Chapter 163: I wasn’t sneaking

"Besides, you can’t blame me." She turned back to her computer and began closing the remaining windows. "I never hid it from you."

"You didn’t?"

"No." She glanced over her shoulder. "I told you."

"When?"

"The first day you captured me and dragged me into your territory." Viktor’s expression changed. Sienna smiled. "That night." He remembered. Of course he remembered.

She had been standing in front of him, angry, exhausted, and completely unafraid of talking back to him. She had said something about hacking. Something about computers. Something he had barely listened to because, at the time, he had more important things on his mind.

Or so he had thought. Now Viktor closed his eyes briefly. My mistake. Sienna watched him. "You remember?"

"Unfortunately." Her smile widened. "You didn’t believe me."

"I didn’t listen."

"That too." Viktor sighed.

"My mistake."

"Exactly." He stepped closer. "But we’re not doing this again." Sienna stopped typing.

"What?"

"This." He pointed toward the computer.

"Going after dangerous people. Sneaking into places you have no business being. Bidding in criminal auctions at three o’clock in the morning."

"I wasn’t sneaking." Viktor gave her a look. Sienna reconsidered. "Okay. Maybe a little."

"Sienna." She turned toward him. "What?"

"You can’t keep hiding behind the name Invisible Shadow and assume nobody will ever find you." Her playful expression faded. "People talk."

Viktor leaned against the desk. "They investigate. They make connections." Sienna looked down at the keyboard.

"Eventually, someone will figure out who you are." He paused. "And if the wrong person finds you first..." His jaw tightened.

Sienna understood what he wasn’t saying. Viktor didn’t need to finish. "Okay." He blinked. "Okay?"

"Fine." She reached for the keyboard. Viktor watched her suspiciously. One by one, Sienna shut everything down. The auction page disappeared. The encrypted files closed. The lines of code vanished. Finally, the screens went black.

"There." She turned toward him. "Happy?" Viktor stared at her. She looked almost exactly like the innocent woman he had left sleeping in his bed less than an hour ago.

Almost. Except now he knew better. This woman had nearly spent a hundred million dollars in the middle of the night while wearing pajamas and sitting barefoot in a closet.

Viktor shook his head. "Go to bed." Sienna nodded. "Okay."

Again. Too easily. He narrowed his eyes. "What?"

"Nothing."

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I’m waiting for you to argue."

"I said okay."

"That worries me." Sienna laughed softly and stood. Viktor took her hand and led her out of the closet. Back to the bed. This time, he made sure she actually got underneath the blankets.

Sienna settled against the pillows. Viktor stood beside the bed. "Sleep." She closed her eyes. He waited. A few seconds passed. Then one eye opened. Viktor folded his arms.

"Sienna."

"What?"

"Sleep." She sighed dramatically and closed it again. Viktor remained there. Watching. Waiting. He knew her now. Or at least, he was beginning to realize that he didn’t know her nearly as well as he’d believed.

So he stayed. Minutes passed. Her breathing slowly changed. Her shoulders relaxed. The tension disappeared from her face. Viktor watched a little longer before he finally believed she was asleep.

Only then did he turn away. Both of them had lost the auction. But Viktor wasn’t disappointed anymore. In fact, losing might have been the better outcome. Winning would have given them access to the information they wanted.

But it would have created another problem. They would have been expected to follow through. Invest money. Build the laboratory. Become involved. And Viktor had no intention of doing any of those things.

Now, however... They had something else. They knew the names behind several of the bidders. They knew who had wanted that information badly enough to spend almost a hundred million dollars.

And, most importantly... They knew who had won. Viktor glanced back at Sienna one last time. Then quietly left the room. He closed the door behind him. A few seconds later, his footsteps disappeared down the hallway.

Sienna’s eyes opened. She stared at the ceiling. A small smile slowly appeared. Then she turned onto her side.

I said I’d stop going after dangerous people. She pulled the blanket higher. I never said I would stop looking. Across the mansion, Viktor returned to the study.

Marcus looked up immediately. "Boss?" Viktor pulled out his chair. "We lost." Marcus’s face tightened.

"I know." Viktor looked at the screen.

"Good." Marcus blinked.

"Good?" Viktor’s mouth curved slightly. "Find the winner." Marcus stared at him. Viktor leaned back. "We don’t need to buy the information anymore." His eyes settled on the winning bidder’s identity.

"Let’s see where it takes them."

—-

Morning had come, but Don Capri hadn’t slept.

The curtains in his apartment were still half closed, keeping most of the sunlight out. Empty glasses sat on the table beside him. Another bottle rested in his hand.

He poured himself more. Then stopped. His fingers tightened around the glass. Aliya. He still hadn’t heard anything. No call. No message. Nothing.

He didn’t know where Viktor had taken her. He didn’t know whether she was hurt. Whether she was alive. Whether she was lying somewhere alone, terrified, waiting for someone who couldn’t come for her.

The thought made his chest tighten. His daughter. His little princess. And there was nothing he could do. He had no money left. No men powerful enough to challenge Viktor. No allies willing to risk their own lives for him. His debts had swallowed what remained of his influence.

Don Capri had spent years believing his name alone could open doors. Now, when he needed those doors the most, they were all closed.

Across from him, Elena sat in silence. She wasn’t doing much better. Marcel was still in Viktor’s custody. And Elena hadn’t heard from him either. She didn’t know where Viktor was keeping her son.

She didn’t know what had already been done to him. Every time she closed her eyes, she imagined the worst. Marcel calling for her.

Begging. Screaming. She opened her eyes quickly. "No." Don Capri looked at her. "What?"

Elena sat forward. An idea had just crossed her mind.