Chapter 16
NATASHA
My features twisted with disdain as I eyed my brother, my fingers slowly twisting the lock behind my back and pulling the door open.
“Going somewhere, dear sister?” Nikolai asked as he took another step closer.
“Away from you,” I snapped back.
He smirked at me, his dark eyebrows wiggling as he continued forward. “Whatever for?”
I swallowed hard, my eyes trained on him. It would be a bold move to end my life in my own suite, but lately, Nikolai seemed full of them.
“Do not try to pretend, Nikolai. We both know you are responsible for what happened to Papa.”
“Do we?” he asked, his eyes cold and calculating. “Prove it.”
I narrowed my eyes. “I am trying to do just that.”
“Yet you ran away.” He raised a finger in the air, the fabric of his expensive suit swishing as he moved.
I heaved a sigh, surprised that Stefan had not yet burst into the room. Perhaps he had not heard me unlock the door. Although, that had never stopped him before from breaking down a door to get to me.
“I did not run.” I stretched my hands out to the sides. “And clearly, I am back.”
He crossed his arms. “Because you were about to lose everything.”
“And you were only too eager to step in.”
“Someone had to,” he shot back.
I clicked my tongue. “I heard Mother is back to assist you in your desperate attempt to steal the crown.”
“I would hardly call it desperate,” he answered, pacing the room. “I stand a very good chance.”
I scoffed, shaking my head. “You continue to be delusional. Papa’s will–which is not even in effect because he has not yet been declared dead–clearly names me the heir. There is no disputing it.”
“So many things wrong with that statement,” Nikolai said with a sigh and a shake of his head.
I frowned, my fingers curling into fists. “And I suppose you would be all too happy to correct me.”
“I am in the process of having Papa declared formally dead. The councillorss have been very receptive to my suggestions regarding his…prolonged absence.”
My eyes went wide, my stomach dropping. “What? You can’t do that.”
“Then produce him, Natasha,” he shouted. “Enough with this game.”
I steeled my features, nostrils flaring. “I told you—he’s unavailable. He’ll return as soon as possible.”
“And I told you—that’s unacceptable,” he snapped, his voice still raised.
“You are not the one in charge here, Nikolai. I am Queen Regent, I say we wait. There is no body, no evidence of his death. Unless you’d like to produce some. It was at your hand he supposedly died, wasn’t it?”
Nikolai raised his chin, glowering at me. “You will not be in charge for long. I have the means to end this charade of a reign.”
“And what are those?”
One corner of his lips twitched into a momentary smirk. “You will have to wait to find out.”
“I demand you tell me now,” I said, my voice firm.
“Tsarina?” Stefan’s voice called through the small crack in the door.
My heart lifted. At least I would survive this encounter to fight another day. But before he could enter, Nikolai flew across the room, slamming a hand against the door to close it.
Stefan pushed back, attempting to open the door, but Nikolai’s strong bicep prevented him from gaining entry.
I tried to slip away, but he pinned me against the door with his other hand, his fingers wrapping around my throat.
He tightened them until it became painful. I tugged against him, trying to relieve the pressure, but failing. “I would recommend you abandon this desperate gambit to hold on to the crown before it costs you your life.”
“The throne is Papa’s or mine, not yours,” I growled. “Take your pick.”
If he succeeded in having our father declared dead, it would complicate things but I would claim the throne. What trick did he have up his sleeve to prevent that?
“We’ll see, Natashka. We will see.”
Stefan and an entire contingent of guards burst through from the servants’ entrance, weapons drawn.
My brother raised his hands, stepping back from me. “I have done nothing. Take your tsarina.”
Nikolai slipped from the room through the double doors as Stefan holstered his weapon, racing toward me.
“Tsarina, are you all right?”
I cleared my throat as I nodded. “Yes, I’m fine.”
Stefan’s chiseled jaw flexed as he motioned to the other guards. “She is never to be unattended, and this room is to be under constant guard.”
I heaved a sigh, crossing my arms. “He said something about having Papa declared dead and claiming the crown. Does Nadia know what he is planning?”
“If she does, she has not confided it to me.”
“Where is she?” I asked.
“Following up on a potential threat,” Stefan answered. “I will leave word that you wish to speak with her.”
“I am capable of calling myself if you’d only give me a phone.”
