CHAPTER 12 #2
Igor was thrown out without a word of explanation, and when the door slammed shut behind him, Viktor came over and released one of my hands. Then my legs. Left just one wrist cuffed to the bed.
The moment my hand was free I pulled my dress down and covered myself, trying to forget the number of hands that were on me only minutes before. I sat on the edge of the bed, waiting to see what was coming next. Certainly not expecting Viktor to save me.
Of course, being the monster he is, he took my pain and twisted it deeper. My stomach lurches at the memory, bile rising in my throat as I recall that horrific video on his cell.
The video was grainy, shot from an odd angle, but clear enough: Angelina and Celina in a park with the kids, laughing, completely unaware they were being recorded.
A man’s hand entered the frame, stroking Gracie’s soft curls, and my little girl, looking up with her trusting smile that breaks my heart.
“You want ice cream, pretty girl?” the man asked in a thick Eastern European accent.
Then Damien—God, my sweet, Damien—jumped into the stranger’s lap, shouting that he wanted ice cream too. Angelina and Celina chuckled in the background, oblivious to the predator in their midst.
But what broke me was seeing the man’s hand settling on Damien’s tiny neck, his thick fingers positioning themselves with precision.
Viktor paused the video just there, his index finger hovering over the screen. “One word,” he said, “and his neck will be snapped like a twig.”
I threw up right there on the bed, guilt and terror mixing into a toxic cocktail that emptied my stomach and filled my veins with dread.
“W-where are my children?” I choked out, trembling, my voice caught between a sob and the aftertaste of bile.
“Safe… for now.” He sneered.
This was my fault. I’d brought this nightmare upon them by ignoring Orion’s warnings about security protocols.
Viktor stood there, watching as I vomited until nothing but bitter yellow bile poured from my mouth—and even then, he didn’t stop.
He kept making his cruel jokes, calling me stupid, mocking how I’d somehow convinced the world I was a genius.
Maybe he was right. Maybe I was a fool. But all I could think about at that moment was my children.
I had to find a way to save them—no matter what it cost me.
I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, tasting bile and iron. My throat burned, but I swallowed the last of it down, forcing my head up. Viktor was still there, leaning against the steel frame of the bed like he owned the world, enjoying my humiliation.
His smug grin was revolting. “You really are something, Maisy. A genius, they say. But here you are, puking your guts out like a scared little girl.” His words slithered under my skin.
“Even a genius can have a weak stomach,” I rasped. “At least I’m still standing.”
His pale eyes flashed with something darker. “For now.”
I drew in a slow breath, steadying the tremor in my hands. I couldn’t let them see the cracks. Not yet. “You win, Viktor,” I said. “I was stupid. Too proud. Too…blind. You were right about me.”
His grin widened. “Say that again.”
“You were right,” I repeated, pushing each word past the knot in my throat. “I thought I could play this game, outsmart you. But I was wrong.”
Viktor stepped closer and crouched in front of me. “I knew you’d see reason,” he murmured. “But it’s too late for that, isn’t it? Your little empire is crumbling. Orion, Logan, and Kai are holding your leash.”
My stomach twisted. Nobody owns me, that’s for sure. “That leash is up for the taking,” I whispered, casting my eyes down. “And maybe…maybe we could build something stronger together. You, me, your brothers. We could run New York. Split the pie.”
I lifted my gaze, willing Viktor to see a spark of ambition beneath my defeat. His breath hitched. Just a fraction. But I caught it.
“You want a seat at my table?” he asked, somewhat skeptical.
I nodded, slow, deliberate. “I give you a quarter of New York. And my help in convincing the Council to accept you. That’s your biggest hurdle.”
“And why would I trust you?” Viktor finally asked.
I forced myself to hold his gaze. “Because I want to survive. I want my children to survive. And I know the only way to do that is to stand with you.”
Viktor rose, towering over me, and for a moment, I saw the monster he truly was. He leaned in, his lips brushing my ear. “You’d betray your lovers for a slice of power?”
“I’m a Slav. What do you think?” I sneered.
