Page 93 of Obsessive Vows

"Then perhaps this will clarify matters." He steps aside, allowing a hulking figure behind him to enter.

Dmitri, his face bloodied but his eyes clear with betrayal. The security detail we trusted with positioned monitoring throughout tonight's operation.

"Tell her what you told me," my father commands, voice hardening.

Dmitri's eyes meet mine, no remorse as he delivers the blow. "Viktor Baranov is the survivor of the family your father eliminated. He infiltrated the Markov organization for vengeance, targeting complete destruction of your father's empire."

The confirmation of what I already know shouldn't impact me, yet hearing it spoken aloud in my father's presence makes my blood run cold. Cover blown. Extraction compromised. Everything has changed.

"And my daughter," my father continues, voice deceptively soft, "has been aiding this operation. Accessing restricted files. Communicating with his network. Betraying her blood for a man who plans her father's destruction."

Training takes over as panic threatens. "These accusations?—"

"Are confirmed by surveillance you believed compromised." My father's smile contains no warmth, only predatory satisfaction. "Did you really think systems I've maintained for decades would fall to amateur interference? That loyalty built through generations would yield to a newcomer?"

Realization spreads like poison – our operation compromised from the beginning. Security protocols we believed secure penetrated by counter-surveillance beyond our assessment. Dmitri's betrayal just the final confirmation of failure already in motion.

"There's more," my father says, watching my expression with the clinical detachment that preceded his worst violence throughout my childhood. "Something you believed hidden beyond my reach. Something worth protecting through elaborate security measures that insult generations of Markov discipline."

My heart stops, terror spreading through me as understanding forms with devastating clarity. Not just operation compromise. Not just Viktor's identity exposed.

Sofia.

"Your Swiss activities proved more productive than mere diplomatic training," my father continues, satisfaction evident as he reads confirmation in my face. "A bastard grandchild. Hidden through elaborate security measures that almost—almost—escaped Markov intelligence networks."

"Father—" The word emerges strangled, maternal protection overriding everything else.

"You will address me as pakhan," he snaps, control slipping momentarily before his mask resettles. "The father you betrayed no longer exists. Only the organization head remains—the one who eliminates threats regardless of blood connection."

Calculation replaces terror as I force myself to focus. Sofia remains secure at Viktor's compound, protected by Anna and Anton beyond my father's immediate reach. Viktor remains unaware of his exposure, believing our operation proceeds as planned. There's still time for countermeasures if I can maintain cover long enough to implement emergency protocols.

"The child will be collected," my father continues, confirming my worst fears with chilling detachment. "Secured within Markov protection while an appropriate response to Baranov's infiltration proceeds with necessary finality."

"Viktor will kill you before you touch her." The words escape before I can stop them. "Everything you've built will burn before you reach her."

His smile freezes my blood, the satisfaction of a predator confident in victory. "Exactly the response anticipated from a man who believes himself architect rather than puppet. His emotional connection to you—to the child—creates vulnerability. The perfect leverage against an experienced operative otherwise difficult to control."

Understanding crystallizes with terrible clarity. Not just my capture, but deliberate bait in a trap designed for Viktor. Using family as weakness rather than strength.

"You're wrong about him," I say, maintaining eye contact despite the danger radiating from my father. "He's not coming for me. Sofia's protection overrides all other protocols. You're targeting the wrong weakness."

"We shall see." My father gestures to his security men, who move with practiced efficiency to secure my arms. I offer carefully calibrated resistance – enough to appear genuine without revealing combat skills beyond expectations. "Bring her to the secure facility. Maintain communication blackout until extraction team confirms Baranov's approach."

As they march me from the study, I glimpse through windows to the reception continuing below—guests oblivious to the drama unfolding, Viktor scanning the crowd with increasing tension as my absence extends beyond planned parameters. Across the room, Nikolai watches with detached assessment, phone pressed to his ear as he delivers information I can't hear but can anticipate.

Viktor. Sofia. The trap closing around everything that matters, leveraging the connection that transformed vengeance into something more powerful yet infinitely more vulnerable.

The black SUV waits beyond the service entrance, engine already running. My mind races through escape scenarios—calculating force required, identifying weaknesses, mapping potential extraction routes.

Then I see him. Anton, positioned exactly as our contingency planning anticipated if primary operation collapsed. His slight head movement confirms emergency protocol already initiated. Sofia remains secure. Viktor has received warning.

Safety for Sofia. The only acceptable outcome regardless of personal cost.

I allow the security team to secure me in the vehicle without resistance that might compromise Anton's position. The SUV moves with professional speed, exiting the Markov compound through a rarely used tertiary gate.

"Your Viktor will come for you," my father says from the front passenger seat, not bothering to turn as he delivers his assessment with cold certainty. "His type always does. Emotional connection overriding discipline. Personal attachment creating vulnerability."

"You're wrong about him," I repeat, the lie necessary despite knowing Viktor will indeed risk everything once he discovers my capture. "Sofia's safety comes first. Always."

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