Page 89 of Her Creation

The boldness of the gesture startled her. She lifted her eyes to his, gratitude flickering there before she could stop it. He did not look at her then. His attention remained locked on Wilhelm, his body coiled with restraint that felt dangerous in its stillness.

“I have never been an advocate of allegiance,” Inno said calmly with a lopsided, charming grin. “Not to countries nor to any authority that demands obedience without consent.” His angular chin tilted up, almost begging Wilhelm to push him further.

Victoria felt her nerves tighten, pressure building beneath her skull. She knew that stillness, knew what lay beneath it. He had died rather than swear loyalty to Russia, rather than kill on command. Wilhelm had no concept of the fire he was stoking, and if Victoria wasn’t careful, she was certain it would burn them all.

“Victoria, waltz with me,” Wilhelm said abruptly, stepping forward and extending his arm. “I would very much like to finish our earlier conversation in private.”

“The waltz?” Inno interjected with a false tone of surprise. “Are you not married, Herr von Lichtenmarstein?” He shifted Victoria just enough to place her fully out of Wilhelm’s reach. His eyes held a subtle threat. “Surely you would not be so discourteous as to take my only dance partner when you have your own.”

“I would be honored to be your partner,” Helena said brightly to Innominatus as she approached with Johanna and Sophia.

Inno glanced down at Victoria with a raised brow. She gave a subtle nod, approving. Sophia loved to dance and would soon follow, taking Wilhelm away.

“This is Helena, Johanna, and Wilhelm’s wife, Sophia,” Victoria said, dipping her head. The women curtseyed in unison.

“Wonderful. Then Miss Helena and I will dance, and you may share the floor with your wife. Victoria and I will have the next,” Inno said as he held out the crook of his arm to Helena.

An absolutely giddy Helena wiggled her brows at Victoria as she took his arm and allowed him to guide her toward the dance floor. Inno’s steps were unhurried, precise, but even as he turned with Helena, his awareness never fully left Victoria. He seemed to track her by instinct alone, the way one knew a storm was coming.

Sophia smiled a practiced, sugar-sweet smile as she stepped up beside her husband and took his arm.

Wilhelm’s glare at Inno was sharp, venomous, before his mouth pulled into a devilish grin that did nothing to soften his eyes. Without warning, he seized Victoria by the waist and hauled her sharply into him, steering her onto the dance floor and stepping past Sophia as though she were nothing more than a decorative obstruction. When they passed directly behind Inno, Wilhelm leaned toward the taller man, squeezing Victoria’s side hard enough to steal her breath as he forced her into position.

“Sophia doesn’t mind sharing,” he murmured, casting a cocky wink in Innominatus’s direction just as the music began.

“Wilhelm, please don’t do this,” Victoria pleaded.

As Victoria turned through the first rotation of the dance, her senses sharpened. She felt Inno before she fully saw him, a steady pull at her awareness that cut through the noise and music and chatter. When her gaze lifted, she caught his eyes locked on her with an intensity that bordered on feral. His expression was glacial, his jaw set, his attention fixed so completely that it was as though the rest of the ballroom had blurred away.

A flicker of warmth spread from low in Victoria’s belly, curling upward at the unmistakable protectiveness in his stare. For a heartbeat she wanted to lean into it, to let it anchor her. Fully feel how he was measuring every movement, every shift of her breath, as if committing it to memory. Not even her father had stood against another for her sake, and certainly no one of this rank. While Wilhelm made a spectacle of their dance, exaggerating his turns and holds, every time Victoria’s head angled toward Inno, their eyes found one another again. It felt intimate and dangerous, a private line of awareness stretched taut between them across the crowded floor. She alone was keeping him from striking out. She knew with quiet certainty that if she faltered, if she signaled even slightly, he would reach her in seconds. She could read in his face how much he wished she would. Helena laughed freely, radiant and unguarded, unaware that her partner’s body moved with her while his attention remained fixed elsewhere.

“You would be wise to inform your friend of who he is dealing with,” Wilhelm growled.

Victoria swallowed the response that burned on her tongue. “Enough.”

His hand slid lower along her back until it settled just above her rear, possessive and deliberate. “I have decided I have not had enough.”

“It is not your decision,” Victoria choked out. She did not search for Inno, knowing he would already see the change in Wilhelm’s grip.

Wilhelm leaned closer. “It is. Very much so.”

“Or what?” Her voice trembled as she leaned back from him, the music carrying them forward. She was struggling to not show Inno she was in trouble. “You will tell your father I am practicing medicine without a license? No one will believe you, and you know it. Your threats are empty. I am no longer assisting my father anyway,” she added, the lie slipping free before she could stop it. “Not now that Mr. Creatura is here.”

A slow, deliberate smile spread across Wilhelm’s face. “I do not need leverage to take what I want, Victoria, you know that. I own most of the land you see, and the people upon it. That includes you. And what I do not own yet, I will the moment I am baron.” His smile fell away, leaving his eyes cold and intent. “You do not want me as your enemy. I promise you that.” He leaned closer still. “I will come for you in the carriage this week.”

“I will not go with you, and Inno will not allow it. He will be there. He lives at the castle.”

An eerie smile broke across Wilhelm’s face. “You believe he can protect you? With a nod of my head, every tenant across four villages would burn that castle of yours to the ground with him inside because I told them to.”

“Perhaps with your father’s command, but not yours,” Victoria shot back. “They are not loyal to you. You forget that I am one of those tenants.” The words escaped before she could temper them, fueled by heat and fury.

Wilhelm chuckled lightly as the music concluded. As they stepped from the floor, he leaned close to her ear. “And you forget that I enjoy it when you fight me, darling.”

Victoria turned, her chest tight with the need for air, and found the baron and his chamberlain directly in her path. Her lips pressed together as her face tightened, and she dipped into a low curtsey. Innominatus and Helena joined them moments later.

“Father, we were just speaking of you,” Wilhelm said, his tone pleasant, his glance toward Victoria sharp with warning.

“Were you?” the baron replied mildly. His gaze lingered on Victoria briefly. “Good evening, Miss Frankenstein. I trust your father’s health is improving.” The words were courteous, but there was calculation beneath them, a quiet inventory being taken. His attention shifted smoothly. “Mr. Creatura, I would very much like to continue our earlier conversation. There are several others I wish to introduce you to as well.” He returned his gaze to Victoria, his smile thin and polite. “Miss Frankenstein, there was no real need for you to attend this evening. I am certain you would be better employed attending to your father.”