Page 57 of Twisted Empire: King's Gambit

“I turned on my phone,” I start, pausing as I gauge his reaction. “I got a message from Damien.”

“And?” Mikhail prompts, his eyes narrowing slightly.

“He said he misses me, and that he’ll ‘save’ me. It doesn’t make sense, Mikhail. What did you tell my friends in Seattle?”

Mikhail leans back in his chair, his fingers steepled before him as though weighing his words.

“Your friends Emma and Lucy were told that your family needed you home and that you’ve found a bigger opportunity elsewhere. Considering they don’t know you well enough to dispute it, they didn’t question it much.”

My eyes narrow, trying to process his words. “You made it sound like I left for greener pastures? That’s a lie, Mikhail. What if they try to find me despite that?”

Mikhail shakes his head. “They won’t. My men have eyes on the situation. Anyone tries to dig too deep, they’ll hit dead ends or find themselves distracted by other ‘urgent’ matters. Trust me, I’ve got this covered.”

It should scare me, how easily he can manipulate circumstances, even from miles away. But oddly enough, it doesn’t. Not now, at least.

“And what about Damien’s message? This promise to ‘save’ me?”

“Ah, your former lover,” Mikhail smirks, almost amused. “He’s been elusive, couldn’t get a direct word to him. But I’ve had people keeping an ear to the ground. If he even breathes in your direction, I’ll know.”

“As for being ‘saved,’ let’s not kid ourselves. You’ve been through hell and back, and you’ve saved yourself. No one else did that for you,” he says, eyes blazing. “If he thinks he’s the knight in shining armor in this story, he’s fucking delusional.”

A feeling I can’t quite name settles within me. It’s neither relief nor panic—just a sense of acknowledgement that Mikhail has a reach that’s both protective and concerning.

“You’re not jealous?” I ask, an eyebrow raised.

He chuckles, standing up to approach me. “Jealous? Of a past that clearly didn’t have what it takes to be your future? No,Malyshka. If anything, I find it amusing that he thinks he can ‘save’ you. Little does he know, you’re not the damsel in distress he likely imagines you to be.”

I look up into Mikhail’s eyes, those piercing pools that always seem to read my soul, and feel my heart swell. “You give me more credit than I sometimes give myself,” I whisper.

“Then it’s time you start seeing yourself the way I see you—strong, resilient, and let’s not forget, mine,” he replies, his voice lowering on the last word as he wraps his arms around me, pulling me closer.

The bluntness in his words should irk me, yet it doesn’t. Instead, it confirms something I’d been struggling with.

“You’re right. Reading that text from Damien... it didn’t stir anything in me. No love, no longing. Nothing. I find that odd.”

He smirks. “Maybe it’s not so odd. Maybe it’s just your heart telling you where you belong now.”

My eyes meet his, and in that moment, I know he’s right. Whatever life I had in Seattle, it doesn’t hold a candle to what I’ve found here, with Mikhail. I consider this.

“So Damien thinks I need saving. From you?”

“Seems like it,” he says, the corner of his mouth pulling into a sardonic smile. “The bigger question is, do you feel like you need to be saved?”

Looking into his eyes, thinking about the emotional and physical journey we’ve been on, the ups and downs, the dangers and the intimacy, I finally shake my head.

“No,” I say, my voice unwavering. “For the first time in a long while, I feel like I’m exactly where I need to be.”

Being saved means different things to different people. For some, it’s an escape. For others, like me, it’s finding a home in the heart of the person you least expected to love.

Love?

“Good girl,” he says, kissing me on the forehead, then he gestures toward his desk, cluttered with responsibilities that await him. “I have to get back to this, but later tonight, we’ll talk more. Just finishing up before tonight and … well, you know.”

“I know,” I agree, already anticipating our conversation, the new depth our relationship will take on after tonight’s ascension. “I’ll see you tonight.”

As I leave his office, my phone lays forgotten on the bed upstairs. And for the first time, I realize I don’t care about the absence of messages. My life is here now, unfolding in ways I’d never expected but have come to cherish deeply.

MIKHAIL

---