Chapter 37 #2
He didn’t flinch.
“Answer me.”
I held his gaze, refusing to give him what he wanted.
“Why. Are. You. Doing. This?”
His nostrils flared. He’d never liked being questioned.
Good.
Leaning back in the chair, I let my voice drop.
“You know what it feels like to have your heart ripped out.”
His expression turned to stone.
“And you know what it’s like to watch the person you love marry someone else.”
For the first time since I walked in, something real flashed across his face. Rage. Or maybe pain. A memory he had never forgiven.
“You will not speak about that.” His voice was deadly.
I didn’t stop.
“Do you remember…what it felt like to watch Reneta marry your brother? Did it crush you? Would you still do anything to see him destroyed?”
His eyes turned to ice.
“This is not the same thing.”
“It is!”
I smacked my hand on the metal table, and the sound cracked through the room. I shoved to my feet, the chair scraping harshly across the floor.
“It is the same. How do you not see that? You are doing to me exactly what was done to you. And you don’t care that you’re trying to crush my heart, my spirit, me. Me, Father.”
He rose slowly, more controlled, then buttoned his suit jacket as if this were nothing more than a business meeting.
“You wanted to live your life,” I said, my hands trembling, not from fear, from fury. “You loved Reneta, and she was torn away from you. You hated Vadin for it. You hated Grandpa for it. You’ve hated them every day since.”
His face went rigid.
“So tell me,” I said, voice cracking, “is that what you want? Do you want me to hate you for the rest of our lives? Do you want me to resent you? Do you want me dreaming of ways to pay you back? Have you ever loved me at all?”
For a moment, he softened, and I saw the man I remembered from my childhood. It was small, just a loosening around the eyes and a quiet exhale.
Then it vanished.
“You are a Mikhailov princess,” he said, voice hard again, “and you will do what is best for your family.”
I laughed once, but there was no humor in it.
“Family,” I repeated, shaking my head. “No. You mean you. You just had me thrown to the ground in front of hundreds of my peers for the world to see.” I crossed my arms. “Don’t try and tell me that you didn’t have them use more force than necessary so Goran would lose it. I know your games.”
His gaze didn’t shift.
“That was necessary.”
“Necessary,” I echoed, disgust rising like bile. “You humiliated me.”
“You humiliated yourself when you stole my property.”
Property. He still thought Atlas belonged to him, even though he had given him to me. In his mind, it came down to the fact that he bought him. And that meant control. Atlas was a string to tug on when he needed leverage against me.
He sat back down like the conversation was finished.
I stayed standing.
Father folded his hands on the table and spoke as if he were explaining a business decision.
“I learned to love Helena…for a time.”
The words hit harder than I expected. Tears pricked at my eyes. I had never heard him admit that he no longer loved my mother. I realized how trapped she must feel, and my heart broke for her.
“You learned,” I parroted, voice low and bitter.
His eyes hardened.
“It was not what I had with Reneta,” he said, measuring his words. “But it was real. Helena gave me beautiful children. Children, I adore. I love her for that.”
“You could have fooled me with the way you’ve pushed everyone away. Nathaniel, Titus, Mom, and now me. Ronan is all you have left. How can you still claim this family is what matters to you?”
He flinched as if I had struck him. Then he leaned forward, glaring at me.
“Do not speak to me like you understand things that you know nothing about.”
I looked away from him and shook my head.
He sighed and swore in Russian.
“You think I do not love you?”
The truth was complicated. I believed he loved me in the only way he knew how. But love from Dimitri Mikhailov came with chains.
He continued before I could formulate an answer.
“Kaylani, I’m going to be honest with you. Mikhailov Enterprises has taken a massive hit since Nathaniel left.”
My stomach sank. He rarely said my brother’s name. Usually, it was ‘traitor’ or simply ‘him’.
“Over half of our income moved with him. He took his operations. His contracts. His loyalty. Nathaniel has been slowly working to dismantle what remains.”
My throat constricted.
“Then Titus followed,” he said, like it was offensive. “And now you.”
“I didn’t leave to hurt you,” I snapped. “I left because Nathaniel gave me real responsibility. He saw me as an asset, not as a thing to prop up in the corner like a decorative statue.”
“Why you left is not the point. You left the fold.”
