Her eyes were bright with angry tears, but she knew to keep quiet. I smiled a little, took another swallow.
“You thought being near me long enough would make you eventually matter.”
“That is mean,” she whispered.
“No. Mean was what you did to my wife because you couldn’t do it to me.”
She shook her head. “Targen, I made a mistake.”
I nodded. “Yeah. You did.”
“I’ll apologize.”
“You won’t speak to her again.”
“I’ll leave. I’ll go wherever you want.”
“I know.”
Her breathing changed. She finally understood. I touched the scars on my face with two fingers, dragging them slowly over the jagged lines.
“You know what I learned when I got these?”
She stared at my cheek.
“A sharp knife slices clean. it makes a clean wound that heals better.”
“Targen—”
“A dull knife is different,” I continued. “A dull knife drags. It disrupts the skin.” I tilted my head. “It doesn’t heal as pretty. You’ll always know it was there.”
“Please,” she breathed.
“Please, what? You know I don’t hurt women, Ekaterina.”
A tear slipped down her cheek. I smiled.
“But I don’t mind giving the order.”
A shadow behind her moved. Ekaterina’s head jerked toward it. Mara stepped into the light. She was small, brown-skinned, quiet, and dressed like she had come from a regular job. She wore black slacks and a black blouse and had braids pulled into a smooth knot. Her face gave away nothing. That was why Maxim liked her for certain jobs.
Tonight, she wore gloves. Tonight, she carried a dull knife.
Ekaterina started fighting the chair then. Not that it helped. She was panicking, wasting her energy and my time. She shook her head, blonde hair flying, breathing heavy.
“No. No, please. Targen,please.”
I stood. Her eyes snapped back to me, frantic now.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I didn’t know you cared about her like that.”
“You didn’t know? Then you really had no business pulling that bullshit, huh?” I asked softly.
Mara moved behind her. Ekaterina sobbed. I leaned down, making sure our eyes met.
“You tried to cut my wife, scar her where no one could see it.” I paused, smiled. “But everyone will see yours.”
Mara’s hand came around, catching Ekaterina’s chin.
