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“This room is off limits,” she announces in her usual brusque tone.
“Sorry. I didn’t realize,” I say, collecting my things. It makes me wonder if there’s something in here that she doesn’t want me to see, which only furthers my curiosity. Pressing a finger to my lips, I tilt my head. “Can I ask why it’s off limits?”
Nadya crosses her arms in front of her chest and taps her foot. When I’m convinced there will be no details forthcoming,she finally says, “This was the sitting room Irina liked to entertain in. Maxim wanted it sealed off after...”
After he killed Irina?Thinking about it sends a shiver down my spine.
I survey the room more closely, now aware of the feminine touches scattered throughout—sheer white curtains framing the windows, porcelain figurines placed on the mahogany shelves, a fine persian rug underfoot.
Nadya's vague mention of Irina is an opportunity I can't ignore.
"I didn’t know.” I tuck a strand of my hair behind my ears. “I feel like we got off on the wrong foot, and I never meant for that to happen. I know how important you are to Maxim, and I want us to be able to … get along.”
"Get along? Like you’re worth a second of my time.” Her words are cold and brutal. “You're temporary. You'll be gone as soon as you've served your purpose. Don't mistake yourself for someone of importance in Maxim’s world because you never will be.”
Okay, still a bitch.
I grit my teeth and try again. "Maxim agreed to this marriage for a reason. Because it serves us both. I’m sure he’d appreciate it if you took me under your wing. Help me adapt to this household, provide guidance?—”
“The only guidance you need is to understand your place. You're here for Maxim's benefit, nothing more. And you’ll be put out like yesterday’s trash sooner than later. Now, leave.”
My fingernails press sharply into my palms. I know they say you can attract more flies with honey, but I tried being nice and it got me nowhere. If I can’t win Nadya over, then she needs to understand I'm no doormat. In fact, I’m a bad bitch.
“Fine, you want me to leave?” We lock eyes, neither willing to look away. “Then tell me what happened to Irina.”
Her mouth tightens with disapproval. I expect her to shut me down, but she doesn’t. “She betrayed Maxim in the worst possible way.” I don’t miss the tremor in her hands as her eyes turn arctic. “Do you know what happens to traitors in this world?”
Her words set me on edge. My aunt and I were called traitors by those still loyal to my father. “I know very well what happens to traitors. Is this your issue with me?” I advance on her and she notches her chin, holding her ground. “You think I am going to do the same to your precious Maxim? Betray him?”
“You should be ashamed of yourself,” she whispers darkly. “To work against your own blood.”
Her words are like a punch to my gut. “What did you say?”
I’ve never brought up my father in this household, but anyone connected with the Russian underworld knows who he was and what he did. How I retaliated.
"How can you say that?" I retort sharply. “Do you know what he was doing? Involved in human trafficking, including children, cutting his drugs with fentanyl without a care for the lives lost. Addicted to painkillers and booze. He was an animal needing to be stopped. And yet you stand here, judging me for doing my duty.”
Her nostrils flare. “You’re so naïve. You know nothing about the world. Even if your father was flawed, he deserved your loyalty. That’s the bratva code.” Her face is a mask of fury, her hands clenched by her sides. “Maxim should never have married you. You’re a delusional child.”
Nadya’s not the first person with the bratva’s old-guard mindset to sneer at my actions. I can’t convince her that I was in the right, but at least I know what her issues are with me. I wonder if Maxim feels the same way—not that he’s ever expressed that.
I meet her disdain with a steely gaze, my voice unwavering. “I'd rather be naïve than blindly loyal to a corrupt ruler.”
“I’m sure you would.”
“What’s going on here?” Maxim’s deep voice cuts through the tension like a cold blade.
My gaze snaps up to find him leaning against the door frame, the dim light from the hallway casting shadows across his imposing figure. His eyes, dark and inscrutable, focus on Nadya.
A flicker of alarm crosses her features before she regains her composure. "I was letting Kira know that we don’t use this room any longer.”
Interesting. Nadya’s certainly giving him a watered-down version of our conversation. If she doesn’t want Maxim to know how she really feels about me, I’ll play her game. And I’ll win.
He runs his tongue over his upper teeth. “I see.” His gaze settles on me. “Is there a reason you're here?”
“It’s a little more private, and I like the view.” I shrug. “I didn't know that it was off limits.”
Maxim looks from Nadya to me and back again. “If you like it, it’s yours. Redecorate as you see fit.”
