Chapter 21
Twenty-One
Aria
I let out a deep sigh, leaning back in my chair as I log the last of my patient notes. It’s been a long fucking day, but a productive one. The clinical trials I’ve been approved for are truly groundbreaking, and I’m excited to start offering these new treatments to my patients.
Some days I don’t want to be doing this anymore. Being a pediatric oncologist isn’t for the weak. There are good days and bad days. Right now, thank god the good days have been outweighing the bad.
Just as I’m about to shut down my computer, the door to my office bursts open. I whip my head around to see a woman standing there, her striking white hair cascading down her shoulders. She’s as pale as a ghost, her icy blue eyes narrowed as she stares me down.
“Can I help you?” I demand, my heart pounding in my chest.
Who the hell let her back here?
The woman doesn’t answer. Instead, she slowly approaches my desk, her heels clicking against the hardwood floor. “No, not really. I’m here to give you a warning, sweetheart. I’m your worst fucking nightmare.” she says, her voice dripping with venom.
I swallow hard, trying to hide my growing anxiety and steel myself. “I don't understand. What do you want from me?”
She huffs, and stalks closer toward me.
“You stole what was mine,” she hisses, slamming her palms down on my desk. “And I’m here to take it back.”
My mind races, trying to figure out what she’s talking about. I wrack my brain, but I can’t think of anything I took from her. I don’t even know who she is. “I’m sorry, but I have no idea what you're talking about,” I say, keeping my voice firm as ever.
The woman narrows her eyes, a cruel smile spreading across her lips. “Oh, I think you do.” She leans in closer, her icy gaze piercing right through me. “And I’m not leaving.”
I take a deep breath, trying to steady my nerves. “I’m afraid I can’t help you. Now, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.” I motion with my hand toward the door.
The woman laughs, a chilling sound that sends shivers down my spine. “I’m not going anywhere, Aria. You should think about this really hard—who else would come here?”
There’s only one person I think is crazy enough to come into my office—Natalya.
The pale-haired woman circles around my desk, her movements predatory.
“You know, Aria, I've been waiting a long time for this moment.” She leans in close, her breath tickling my ear.
“To talk to you face-to-face, woman to woman. Did you really think you could just take what was mine and get away with it? I had everything planned out, and that ring on your finger should be on mine.”
I swallow hard, my heart pounding in my chest. “You can’t be angry at me for the fact you were passed up. Obviously you had something the Volkolv family didn’t want.”
Natalya steps forward, her hands balled into fists. “You stupid fucking bitch,” the woman snaps. “You’re going to wish you never said that.”
I stand, my composure cold as stone. “No, I’m not. If anyone’s going to regret something, it’ll be you. You never should have come here.”
“I’m not going to let you get away with this.” Natalya says, her voice laced with determination.
She pulls a knife out from her pocket.
I feel a chill run down my spine as I realize what she’s prepared to do—kill me. My mind races trying to figure out why she would be so determined to do this.I mean, I get it to a point, but she’s really this angry about not marrying Maxim?
Still, I’m not going to act afraid. “Don’t you think it’s pretty sad that you’re going this far because you weren’t chosen?”
The woman's lips curl into a smirk. “No, it just means I need to take out any obstacle in my way. Once you’re gone, I’ll get what I was supposed to in the first place.”
My heart drops into the pit of my stomach. “No, you won’t. Even if I were dead, Maxim would never marry you. He’d kill you for hurting me.”
“Oh sweetheart, he’d never know it was me.” She circles around my desk, her fingers trailing along the surface. “You see, Aria, I’m very good at manipulation tactics, and Maxim will eat from the palm of my hand.”
I can’t help but laugh. She really is delusional. “No, he won’t. He knows you’re the one who tried to have me killed on our wedding day. Maxim isn’t some foolish man you can manipulate. He’s intelligent, witty, and knows the way people like you work.”
“Oh, but he would be putty in my hands.” she interrupts, a cruel smile spreading across her face. “You give him nothing, while my family could give him everything he’d ever need or want. After all, you’re a bastard. I don’t know what he sees in you, honestly.”
I take a deep breath, trying to steady my nerves. “I guess it doesn’t really matter, does it? I’m his wife and you’re not, so.”