He stared down his nose at me, his amusement obvious given the smile playing on his features. “Nice try, malenka.”
I huffed out a breath, stomping away from him.
“Your safety is my priority.”
Before I could answer, his phone rang. I glanced over my shoulder as he withdrew it from his pocket, arching an eyebrow as I wondered if I could pick his pocket.
“Da?” His eyes flicked to me, and he nodded before he held the phone out. “Your sister.”
I snatched the phone from him, intent on keeping it if I could. “Nadia?”
“You’re not going to believe this.”
“What is it?” I wondered if she had learned of Nikolai’s plan.
“Your doctor is in the dungeon.”
I collapsed on the bed, my eyes wide. My heart fluttered. Kyle had come to Belvaria? How?
It didn’t matter. He was here. And it lifted my spirits more than words could say.
My sister’s voice pulled me back to reality. “What is he doing there? Get him out of there immediately and bring him to the private office. We need him now more than ever. I will explain as soon as we’re together.”
“Yes, of course, I will,” she answered.
The line clicked, and I held on to the phone for a moment, a smile playing on my lips.
Kyle was in Belvaria. How had he followed me?
I shook my head. It didn’t matter. He was here.
My stomach twisted as I worried that maybe he hadn’t followed me because we had a connection, but I shoved it aside. It couldn’t be anything else.
I grinned to myself, my hands tightening around the phone until Stefan yanked it from my hands. “I believe this should be returned to me.”
Normally, that would have made me frown, but I was on top of the world. Even Stefan refusing to let me keep the phone couldn’t bring me down.
“Keep it, Stefan. Escort me to the private office.”
His features remained stoic, unwavering. “Mind filling me in?”
“Of course,” I said, lifting my chin as I grinned. “It appears Dr. Carter has come to Belvaria. And just in the nick of time. We need him to help with Papa.”
“He has not yet been properly vetted,” Stefan informed me.
“I have vetted him. I will handle any of the final details myself.”
“Nyet,” he answered, flinching. “You will not expose yourself to him until he has been properly vetted by my team.”
I wagged a finger at him. “You do not make the call. I have already told Nadia to have him brought to the private office. She said she would. She must trust him.”
Stefan shook his head. “So you say. But we have not confirmed this, and I–“
“Enough!” I shouted, allowing heat to enter my voice. “He is our best chance to save Papa. I will go see him now. If you want to continue your verification, I suggest you do that quickly.”
“Malenka–“
“Do not,” I warned, my voice turning sharp again. “You seem to forget who is in charge here, Stefan. I have allowed you to treat me like a child, to do what you feel you must to protect me, but I will not allow you to stop me from doing what I must to save my father.”
His nostrils flared as he sucked in a deep breath. “Allow my people to finish our checks before you tell him too much.”
I weighed the words, mulling my choice over in my mind. I wanted to plow straight into what I needed from him. And I needed so much.
But Stefan was correct. My brother had just had his hands around my throat, ready to squeeze the life out of me. I couldn’t be too careful.
I slid my eyes closed. If Kyle Carter was working for Nikolai…
Shaking my head, I curled my fingers into fists. That couldn’t be the case. I simply wouldn’t allow it.
With a sigh, I snapped my eyes up to Stefan’s. “Fine. Finish your checks, but they had better be expedient.”
“We are nearly finished.”
“See that you are finished by–“
“Tomorrow,” he ended for me.
I narrowed my eyes at him. Was he stalling or being thorough? “Fine,” I answered. “Now, let’s go.”
As we made our way through the halls, my mind raced. Would Kyle prove true? Or would this be another ploy by my brother to rob me of a crown he desperately wanted?
Time would tell, though I worried my heart wouldn’t be able to handle the answer if it was the former.
I bit into my lower lip as I approached the door, imagining Kyle on the other side. Everything was about to change the moment I walked through this door. The truth would come out. And it would give me my first glimpses of the real Kyle Carter.
What if Kyle couldn’t accept who I was? What if he saw me as just another manipulative royal, using him for my own gain? And worse—what if Stefan was right, and I was letting my feelings cloud my judgment? If Kyle betrayed me, it wouldn’t just break my heart. It could destroy everything.
Would he accept who I was or reject it? Or would my lies catch up to me even if he was true?