تسجيل الدخولViktor pov.
The mansion loomed large in the fading daylight, its stone walls weathered but unyielding. Coming back here always felt like slipping into an old skin—familiar, but sometimes suffocating.Yet, today, the sight of it brought a surge of relief.I had made it back.As the car pulled to a stop, Lev groaned quietly beside me. I glanced at him. His face was pale, the lines around his mouth tighter than usual.The limp in his gait would only worsen if he didn’tAnya pov.The mansion felt different after Vlan’s death, as if the walls themselves were mourning. It was quieter, heavier. I wandered through the halls, trying to shake the unease that had settled deep in my chest. But no matter how hard I tried, the feeling wouldn’t leave. I found myself drifting toward the quieter parts of the house—the ones no one seemed to use. Maybe I needed space to think, or maybe I was just looking for something, anything, that could make sense of the chaos Viktor’s world had thrown me into. It was in one of those halls that I heard the voice. “…his strength finally snapped. We’ll see how long it takes for him to crumble.” I froze. The voice belonged to Anton. He was speaking in hushed tones, his back to me, phone pressed to his ear. My heart started to race. Those words—they felt loaded, dangerous. Anton paused, listening to whoever was on the other end of the line. Then he muttered something I couldn’t cat
Anya pov.The mansion had its own way of holding secrets. The walls whispered things when no one was looking—words you weren’t meant to hear but couldn’t ignore. That morning, as I lingered near Viktor’s study, the low rumble of voices reached me. “…you can’t afford sentiment,” Yuvi was saying. His voice was sharp, like a blade slicing through the air. “Not now. Especially not for her.” For me. I froze, my fingers gripping the edge of the wall. My stomach knotted as shame burned through me. “She’s not your problem, Yuvi,” Viktor replied, his tone colder than I’d ever heard it. “I’ll handle her.” Handle me? What did that mean? I felt my chest tighten, their conversation pressing down like an anchor. Yuvi didn’t back down. “You’re distracted. Don’t deny it. You think Boris won’t notice? That he won’t use it against you?” “Enough.” Viktor’s voice dropped, low and deadly. “Do your job, and I’ll do mine.” The scrape of a chair made
Viktor pov.The room felt like a pressure cooker. Every man in my inner circle sat around the table, faces grim, tension thick enough to choke on. I leaned back in my chair, fingers steepled under my chin, forcing myself to appear calm even though fury roiled in my chest. Yuvi spoke first, his tone clipped. “Whoever did this wanted to send a message, Pakhan. They know Vlan was more than just a consigliere to you.” My jaw clenched. “It’s not about the message. It’s about the cowardice. Execution-style? At the docks? They didn’t even have the decency to look him in the eyes.” “Or maybe,” Yuvi continued, his dark eyes meeting mine, “they wanted you to feel the sting. They think you’re weak now. Exposed.” I let out a low growl, slamming my palm onto the table. “Do I look weak to you, Yuvi? Does anyone here think I’m exposed?” No one answered. Silence fell over the room like a heavy blanket. Yuvi finally broke it. “It’s not about what we think
Anya pov.Yesterday, I woke up to the silence of the room, thick and suffocating. Viktor’s side of the bed was empty, the sheets cool against my fingertips. I reached out instinctively, but he wasn’t there. The first thought that crossed my mind was that something had happened. He was always gone before me, but this felt... different. Pulling the blanket around me, I sat up and stared at the room. The faint scent of his cologne lingered, mingling with the leather and wood of the furniture. It was a comforting smell, one I’d come to associate with him, but that day, it only made my chest tighten. Something was wrong. I felt it. ***I wandered out into the hallway, my bare feet padding against the cold floor. The mansion was alive with movement, but the usual hum of activity felt muted, like everyone was trying not to draw attention to themselves. Two staff members passed me, their heads bent close together as they whispered. “...found h
Viktor pov.I woke before the sun, the room was still cloaked in shadows. Restless. Unsettled. Something in my gut gnawed at me, like a warning I didn’t understand. Anya lay beside me, her hair was a tangled mess against the pillow, her breathing soft and even. Peaceful. She looked nothing like the fighter I knew—sharp-tongued, defiant, always pushing buttons she shouldn’t. Here, she was... different. Vulnerable. It should’ve been enough to make me look away, but I didn’t. Couldn’t. “Ty moya slabost,” I muttered under my breath. You are my weakness. It wasn’t a compliment. It wasn’t even anger. It was the truth. I dragged a hand down my face and sat up, the cool air biting against my skin. This—whatever she was doing to me—it needed to stop. I wasn’t built for softness, for distractions. Anya was supposed to be a pawn, leverage, nothing more. And yet, here I was, watching her sleep like some lovesick fool. I grabbed my phone fr
Viktor pov.The whiskey glass was warm in my hand, the amber liquid reflecting the dim light in the study. Across from me, Vlan sat like he owned the place—leaned back, legs spread, a cigar balanced between his fingers. His laughter filled the room, deep and rough, like gravel under boots. “Odessa’s shipment?” I asked, leaning forward. “Handled,” he said, puffing out a cloud of smoke. “But I’ve got to say, Viktor, your boys need a leash. One of them nearly fumbled the whole thing.” “Which one?” “Does it matter?” He smirked, swirling his whiskey. “They’re all too green. You should let me knock some sense into them.” I rolled my eyes, but I didn’t argue. Vlan loved to criticize, but he wasn’t wrong. I’d been too lenient lately, focusing on other things—other people. My gaze drifted to the clock on the wall. It was getting late. “Speaking of leashes,” Vlan said, breaking the silence. “How’s your little pet? Still trying to bite the hand
Anya pov.That night, I couldn’t sleep. No matter how much I shifted under the covers or tried to block out my thoughts, it was useless. My mind wouldn’t stop circling back to Viktor. I missed him. His calm yet commanding presence. His sharp gaze, which could cut through any lie but sof
Anya pov.The mansion felt colder without Viktor. Not in the literal sense—the temperature was fine—but in the way every interaction seemed to carry a sharp edge. Without him, the house had become a battlefield, and I was the only one without armor. And to make matter worse, Nikoli
Viktor pov.The hot, humid air of Mexico wrapped around me like a thick, suffocating blanket as I stood at the edge of the warehouse, watching the workers unload the shipment. It was supposed to be a simple operation. Get in, oversee the goods, and leave without incident. Of course, noth
Anya pov.I hadn’t been prepared for Viktor’s gaze on me. It was like he was reading something in me—something I didn’t even understand myself. The words he’d spoken earlier, “You belong to me now. Don’t forget that.” still echoed in my head, reverberating through my every thought.I







