Page 106 of Unhinged

"I tricked you," the man says, voice shaking, equal parts angry and repentant. "I made you believe you were trapped in this, but the entire time, I knew it was a different woman. I knew they were identical. I knew you’d fall for it, that I could trick you into it."

"You conspired to make us enemies of the Romanovs."

They go on and on, discussing details I don’t fully understand. But every word that comes out of the man’s mouth convicts him further.

I know they’re going to kill him. I’m watching brutal history unfold while keeping an eye on the door because if he sees me watching this…

They fire off question after question, one after the other, until finally, Matvei steps forward.

"Recite theVorovskoy Mir."

The prisoner’s face crumples.

"Matvei, please. You’re my brother. We grew up together. You can’t do this."

"Recite it."

Matvei doesn’t shout.

He doesn’t have to.

He strikes the man with something I can’t see, and the scream that follows makes me flinch.

Matvei’s voice is merciless. "You know the penalty for betrayal. But I want you to know exactly what you did that brought us here."

The door handle turns.

My breath catches.

I rush to click the X button, my hands shaking, and quickly move to the other browser window.

Matvei steps inside, looking down at his phone as he does.

"Making any progress?"

My heart aches.

He’s a monster.

But he’s my monster.

Maybe this is why he loves Edgar Allan Poe—the macabre, the dance with death, the horrible longing for peace that never comes.

Desperation.

Because sometimes, staring into darkness with your own two eyes makes the one you dwell in that much easier to handle.

I manage to speak. "Yeah, I’m making progress. I’ll have it done by the end of the day."

"All right," he says. "Take a break."

He winks at me, and my heart turns over in my chest.

"I don’t want Rafail to think you’ll do exactly what he says the moment he asks."

A smirk.

"I’m the only one who gets that privilege."

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