Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
Henry
I sat behind my desk, the glow from the monitors washing the room in cold blue light.
The hum of the servers filled the silence, steady and low, like a heartbeat I couldn’t shut off.
Schaffer’s files filled the screen in an endless scroll.
Appointment calendars. Billing statements. Encrypted medical reports.
But instead of focusing on it and trying to find a clue, my thoughts kept returning to Ariana.
Her voice echoed in my head, telling me I was treating her just like Victor had.
It stung.
But she was wrong.
I was nothing like Victor.
Was I keeping her here?
Of course, but it was for her own good.
What was it going to take for her to see that?
The door beeped, and I looked up as Blake walked in, ensuring the door locked behind him before strolling across the room.
“How’d last night go?” he asked, dropping onto the couch.
“Schaffer admitted to drugging Daphne.”
He leaned back, resting his ankle on his knee. “Did you ask about the call from Victor?”
I nodded. “He told Schaffer to kill Daphne.”
“Bastard.” Blake scrubbed a hand down his face. “Why would he want her dead? He’d already made it so she was halfway out of her mind.”
“Maybe to manipulate Ariana? Or flush her out of hiding? He knows how much she loves her mother. If Daphne died, Ariana would want to say goodbye.” I paused. “It sounds like something he’d do.”
Blake nodded grimly, then glanced toward the monitors. “What’s all that?”
“Schaffer’s patient files. At least the ones I could access.”
He narrowed his gaze on me. “Do you think there are others like Daphne?”
“There could be. But that’s not what I’m looking for.”
“What are you then?”
“Schaffer mentioned that Victor had also been having him sterilize women. My guess is they’re the women he’d been sleeping with to ensure there wouldn’t be any Victor Juniors.”
“I’d say he did us all a favor.” He flashed a smile before his expression sobered. “Did you ask about Sarah?”
I blew out a breath. “He couldn’t confirm anything. It’s most likely a complete waste of time, but maybe Victor’s hiding out with one of these women.”
“Like you taught me years ago… Leave no stone unturned.”
“True.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “Except every stone seems to lead to more questions than answers.”
“We probably have a few days before anyone notices Schaffer’s missing and the police start sniffing around. I can sweep his house and office. See what I can find.”
I stared into the distance, unable to shake the feeling we were missing a giant piece of this convoluted puzzle. I doubted this had anything to do with why Victor paid the Bratva to abduct his own wife, but I needed to rule it out.
“Do it,” I ordered, shifting my eyes back to the monitors.
My attention caught on the live feed of the second floor as Ariana poked through her bedroom, opening and shutting drawers harder than necessary, pacing the length of the room. Every line of her body radiated frustration and barely contained fury.
Her hand slapped the edge of the dresser before she braced herself against it, shoulders rising and falling with a rough breath. When she turned toward the window, her posture was defensive. Coiled.
Like she resented every inch of distance between her and the freedom that existed on the horizon.
“Do I sense trouble in paradise?” Blake teased.
I exhaled, slowly shifting my eyes toward him. “She asked to leave.”
“Let me guess. You told her no.”
“What else was I supposed to say?” I threw up my hands in exasperation.
“It’s not safe. But when I tried to explain that to her, she told me she feels like my prisoner.
Which is ridiculous. She’s not my captive.
I’ve told her so repeatedly. She needs to stay here for her own safety. Until the threat’s gone.”
Blake didn’t say anything right away. He didn’t need to. His silence said everything.
“You think I’m overreacting, don’t you?”
He gave a small shrug. “I think you should try seeing things from her perspective. You did confess you’d planned to abduct her. And now you’re keeping her here, refusing to let her leave.”
“To keep her safe.”
Blake exhaled, long and slow. “I get it. Between her asshole husband and the Bratva, there are a lot of factors at play. But you can’t ignore how she feels and dictate what you believe is best. You know who else ignored her feelings and dictated her actions?”
I squeezed my eyes shut. “I’m not like Victor.”
“I know that,” he said evenly. “And deep down, I’m pretty sure Ariana knows that too. But that doesn’t give you the right to disregard her reality. You want to prove you’re not like that asshole?”
Blake gestured at the monitors.
On the screen, Ariana spun away from the window, grabbed the closest throw pillow, and hurled it against the wall, muttering something under her breath.
“Then give her the one thing Victor never did.” He paused. “Give her a choice.”
A cold, hollow ache opened in my chest. “Are you suggesting I let her go?”
“Not necessarily.” He leaned forward. “But right now you’re sacrificing everything, including her trust, for the illusion of control.
And she knows it. Hell, she’s reacting to it.
You two are at opposite ends of the same rope, pulling until one of you snaps.
And if you keep tightening your grip, she’s the one who’s going to break. ”
I looked back at the screen, watching as she continued to pace, despite her limp. I wanted to go up there, tell her she needed to rest, but I had a feeling that wouldn’t go over very well right now. Not after our last conversation.
“You can keep her safe and still give her room to breathe.” Blake’s voice cut through the static in my head.
“How?” I glanced his way as he stood, buttoning his suit jacket.
“You need to meet her halfway. If you want her to stop seeing you as the enemy, you need to stop acting like you are. That starts with giving her some semblance of freedom.”