Chapter 183: Take Marcus

Simon was too close. Too comfortable. As though he had every right to be there.

Beside Sienna, Viktor went completely still. She felt it before she even looked at him. His entire body had tightened. His jaw locked.

His eyes darkened as they settled on Simon. Sienna immediately reached for his arm. Her fingers wrapped around him. A quiet warning. Don’t. Viktor didn’t look at her.

His eyes remained fixed on Simon. But he didn’t move. Aliya noticed them standing there. Of course she did. Her mouth slowly curved into a smile.

She looked up at Sienna. Then at Viktor.

"Well," Sienna said, nothing. Aliya’s smile widened. "What?" Her eyes sparkled with satisfaction.

"Shocked to see Sienna’s boyfriend?" The words hung in the air. Simon didn’t say anything. Sienna’s fingers tightened slightly around Viktor’s arm.

Aliya looked pleased with herself. Then she looped her arm through Simon’s.

Slowly. Deliberately. "He’s my guest," she said. "So you will treat him properly." Viktor’s jaw tightened.

Aliya saw it. And she enjoyed every second of it. Then her attention shifted back to Sienna. The smile disappeared from her face. Yesterday’s humiliation clearly hadn’t been forgotten.

"That little stunt you pulled yesterday..." Sienna met her eyes. Aliya took one slow step forward.

"I will make you regret it." Sienna didn’t blink. Aliya smiled again. "You wait and see." For a moment, neither woman moved. Then Aliya turned away.

"Come on, Simon." She tugged lightly on his arm. Simon followed. But as he passed the staircase, his eyes lifted. Straight to Sienna.

And stayed there. Only for a moment. Maybe two. Long enough for Sienna to notice. There was something strange in his expression. Not happiness.

Not anger. Something else. Something she couldn’t read. Then Aliya pulled him forward again.

"Simon." He looked away. And followed her upstairs. The guards disappeared after them.

Then Elena. Finally, the house became quiet again. Sienna let out the breath she had been holding. Only then did she turn toward Viktor. He was still staring at the staircase.

His face was unreadable. But Sienna knew him well enough by now. That silence was dangerous.

"Viktor." He didn’t answer. Sienna took his hand. He finally looked at her. She placed both of her hands around his. "Don’t worry." His eyes narrowed slightly.

"I’m not worried." She gave him a small look. "Of course you’re not."

"I am not."

"Mmm."

"Sienna." That almost made her smile. Almost. She squeezed his hand. "His being here means nothing to me." Viktor looked down at their hands.

Then back at her. "I know." Sienna’s expression softened. "Do you?"

"Yes." He said it firmly. But his eyes flicked toward the staircase again. Sienna followed his gaze. Then looked back at him. "Viktor."

He sighed. "What?"

"Don’t kill him, at least not now." Viktor looked offended. "I wasn’t going to kill him."

Sienna raised an eyebrow. A beat passed. Viktor added, "Immediately." Sienna’s mouth fell open.

"Viktor."

"What?" She shook her head. He looked at her for another moment before his expression softened. Then he pulled her closer.

"I’m serious," he said quietly. His arm settled around her waist.

"I mean it." Sienna looked up at him.

"Simon can walk into this house holding Aliya’s hand. He can stand in front of me. He can look at me." His voice lowered.

"But if he tries anything..." Sienna placed a finger against his chest.

"Then you’ll handle it." Viktor looked down at her finger.

"Yes."

"But without killing him." He looked at her. She waited. Viktor sighed.

"Fine." Sienna smiled. "For now." His eyes narrowed. She laughed softly and slipped out of his hold before he could pull her back. Viktor watched her walk down the last few steps.

But the amusement in his eyes didn’t last. Not completely. His gaze drifted upstairs again. Simon being here wasn’t a coincidence.

And neither was Aliya making sure everyone knew exactly who she had brought into Viktor’s house. Something was coming. Viktor could feel it.

—

Sienna spent the rest of the day in her room, the quiet giving her time to think, to turn everything over in her mind. Aliya, Simon, the failed test results, the strange hidden files still sitting unresolved on her hard drive. Nothing added up cleanly, and that bothered her more than she let on.

It was evening when Viktor’s phone rang. He glanced at the screen, and something in his face changed instantly, tension pulling tight across his features.

"I need to step out," he said, looking up at Sienna.

She could see it in his eyes before he even explained further. This was not a call he wanted to answer. Wherever it was pulling him, it was somewhere dangerous, somewhere he didn’t want to walk into while leaving her behind in a house full of people who wanted her gone.

"Go," Sienna said simply. "I’ll be okay. Take Marcus with you."

She could read the war happening behind his expression, the pull between staying to protect her and going to face whatever waited for him out there.

"I can’t take Marcus," Viktor said, his jaw tightening. "I need you protected. Come with me..." He caught himself, biting down on the rest of the sentence before it fully left his mouth. He knew, even as he said it, that bringing her along would put her in even more danger, not less.

"What could Aliya, his father, and your stepmother possibly do to me here?" Sienna asked gently.

"Believe me, if you need to go, you should go." She stepped closer, resting a hand against his chest. "And I can see where you’re going is dangerous. You need someone you trust with you. Take Marcus." She paused, softening further. "It’s late. I’ll just go to bed."

Viktor shook his head slowly, though there was less conviction in it now. "Nothing is going to happen to me."

"And nothing is going to happen to me either," she said. "I can sneak out of this house if I need to. I’ve done it before. I can do it again."

He let out a breath, something between a laugh and a sigh, though worry still sat heavy behind his eyes.

"I’m sorry," he said finally. "I will be back before you know it." He took her face gently in his hands. "I’m trusting you, Sienna. Please be safe."

He pulled her closer, his forehead resting against hers for a moment, breathing her in.

"I’ll be back soon," he murmured. "And I will end this. All of it. I will never put your life in danger again."