“Sasha, please, there’s no going back. You’ll see exactly what I am.”
She doesn’t hesitate. “Then show me.”
Something in me unclenches and then clamps down harder; the admission lands with the weight of a promise I didn’t know I wanted to keep. She’s not afraid of me—not that kind of fear—and that steadiness is more intoxicating than anything I wear or any power I hold.
I nod once, because words would ruin it. “Good,” I say. “We leave in two hours.”
Chapter 21 – Sasha
I can’t believe he actually agreed. I half expected him to laugh, to tell me I was being ridiculous—but instead, one call later, there’s a jet, a flight plan, and men moving like the world is ending.
Now we’re on our way to Athens.
The cabin feels heavy, thick with tension. Mikhail sits across from me, rigid, jaw tight, eyes flicking toward Lev like he’s waiting for a command. Roman hasn’t said a word since we boarded, only checking his phone, fingers drumming against his thigh.
I can feel the shift—the world around me no longer hums with quiet luxury; it vibrates with danger. Even the silence feels sharp, like it could cut.
Lev sits beside me, his broad shoulders tense, gaze fixed on nothing. He hasn’t spoken since we got on board. Not a word. Not even when I reach for his hand earlier—his fingers close around mine, but his eyes never meet mine.
I don’t ask questions. I just watch him, knowing whatever waits in Athens isn’t business. It’s war. And for the first time, I realize I’ve chosen to step right into the middle of it.
And he let me.
Part of me is grateful for the freedom, part of me guilty that I pushed him to the wall.
Then, without a word, Lev rises to his feet. My stomach tightens as he pulls me up with him. The cabin feels smaller suddenly, the hum of the engines louder, heavier.
He leads me down the aisle, past the leather seats and polished surfaces, to the private suite in the back of the jet. The door slides shut behind us, sealing us away from the rest of the crew and the sterile quiet of the cabin.
I glance at him, heart hammering. I wish he’d kiss me. Instead, he glances at me.
“The Greeks won’t negotiate fairly,” he says, blunt, eyes locked on mine. “They will lie, threaten, and try to take you by force. You stay by my side. No matter what.”
The words are brutal, but I don’t flinch. Somehow, just being here, by his side, makes me feel safer than I ever have. My chest tightens, a mix of fear and trust coiling together.
“I won’t do anything stupid,” I promise, my voice steady despite the storm of adrenaline in my veins.
He studies me for a long moment, like he’s weighing the truth in my eyes. Then he nods, satisfied. I know he means every word he just said, and that’s enough. I know he’ll keep me safe. And somehow, in the middle of this looming danger, I feel a strange, fierce calm.
As he watches me, images flash unbidden in my mind—my mother’s hurried movements in the kitchen, late-night phone calls in hushed, hurried Greek, envelopes that appeared and vanished like ghosts. I remember fragments: a word here, a glance there, shadows in my childhood that never made sense before.
I stare at Lev, standing tall and unreadable beside me, and for the first time, pieces of the past click into something darker than I could have imagined. The Greeks. My parents. That name—Viktor Markovic—echoes through my memory, sinister now, wrapped around all the questions I’ve been too young to ask.
I take a breath, steadying myself, trying to push the fear down.
“Lev?”
He frowns, his hands coming up to cup my face. “Are you okay?”
“I…I don’t know why, but I remember little things now,” I start, voice tight. “Late at night, I’d hear Mom talking on the phone in Greek. I couldn’t understand most of it, but it sounded urgent. She sounded…scared.”
Lev leans forward slightly, his eyes sharp. “Go on.”
“There were envelopes,” I continue, swallowing hard. “Hidden under floorboards, in drawers she never wanted me to touch. I didn’t know why she hid them, but…I saw her looking over her shoulder sometimes.”
Lev’s jaw tightens, but his voice is calm when he speaks. “Sasha…your parents weren’t just innocent bystanders. Especially your father. He didn’t die like you believe.”
I freeze. “What…what do you mean?”
