Chapter 4 #4
A nameless witness could disappear without consequence.
A Sokolov...
That was another matter entirely.
Hurting me would ignite a war neither family could afford.
The man’s eyes narrowed.
Then widened.
“Sokolov...”
He repeated it quietly.
Recognition flickered across his face.
“Juliet?”
The way he said my name made my heartbeat quicken.
“You know who I am?”
He stared at me for another long moment.
Then something resembling disbelief crossed his features.
“So...”
A slow smile appeared.
“You’re the Juliet.”
I frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“The woman Romeo is supposed to marry.”
The world seemed to stop.
Even though I’d already known the truth, hearing a complete stranger state it so matter-of-factly made it terrifyingly real.
The will.
I looked down at the crimson stains covering my hands.
I’d just spent the last hour fighting to save the life of the man fate had already chosen for me.
The man extended a gloved hand toward me.
“Keegan.”
Authority clung to him as naturally as the tailored black suit he wore.
“I’m Keegan.”
He brushed an unruly strand of dark hair away from his forehead before continuing.
“Romeo’s lieutenant.”
There was no arrogance in the introduction.
I glanced briefly toward the SUV that had carried Romeo away.
I swallowed. “It... it’s nice to meet you, Mr. Keegan.”
The words felt painfully awkward considering the circumstances.
He didn’t seem offended.
His attention remained fixed on me, studying every expression, every hesitation, as though trying to decide whether I fit into a category he’d already created in his mind.
Silence settled between us.
The distant crash of waves against the dock pilings echoed through the night.
Finally, I cleared my throat.
“I suppose I’m free to leave now.”
I glanced toward my damaged sedan.
His answer came immediately.
“No.”
The single word landed with quiet finality.
I blinked. “I’m sorry?”
“Unfortunately, Miss Sokolov, you’ll be coming with us.”
His tone remained calm.
“Until Romeo regains consciousness and confirms your account of tonight’s events, you’ll remain in our custody.”
For a moment, I simply stared at him.
Then disbelief gave way to irritation.
I let out a short, incredulous laugh. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
“No?”
“If I’d had anything to do with Romeo’s injuries, don’t you think I would’ve disappeared long before your convoy arrived?”
Keegan didn’t answer.
“I had every opportunity. I stayed. I treated his wounds. I called no one. I didn’t run.”
His expression remained unreadable.
“I appreciate everything you did for him. But appreciation and caution aren’t the same thing.”
He gestured toward one of the waiting black SUVs.
“If you’d please step inside.”
One of the suited men had already opened the rear passenger door.
“We’ll have your vehicle delivered safely to your father’s estate.”
Another pause.
“We’ll also inform him that you’re with us while we complete our investigation.”
I folded my arms across my chest.
The dried blood on my sleeves cracked as the fabric stretched.
“So this is how Romeo’s organization thanks someone who stopped him from bleeding to death?”
No one answered.
I looked from Keegan to the silent men surrounding us.
“If I’d walked away tonight...”
I pointed toward the dark stain still visible on the asphalt.
“...your boss would’ve died before any of you arrived.”
The words hung heavily in the night air.
“I wasn’t the one chasing him. I wasn’t the one who attacked him. I was the one pressing bandages against his wounds while all of you were still driving here.”
Keegan’s jaw tightened slightly.
“I know.”
“Do you?”
I took one slow step closer. “When he wakes up, tell him Juliet Sokolov was the one who found him... and the one who saved him.”
Keegan’s eyebrows rose. “You’ll tell him that yourself.”
I shook my head. “I’m not coming with you, Keegan. Unless you’re looking to start a war with my family, don’t even think about forcing me into that car.”
My gaze dropped to my bloodstained hands.
This entire day had begun with my grandmother’s will trying to dictate my future, and I refused to let it end with me trapped in Romeo’s abode.
I looked up and caught Keegan’s eye. A faint smile tugged at his lips, as though my defiance amused him.
“If there’s nothing else keeping me here, I’ll be taking my leave.”
With one final nod, I turned and walked toward my battered car.
To my surprise, Keegan made no move to stop me.
Every step felt heavier than the last, as though the weight of everything that had happened clung to my limbs.
Only after I slipped inside and locked the doors did I finally let myself breathe.
The familiar scent of leather had been replaced by blood.
Romeo’s blood.
It stained the seats.
My clothes.
Even the steering wheel carried faint crimson fingerprints.
I started the engine.
The car pulled away from the deserted docks, leaving Warehouse Six disappearing into my rearview mirror.
The drive home passed in a blur.
My thoughts remained fixed on one image.
