Chapter 96: Let’s talk in your study

Sienna crossed the room quickly, her heels clicking softly against the polished floor, and stepped smoothly into place beside Viktor just as the photographers prepared for another shot, Don Capri and Aliya still adjusting themselves for the perfect angle.

"Excuse me," Sienna said, sliding in close, her voice light and pleasant, betraying none of the storm still churning beneath her composed exterior.

Don Capri stepped aside automatically to make room, and Sienna reached up, resting her hand gently against the side of Viktor’s neck, turning his face just slightly toward her own as the camera flashed, capturing the two of them together in a moment that looked, to anyone watching, effortlessly intimate.

Aliya’s expression twisted instantly, fury flashing hot and unmistakable across her features.

That single photograph, Sienna knew, would settle every whispered question circling the room tonight about exactly who Viktor Kessler truly belonged to.

She stepped back a moment later, calm and unhurried, offering the smallest, most gracious smile toward Don Capri before turning and walking away, elegant and composed, no scene, no confrontation, nothing anyone could point to and call improper.

Elena’s eyes tracked her the entire way, sharp with open anger. Sienna ignored her completely, continuing on without a single backward glance.

Viktor followed a few steps behind, and Aria trailed after both of them, a wide, delighted grin spreading across her face. That, Aria thought, was exactly what Sienna needed to do.

A single, quiet, perfectly executed moment, and every single wolf circling that ballroom had just been silenced without a single drop of blood spilled.

They waited outside for the car in silence, the cool night air settling around them. Sienna’s phone buzzed softly in her small clutch, and she glanced down to see a message waiting from an unknown number.

It seems you didn’t take my warning seriously, it read. Sienna’s fingers moved quickly across the screen before she could second-guess herself.

I did, she typed back. As you said, I should take my time. And I’m still Mrs. Kessler until we get the divorce.

She hit send and slipped the phone back into her clutch just as Viktor stepped up beside her, shrugging out of his jacket and settling it carefully around her shoulders, shielding her from the night air.

"Are you okay?" he asked quietly, his eyes searching her face with the same careful attention he’d shown her all night.

Sienna nodded, pulling his jacket a little tighter around herself, the warmth of it, and of him standing so close beside her, settling something unsteady deep inside her chest.

"I’m okay," she said softly. For now, at least, she almost believed it.

—-

The car ride home passed quickly, the tension of the party slowly draining out of Sienna’s shoulders as the city lights blurred past the window.

By the time they pulled through the iron gates of the Kessler mansion, she felt almost steady again, almost like the version of herself that had walked down those stairs earlier that evening, confident and unafraid.

Aria arrived only minutes behind them, having insisted on following in her own car rather than parting ways at the party.

She burst through the front doors with her phone already in hand, scrolling frantically through something, her earlier bright energy replaced now with focused, serious determination.

"Sienna," she said, catching up to them in the entrance hall, breathless. "I managed to get a picture of him. I ran it through everything I could think of. Facial recognition, old news archives, even a few databases I probably shouldn’t have access to." She shook her head slowly, frustration creasing her forehead.

"Nothing. No connections, no photos online anywhere, not even a shadow of a digital footprint. It’s like he doesn’t exist at all." She glanced up, meeting Sienna’s eyes.

"Maybe you should try hacking into the FBI database. See if there’s anything on him there."

Sienna’s stomach dropped, her eyes flicking instantly toward Viktor, standing only a few feet away, his expression sharpening with sudden, obvious interest.

"You can hack into the FBI?" Viktor asked, his voice carrying a dangerous new edge of curiosity.

Aria opened her mouth, clearly about to answer honestly, entirely unaware of the trouble that particular truth might stir up.

"No, of course not," Sienna cut in quickly, forcing a light, dismissive laugh into her voice. "Aria just talks too much. You know how she gets."

Aria blinked, confusion flickering across her face for half a second before understanding finally caught up with her.

"Right," Sienna said again, more firmly this time, holding her friend’s gaze with quiet, deliberate meaning. "I don’t know anything about that. Right, Aria?"

"Right," Aria said quickly, nodding along, though the awkward, forced casualness in her voice made it painfully obvious she was improvising on the spot.

"Of course not. It’s not like she is the famous invisible shadow hacker or anything. That would be ridiculous." She laughed, a touch too loud, glancing sideways at Sienna for approval.

Viktor’s eyes narrowed slightly, moving between the two of them, clearly not entirely convinced, though he let the matter drop, at least for the moment, filing it away carefully the way he seemed to file away every small, strange detail about Sienna that didn’t quite add up.

"It’s late," he said finally. "Marcus, have someone take her home."

Marcus stepped forward immediately, gesturing politely toward the door.

"We’ll talk later, girlfriend," Aria said, giving Sienna a quick, tight hug before allowing herself to be led back out toward the driveway, casting one last curious glance over her shoulder as she went.

Once the door closed behind her, Viktor turned back to Sienna, his expression settling into something more serious, more focused.

"What do you need?" he asked. "Who is this man you’re looking for?"

Sienna hesitated only a moment before deciding there was no point delaying this any longer. "Let’s talk in your study," she said, already bending to unbuckle the thin straps of her heels, sighing with relief the moment she slipped them off, her feet aching after hours of standing.

Viktor watched her for a long second, something unreadable passing behind his eyes, before he nodded and turned to lead the way down the hall.