His laughter rumbled around the room. “I almost believe you.”
I grabbed his wrist. “Let me prove it. Let me talk to the Council. I know some of the men there.”
He pulled back, studying me like I was a puzzle he hadn’t quite solved. “If you lie, Maisy, if you so much as blink the wrong way—”
“I know,” I interrupted, and met his threat head-on. “But I won’t.”
Viktor’s eyes narrowed, weighing me up, testing. Finally, he nodded, a sharp bob of his chin. “You’ll stay here. Under my watch. Until the meeting. But right now…” He waved his cell at me. “Call home. Tell them you’re not coming back.”
I nodded, though my stomach lurched. “You’re making the right choice, Viktor,” I said as I dialed Orion’s number.
KAI
The three of us—Orion, Logan, and I—have spent hours preparing. It’s midnight and we’re stocking weapons, running through plans, knowing damn well Viktor Mrozovski won’t go down easy.
But all of that shatters the second we hear the buzz of the intercom.
It’s Uncle Colletti’s voice crackling through the speaker, and his words barely make sense. “ Maisy’s downstairs. Says she wants to come up.”
Orion freezes beside me. Logan’s head snaps toward the panel like he’s misheard. No way. No fucking way .
We rush to crowd around the screen monitor. And there she is. Maisy. Standing in the lobby like she didn’t rip out our souls a couple of hours ago. And she’s not alone.
The Mrozovski brothers flank her like prison guards. Viktor’s hand is glued to her waist, possessive, smug. The rest of them are standing too close to her, looking much too sure of themselves.
I stare at the screen, trying to process what the hell I’m looking at. Orion does too, his jaw clenched so hard I think he might snap a tooth. Logan’s expression is pure shock.
He taps the intercom. “We’re coming down.”
“Fuck, what does this mean?” I ask, not knowing what the hell to expect.
After punching a few buttons, Orion checks the CCTV feed, flicking through the angles outside the building. “See all these parked cars,” he says. “It’s them. They’re out there. Slavs.”
I feel my stomach drop. We were all ready to take on Viktor, but now with Maisy right in the middle of it, it’s going to be tough.
No matter how much I want to tear Viktor apart with my bare hands, I can’t risk her getting caught in the crossfire. In a small space like that lobby? One wrong move, one bullet fired, and Maisy could be the one bleeding out on the floor.
I can feel Logan thinking the same thing. Can see it in Orion’s eyes, too. None of us wants to be the one to say it out loud, to give voice to that fear. That whatever game she is playing down there—whether it’s real or not—could get her killed before we even understand why.
I stare at that screen, at her face, searching for something. A sign. A signal. Anything that could tell me what the hell she’s doing. But all I see is the mask she wears, standing at Viktor’s side like she belongs there.
And that’s the worst part.
Without a word between us, the moment the elevator doors slide open, we step inside without so much as a hint of a plan.
“Brace yourselves, men,” Orion says, his grim voice doing more to prepare us than any warning ever could.
The very moment the doors open, I look past Uncle Colletti and Uncle Leo and I see her. Maisy. Standing in the lobby like a ghost wearing someone else’s skin. We move toward her in unison, my pulse thrashing against my ribs, refusing to calm.
There she is. Our Maisy. But she’s not alone.
Viktor Mrozovski’s hand is still wrapped around her waist like he owns her, and I feel fire igniting in my veins. His touch is a violation. I can barely see straight as my hands clench into fists at my sides.
Her eyes flicker up, meeting mine. Just for a second, I see her. Maisy.
But then Viktor tightens his grip, pulling her closer like he knows exactly how to twist the knife. That possessive smirk curls at the edges of his mouth. I’d like to knock it off his face.
“Get your fucking hands off her!” I roar, lunging forward, my fist already flying.
But I never make it. One of Viktor’s brothers steps in, fast as lightning. His fist connects with my jaw with a crack that rocks my skull and drops me to my knees.
