Page 100 of Royal Bargain
“If he’s behind this,” I say slowly, “then none of this was an accident.”
Sasha nods once.
“He framed me,” I whisper, the words tasting like blood. “He made it look like I betrayed the bratva. That I ran because I had something to hide.”
She doesn’t deny it.
And the silence between us says more than words ever could.
“Papa would never let him get away with this,” I insist, bunching my hands into fists. “He’s?—”
“You don’t get it, Ana.” Sasha cuts in, her voice low but fierce. “He’s the one who convinced Papa that your betrayal was real. He’s the one who’s been pushing for retribution from the start. He thinks you’ve turned your back on the family to destroy us from the inside out.”
My stomach twists. “But I haven’t. I just— I left. I took my daughter and?—”
“To him, that’s worse,” Sasha says. “You didn’t just leave, Ana. You ran to the enemy. You took Volkov blood and handed it over to the Irish like some kind of peace offering. He doesn’t see it as you protecting yourself. He sees it as treason.”
I stagger back a step, bile rising in my throat. “And Papa? He believes him?”
Sasha’s eyes flick away.
“That’s the problem,” Sasha says quietly. “Dariy’s made himself indispensable. Papa doesn’t see the truth anymore—not with the way Dariy feeds it to him.”
I stare at her, my breath caught in my lungs like it’s been frozen there.
My heart races but not from fear—from fury. White-hot and blinding. I’m tired of drowning in everyone else’s version of the truth. It’s like I’ve been clawing my way out of a coffin someone else nailed shut.
No one ever asked why I left. They just decided I was the problem. That I was ungrateful, impulsive, dangerous.
That I was a traitor.
“I never betrayed him,” I whisper, but it sounds like I’m trying to convince myself now. “Sasha, I swear to you—I didn’t. I just… I wanted out. I couldn’t breathe under him anymore. I couldn’t be who he wanted me to be.” My voice cracks. “But I never wanted to destroy our family. I never wanted to destroy our legacy.”
Sasha doesn’t say anything, but I can feel her watching me. Weighing me.
And suddenly, that silence feels like a knife.
Do you believe me? I want to scream. Do you? Or are you just here out of guilt?
Because even now, I don’t know if I can trust her. Not really.
No one’s been on my side—not since the moment I walked away. Not even Aleksey. Not even Papa. And maybe not Sasha, either.
Everyone talks about the family, like it’s some sacred bond, but what kind of family throws you to the wolves because you wanted a life that was your own?
My fists clench.
They never believed I could want something different without turning against them. That I could want freedom without vengeance. That I could love them and still need to leave.
But none of them ever loved me enough to believe that.
Not even him.
And that truth—more than anything else—burns.
She steps closer, the tension in her shoulders easing just enough for me to see my sister in her again—not the Volkov soldier, not the distant heir, but Sasha.
“I believe you,” Sasha says softly.
