Lukyan nods once. “Then this isn’t contained to Russia anymore.”
No.
It isn’t.
I go still for a second.
Because that changes everything.
This is no longer a distant conflict tied to Valeria’s past.
It’s here.
Alive.
Breathing inside my walls.
The door opens. Both Lukyan and I turn at the same time. Valeria steps in. Her posture is straight.
But her eyes, her eyes say she heard everything.
“I heard,” she says, confirming it.
Of course she did.
I exhale slowly, irritation flickering just beneath the surface.
“Were you eavesdropping?”
Her eyes flash immediately. Sharp. Offended.
“I was coming in to talk to you,” she shoots back. “I only heard because Lukyan’s voice was loud enough.”
A pause as Lukyan’s eyes narrow. Then she steps fully into the room, closing the distance between us like she belongs here. Like she has every right to stand in the middle of this conversation.
Maybe she does.
Her gaze locks onto mine.
Steady. No fear. Not even now.
“This is my fault,” she says strongly.
I don’t even let that sit.
“No.”
The word comes out sharp. Immediate. Her brows pull together slightly, like she didn’t expect me to shut it down so quickly.
“He’s here because of me,” she insists.
“He’s here because he thinks he can take something that’s under my protection,” I correct coldly.
A beat.
“And that has nothing to do with fault. It has everything to do with him being stupid.”
Her eyes search mine for something—agreement, resistance, I don’t know.
