LOGINNIKOLAI "You are staring again."Katya's voice pulled me from my thoughts.I looked up from the armchair positioned beside the fireplace and found her sitting cross-legged on the sofa with a book balanced in her lap.A small smile tugged at her lips."What?" I frowned."What do you mean, 'What?'""You have been staring at me for the last five minutes.""I have not.""You absolutely have.""I was thinking." I replied, as my eyes narrowed.Her grin widened.“I wonder what about.”Arrogant little thing.Somehow, in the days since my near death, she had become increasingly bold. Not that I could entirely blame her. I had admittedly relaxed some of the restrictions surrounding her. Allowing her to move around the house more freely and all.The doctor claimed I was recovering better than he expected me to.In fact, every doctor who had examined me since the attack seemed baffled that I was still alive.The poison should have killed me. That much was certain. And yet somehow I had survived.
"I want to see your boss." Sergei said as he casually strolled into the clubhouse where the Crimson Order usually gathered.A dozen pairs of eyes turned toward him almost immediately, as the men stationed throughout the building immediately straightened as they sized him up. Some leaned against crates. Others stood near weapon racks or folding tables littered with maps and ammunition. Every one of them looked dangerous.The largest among them stepped forward. He was built like a tank, with thick arms and a shaved head covered in scars."You got a death wish?" he asked.Sergei smiled faintly."No."His gaze swept lazily across the room."I simply have better things to do than explain myself to hired muscle."The giant's expression darkened in rage."Watch your mouth."“Like I said before,” Sergei looked at him, "I'd like to speak with your boss."The man's jaw tightened."And I'd like a private island."A few chuckles echoed through the room, while Sergei remained unmoved.“It is in yo
KATYA"You really scared me, you know that?"My voice cracked as I helped Nikolai down the hallway.For someone who could terrify an entire room with a single look, he suddenly felt very human and fragile. I could tell that terrified him so much, but it terrified me even more because I had seen the effects of him not being there.To think he had saved my life three different times now was totally surreal to me. I wasn't sure what I had done to deserve that. But I knew one thing right now, which was that I was unbelievably happy he was alive.Nikolai pushed the door to his room open."Inside." He said, as I followed him and he locked the door behind us. I glanced around, as Nikolai slowly lowered himself onto one of the chairs.He looked absolutely exhausted.“That reminds me,” I said, “What kind of allergies do you have?” “Well…”“It is obvious that the kitchen staff doesn’t know about it as well and it is something that they definitely should know.” I said, "Katya…""No, listen."
NIKOLAI"Someone better tell me what the fuck is going on here right now."My voice echoed through the council chamber as the room fell silent instantly. I stood in the doorway looking at each and every one of them while every muscle in my body screamed in protest. The doctor had advised me not to leave my bed for another few days, but I had ignored him. This was really important. Katya stood in the center of the chamber. And judging from the expression on her face, it was like I had arrived just in time. There were dark circles beneath her eyes and the sight made something ugly twist inside my chest.Lily rose from her seat. The shock was still written on her face as she approached me. "Nikolai." She said, “Oh my God, you are awake.”Her eyes scanned my body."You're standing. Are you sure you're okay?"She reached out as if to touch my arm."What exactly is the meaning of all this?"Lily's expression hardened slightly."We assembled the council to decide what should be done with
KATYA“Do you know how many days it has been?" I asked, my voice hoarse from disuse.The maid didn't answer at all. She just kept her eyes lowered as she pushed the tray of food through the small opening in the dungeon door towards me and then immediately stepped back.As though I carried some kind of disease that would infect her if she came too close.I stared at it for several seconds before letting out a slow breath."Right," I muttered bitterly. "Thanks for the conversation."I couldn’t exactly blame her for her actions right now. I could only imagine what Lily must have put them through out there simply for allowing me to make the food.The dungeon had become my entire world now.A tray of food was provided to me at different times and in here there was no clock or even sunlight for me to know how many days had gone by since I was locked up.The uncertainty was driving me insane.Every waking moment, I found myself wondering the same thing.How was Nikolai? Was he alive? How wel
"This meeting has been called under unfortunate circumstances." Lily declared, as soon as she walked into the room of gather council members. There was an instant hush in the room, as the atmosphere inside felt different from the previous meeting. “Where is Nikolai?” one of them asked as the chair at the head of the table sat empty. Sergei sat quietly in his usual seat, watching, as Lily made her way towards the head of the table and stood right where Nikolai should have been. The move didn’t go unnoticed by the others either, as they wondered what the fuck was going on. "Our dear Pakhan has been rendered incapacitated by two attacks which happened some hours before this meeting was called.” She said, Several council members shifted uneasily on hearing this. So many questions ran through their heads. "We still don't have definitive answers regarding his condition." Lily continued, “But we do know how this happened.” Sergei almost sighed at this point, as he could already tell