Romeo’s face.
Pale. Bloodied. Motionless.
Would he survive?
Deep inside...
I already believed he would.
Romeo Medved didn’t strike me as the sort of man death claimed easily.
Still...
I couldn’t stop wondering whether the first question he’d ask after waking would be who had saved him.
Whether Keegan would tell him.
Whether he’d remember anything at all.
Whether he’d remember me.
The enormous iron gates of the Sokolov estate slowly opened as my car approached.
I barely noticed.
Autopilot carried me the rest of the way up the long circular driveway.
Only after parking did I realize someone was standing beneath one of the stone lanterns near the entrance.
A man.
Hands tucked inside his jacket pockets.
Waiting.
I frowned.
“Egor?”
He stepped forward into the light.
The easy smile he usually wore was gone, replaced by an expression somewhere between nervousness and determination.
“What are you doing here?”
I asked.
He stopped a few feet away.
“I could ask you the same thing.”
I frowned.
“I’ve already explained that something urgent came up. And last I checked, this is my house, not yours.”
His eyes finally dropped to my clothes.
The blood.
Color drained from his face.
“Juliet...”
He took an instinctive step forward. “You’re hurt.”
I looked down at myself. “I’m not. It isn’t mine.”
That answer clearly failed to reassure him.
“What happened?”
“I can’t explain.”
His concern only deepened.
Silence settled between us.
Finally, he sighed.
“I shouldn’t have spoken to you the way I did earlier.”
He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “I spent weeks planning today. I wanted everything to be perfect. I wanted you to have one day where you weren’t carrying the weight of the world. When you didn’t come...”
He rubbed the back of his neck, his expression awkward.
“...I let my disappointment speak louder than my common sense.”
He looked directly into my eyes. “I’m sorry.”
The sincerity in his voice was unmistakable.
Even so...
The hurt from earlier hadn’t disappeared.
I stared at him.
“You had no right to speak to me the way you did. And let me remind you—we’re just friends.”
“Were,” he corrected quietly. “That’s about to change.”
Without breaking eye contact, he slipped a hand into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a small navy-blue velvet box.
My heartbeat stumbled.
Surely not...
He looked unusually nervous now.
Almost pale.
His fingers tightened around the box before he slowly lowered himself onto one knee in the middle of the driveway.
I froze.
The box opened with a soft click.
Nestled inside rested a brilliant diamond ring that caught the glow of the estate lights, scattering tiny shards of light across the night.
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
I couldn’t.
My mind was still at an abandoned warehouse beside a bleeding man who didn’t know I’d saved him.
Now another man knelt before me asking for my future.
Egor looked up.
His eyes were full of hope.
And fear.
“Juliet.”
His voice trembled despite his obvious effort to keep it steady.
“I know tonight hasn’t gone the way either of us imagined.”
He smiled weakly.
“But I also know I don’t want another day to pass without telling you how I feel.”
He drew a slow breath.
“You make my life brighter. You challenge me. You make me want to become a better man. I don’t care about your family’s reputation. I don’t care about the danger. I only care about you.”
He held out the ring.
“Juliet Sokolov...”
A gentle breeze stirred the trees surrounding the estate.
Everything else faded into silence.
“Will you marry me?”
The entire scene felt so surreal that, for one ridiculous moment, I wondered if I was trapped inside some twisted comedy instead of my own life.
My hands were still stained with Romeo’s blood.
My clothes clung uncomfortably to my skin, stiff with drying crimson.
And standing in front of me, on one knee beneath the lights of the Sokolov estate, was Egor... the same Egor who had never once asked me out, never once talked about us being anything more than friends—yet somehow he was now holding out a ring and asking me to marry him.
As if we had ever crossed that line between friendship and something more.
Was this really how he thought it worked?
I stared at him in stunned silence before letting out a short, humorless laugh.
“Is this some kind of joke?”
My voice came out flatter than I intended. “If it is, it’s a very expensive joke.”
I glanced at the diamond ring sparkling beneath the estate lights.
“And one with absolutely terrible timing.”
Egor didn’t move.
His hand remained extended, the velvet box balanced carefully in his palm.
“It’s not a joke.”
His voice was gentle, almost pleading.
“I’ve never been more serious about anything.”
I rubbed a hand across my forehead, only remembering too late that it was still smeared with blood.
The metallic scent filled my senses again.
My voice remained calm.
“Stand up.”
He hesitated. “You haven’t answered.”
His eyes searched mine, as if hoping to find the response he wanted.
“Stand.”
Slowly, he obeyed, though he kept the ring box open in his hand.