“It wasyourfault we had to kill that damn woman!” As soon as he said it, the Tsar stopped himself. He took a step backward, cursing under his breath and gritting his teeth together. Anastasia stood frozen to the spot, unable to move. All of the blood rushed out of her head, and she was wavering on weak legs.
“What did you say?” She looked at the Tsar, her voice deathly quiet as a decade of guilt came crumbling down around her, threatening to knock her down with the stones of her mental walls.
“He said that they killed Asya.” Mikhail’s voice cut through the deathly quiet, Anastasia’s head snapping to the sound as she realized he was standing in the open doorway.
She didn’t know how long he had been standing there but clearly long enough to hear the end of their conversation. His face was etched in fury, an expression that Anastasia had never seen. She thought she was going to be sick.
“For fuck’s sake,” the Tsar yelled, looking between the both of them. “You couldn’t keep a lid on your damn magic, Anastasia. When it exploded, we had no choice.”
“Ofcourseyou had a fucking choice!” she shrieked, launching herself at her father.
Her hands found their way around his throat without a moment’s hesitation. She clawed at him with the intent to choke the life out of the Tsar. She was no match for the grown man who gripped her wrists and tossed her to the floor without any effort.
Mikhail was shaken from his stupor. He crossed the room in an instant, and by the time Anastasia looked up from the ground, Mikhail was holding a pistol at point-blank range to the Tsar.
“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t end you right now,” his voice had a deadly calm to it that even made Anastasia shiver. “I told you once that if you touched her again, I’d kill you.”
“You can’t kill me!” The Tsar roared, pressing his forehead up against the barrel in a challenge. “What do you think will happen? I am theTsar of all of Russia!”
“And I’m in love with a woman! Tell me,moi Tsar, which one of these do you think has inspired more passion in a man?”
Anastasia gasped, her hand flying to cover her mouth. Amidst the chaos rapidly unfolding all around them, she couldn’t believe what she had just heard. The Tsar scoffed, shaking his head.
“Do you really think that she loves you, too? She doesn’t know what she wants. She’s a spoiled woman who’s hardly ever left the palace. She doesn’tknowwhat love is.” The Tsar spoke as if Anastasia wasn’t even in the room.
“I do know,” Anastasia’s voice was shockingly calm as she rose to her feet. The Tsar and Mikhail both turned to look at her. “I knew love when I was with Asya. I forgot… God, I forgot for a long time. Mikhail has reminded me,” she swallowed thickly, unable to shake the fact that this was a very high-stakes situation in which to have this conversation. “And I love him.”
Mikhail’s smile could’ve lit every lamp in the Winter Palace.
“Ha!” The Tsar shook his head again, “No better than peasants, the both of you, with your ridiculous obsessions.” He took a step back from Mikhail and stared at the end of the pistol, which was still aimed at him.
“Let him go,” Anastasia murmured, coming up and putting her hand on Mikhail’s arm. “His end will be much morepublicthan this.”
The Tsar sputtered. His face red at the threat, and his hands clenched into fists.
“Go,” Mikhail’s voice was rough as he waved the pistol in the direction of the door. “You’re dismissed.”
Anastasia watched as Mikhail tensed, pulling her to his side with a stoic expression on his face as he dismissed the Tsar of Russia from his presence.
18
The sound of the door shutting behind the Tsar echoed throughout the room. Anastasia stared after her father with shock on her face. She was nestled up against Mikhail’s side, her arm around his waist in quiet disbelief.
“You just…,” she stared at the door, “You just told the Tsar of Russia to fuck off.”
“I did,” Mikhail nodded. The adrenaline was still rushing through his veins, his chest heaving and his muscles tense. He looked like a soldier ready to jump back into battle but shook his head quickly as if to clear it, tossing the pistol to a chair.
Mikhail’s eyes drifted back to Anastasia, his gaze heavy. He stepped away from her, his mind going a million miles a minute. The explosive atmosphere had given away to a building tension between the two of them, revelations settling over both of them.
“Did you mean it?” Mikhail asked, his voice low. He was quiet for a second, biting his lip. “Did you mean what you said?” His stare was hot and Anastasia felt like she was going to burn under his gaze.
“Yes.” Her voice didn’t waver as she stared right back at him. “Did you?”
“Every word.”
“Say it again.”
“I love you, Anastasia,” Mikhail repeated without a moment’s hesitation.
