Page 63 of Ruinous Need

He didn’t even say goodbye to me.

That’s the thought that keeps me awake, staring at the scenery as Daria drives us up into the mountains and the landscape turns from my home to somewhere unfamiliar.

Daria stops for a break at one point, and she seems distracted, tapping away at her phone.

It’s unlike Daria. Normally when Viktor’s away, she’s one of the people that I can talk to about anything.

It feels like she’s checked out. She even lets me take Chekhov out so I can give him water, and I visit the gas station bathroom by myself. This would’ve been unheard of last week.

I guess everyone’s in such a panic that things are slipping through the cracks. It does make me a little apprehensive about being apart from Viktor.

When I get back, Chekhov and I wait patiently in the passenger seat. He puts his nose on my lap, and I pet his soft black fur.

“Where’s your daddy, Chekhov? Why didn’t he even say goodbye to us?”

I can’t keep my voice from cracking.

I still don’t get why he couldn’t come with us.

I didn’t think it would be beautiful.

The safe house is not what I expected.

It’s up in the Adirondack Mountains, so far north it’s practically in Canada.

It takes hours to drive there along winding mountain roads. Supposedly, it’s where Viktor’s family used to spend their summers when he was a kid.

I wander the hallways of the big lodge right next to a frozen lake. It’s surrounded by pine forest. And it seems peaceful, like there’s no one around for miles.

The house next door is abandoned and overgrown.

Daria sweeps the property for security threats and reports that there’s nothing.

I don’t know why I feel so nervous. I guess it’s because I’m apart from Viktor. We’ve been living together for almost two months now.

It’s strange how quickly you get used to having someone else in your face. Until they don’t feel like an annoyance any more but just a part of your life.

I persuade Daria to let me go for a walk around the property. To my surprise, she doesn’t object. Chekhov needs the exercise.

Compared to the city, where I was confined to the apartment, it feels incredible to get fresh air. Even if the snow is deep, the walk is hard, and I’m freezing half the time.

Hopefully, when Viktor gets here, we can go skiing. I’ve never been before, but I’m sure he could teach me.

CHAPTER 25

VIKTOR

I’M DOING THE thing I said I never would do.

I’m sorry, Lev. I’m sorry, Mama.

I straighten my tie and turn to my packed apartment. The Bryusovs. The Dementyovs. The Petrovs.

The half of the Council who have agreed to hear me out, those most discontented with Semyon’s pointless and costly disruption of business so he can play his game with their lives.

“We all know this pointless war has to stop. Semyon is wasting money, resources and people’s lives by starting disputes that have no justification. This game, with the girl, is just another example of his bad habit of throwing gasoline on a small fire. I’m not asking for your undying loyalty, but I am asking for your support in overthrowing him.”

The Council members eye me with suspicion. Fair enough.