Chapter 18
Yarik
I ’m reviewing shipping manifests when Valentin enters my office carrying a manila folder and looking like he has something unpleasant to discuss. I glance at the clock on my desk and note it’s barely nine in the morning, though I’ve been awake since Sarah left almost four hours ago.
My bedroom felt empty after she left and too quiet without her soft breathing beside me or the sound of her moving around.
I’d wanted to ask her to stay, to call in sick and spend the day talking about everything except the engagement that hangs over us like a sword.
Instead, I watched her dress hurriedly in last night’s silk and slip away before the staff arrived for their morning shifts.
He drops down into the chair across from my desk and opens the folder. “We need to talk.”
I set down the manifest I’ve been studying for the past twenty minutes. The numbers blur together anyway. My mind keeps drifting to the way Sarah looked this morning, vulnerable and uncertain as she gathered her clothes in the predawn darkness.
“About?”
“About the fact that you’re distracted, making careless decisions, and apparently entertaining overnight guests.
” He slides a photograph across my desk with careful control.
Security camera footage from this morning shows Sarah leaving through the side entrance, wearing the same sapphire dress she wore to dinner last night.
The image is clear enough to identify her despite the early morning shadows, though her face is turned away from the camera.
She has her arms wrapped around herself, shoulders hunched against the morning chill.
Something about her posture suggests vulnerability, like she’s trying to hold herself together or protect something precious.
I study the image without expression, though my jaw tightens involuntarily. “Your point?”
“My point is that Katya is planning a wedding while you’re sleeping with your assistant. She and her family are volatile, Yarik. If they find out what’s really going on, there will be consequences.”
I set aside the photograph and lean back in my chair, maintaining the neutral expression I’ve perfected over twenty years of dangerous negotiations. “What kind of consequences?”
“The kind that end with all of us dead.” He closes the folder and fixes me with a steady stare. “You’re playing a dangerous game.”
“I’m aware of the risks.”
“Are you? Because it looks like you’re thinking with your heart instead of your head.”
The criticism makes my jaw tighten. “I’m thinking clearly for the first time in years.”
He shakes his head slowly, the gesture carrying twenty years of friendship and shared dangers. “Clearly? You’re about to blow up a multimillion-dollar alliance for a woman you’ve known for three months.”
I stand and move to the window overlooking the estate grounds, needing space from his disapproval and the security photograph that makes Sarah look so fragile.
In the distance, I see groundskeepers tending to the gardens where she used to work.
She’d been invisible then, someone the organization would consider disposable, just another employee whose name wouldn’t be remembered if she quit the next day.
Now, she’s become the most important person in my world.
“The alliance was built on false premises from the beginning. The Nikitins have been testing our defenses and probing for weaknesses. They’re not interested in partnership. They want conquest.”
He nods. “True, but that doesn’t change the fact that breaking the engagement will be seen as a declaration of war.”
I watch one of the gardeners pruning roses near the pool where I first saw Sarah swimming.
The memory of that night feels both recent and distant as I recall her panic when she saw a figure in the shadows, the way she calmed when she realized it was me, and the conversation that led to our first kiss.
Everything changed after that moment, though neither of us understood it at the time.
I turn back to face him. “Then we prepare for war.”
He eases forward in his chair, studying my expression with careful attention. After two decades of working together, he can read my moods better than anyone, which makes this conversation both necessary and dangerous. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“I don’t intend to marry Katya. Not now or ever.” The words are final and irrevocable.
Valentin stares at me for a long moment as he absorbs them and the potential consequences. I can almost see him mentally cataloging the fallout of the broken contract, the territorial disputes, and the inevitable violence that will follow.
“You’re serious?”
I hold his gaze and speak firmly. “Completely.”
He curses softly, which is something he only does when deeply concerned about our survival prospects or deeply annoyed. “What does Sarah think about this decision?”
I hesitate. “She doesn’t know yet. Last night, I told her I wanted to build a future with her, but I didn’t specify how or when.”
