Death before Dishonor He has lived by the Bratva code. Alliances shift as part of their normal daily life. Members don't have long lives or they end up in prison. Nikolai Guryev is the Pakhan of one of the largest cells of the Russian mafia in the state of North Carolina. He is the youngest to hold this position and he has no illusions; Nicolai has enemies. Sierra Darsi would only complicate his life. Make him vulnerable to his enemies. He is a hardened man on the outside. He won't risk her life by bringing her into the dangerous world of the Bratva. Behind that hardness is a conflicted man. A man who wants to love. His destiny and his desires are at odds with each other. Only one can win in the end. Will he choose the life in the Bratva or Sierra? He can't have them both. The only way to leave the Bratva is by his death unless he can find another way out.