“Well, not all of it went exactly to plan,” he admits with a shrug, like he didn’t just admit to coercive reproduction. “The pregnancy happened faster than expected. I thought it would take a few more months. But you were so eager, weren’t you? So desperate to feel close to me.” His smile is vicious. “It made it easy.”
I'm going to vomit right here on this expensive carpet. Because he’s saying—he’s admitting…
“You got me pregnant on purpose,” I whisper, horrified. “You sabotaged the condoms. You… you violated me.”
He dismisses that. “A Volkov heir with Ashford blood. The perfect bridge between families. The perfect tool for?—”
“I’m not a tool!” The words explode out of me, sharp and furious. “My baby isn’t a tool!”
“Your baby?” He laughs again. “Vera, sweetheart, that baby ismine. It’s always been mine. From the moment I planned it. And now that Dimitri’s conveniently fallen for you—played right into our hands, really—it’s only a matter of time before?—”
“Before what?” But I already know. I can see it in his eyes, in that cold, calculating expression.
“Before accidents happen,” he says simply. “He’s already had a few close calls, hasn’t he? The car bomb. The attack at the peace meeting. It would besucha tragedy if the next one actually succeeded.”
Horror crashes over me in waves. “You’re going to kill him.”
Alexei shakes his head. “I’mnot going to do anything. I’m dead, remember?” He spreads his hands in mock innocence. “But yes, eventually, Dimitri will have to go. And then you’ll be a widow. A grieving widow with a baby and no one to turn to except?—”
“Except you,” I finish numbly.
“Except Konstantin, actually.DearUncle Konstantin, who’s been keeping me updated on everything. Your pregnancy scare was concerning—glad that resolved. We need that baby healthy.” The casual way he talks about my child—about me—like we’re assets, like we’re things to be used, makes rage start to build beneath the shock. “He’ll take care of you. Guide you. Help youraise your child. The heir to both families. And I’ll be free to…” He pauses, realizing he’s saying too much. “Well. That doesn’t concern you.”
“Konstantin.” I say the name slowly, still trying to process everything. “Konstantin told you. About the pregnancy scare. About—about everything.”
“Yes.” He smiles that cruel smile again. “Family is so important, don’t you think?”
I stare at this stranger wearing Alexei’s face. And suddenly, I’m understanding. Horribly, completely understanding.
“Your death was fake,” I say slowly. “You and Konstantin planned it together to frame the Ashfords to start a war. You forced my family and Dimitri into a peace agreement and made Dimitri marry me to seal the alliance.” My voice is shaking, but I keep going. “Dimitri marries me, raises your child, and then you kill him. Then Konstantin controls everything through me and the baby.”
“I knew you were smart.” He sounds almost proud. “That’s why I picked you, you know. Beautiful, smart, and from the right family. Perfect breeding stock.”
Breeding stock.
It’s like a bucket of cold water has been thrown on me as I gape at him. That’s all I ever was to him. Not a girlfriend. Not someone he loved. Just a womb. A means to an end.
And I fell for it. I fell for his charm and his lies and his promises of a future together. I let him into my bed, into my body, and let him create a life inside me that he planned to use like a chess piece.
The rage that’s been building finally breaks free.
“You son of a bitch.” My voice is deadly quiet. “You manipulative, psychoticfucker.”
His smile falters slightly. “Now, now, Vera?—”
“No.” I cut him off, and there’s steel in my voice I didn’t know I had. “You don’t get to ‘Vera’ me. You don’t get to use that soft voice and act like we’re having a normal conversation. Youusedme. You planned everything—meeting me, dating me, getting me pregnant—all so you could use my baby in your sick little power play.”
“Ourbaby,” he corrects, annoyance clear on his face.
“MY baby!” I shout. “Mine! You gave up any claim to this child the moment you thought of this plan. The moment you decided to kill Dimitri. The moment you?—”
Dimitri.
Dimitri, who they’re planning to kill. Dimitri, who I’ve fallen in love with.
All the messy, complicated feelings I’ve been trying to deny rush to the surface. The way my heart races when he walks into a room. The way I feel safe in his arms. The way he looks at me like I matter, like I’m an actual person he cares about.
I love him.
