respond.

Nikolaus decides to continue, in hopes of entirely diminishing his Father's frustration. He comes up with a little plan that might not be much to Father's liking, but, hey, he needs to distract him somehow.

"Hey, Father, look, over there!" he points his finger towards a tree.

"What is it, son? What did you see?" Lunnova looks in the direction his son spoke of, but sees nothing.

Quickly, Nikolaus jumps from his feet onto his Father's back, tackling him down to the marble path they were standing on. His arms firmly pressed against Lunnova's throat, while his legs straddled the man's lap, to keep him from getting up. 

Lunnova struggled to laugh and rightfully so; his son's hands weren't build as those of an ordinary 7-year old child.

Nonetheless, Lunnova was stronger than his son; there was no doubt there, but he let him have this moment. It was amusing to see his son try and switch the conversation with the weirdest tactic he has witnessed since his youth days.

Through the painfully small breaths he managed to take, he spoke to his son.

"Enjoy this while you can, you little brat. I'll get you back later, don't you worry about that."

Nikolaus saw the amusement in his Father's eyes. He decided it was time to let go, otherwise the amusement might actually turn into anger and that was something he did not want to be a part of.

Now, you may wonder, hasn't it previously been stated that Lunnova was a strict and formal man? That all is true, but when it comes to fighting and with his son in particular, he finds it very important to teach him how to do it properly.

And if these little stunts Lunnova had to endure were something that helped his son become more interested, he didn't mind going off of his script, to let Nikolaus engage.

Lunnova stood up from the floor, patting his clothes down to remove any dirt from it.

"You did a good job there, son. But please, if you plan to do this next time, at least let me know, so I can put down some padding. I've hurt my head now, because of you."

Nikolaus smiled. He loved when his Father praised him. Those were rare occasions and very significant to him. That's the only way he could feel his Father's love.

Lunnova would also, from time to time, hug him. And Nikolaus did enjoy that too, but nothing could compare to his Father's words.

"Let's go inside now, child. Your Mother did mention something about having tea later in the evening. We must change our attire quickly, she doesn't like to wait." Lunnova takes ahold of the boy's hand and pulls him towards the entrance.

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Word count: 1050