CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
VIKTOR
I’m tooold to be dealing with this shit.
I rub a hand over my face, mentally preparing myself for the shitstorm I’m about to walk into.Fucking Seven…
I raise my fist to knock, but the door swings open before I make contact, revealing a young, anxious-looking woman. She has large, wide-set brown eyes and a heart-shaped face that makes her look younger than she probably is. Though her hair is dark, the underside is colored a vibrant blue that contrasts prettily with the hue of her skin. She’s not my taste, but I can absolutely see why Seven is enamored with her.
“Hello.” I give her a short nod of greeting. “You must be Grace.”
“I am.” She takes her lip between her teeth, a clear sign of nervousness. “And you must be Viktor.”
“Indeed.” I look over her shoulder, catching sight of a beautiful woman with flaming red hair. “I didn’t realize we had an audience.”
“That’s Saffron. She’s my best friend, and she insisted on being here in case you ended up being super creepy.” She tilts her head, looking me up and down. “And honestly, you kinda look it… No offense.”
“Allof the offense taken,” I grumble. “If we’re going to speak, we shouldn’t do it out here where people can hear us.”
“Right. Sorry.” Grace steps to the side, letting me into the apartment. I walk over to the sofa, letting out a groan as I slump onto the cushions.
“Alright… what did the fucking asshole get himself into now?” I ask.
Grace immediately begins telling her story. How she met Seven, how he pretended to be her boss, only to kidnap her when his plan went south. She tells me about how she saved him from a nasty stab wound and how she nursed him back to health. Finally, she gets to the part where the police show up and haul Seven away, and her eyes well with tears.
“Then he was gone. And there was nothing I could do,” she says, her voice cracking. “He gave me his phone and told me to call you. Now, here we are.”
“Here we are.” I sigh. “I’m not the least bit surprised this happened. Seven has always been… troublesome.”
“Is there anything you can do to help him?” Grace’s voice is tinged with desperation. “The Sanctum is like a secret society with lots of power, right? Can they get him out?”
I frown. “Theycould,but I don’t think they will. Seven is… well, he’s been causing some problems for the Sanctum lately. He was one of the Masks under review.”
“Review?”
I nod. “To see if they were fit for society. Seven scored the worst of the bunch.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that if the police didn’t get him, the Sanctum would have. They would have locked him up just the same.”
“That’s not fair!”
I shrug. “Seven is troubled, as I’m sure you’ve seen. The Sanctum is simply looking out for the betterment of society. Ifthey let Seven be free to do what he wants, he will cause chaos and destruction. It’s what he’s made for.”
“That’s not true.” She shakes her head. “Yes, he’s done fucked-up things, but only to people who have already hurt others. He’s not as bad as you think. He’s good deep down—I’ve seen it with my own eyes, Viktor. I’ve felt it.”
My brows rise. “I’m sure you have…”
“That's… not what I meant.”
I rub a hand over my face tiredly, feeling every year of my age. “I’ll see what I can do to help Seven. When is his court date?”
“Next week.”
I nod, thinking. “He’ll probably get life in prison—there’s no escaping that. But once he’s sentenced and placed in the general population, it should be easier to get in touch with him. Easier to find a way to break him out.”
“Oh my God, thank you!” Grace lunges forward, wrapping her arms around my torso in a bear hug. “Thank you. You have no idea how much this means.”