He snorts and shakes his head. “So, she’s still in limbo while you figure out how to extract yourself from an engagement that could get her killed.”
The blunt assessment stings because it’s accurate.
Sarah deserves better than stolen moments and vague promises of a future I’m not sure I can deliver.
She deserves honesty about the dangers she’ll face if she chooses to stay with me, and the choice to walk away if the price is too high. “I’m working on it.”
His laugh is brief and harsh. “Work faster. The longer this drags out, the more dangerous it becomes for everyone involved.” Valentin reopens his folder and pulls out more photographs.
“Speaking of dangerous, we’ve identified three more shell companies with suspicious activity, all tangentially or directly tied to Nikitin networks.
That’s not all. They’re making some big purchases too. ”
I return to my desk and examine the documents spread before me.
Bank records, shipping manifests, and corporate filings paint a picture of systematic infiltration that’s been going on for months.
Even more alarming are the new invoices and financial transactions Valentin has unearthed showing a trail of massive purchases by the Nikitins. “They’re planning something.”
“The question is what and when.” He points to a series of transactions highlighted in yellow marker. “These payments were made to companies we know are fronts for military contractors. They’re arming themselves.”
“For war with us or someone else?”
He shrugs. “Does it matter? If they’re buying weapons, we need to assume they intend to use them.
If you marry her, your death gives Katya control of the Barinov bratva .
If you don’t, your death gives her deep personal satisfaction.
” He speaks blunt truths that paint a clear picture.
I’m screwed either way when it comes to my “dear” fiancée’s intentions.
I study the timeline of transactions, noting how they’ve accelerated dramatically since the engagement party.
In the days since, there are new purchases in larger quantities of more sophisticated equipment.
They’re not just preparing for conflict but conquest. “They’re moving faster than I expected, especially since Katya believes we’re still getting married. ”
Valentin jerks his head once in a terse nod. “Which brings me back to my original point. You need to decide how to handle ending the engagement if you’re determined to do so and soon. This middle ground you’re trying to maintain isn’t sustainable.”
He’s right, though admitting it means accepting Sarah and I are running out of time. The fantasy I’ve been nurturing—that I could somehow have both her and a peaceful resolution with the Nikitins—is crumbling under the weight of reality and enemy surveillance. “What do you recommend?”
“End it. Break the engagement cleanly and quickly, then fortify our defenses for the inevitable retaliation.” Valentin closes the folder and meets my gaze with the directness that’s made him invaluable over the years.
“Or marry Katya and let Sarah go. Those are your only options if you want to keep breathing. The second might lead to a more favorable outcome, but you’d be miserable. ”
I nod in agreement, appreciating he’s realized that.
The second option isn’t really an option at all, not anymore.
The thought of marrying Katya while Sarah disappears from my life makes my chest hurt with something approaching panic.
I’ve spent twenty years building walls around my heart, and Sarah demolished them in three months.
I can’t go back to being the man I was before I knew her. “I can’t lose her.”
“Then you better be prepared to fight for her.” He stands and moves toward the door, pausing with his hand on the handle. “Once you break that engagement, there’s no going back.”
After he leaves, I sit alone in my office and stare at the security footage of Sarah walking away this morning.
She looked small and vulnerable in the early light, wrapping her arms around herself like she was trying to hold something together.
The image bothers me more than it should.
There was something in her posture that suggested she was carrying a burden I don’t understand.
It has to be that I asked her to wait months for me, but what if it’s something more?
I should have asked her to stay. I should have made coffee and convinced her to spend the morning with me instead of sending her back to an apartment I’ve never seen, and to a life that doesn’t fully include me except in stolen moments and secret dinners.
The intercom on my desk buzzes, interrupting my thoughts. Mrs. Nykova’s voice comes through the speaker with professional calm. “Mr. Barinov? Miss Nikitina is here to see you.”
I force my expression into neutral lines. “Send her in.”
Katya enters wearing a deceptively simple cream-colored suit that was no doubt expensive.
