“You think this is a game,” she says finally, voice low. “You think you can kidnap someone and then decide what happens.”
“It’s not a game,” I reply. “It’s leverage. It’s survival.”
She snorts, half-bitter, half-resigned. “Leverage. Survival. Same thing when you’re a monster and the world’s a market.”
“Call it what you want,” I say. “I have nothing to prove to you.”
“Where are you taking me, Roman?” Her voice cuts through the hum of the car.
I shouldn’t react, but I do. The way my name sounds on her lips hits something I can’t name.
“My home,” I tell her.
She turns fully this time, eyes widening. “Your home? You don’t plan to let me go anytime soon, do you?”
“No.”
The single word hangs between us like a verdict.
She stares at me for a moment, searching my face for any hint of softness, mercy, maybe reason. She finds none.
Without another word, she turns back to the window. Her reflection in the glass is tight-lipped, tense, her jaw working as if she’s biting back everything she wants to say.
Good.
The truth is, today a decision will be made.
The judges are already waiting for me at my house—though they have no idea why I called the meeting. Lukin, the Pakhan, is there. Adrian’s in Greece, but Lev and Niko made it. Even Kaz, who hardly shows his face unless the world is on fire, is there. They’re all waiting.
I don’t call meetings. Ever. So when I did, they came. Every last one of them. I wonder what they’ll say when I tell them I have David Chang’s daughter.
Will they see it as a strategy—or a declaration of war?
We pull up to the mansion, the long driveway lined with armed guards. The moment the SUV stops, the doors open, and men step forward with lowered heads, greeting me in silence.
I step out first, the cold air biting against my skin. When I turn to help her, I offer my hand. She looks at it, then at me, and ignores it completely, climbing out on her own as she’d rather break a bone than take my help.
Luka’s already waiting by the stairs, hands clasped behind his back.
“Show her to her room,” I tell him. “I’ll be back soon.”
I turn to leave, but her voice cuts through the quiet.
“Really? Back to being locked up like Rapunzel?”
Her tone is sharp, dripping with defiance.
I don’t bother to answer. I just keep walking, boots echoing on the marble, her anger following me like a shadow.
When I reach my study, I take a deep breath, trying to shove down the tension coiling in my chest, and throw the door open. My heart twists at the sight of my brothers already seated around the table—Lukin, Lev, Niko, Kaz. Two half-empty bottles of vodka sit in the center, mugs clutched in hands that have clearly already sipped their way through the day’s stress. My pulse ticks faster. The stakes are high, and I feel the weight of all eyes on me.
What will the final decision be? I already know what I want to do with Elara. Letting her go isn’t an option.
“Thanks for keeping us waiting,” Lukin says blandly, but I can feel the undercurrent of curiosity and calculation beneath his calm tone.
He’s the Pakhan, the oldest among us, but grounded. The kind of man who’s earned respect without ever demanding it. To us, he’s not just Pakhan; he’s a brother.
“Sorry. We just arrived,” I reply, my voice steady.
