Chapter 157: I didn’t kill her

"It could be important," Sienna said softly. She slipped out of Viktor’s arms before he could pull her back. For a moment, Viktor simply stared at her. The warmth of her body had disappeared from his chest, leaving his arms empty. He glanced toward the phone vibrating insistently in his pocket, then back at his wife.

He honestly did not care who was calling.

The world could have been burning outside the windows, alarms screaming through the city, and he still would have been more interested in the woman standing in front of him.

Sienna caught the look in his eyes and shook her head. "Fine. I’ll answer it."

She reached for the phone. Viktor was faster. He picked it up, glanced at the screen, and answered without bothering to check the name properly.

"Boss?" The voice came through the speaker. Viktor said nothing. He placed the phone on the bed beside them, turned the volume up, and before Sienna could say another word, his hand settled around her waist.

"Viktor," He kissed her. Sienna’s protest disappeared against his mouth. For several seconds, the voice on the phone continued talking to an audience that clearly wasn’t listening.

"Boss? Are you there?" Viktor didn’t answer. His attention remained fixed on Sienna. Then the man on the other end continued, apparently assuming the connection was bad.

"The little miss is acting up again. She thinks because she’s Don Capri’s little princess, we..." Sienna pulled away.

Her eyes immediately went to the phone. Viktor’s expression hadn’t changed. He looked almost bored. "What did he just say?" Sienna asked.

The voice continued through the speaker.

"We’re having trouble getting her to cooperate. She keeps insisting that you won’t allow us to touch her because of who her father is."

Sienna’s stomach tightened. Viktor finally looked at the phone. "Handle her." The man hesitated.

"Boss?"

"You heard me." There was a long silence. "Boss, you mean..." Viktor’s gaze shifted back to Sienna.

He saw the question in her eyes. The uncertainty. The growing realization that the conversation was about Aliya. "Handle her the same way you handle the employees at the manufacturing site when they refuse to follow orders."

Sienna’s face changed. The man’s breathing seemed to catch on the other end. "Boss, you mean..." He couldn’t seem to finish the sentence. Viktor could.

"She’s under your authority now. She follows your rules. If she disobeys, she faces the same consequences as everyone else." Sienna stared at him. There was no anger on his face. No hesitation.

No sign that he was wrestling with the decision. That frightened her more than shouting ever could. The man on the phone swallowed audibly.

"But, Boss..."

"I won’t repeat myself."

"Understood."

"And don’t call me about this again." Viktor reached for the phone. The call ended.

Silence fell over the bedroom. For a few seconds, neither of them moved. The curtains shifted slightly with the breeze from the open balcony doors. Somewhere outside, a car passed on the road below, its tires hissing over the pavement.

Viktor looked at Sienna. She was still staring at him.

"What?" Sienna blinked.

"What?" His brows drew together slightly. Viktor watched her. He seemed genuinely confused by her reaction. To him, this was business. A problem had been placed in front of him. He had given an order. The matter was finished.

But Sienna couldn’t shake the sound of that man’s voice. She looked at the phone lying on the bed. Then at Viktor. He crossed the space between them.

Sienna instinctively stepped back. His hand caught her wrist gently before she could move farther. His expression softened there was something unsettling about how calm he was.

Viktor lifted her hand and pressed his lips against her knuckles.

Sienna just watched him. He looked almost absurdly peaceful for a man who had just made a decision that had left her heart pounding.

Then, as though the conversation had never happened, Viktor leaned closer.

"So..." His mouth curved slightly. "Where were we?"

Sienna stared at him. For a second, she genuinely wondered if he had lost his mind. "You’ve got to be kidding me."

"What?"

"You just ended a phone call like that, and now you want to continue where we left off?"

"Yes."

The answer was so simple that Sienna could only stare. Viktor reached for her waist again. She placed a hand against his chest before he could pull her closer. "Viktor."

He looked down at her hand. Then back at her face.

"What did you do to Aliya?"

Sienna drew away from him, putting a careful distance between their bodies.

"And what exactly is the manufacturing site?"

Viktor’s expression remained calm.

He reached for her again, but Sienna took another step back.

"Too many questions, darling."

"I’m serious."

"So am I." He watched her for a moment, then sighed.

"I don’t care to tell you everything about what a mafia boss does or all the businesses he runs." His voice softened. "You already know most of them aren’t exactly legal."

Sienna folded her arms. "That isn’t an answer."

"I know." Viktor moved toward her slowly.

"But there are things I don’t want you involved in. Not because I think you can’t handle them. Because I love you." Sienna’s expression flickered.

"I want to keep you away from that part of my life for as long as I can." He reached up and brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face.

"And before you start imagining the worst, I do have moral principles." Sienna raised an eyebrow.

"Do you?"

"Yes." There was the faintest hint of amusement in his voice. "There are things even I consider wrong. Things I won’t do." She stared at him. That answer somehow made her more curious.

Viktor slipped his hands into his pockets. "But I would be happy to show you the legal side of the Kessler Empire."

He paused.

"You’re intelligent, Sienna. You have skills most people would kill to possess. You could do something incredible at Kessler Corp if you wanted to." She didn’t answer.

Her thoughts were still stuck on Aliya. "And Aliya?" Viktor’s face hardened slightly.

"She has to pay for what she did to you." Sienna’s jaw tightened. "I didn’t ask you to punish her like that."

"I didn’t kill her." His eyes met hers. "Even though she deserved it." Sienna stared at him.