Natalya steps forward, her eyes narrowed. “Look at you, getting all spunky. You have a lot of nerve for someone who is about to die.”
I can feel the tension in the room, the air thick with the threat of violence. I know I need to tread carefully, but I’m not backing down. “I’m not afraid of you, Natalya. Now, get the fuck out of my office. If you actually came here to kill me, you would’ve done it by now.”
Her eyes flash with anger, and for a moment, I think she’s going to lash out. But then, she takes a step back, a twisted smile playing on her lips. “Oh, you think you know me so well.”
Natalya lunges at me, her teeth bared like a wild animal. I instinctively dodge to the side, my heart pounding in my chest.
This is it. This is the moment I need to fight harder than I’ve fought for anything my whole life.
She can try to kill me, but I’m not going to let her succeed. Fuck that.
I grab the award on my desk, a heavy glass trophy, and swing it toward her head.
The impact is jarring, the trophy connecting with a sickening crack. Natalya staggers, dazed, but she doesn’t go down. She recovers quickly, her eyes wild with rage.
“You dumb fucking bitch!” she snarls, and lunges at me again. We grapple, knocking over chairs and papers as we fight. I bring the trophy up again, aiming for her temple.
This time, the blow lands squarely, and Natalya crumples to the ground, motionless. I stand there, heart hammering in my chest, adrenaline coursing through me. I can’t believe I just did that, but I had to. I didn’t have a choice. It was either me or her, and I chose to be the victor.
My office door slams open, and Andrei rushes in, his face a mask of concern. “Aria! What the hell happened? I go downstairs to grab some food and this shit. Fuck!”
I turn to him, my voice shaking. “Natalya... she came in here talking a whole bunch of nonsense and then attacked me. She kept saying she was going to kill me, take what should’ve been sure.”
Andrei takes in the scene, his expression unreadable as he shuts the door and locks it. “Maxim needs to know about this. Now.”
I swallow hard and grab my phone, calling my husband. By the fourth ring he’s answering. “Everything okay?”
God, how the fuck do I answer that? “It is now. Natalya stormed into my office, Maxim.”
He’s silent on the other end for a few moment’s before his concerned tone filters through. “Are you okay?”
I look at Natalya’s lifeless body. “Yeah, I am. I told Andrei the same thing I’m telling you—she came in here, started talking a whole bunch of bullshit about how I took what was hers, how she was getting it back, how she was going to kill me, and then it escalated.”
Maxim’s silence fills the line. Eventually, he clears his throat. “Where the fuck was Andrei?”
He’s pissed Andrei left me alone, but he has to go get food too. “He went downstairs to grab some food and come back. It literally happened within a few minutes.”
“I’m on my way there, don’t touch anything else. Okay?” Maxim says.
“Yeah,” I say, my voice wavering. “I’ll see you in a little bit.”
I hang up the phone and look at Andrei. “He’s on his way here now.”
Andrei’s brow furrows with worry as he surveys the overturned chairs and Natalya’s still form. “Serves her right for fucking with you.” he mutters under his breath.
He pulls out his phone and quickly dials a number, speaking in a low, urgent tone.
I watch anxiously, wringing my hands as Andrei speaks. I can feel the blood pounding in my ears, my palms sweating. What have I done? Have I really just killed her, or could she be unconscious?
After a moment, Andrei hangs up the phone and turns to me. “I’m getting a clean-up crew to come here. They’ll handle everything from the broken furniture, blood, to her body.”
“What the hell is a clean-up crew?”
Andrei’s face shifts slightly, almost like he’s amused. “It’s who we call when we have situations like this one.”
I nod, my mind racing. There is really so much about this life that I don’t know, and I need to accept the fact there are going to be enemies just like Natalya that pop up out of nowhere.
Time goes by slower than usual as I stare at the door, waiting for my husband to come in here and help me. I sink into my chair, feeling utterly overwhelmed.
I can’t believe she came to my place of work to do this. If I was planning on killing someone, I’d try to keep as low of a profile that I could.
The minutes feel like hours as we wait in tense silence. There comes a point where I can’t stop staring at Natalya’s motionless body, guilt and fear churning in the pit of my stomach. Did I have a choice, or did I act selfishly in hitting her that hard?
