He looks away, then back at me, appearing vulnerable for the first time since meeting him. Like he’s giving himself over to me with what he’s telling me.
“You have to understand. One wrong move, and I lose everything I’ve worked for. They’re all waiting for me to slip uponce.” He sighs, his shoulders slouching under the weight of all the stress and responsibility he carries around. My eyes soften, but I keep my heart locked. “I know it means nothing to you, and I don’t blame you after everything I did to you, but if I do this… maybe my family will finally accept me.”
And there it is. That shred of guilt again.
It grows, and grows, twisting around me like a serpent until my lungs beg for air.
If he truly is lying to me about my family—and heis—how can he be so sincere now?
We lay in silence for the next few minutes. I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to blow my only chance at getting my family out of this mess by letting him know I know the truth. But at the same time, he’s… Wolf. He’s my husband.
Maybe I really am an idiot for giving him this one last chance, but my heart begs me to. I don’t feel like I have another choice.
“I need you to tell me the truth,” I whisper, still looking at the ceiling. I take in a deep breath before I exhale it slowly. “Did you do what they say you did…? Did you sell my sister and my mother to whoever wanted them?”
I wait for the answer in horror, my body locked in place, waiting for the truth to drop. I want him to laugh at the absurdity I’m implying. Anything would be better than it actually being true.
“What?” he asks. When I turn to him, his eyes are squinted. As if he’s taken aback.
“You heard me.”
“Victoria…” He sighs. “What did I tell you back at the restaurant?”
My heart hammers in my chest. “To trust you.”
“And up until tonight, you didn’t seem to have a problem with that.” He gets up, sitting on the bed with his back to me.
“I saw you.” I swallow. “Videos were sent to me. People told me what you did to Anya and my mom. I saw everything, so forgive me for not feeling like I can trust you too much right now.”
“You saw me…” he echoes. “And what exactly was I doing in those videos?”
I don’t hesitate. “Your men were shoving them in cars forcefully. Took them out of their beds in nothing but nightgowns. And you were there, walking alongside them, giving out orders. Like I said, I saw everything.”
“Of course you did.” He scoffs. “Who the fuck showed you? Whotoldyou to watch them? No, actually, don’t tell me. It doesn’t even matter.”
“You’re right, it doesn’t. But is that all you’re going to say about it?” I shake my head. He did it. And he’s not even trying to defend himself. Why else would he be deflecting?
“I come home after doing everything in my fucking power to find the man wanting us dead, and you pretend to be upset about that, when in reality, you’d already made up your mind about whom to trust. And it wasn’t me. Not one bit.”
I sit up. “No, it wasn’t, because like I said, I have proof. And you don’t! So what am I supposed to believe, Wolfgang? Are you asking me not to believe my own eyes?”
“How can you…” He laughs, and it’s chilling. There’s nothing amusing about this laugh. “How can you even ask me that? Fuck. You know, Victoria, maybe the reason nobody back home wanted you around is because you’re incapable of understanding who’s actually on your side.”
My breath leaves my lungs all at once.
“W-What? How can you say that to me…?” A wave of sadness flows through me, bringing my shoulders down. If anyone understands how it feels to be unwanted, it’s him. So for him to use that against me…
Wolfgang gets up, and it’s clear he doesn’t want to be around me anymore. He’s leaving. And I’m losing parts of myself right now, before his eyes.
“Sure. Leave. Run away,” I say, tears lodged in my throat. “Once again, you’re showing me I was right not to fall for your lies.”
His head turns to me, eyes thunderous. I hold my breath, unable to look anywhere else.
“You’ll believe whatever you want to believe, love. And you’ll do whatever you want. Maybe all of you Romanovs are the same, after all.”
“Maybe,” I seethe, crawling on the bed until I’m closer to his side. “I wouldn’t have to believe what others tell me if you were straight with me for once!”
He turns fully, but halts. As if he’s reeling with himself on how to handle the situation.
