Page 61 of Wicked Arrangement

“Yes,” I reply cautiously, not wanting to lie but not wanting to over-divulge.

She nods slightly, as though happy that I’ve not lied, I’m glad I chose not to. Her sobs subside as she builds up the courage to ask me her next question.

“You’ve killed?” she asks, setting her jaw in determination as though bracing herself to hear my response.

I pause for a moment, unsure how to respond.

“If you lie to me, I will know and I will walk out this door and you will never see me again, Yaroslav. I promise that. I can handle and accept a lot of things, but I need you to always be honest with me.”

I can tell she’s not messing around. So, despite every ounce of my upbringing screaming against it, knowing that the one thing I shouldn’t do is admit who I am, I tell the truth. Right now, I’m more afraid she’ll leave because I lied, not because of the truth.

“Yes.”

She doesn’t seem surprised, and I know that somehow, she’s figured it out. “Today,” she says, and I realize what she’sasking, she’s asking if I’ve killed anyone today. Which can only mean one thing, she saw me. I should never have let her sleep in my room where she could find the passageway. No wonder she ran off.

And yet she came back.

Perhaps there’s hope after all.

“Yes. I killed a man today,” I admit, not mincing my words.

She flinches slightly but doesn’t waver, my strong, bravekoketka.“Why?”

“Because he betrayed me, and insulted you,” I say unapologetically. Now she knows the truth, I won’t pretend to be someone I’m not.

Her eyes widen in surprise as she takes in what I said. “And those offenses are punishable by death in your eyes?”

“In my world, there is no room for weakness. Where did you go?” I ask, wanting some answers to questions myself.

She eyes me suspiciously and raises an eyebrow, “You don’t know that already? A man with your resources.”

“I know you went to see your gran, Abigail, and to the pharmacy. But you’ve been gone four hours since then.”

“I bumped into Marta, we went for coffee,” she says simply, as though she’s not dropping a bombshell.

“Marta, as in my sister Marta?” I ask, surprised. It’s hard to catch me off guard but Kim’s managed it.

She nods and I realize that perhaps she didn’t see me after all. That my sister must have betrayed me and told my secrets to Kim. My eyes darken as I try to suppress my rage. Even estranged from me, my sister is meddling in my life. What’s her angle, what does she want from me?

Could she be trying to take my place as head of the Volkov Bratva? She’s the first child, the eldest, after all. Perhaps she’s decided that being a woman shouldn’t exclude her from the family’s wealth and power.

“So, what did she tell all my secrets in exchange for?” I ask coldly, my body tense as I think through the possibilities and what this could mean.

Kim shakes her head sadly at me, “Marta didn’t tell me anything, she wouldn’t betray you like that. I didn’t need her to tell me anything, I’d already seen enough.”

So, she did see me then. If I could kill that prick Ivan again I would. He’s not even been dead twenty-four hours and already he’s come back to haunt me.

“Then, what did she want?” I ask, confused.

“She wants to be a part of her brothers’ lives. She misses you both. She regrets how things turned out between you and wants to try to mend things,” she explains, her eyes imploring.

“Is that why you came back, to pass on this message?” I ask, fearing her reply.

Perhaps she’s come back just to tell me this and leave again. The thought is almost too much to bear. But despite how brave she’s being, I don’t see how Kim could want to be with me, now she knows the truth.

She shakes her head, and I think my heart might break. “No. I came back because Marta convinced me to. She told me to trust my heart and to believe that, despite what I’ve seen, you are the person I know you to be. That you would never hurt me and that you are a good man.”

Perhaps I’ve been wrong about Marta all these years. The thought is an unsettling but not unwelcome one. My heart soars as I realize what Kim’s telling me. “So, you’re not leaving?”

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