The pain flashes bright and hot, but my rage burns hotter at the sound of Maisy’s scream. Before I can push myself up, Logan’s already moving; there’s a flash of silver, and then his blade is embedded deep into the man’s unnaturally big bicep. Blood stains the bastard’s suit as he roars in pain.
“Fuck!” he shrieks, his face contorting. “You’re a dead man, doctor. You’re a fucking dead man!”
The lobby explodes into chaos. Orion launches himself at Viktor, landing a vicious blow that snaps his head back. Viktor stumbles but doesn’t fall. Orion pulls back for another strike, rage oozing from his usually controlled features.
“Stop!” Maisy throws herself between them, her hands splayed against Orion’s chest. “Don’t hurt him!”
With his fist raised, Orion freezes. His eyes lock on hers, and I see confusion twisting into devastation. “Maisy?”
Logan’s dragging me to my feet, his hands steady, his gaze never leaving Maisy.
She stands there looking like a stranger: Viktor at her side, his brothers lining up behind him like wolves—even the wounded one—ready to fire their guns.
Uncle Leo and Uncle Colletti draw their weapons, turning the penthouse lobby into a powder keg. This is about to become a bloodbath.
“Enough!” Maisy yells.
The room stills, and men with generations of violence in their blood all turn to stare at her.
For a moment, all I can hear is my own breath, ragged and sharp. She looks at us like we’re the enemy. Like she means it.
“It’s over,” she says, steady and cold. “This thing between us. It’s done.”
Logan doesn’t flinch. “This thing , as you call it, can never be done.”
Her face is stone. “I’m a Slav. I’ve always been a Slav. I was just waiting for the right moment.”
I step forward, blood dripping from my split lip, my heart breaking all over again. “Bullshit. This isn’t you, Maisy. What has he done to you?”
Her eyes meet mine. “I’m not who you think I am,” she says. “I never was. Uncle Leo and Uncle Colletti saw through me a long time ago. Didn’t you?”
The two old bastards exchange smug glances, vindication written all over their faces.
Orion’s voice comes out barely audible. “All this was a lie?”
Maisy nods, her mask never cracking. “I did what I had to do. I played your game. And now I’m done playing.”
Logan’s mask, meanwhile, slips. He’s not hiding his feelings any longer. “You’re making a mistake, Maisy. Whatever he’s promised you—”
She cuts him off. “He hasn’t promised me anything. At least he’s honest about what he is. You three wrapped your violence in pretty packages and expected me to be grateful.”
Her words sear. I feel Logan tense beside me, and Orion looks hollowed out. I can’t stand it.
“You wanted to own me,” Maisy continues, “but you never really knew me.”
“That’s not true,” Orion says. “We loved you—”
Maisy laughs, sharp as broken glass. “You don’t love me. You love controlling me. Protecting me. Keeping me. But you never just loved me.”
“How can you say that? After everything—” I falter. The pain is too raw.
“After everything, I’m choosing this,” she says, gesturing to Viktor and his brothers. “I’m choosing my real family.”
I lose my footing from the hit I took, and Logan catches me before I hit the ground again, steadying me, but it doesn’t matter. I feel like I’ve already fallen.
“So that’s it?” Logan asks, his voice flat. “You’re walking away? From us? From our children?”
Her face hardens. “The children will be fine. They’ll understand someday.”
Orion’s voice slices through the silence. “They will never understand this betrayal. And neither will I.”
Viktor smirks, his hand sliding around Maisy’s waist again. “I think she’s made herself clear, gentlemen. You gotta learn to share New York now. The Slavs are back in town.”
Maisy lets him lead her toward the door, her body moving but her eyes are dead. I watch, helpless, as Viktor presses a kiss to her cheek, sealing the betrayal with a final, possessive claim.
At the exit, Viktor turns back. His grin is cruel. “Oh, and I’m still thinking about if I should spare your kids or not. Shall we let them enjoy Chicago a little longer?”
Horror floods my chest. I drop to my knees, Logan crouching beside me, but all I can see is Maisy, walking away from everything we’ve built. Everything we were.
The door closes behind them, and I feel the world collapse in their wake.