Is this destiny?

JoAnna was the first one to recover from the bomb that Hong threw at them. "What? Did you say, Voronin?"

Hong rubbed his chin nervously. "You must wonder what I am doing here, right?"

"YES!", Sarah exclaimed and wrapped her arms around Aiden protectively.

The idea that a Voronin was living with them for three years was unsettling. Suddenly, a stubborn old man in front of her looked like a threat and Sarah questioned her judgment. Is it possible that he was pretending to be nice and she didn't see it? No… Hong knew that she is a Lebedev and based on Aiden's skills, he thought that Aiden is from the Voronin family, when they met him for the first time. If he wanted to hurt them, he would do that on that mountain, without any witnesses, other than Hong's four disciples who would definitely keep his secret, and no one would know how Sarah and Aiden perished. And Michael, he was with them as well.

Sarah knew that Hong has some background and she suspected that he might be an assassin or a spy whose cover was blown or maybe a bodyguard who failed and his high-level client was murdered or… anything other than a Voronin! And why is he silent?

"You knew who we are, yet you concealed your background.", Sarah said angrily while tightening her hold on Aiden. 

Sarah told herself to calm down. She is not an easy opponent and Aiden is right by her side. Stella and JoAnna and Sophia are present as well, and together they can take him down if needed.

Sarah looked at Aiden and she saw that he was not anxious. He was curious to find out more.

Aiden felt Sarah's gaze and returned it. "It's OK. Let's hear him out."

The small movement of his hand on Sarah's back told her that he knows she is uneasy, and he was silently telling her to relax.

Sarah gestured to Hong that he should continue talking.

Hong cleared his throat. "First, I need to give you some background. The power in the Lebedev family is structured differently than in the Voronin family. Here, the Grand Elder…" Hong gestured toward Sarah. "…has the role of a mediator, to keep the peace and balance between other Elders. The Grand Elder is a supervisor to twelve Elders who have their assigned territories and duties and as long as they follow guidelines set by the family, Elders will maintain their autonomy. In the Voronin family, the power and everything that comes with it is centralized in the hands of the Grand Master who presides over the council of Elders. Elders in the Voronin family have roles of advisors and they will execute on orders of the Grand Master. That is why in the Lebedev family people covet positions of Elders, while in the Voronin family, everyone dreams of being the Grand Master who not only has the power over the family's resources, but he also appoints and dismisses other Elders, and he also the right to decide on who will inherit his position."

Hong paused and glanced at the people who looked at him expectantly without a word. "You must wonder why this is relevant, right? I told you that my name is Gedeon… and my father's name was… Feodor Voronin."

Aiden reacted to this name. "Is that a common name, or are you talking about the old Grand Master who taught me?"

Hong nodded. "That was my father. I am the only child of Feodor Voronin."

"So…" Aiden scrutinized Hong. "Are we looking at the Grand Master of the Voronin family, or did your father pick someone else as his successor?"

"He didn't pick anyone else, but… some people made sure that I can't take over that position."

"Other disciples of your father.", Stella guessed.

Hong bobbed his head. "At that time, my father didn't have disciples other than me. But he would occasionally train some of my Cousins. He believed that it's for the good of the family, but the more time he spent with them, the more hope he gave them that they are worthy of his position. I could see the greed in their eyes whenever they looked at me or my father. What I didn't know was that they were waiting for me to do something so that they can blow it up and get me out of their way in the search for power. As soon as they found something tangible against me, they twisted it into a sin that can't be forgiven, and I was forced to leave. After I left, my father was confident that I will return. And by the time he sent people to find me, I learned how to cover my tracks. I am confident that after some time my father realized what the truth is, but it was too late. The only thing he could do was to train outsiders and give them skills to become Elders, with the hope that those who wronged me will be punished." Hong ended while giving a meaningful look to Aiden.

Aiden saw a gap in the story. "You said that the Grand Master can appoint Elders. How are my skills relevant?"

"Your skills give you the right to challenge the position, and the Grand Elder can't refuse you, especially if you defeated an existing seat. However, our family has several cases in which Elders will be removed, such as acting against the family's interests. And unless you have a backing, it will be difficult to prove your innocence. In the Voronin family, the number of Elders is not predetermined. If you are interested in the position of an Elder, I can give you details on what is needed to become one, and what are the conditions that Simeon can use to remove you."

JoAnna wanted to go to the point. Hong was talking slowly with a lot of pauses and going off track, and it was making her anxious.

"What is the sin you committed?", JoAnna asked Hong.

"I was twenty-two years old when I went on a mission and I met a young woman. Tamara's blue eyes reminded me of a clear sky in summer, and she had the most beautiful smile I've ever seen. I was completely smitten." Hong said dreamily and sighed sadly before continuing: "One thing led to another and… we fell in love. The outrage in my family started when I said that I want to marry Tamara Petrov. You see… Tamara's Petrov family is one of the biggest branch families under Lebedevs." 

Sarah and Aiden exchanged surprised glances and focused on Hong because he was still talking…

"It is not uncommon for people from branch families of different organizations to mingle but… I was the heir, the next Grand Master, and it was not acceptable. My father was on the fence and I was confident that in time he will see that Tamara loves me just how much I love her and that the family from where she is coming from does not matter. However, the Elders and my cousins were louder, and my father didn't approve. I begged my father to give us a chance, but he said that even if he allows for our marriage to happen, she will never be safe. He told me that she is lacking the background to protect herself because if she is from a prominent family, no one will dare to touch her and the fact that her background is from our rivals make some of the people see her as an enemy. I didn't listen. I thought that I can protect her. I thought that I can win. When my father said that if I proceed with marrying Tamara, my position as the next Master will be in jeopardy… I told him that I quit. I told him that I don't care about the position of the Grand Master and that he can give it to someone who will fit in the mold he and others imagined, and I left..."

Everyone was silently waiting to hear the rest of Hong's story. Hong told them a lot, but there were still many unanswered questions.

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