I stared at him, chest rising and falling too fast.
“There are people.” He tapped the table once. “Thousands depend on this family. The company is bleeding. Your brother thinks he can play these games and build his own empire. He can. But he is not carrying the weight of ours.”
He held my gaze.
“This family needs stability.”
My spine stiffened. I knew what was coming.
“You will marry…” Dimitri remained calm. “As I command, for the greater good of this family and the generations yet to come.”
The room tilted, and the air felt too thin.
“I won’t,” I said, shaking my head as the walls closed in around me.
He didn’t react. His eyes darted to the band hanging from my necklace, then back to mine.
“I will ask you again. Do you love him?”
I stayed silent.
His next words cut sharper than any knife.
“Goran will serve time for the theft.”
Ice spread through my veins.
“You can’t.” My voice broke. “You can’t do that to him. He did nothing wrong.”
“I can. And I will.”
Lunging forward, I slammed my palms onto the table.
“You were the one who stole Atlas,” I hissed. “You gave him to me, then took him when it would hurt me the most. You started this. Did you think I wouldn’t retaliate?”
He didn’t blink.
“I expected you to do as you were told. I will make it look like Goran planned the theft. You were frightened. Coerced. Innocent.”
My stomach dropped.
“No,” I whispered.
“Yes.” His face was void of all emotion. “And that is only the beginning.”
My breath caught. I finally saw what Nathaniel and Titus had seen. The monster hiding behind the mask of family.
“Goran fought back and struck multiple officers.” His words were smug.
A wave of dizziness washed over me.
“He didn’t have a choice,” I snapped. “They were hurting me. He’s trained to protect me.”
“That does not matter. He will be charged with assault and having a weapon on his person without a permit to carry a concealed weapon. It will be years before he ever sees the light of day again.”
“That’s all lies.” My knees threatened to give out, and I dropped onto the chair. “You’re lying to condemn a man for doing nothing but his job.”
“I’m not. You are.”
I stared at him, trying to find cracks in his armor, but there were none. He stood, the chair grating on the floor like a judge’s verdict.
“If you agree to marry whom I choose, I will make sure Goran spends no time in prison. You will be free to compete with Atlas as much or as little as you like. I’ll sign him over to you.”
My throat closed. My eyes burned.
He observed me as if he were measuring how much pain I could endure before breaking.
“If you do not. I will ensure he serves the full sentence…and then some. I will put Atlas down, and you will still marry the man I choose, even if I have to deliver you in chains.”
I couldn’t breathe.
“You can’t stand that I fell in love and ruined your plans for me.”
Dimitri leaned down, hands bracing on the table. His face was inches from mine.
“This is not about a frivolous romance with a soldier. This is about my legacy. Something that both Nathaniel and Titus have already cast away. You will not.” He straightened. “You will have one night,” he added, like he was being merciful. “One. Tonight, to say goodbye.”
My heart stuttered. Then he reached inside my chest and crushed it.
“And then you will let Goran go forever.”
I shook my head.
“Please, Dad. You can’t take him from me. Please don’t do this.”
His gaze never wavered.
“If you truly love him, you will not ruin his life anymore than you already have.”
I stayed frozen as he strode to the door.
“Think carefully,” he said, his hand resting on the handle. “Your choice will decide how much he suffers. I will give you five minutes. Then I’ll return for your answer.”
He paused on his way out.
“Do not make me your enemy, Kaylani.”
The door clicked shut behind him, the sound sharp and final like a gunshot. I didn’t move. I couldn’t. My chest hurt as if something inside had been ripped open and left exposed.
The silence in the room was louder than any scream. All I could see was Goran’s face in the dirt, his eyes locked on mine. He had been trying to tell me he loved me.
Goran knew. Part of him knew that last night would be our last together, and he had made it unforgettable. I covered my mouth as the evening replayed in my mind. It had been perfect.
I lifted my hand slowly to the necklace at my throat. My fingers closed around the gold band as tears ran unchecked.
Mine.
His.
Our secret.
For the first time since the police had shoved me to my knees, I felt fear in its purest form. Fear of what I was being forced to do, and knowing I would carry the secret to my grave. The secret that should have brought us so much happiness.
I caressed my stomach, and the tears fell harder.
I’m sorry.
I’m so, so sorry.