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Whether they know it or not, they just revealed a gaping crack in their facade. I make a mental note to poke at it later.
13
CORA
I walk into Alexander’s office, but weirdly, it’s empty. I’m just starting to turn around in confusion whenthe door slams closed behind me.
“Whoa. What the—” I whip around to see he’s lurking next to the entrance like the boogeyman.
“You don’t have a knack for details.” He carves his way across the room towards his desk. “You are so focused on yourself that you don’t see the larger picture.”
I nod sarcastically. “You’re right. I’ve been way too self-centered during my abduction. How areyoudoing?”
His upper lip curls. “You’ve never understood the stakes, have you, Cordelia? Do you think Ienjoymaking you hate me?”
The silence goes on for so long that I realize he actually wants me to answer.
“Yes,” I say with a humorless laugh. “Yes, I do. I think you enjoy it very much.”
He sits back, his hands folded in his lap. “You’re wrong. You’re wrong about everything.”
“Then enlighten me!”
I’d love nothing more than for all of this to be some big misunderstanding. If Alexander revealed himself as the hero of this story and could justify all of his actions, I would be the first to shake his hand and ask for forgiveness.
But that isn’t going to happen.
Sometimes, the villain is just the villain. Simple as that.
“I have to marry you to the Sokolovs to form an alliance between our families,” he explains.
“Yeah, I gathered that much on my own. But thanks for the help.”
His nostrils flare, but he carries on. “When this all started, you were so young. Your mother and I decided that marrying Mikhail Sokolov was the best thing for you. He would be able to take care of you and give you a comfortable life.”
“I didn’t want to marry him!”
“You didn’t know what you wanted!” he snapped. “If I’d let you do what you wanted, you would have ended up a pregnant slut with no prospects.”
I blink at him. “You’re… you’re kidding, right? I didn’t even have my first kiss until I was eighteen!”
He leans in with a smile. “You’re welcome. I kept you safe, Cordelia. The same way I protected your mother.”
“Brainwashed my mother, you mean.”
“Call it what you want, but the two of you were days away from eating out of a garbage can when I took you in,” he snarls. “I vowed to take care of you both, so that is what I did. Mikhail was a good choice. But then you fucked everything up.”
“I saved myself.”
“You embarrassed the Sokolov family!” he roars. “Do you have any fucking idea how much damage you caused? I got you connected to the only son of one of the richest men in the city and you ran off on him.”
I roll my eyes. “Then Mikhail’s daddy should have found him another willing wifey. There were plenty who would’ve waltzed in with eyes open.”
“Not for men like that.” He shakes his head. “You embarrassed him. The only way to right the wrong was to get you back. If Mikhail wanted to recover his reputation, he needed you to come back on your knees.”
“Yeah, well, don’t count on it.”
“You still don’t—” He growls in frustration. “I was building a career before you threw everything away. When you disappeared, I had to start over from nothing. You didn’t just ruin Mikhail’s reputation; you destroyedmygood name.”
