Chapter 33 #2
We looked at each other and burst into laughter before a knock came at the door.
Viktor stood in the doorway. “Ms. Hale said you came to see me.”
“I thought you came to visit me.” There was betrayal in my voice as I stared at Rafa.
“One doesn’t exclude the other. Besides, I came to visit the Rowks family.” He gave me a knowing look.
I rolled my eyes. “Stop.”
“What?” Rafa winked.
Viktor walked toward us, glancing at the empty armchair, but I shifted to the right edge of the sofa, leaving the left side open. He looked at me, then at the armchair, and sat beside me. “What are you discussing?”
“Mostly your bad traits,” I said.
Viktor turned to me. “And here I was, thinking you’d be tearing me apart with your sister or friends. Definitely didn’t expect your brother.”
“Was he always this funny?” Rafa’s eyes crinkled as he grinned.
“Don’t be fooled,” I said with a smirk. “He’s still insufferable at times.”
“I’ve been told.” He put one leg over the other. “So, is there a specific reason you came?”
“Hmm.” Rafa got to his feet. “Would you mind if I use the bathroom before we start?”
Viktor gestured toward the door of the corridor that led there. When Rafa disappeared behind the doors, my husband’s gaze went back to me. A flicker passed in his eyes before he turned them away.
I looked down at myself. An ivory summer dress with straps that was maybe also a bit short.
Not to mention I had no bra on, as I used to dress very lightly during the day.
It was awfully hot, and I usually got sick if the air conditioning was on for a long time.
I only changed into something more modest when Viktor was around.
Usually in the evenings when the weather was calmer.
I didn’t today because Rafa had arrived without warning and much earlier. But I also didn’t expect Viktor to react this way.
Which meant his reaction during the last dinner wasn’t my imagination. And the deep breath he had just taken when I mimicked his pose, putting one leg over the other, was also not.
“What?” I couldn’t resist a satisfying smile.
“Nothing,” he said, then once again looked at me. “You look gorgeous.”
“Ah… Pity you don’t have feelings toward said gorgeous.”
“I didn’t say that!”
“Right. You just ran away.”
He rubbed his jaw. “I’m not proud of that.”
I glared at him, but didn’t manage to say anything as my brother returned. His hands were still wet as he pressed them against his trousers. But even after several tries to speak, words didn’t come from his mouth.
“Is this related to MoRen?” Viktor asked.
Rafa looked at him, confused.
“Oh, we were actually discussing its dysfunction,” I recalled.
“You could say it’s partly related to dysfunction. But not for the reasons you may have thought. Fifi might have guessed, though.” Rafa swallowed. “The thing you said to Edmond two weeks ago.”
My eyes widened. “About Cecilia? Was it true?”
He made a sound that was too similar to “yes.”
Viktor’s eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”
“You didn’t tell him?” Rafa asked.
I shook my head. “As much as it seemed logical… I wasn’t sure.” My heart pounded in my ears.
When Viktor repeated his question, Rafa finally told him. “The accident with your car… It was not an accident. Cecilia. She… thought you were becoming a threat to Alex, and…”
“Ah…” Viktor’s tone was knowing.
“You… You did know?” Confusion and anger warred in Rafa’s voice.
Viktor hummed in confirmation.
“How long?” I asked.
Viktor looked away. “When it happened, Yann started to dig. There were several hints. But no crucial evidence.”
“Wait, but why did you keep it quiet?” Rafa frowned.
Several veins stood out on Viktor’s neck, and the tip of his tongue appeared and disappeared before he finally spoke.
“You mean to ask why I didn’t drag into the mud my father’s and brother’s names while publicly humiliating the woman who was my father’s wife and my brother’s mother?
” He said in one breath. “All for what? There were no strong grounds. Only accusations.”
Rafael’s face turned red, but there was no hint of anger. “You could have still told someone…”
“And whom do you think our circle would have believed? The grieving wife and mother or her husband’s bastard who was already rumored to have planned everything himself? What do you think would have been the end of that?”
“It’s unfair,” I muttered. “She’s the one who should’ve been punished.”
“Isn’t she already? Locked in the summer house, knowing she’s the reason her family is dead?” He let out a deep breath.
My fingers itched with the urge to reach for his hand, but before I even had a chance to move, Rafa asked, “But then… how did Alex and Mr. Rowks end up in your car?”
Viktor shifted his position. “The three of us were at the summer house. I assume Cecilia wanted to create an alibi, so she left much earlier for the gathering at her father’s estate.
The rest of us were supposed to join later.
But she asked me specifically to grab a cake from the other side of the city, so I would have no option but to leave early.
Yet as soon as I got behind the wheel, I got a call. ”
Guilt flickered in his eyes as his gaze turned to me.
Was he referring to Sebastian’s call?
“I decided to live up to my reputation as the worst stepson of the decade and pushed Cecilia’s request on Alex. But apparently his car wouldn’t start. Nor was my father’s. I think that was also part of the plan, to make sure they would not be on the road.” He licked his lips.
“As my new plans were not… urgent, I lent my keys to Alex. Father joined him purely to not bother with waiting for another car. The rest you know.” He let out a breath, shifted, and looked directly at Rafa. “So tell me, if I’d told you this back then, whom would you have believed?”