"Until I figure out what to do with him." I turn toward the door, then pause. "And Lev? Make sure he's treated well. No more bruises. No more threats. He's a guest now, not a prisoner."
"A guest who can't leave," Lev observes dryly.
"Exactly."
I leave Tyler Chen in my basement, neither dead nor free, suspended in the same limbo that seems to define everything in my life lately. As I climb the stairs back to the main floor, I hear Eva's voice drifting from upstairs. She's on the phone with Megan, already planning the party, her tone bright with excitement.
For her, I'll wear a ridiculous costume. For her, I'll keep Tyler Chen alive despite the risk he represents. For her, I'll try to be something more than the monster everyone knows I am.
But as I pour myself vodka in my study, staring out at the grounds where armed guards patrol the perimeter, I wonder how long I can maintain this balance.
33
EVA
The video call with Babushka Sasha fills my phone screen with her lined face, and relief floods through me so powerfully, my knees weaken. She's sitting up in her hospital bed in Moscow, color returned to her cheeks, her brown eyes bright despite the exhaustion shadowing them.
"The surgery went perfectly,vnuchka," she says in Russian, her voice stronger than I've heard in months. "The doctors say my heart is already stronger. I'll be home in a few days."
Tears blur my vision as I press my hand to my mouth, trying not to sob. "I'm so glad, Babushka. So glad."
"Don't cry,malyshka. This is happy news." She reaches toward the screen as if she could touch my face. "Now tell me about this Halloween party you're throwing. Alexei says the house is very grand."
I glance around the guest room where I've been getting ready, the opulence still jarring even after living here. "It's… yes, it's grand. But tonight is for Alexei. To help him learn some American traditions and meet people."
We talk for a few more minutes before she tires, and I end the call with promises to visit soon, to bring Roman to meet her properly. The thought of introducing my grandmother to the Pakhan makes my stomach clench with complicated emotions I don't have time to examine.
I finish my makeup and study my reflection. The witch costume is simple but effective, a black dress that hugs my body in ways that make me hyperaware of my changing shape, a pointed hat perched on my blonde hair that I've left loose. The dress's neckline is modest, but it emphasizes my breasts, which have grown fuller with the pregnancy. I catch myself wondering if Roman will notice, if his blue eyes will darken the way they do when he wants me.
Stop it.
I force the thought away and head downstairs, my heels clicking against marble floors that have been transformed for the evening. Carved pumpkins line the entryway, their flickering candles casting dancing shadows. Orange and black decorations soften the estate's usual austere elegance, and the dining room table groans under an elegant catered spread.
Roman stands near the windows, and my breath catches despite everything. He actually dressed up. A vampire in an expensive black suit with a dramatic cape that somehow makes him look even more dangerous than usual. His short black hair is perfectly groomed, his mustache precisely trimmed, and when he turns those piercing blue eyes on me, the intensity in them makes my pulse quicken. The costume shouldn't work on a man his age, but it does. God, it does. He looks like something out of a Gothic novel, all controlled power and predatory grace.
His gaze sweeps over me, lingering on the way my dress hugs my curves, and I see his jaw tighten slightly. Heat floods my cheeks as I remember his hands on my body, his mouth claiming mine. Even now, even with everything unresolved between us, my body responds to his presence.
"You look bewitchingly beautiful," he says, his accent thicker than usual, and the compliment sends warmth through my chest despite my best efforts to remain distant.
"You make a convincing vampire," I manage, my voice steadier than I feel.
Something flickers in his expression. "Perhaps because I am a monster,solnyshko."
The endearment catches me off guard.Little sun. He's never called me that before. Before I can respond, Alexei bounds down the stairs in his mad scientist costume, his blonde hair deliberately mussed, fake blood splattered on his white lab coat. His enthusiasm is infectious, his blue eyes bright with excitement as he takes in the decorations.
"This is amazing, Eva!" He spins in a circle, grinning. "America really does Halloween right."
I pull him into a hug, grateful for his presence, for the normalcy he brings to this increasingly surreal situation. "Go explore. Try the candy. Just… stay on the main floors, okay?"
He nods and disappears toward the dining room, already sampling the elaborate spread. I watch him go, my heart aching with love and fear in equal measure. He has no idea what kind of world he's walked into, what kind of man his sister is bound to.
The doorbell chimes, and Megan arrives in a cheerleader costume, her usual sunshine slightly dimmed as she takes in the estate's opulence. I see her brown eyes widen at the crystal chandeliers, the artwork on the walls, the obvious wealth surrounding us. When her gaze lands on the security guards positioned throughout the house, their costumes unable to hide the weapons beneath their jackets, her smile becomes strained.
"Eva." She pulls me into a tight hug, whispering against my hair. "This place is insane. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," I lie, the words automatic now. "Come on, let me get you a drink."
Lev arrives with Irina, and I force myself to greet them with polite warmth. Lev wears a simple black mask, the Phantom of the Opera, his dark eyes watchful behind the disguise. But it's Irina who makes my skin prickle with unease. She's dressed as a glamorous 1920s flapper, all fringe and pearls, her green eyes assessing me with thinly veiled hostility that I still don't fully understand.
