Chapter 20 - Viktor #2
But understanding the risks didn’t eliminate his need for justice.
Adrian had caused immeasurable damage to both their lives, had allowed Viktor to believe for years that the woman he’d loved had simply grown tired of him and discarded him like used entertainment.
That kind of pain required acknowledgment, required consequences that went beyond simple forgiveness.
“Some things can’t be overlooked,” Viktor said finally, his voice carrying conviction he wasn’t entirely sure he felt.
Matvei paused at the door, looking back with an expression that combined understanding and disappointment in equal measure.
“The question is whether your need for revenge is worth destroying your marriage. Because that’s what you’re choosing between—making Adrian pay, or keeping Anka. You can’t have both.”
Alone in his office after Matvei left, Viktor found himself staring at the phone he’d been about to use to sabotage Adrian’s latest deal. The conversation had introduced complications he’d been avoiding, questions about priorities and consequences that made his previously clear path seem murkier.
But clarity returned when he remembered the devastation he’d felt four years ago, the months of believing himself fooled and discarded by the one person he’d trusted completely.
Adrian had orchestrated that pain through lies and manipulation, had stolen something precious without regard for the damage it would cause.
Viktor picked up the phone.
The call took less than five minutes. A brief conversation with a contact in the regulatory department, a casual mention of concerns about certain shipping manifests, and the suggestion that closer scrutiny might be warranted.
By tomorrow, Adrian’s deal would be dead, another casualty in Viktor’s campaign of systematic justice.
The satisfaction felt hollow this time, tainted by Matvei’s warnings and his own growing awareness that his marriage was becoming collateral damage in his pursuit of revenge. But justice demanded sacrifices, and Viktor had never been someone who backed down from necessary unpleasantness.
He would deal with Anka’s disapproval when it became unavoidable. For now, Adrian needed to understand that his actions had consequences that extended far beyond the immediate moment of manipulation.
The lesson was delivered with characteristic Nikolai efficiency.
By the time Viktor arrived home that evening, Adrian’s business partners had already withdrawn from their agreement, citing regulatory concerns and timeline complications that made the venture untenable.
Another victory in Viktor’s campaign, another step toward ensuring Adrian understood the cost of his past choices.
Viktor expected to find Anka in the library or the kitchen, pursuing one of the quiet activities that had become her routine since their confrontation about his methods.
Instead, he found her in their bedroom, methodically folding clothes into suitcases with the kind of focused efficiency that suggested desperate purpose.
“What are you doing?” The question came out rougher than Viktor had intended, carrying panic he hadn’t known he was feeling.
Anka looked up from the suitcase, her face set in lines of devastating finality. “Packing.”
The simple word hit Viktor hard, rewriting his understanding of the evening’s events with brutal clarity. This wasn’t about temporary anger or the need for space to process difficult emotions. This was departure, abandonment, the kind of leaving that suggested permanence.
“Where are you going?” Viktor moved into the room, his hands clenching into fists as he fought the urge to physically prevent her from continuing her preparations.
“Away from here. Away from this.” Anka gestured toward the room, toward him, encompassing everything their marriage had become. “I know what you did to Adrian’s shipping deal. Marcus called to gloat about regulatory complications, apparently thinking I’d share his enthusiasm for your victories.”
The betrayal of his own intelligence network felt insignificant compared to the devastation of watching Anka systematically pack away the life they’d been building together. “One business deal doesn’t justify—”
“It’s not about one deal,” Anka interrupted, her voice carrying the kind of exhausted finality that suggested she’d reached the end of her capacity for disappointment.
“It’s about what that deal represents. You promised me you were done with revenge, that you understood Adrian had paid enough.
Then you turned around and destroyed something that mattered to him just because you could. ”
Viktor wanted to argue, wanted to explain the justice in his actions and the necessity of ensuring consequences followed choices. But the words felt inadequate in the face of Anka’s quiet devastation, her obvious recognition that their marriage had become something she could no longer tolerate.
“You can’t leave,” he said instead, the statement carrying desperation he hadn’t known he possessed.
Anka’s smile was sad and knowing, the expression of someone who’d finally accepted painful truths about the people she’d tried to love.
“I already have, Viktor. The moment you chose revenge over us, you lost me. Everything since then has just been the process of accepting what you’d already decided was more important. ”
She closed the suitcase with deliberate care, her movements suggesting someone who’d made peace with difficult decisions. When she looked at him again, Viktor saw finality in her expression that made his chest constrict with panic.
“This doesn’t have to end everything,” he said, though even he wasn’t sure what he was offering.
“Yes, it does.” Anka moved toward the door, her suitcases in hand and her posture suggesting someone who’d already begun the process of moving on. “Because some choices can’t be undone, and some trust can’t be rebuilt. You made your choice, Viktor. Now I’m making mine.”
Before Viktor could formulate a response, before he could find words that might bridge the gap between his need for justice and her need for peace, Anka was gone. The sound of her footsteps faded down the hallway, followed by the distinctive rumble of a car engine starting in the driveway.
Viktor stood in their bedroom, surrounded by the remnants of a life they’d been trying to build together, and finally understood what Matvei had been trying to tell him.
Some victories cost more than they were worth, and some revenge extracted prices that couldn’t be calculated until the damage was already done.
But understanding came too late. Anka was gone, taking with her any chance that justice and love might coexist in the same space.