My father finally stopped pacing, coming to stand beside the window and look out on the lush grounds that surrounded the house. He was silent, and I waited for him to say something, instead of pushing him towards a reply. He was a man of few words and pushing him would only lead to disaster.
Finally, he turned to look at Decatur. His appraising gaze sturdy as he moved to shake Decatur’s hand.
“Thank you for your loyalty,” he said without doubt.
“Always, Mr. Vasiliev,” Decatur returned. “Will there be anything else?”
My father’s smile grew wider. “Hard working too.” Decatur smiled back and my father patted him on the shoulder. “Take some time for yourself. Two weeks should be sufficient, I think.”
“Mr. Vasiliev?” Decatur asked with a frown.
“A holiday, Decatur,” he laughed, “you need a holiday.”
“Don’t we all,” Decatur laughed back. “But I’d rather be working, if that’s okay with you. There are still traitors in our midst.”
My father nodded, looking pleased by the response. “Well, we’ll all be leaving tonight. You can choose to come and keep watch over my family, or you can take the time for yourself. The choice is yours.”
Decatur shook my father’s hand. “I’ll see you tonight then.”
He turned and gave me a brief handshake before leaving my father and I alone to talk. My father finally turned to look at me, a frustrated look on his face. He perched on the edge of his desk, an action I’d never seen from him before.
“Ivan’s wife,” he began.
“Marisha,” I corrected, and his mouth tightened infinitesimally.
“Marisha then,” he said, his voice harder and firmer. “How do you know she can be trusted? How doIknow she can ever be trusted?”
And there it was; the truth of the matter. The facts he needed so desperately. My next words would either condemn or free Marisha, and I chose them carefully.
“Because, as I am not you, she is also not her parents.” I swallowed, watching the displeasure roll through his features. “Father, you have built your empire from the ground up. Through blood, sweat, and tears. You forged this life for us—this home, this security, through hard work and sacrifice.”
“I don’t understand where you’re going with this, Son,” he said, his forehead furrowing in confusion.
“You wish for me to take over, don’t you?”
He nodded, still frowning, and I forged ahead.
“Do you wish for me to continue on as things were, or continue to build upon your foundations? You know which way I seek to lead your kingdom, Father, and it’s in a different direction than the one you chose, and yet you still trust me.” I stood now and took a step towards him. “Marisha is much the same. She is no more her parents, than I am you.”
“But the core of you is still me, Alexander. My blood runs through your veins,” he replied calmly.
I smiled. “Yes, and I am proud of that very fact. But it still remains that I am not you and I do not seek to be you. I will run your empire as I see fit when I take over, and yet I will still be loyal to you, always. Marisha is not her parents, though their blood runs through her veins.”
Silence slipped between us as he thought about it, and once again he moved to the window to look outside. I walked to stand beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder and he turned to look at me.
“If those facts will not settle you, then how about this,” I started, “she loved her parents, but she loves me more.”
His dark eyes searched mine. “And you love her back,” he stated it as the fact it was, but I nodded to confirm it. He sighed heavily, like I’d just told him something disastrous.
“Father, had she not shot her own husband today, you might be grieving a son versus debating his choice of partner.” I pointed out.
He nodded and swallowed. “Well then, there is really no choice here is there?”
A smile quirked the corner of my mouth. “What do you mean?”
“Your mother would kill me if I came between you and a woman. You know there’s nothing she wants more than her children to be happily married and ready to give her grandchildren,” he chuckled and the tension in the room evaporated. He shook his head as he looked at me. “You couldn’t try to find someone else?”
I squeezed his shoulder and shrugged. “There is only her.”