I wasn’t trying to kill her, but I guess in a way it doesn’t matter. Maxim would’ve had her killed for coming after me anyway.
Finally, the door bursts open and Maxim strides in, flanked by a couple of his men. His icy gaze sweeps over the scene, then lands on me. “Aria,” he comes over to me and worriedly scans over my features. “Are you hurt?”
I take a shaky breath, “Yeah. I’m a little shaken up.”
Maxim listens intently, his expression unreadable. “I’m sure you are.”
Maxim’s gaze drifts over at the lifeless body of Natalya, a hard, angry look in his eyes. “She was always a problem,” he says, his voice devoid of any trace of emotion. He walks to Natalya’s body and kneels down, inspecting her for a moment before standing up again. “But it’s over now.”
“Over?” I question. The word echoing loudly through the room, rippling through the tense silence that has settled between us.
“Yes, over.” Maxim turns to look at me, his blue eyes hard as stone but containing a softness reserved only for me. “You were protecting yourself, Aria.” His voice softens with every word he speaks. “Natalya tried to kill you. In our world, that's a death sentence.”
“I know, but—” I try to protest. The words die in my throat as the reality of what I’ve done hits me. Natalya is dead because of me. I mean I knew that already, but the reality is crashing into me like an unrelenting wave.
Maxim reaches out and takes my hand, “We’ll take care of this,” he says, then looks over at Andrei. “Have the team clean this up exceptionally well,” he pauses for a moment and looks back at me. “How about we get out of here?”
Inhaling slowly, I nod.
I glance at Andrei, who gives me a reassuring nod, before following Maxim out of the office, my heart racing. I have a sinking feeling that my life is about to change forever.
Maxim leads me through the hospital’s winding corridors, his pace brisk and his posture rigid. I trail behind him, acutely aware of the weight of his presence. The air is thick with an ominous tension that sets my nerves on edge.
As we walk, I can’t help but steal glances at him, studying his imposing figure.
His tailored suit speaks of wealth and power, a stark contrast to the sterile medical setting.
There’s an air of danger that clings to him, a barely contained ferocity that makes my heart flutter with a mixture of fear and fascination.
Finally, he stops in a secluded alcove, turning to face me. His icy blue eyes bore into mine, and I find myself unable to look away. “I mean it, we’re going to take care of this. I don’t want you to worry about anything, okay?”
I swallow hard, my mouth suddenly dry. “I’m trying not to. I just—I don’t know how to process any of this.” The words tumble out, a mixture of desperation and fear.
Maxim’s lips curl, offering me a soft, reassuring smile. “That’s okay. In time, you’ll understand. This life isn’t for the faint of heart, but I know you can handle this.”
I straighten my spine, telling myself that I did what was necessary, but it doesn’t mean it wasn’t difficult. “Do things like this happen very often?” I’m afraid for the answer.
Maxim’s eyes narrow, and for a moment, I don’t think he’s going to answer me. “You have to understand there will always be people who want to go after us. It’s because of who we are, and what we can do.”
I hold his gaze, “So, this is something I need to accept?”
His hand slides down to my chin, tilting my head up. “I wouldn’t say accept, but you need to be aware. I need you to be more observant than you’ve ever been before, Aria. Natalya is likely the first of many enemies that will try to kill us over the course of our marriage.”
Jesus, I was hoping Maxim might make me feel better, but all he’s doing is making me even more anxious.
“I can’t promise you a fairytale, Aria,” Maxim says, his British-accented voice low and serious. “But I can promise you that I'll protect you. My world—our world—it’s cold, it’s brutal. And once we’re in, there’s no way out."
I feel a shiver of apprehension crawl up my spine like a spider, but I steel myself against it, forcing myself to meet his gaze with a determination I do not feel.
“I’m not the kind of woman who breaks under pressure, Maxim.” I say, my voice shaky yet strong.
Maxim gives me a long look, his vibrant blue eyes shadowed in the dim light. He doesn’t reply for what feels like an eternity. Finally, he speaks with an intensity that takes me aback. “I know you won't. You’re the strongest woman I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing, Aria.”
There is an unexpected tenderness in his words that somehow soothes the knot of anxiety coiling in my gut.
I might not have ever wanted this with Maxim, but I will say he has blown me away.