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Instead, I slid into my car and drove off. My knuckles turned white from the tight grip I had on the steering wheel, and fury filled my vision. I expected this sort of thing from Viktor, who hated my guts, or even Aleksei, who, despite trying his best to maintain a relationship with me, would rather watch his kingdom fall apart than ask me for help.
It had never crossed my mind that it would be Dominik who doubted me. It caused a chain of mixed emotions, and even his name on my tongue felt venomous.
It was true, after all, that the only person a human could trust was themselves. I’d learned that the hard way, so after they’d held up their end of the bargain, I’d be out of this family for good. None of them had ever truly cared for my wellbeing, and it was time to let that fantasy vanish.
Two uneventful weeks passed.
Dominik reached out on the night after our minor argument, with some takeout at my doorstep, but I slammed the door in his face, and he hadn’t bothered me since. I was grateful I had one less idiot to deal with for the time being.
Aleksei tried to keep me semi-updated on the situation, but I got bored of that pretty quickly. Things weren’t going the way I wanted them to, hence I was no longer interested in anything he had to tell me. Besides, I had other ways of finding information—and it would be more accurate than anything he could offer.
I was surprised, however, that Davorin had disappeared—aside from a phone call, which ended with me hanging up on him after he threatened to kill people if I didn’t pick up more quickly. I had no strength to argue with him though, and told him to kill whoever he wished. It was none of my business anyway.
The most shocking occurrence was Xenia pushing me to keep her company whilst she shopped for an evening dress. She dragged me out of bed at eight in the morning and promised to make up for it. Apparently, she needed advice on which dress would suit her better, but I was irritated about being woken up so early.
“Definitely not that one,” I said with a yawn.
We’d already checked out four shops before landing on this one, and she’d yet to find a suitable dress.
“You’re cruel,” she grumbled. “Nothing pleases you.”
A tear rolled down my cheek from my yawn, exhaustion washing over me. “Next time, don’t ask for my advice and just pick out whatever you want.”
“I trust your judgment too much,” she said with a grin that made me want to knock her teeth out.
She was overstaying her welcome, but I didn’t know exactly why she’d decided to stick around as long as she had. Dominik had multiple guest rooms she could’ve used.
“What’s the occasion anyway?” I asked as I flipped through a magazine that had been lying on the small table in the shop’s fitting room.
Xenia’s brows creased. “The boss didn’t tell you? It’s for the Pakhan’s birthday celebration next week.”
“Aleksei’s still having those? Isn’t he too old for that sort of thing?”
She chuckled. “It’s free food and alcohol—no one hates that.”
“That’s true,” I muttered and continued flipping the pages.
I wasn’t surprised that I hadn’t been invited. It was to be expected given Aleksei’s petty nature. Most likely, I’d get a last-minute invitation with no other option but to attend. I hated those parties. They never ended on a good note, so someone was bound to leave in a body bag.
Xenia tried on a couple of dresses. If I liked them, she was uncertain. If I disliked them, they were exactly what she wanted. I’d known her for years, and today’s behavior was out of the ordinary. I would’ve caught on faster, but I’d been too tired to pay attention. Now though, I wanted answers.
“You have two minutes to tell me what’s going on or I’ll shoot you where you stand.”
She froze before trying to smile her way out of the conversation. But with the clock ticking, and knowing I wasn’t someone she could play with, she sighed and told me we would talk somewhere private. Immediately, I forced her to change out of the dress and dragged her to my car.
“Spill, Xenia—I’m getting impatient.”
She sighed, though the hint of fright in it didn’t go unnoticed. For a few moments, she was silent. She was clearly unsure what to tell me, and I was growing more and more irritated that she couldn’t use her goddamn words.
“Well”—she released a deep breath—“the boss asked me to keep you occupied today.”
I raised an eyebrow. “So there’s no party?”
Her eyes widened, and she shook her head furiously. “No, no, there is! It’s just that I didn’t really need a dress. I wasn’t going to attend. I hate crowded places.”
“All right then.” I turned on the engine. “Why do they want me out of their business so badly?”
She bit her bottom lip, as if she was trying to stop herself from revealing the information I needed. I remained silent, knowing it would break her eventually, and started driving towards Aleksei’s home. I assumed it had something to do with him.