Her platinum hair is pulled back in a severe chignon, and she carries herself with the confidence bordering on arrogance.
Everything about her appearance is planned.
The color makes her skin look porcelain, the cut emphasizes her figure, and the jewelry whispers old money and even older power.
She settles into the chair Valentin just vacated and crosses her long legs. “Good morning, darling. I hope you don’t mind the impromptu visit.”
I keep my tone inscrutable. “What can I do for you?”
“I wanted to discuss wedding details. We need to settle on the venue, the guest list, and the timeline.” She pulls out her phone and scrolls through what appears to be an extensive set of notes. “I was thinking early spring. March, perhaps? The gardens will be beautiful then.”
“That seems rushed.”
“Rushed? We’ve been engaged for a week already. People will start to wonder if we keep delaying.” She looks up from her phone with eyes that miss nothing. “Unless there’s a reason you want to postpone?”
The question carries an undercurrent of suspicion that makes me careful with my response.
Katya isn’t just beautiful and well-connected.
She’s intelligent, observant, and dangerous.
If she suspects something about Sarah, she won’t hesitate to use that information as leverage.
“I want to make sure we’re both committed to making this work.
It seems more time to figure out if we’re compatible is wise before such a permanent commitment.
” It’s pure lies I’m spinning, needing some reason to slow this down while planning my exit strategy and how to handle the fallout after breaking the merger… uh, engagement.
“Commitment.” She sets down her phone and studies my face like a predator evaluating prey. “An interesting word choice. Tell me, Yarik, what does commitment mean to you?”
“Loyalty, trust, and mutual respect.”
“And fidelity?”
The word hangs between us like a challenge, loaded with implications and threats.
I maintain eye contact and keep my expression neutral, though every instinct screams that she knows more than she’s revealing.
“Of course.” Another lie. I couldn’t imagine ever touching her, let alone touching only her for the rest of my life.
There’s only one woman I want in my bed, who deserves my trust and that I prove I’m trustworthy, and it isn’t Katya.
“Good.” She smiles, though the expression doesn’t reach her eyes and carries the chill of arctic wind. “I would hate for there to be any misunderstandings about what marriage means to me, or what the consequences would be for betraying that trust.”
The threat is subtle but unmistakable. Katya knows something, or suspects it, and she’s letting me know she’s watching. The question is how much she actually knows versus how much she’s fishing for with this carefully orchestrated visit. “I appreciate your directness.”
“I thought you might.” She stands and smiles thinly. “I’ll have my assistant send you the preliminary guest list for approval. I do hope we understand each other.”
The words carry multiple layers of meaning, all of them threatening.
She knows about Sarah. Maybe not everything, but enough to be dangerous.
After she leaves, I pour myself a glass of vodka despite the early hour.
The conversation was a chess move, a careful probe to test my reactions and gauge how much I might reveal about Sarah.
Worse, it was a warning that the Nikitins are done playing games.
I return to the security photographs of Sarah walking away from me this morning, but my thoughts are preoccupied by Katya threatening me, and Valentin warning me time is running out. The walls are closing in from every direction, and I need to make a choice before someone else makes it for me.
I pick up my phone and dial Valentin’s number. When he answers, I don’t waste time with pleasantries. “Set up a meeting with our security team. I want a full briefing on Nikitin capabilities and known associates.”
“When?”
“Tonight and start drawing up contingency plans. I want us prepared for anything, because I can’t…won’t maintain this charade any longer.”
“I’ll make it happen.” He’s quiet for a moment before asking, “What about Sarah? Does she know what’s coming?”
“Not yet. Soon.”
“How soon?”
I pause, considering the options. “I’ll know after tomorrow.” I end the call and finish my vodka, already planning the conversation I need to have with Sarah. She deserves to know what choosing her will cost and what kind of war we’ll be walking into together.
She also deserves the chance to walk away if the price is too high.
The thought of losing her makes my heart pound with something close to panic, but I won’t trap her in a life she didn’t choose. She’s already escaped one man who tried to control her destiny. I won’t be the second.