"He's protecting whatever he did to the real Ana," Fyodor adds quietly. "By killing the fake one. If our woman dies, the questions die with her."
The thought makes my blood boil. Vivika, used as a pawn and then discarded. Killed to protect the secrets of a man who probably murdered his own sister.
Dimitri shakes his head slowly. "This is getting complicated. If Yaros knows she's a fake and he's actively trying to have her killed, we're operating on borrowed time. The con could fall apart any day now."
"Or," Yuri says slowly, "we could use this to our advantage. Yaros's reaction tells us something important. He's scared. He's desperate. He's acting like a man with something terrible tohide. Whatever happened to the real Ana, he can't afford to have anyone looking too closely at it. Our woman is forcing him into a corner, and cornered men make mistakes. They panic. They overreach. They expose themselves."
"So, what the hell do we do?" I ask.
Yuri leans back in his chair and sighs hard. "Kolar and the other Balkan leaders are already watching this situation closely. They had arrangements with Ana specifically, and they're very interested in her sudden reappearance. If Yaros keeps acting guilty…"
"They'll start to wonder what he's hiding," Fyodor says, nodding slowly.
"Exactly." Yuri's cold smile returns. "We don't have to prove Yaros killed his sister. We just have to make everyone else wonder if he did. The suspicion alone will be enough to weaken him."
If that bullet had even so much as grazed her, I would lose my mind. Not a Veche man alive would be left standing. I'd mow them all down like the cattle they are and feast on their carcasses. She is mine, and I will protect her.
"We need to move her," I say. "If Yaros is actively trying to have her killed, she's a target. We need to get her somewhere safe."
"Or," Dimitri says carefully, "we could just terminate her ourselves and be done with the whole thing." He opens his hands and shrugs like what he's suggesting is the most logical option.
The room goes quiet.
"Think about it," Dimitri continues. "The situation's getting dangerous. Yaros knows she's a fake. He's trying to kill her.Sooner or later, he's going to succeed, or the truth is going to come out, or both. Maybe we should cut our losses before this blows up in our faces."
I'm across the room before I realize I'm moving and grab the front of Dimitri's shirt, slamming him back against the wall. His head bounces off the plaster and his eyes go wide.
"Say that again," I growl, my face inches from his. "Say it again and I'll break your fucking jaw."
"Lev." Fyodor's on his feet, moving toward us.
"She's a person, Dimitri. A fucking person. And you're talking about killing her like she's a rabid dog needing to be put down."
"She's an asset," Dimitri spits back. "That's all she's ever been. When something stops being useful, you get rid of it. You know how this works."
I draw my fist back and Fyodor grabs my arm, yanking me away before I can connect with Dimitri's face. He puts himself between us, his hands raised.
"Enough!" Yuri's voice cuts through the chaos. "Both of you, stand down. Now."
I'm breathing hard, my pulse pounding. Dimitri straightens his shirt and glares at me, rubbing at the back of his neck. I can't believe he has the nerve to suggest terminating her. Our plan is working. I'm not killing her, not over this. And I won't let them kill her either.
"Lev." Yuri's voice is calm but carries steel. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
I force myself to look at my uncle and know he's not going to like what I have to say.
"She's mine," I snarl at him. I don't care what they planned to do with her once this whole charade is over. Dimitri is right. When we have those trade routes secured and the Balkans are in our pocket, we'd have to find a way to explain Ana's magical vanishing act too, and it would definitely lead to suspicion. But I won't just let someone walk in and kill Vivika. I don't care what they say. She belongs to me now.
"Excuse me?"
"Vivika. Whether the con goes forward or falls apart, I'm keeping her. She belongs to me now, and I won't let anyone lay a finger on her. I won't let Dimitri terminate her, and I won't let Yaros put a bullet in her head."
Dimitri stares at me like I've lost my mind as silence settles over the room. Fyodor sets down his tablet and I watch his jaw tighten. I know Dimitri has no soul. He's barely a member of this family. But my brother just had his own little run-in with a woman he won't let go of. Surely, he understands how I feel.
Yuri's the only one who doesn't seem surprised. He studies me for a long moment, then sighs and leans back in his chair.
"I wondered when this would happen," he says quietly.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
