86● DMITRI KIREEV (POV)

86● DMITRI KIREEV (POV)

DMITRI KIREEV

After getting what I wanted, it’s time to go back to the mansion—back to Harper. I didn’t even get the pleasure of finishing what we started. I’ve been gone too long. Long enough for someone to think they could make a move without paying the price. But this whole damn thing is far from over. I’m going to take them out one by one until I get to the bastard who thought he could mess with her from the very beginning. This time, no one gets out unscathed.

I tighten my grip on the steering wheel, remembering the words of the scumbag I executed.

“Sergei Volkov…” I mutter under my breath, too pissed off.

Snow falls relentlessly as I drive through the gate. Thick, silent, covering everything. The car slides forward slowly until it comes to a stop at the mansion steps.

I turn off the engine and get out, dead set on finding her.

I step inside the house and feel it immediately. The silence isn’t normal. I toss my coat aside, move forward, and find Alexander standing by the window, hands in his pockets, staring out at the snow like he’s deep in thought.

“Did you find what you were looking for, brother?” Alexander’s voice is low. He doesn’t even turn to face me.

“Sergei Volkov—does that name mean anything to you?”

Alexander doesn’t answer right away. He just tilts his head slightly, like the information doesn’t surprise him. When he finally turns around, the bandage on his shoulder looks stark white against the rest of him.

“It does,” he says. Just one word. Enough.

I take two steps toward him, my jaw tight.

“He shut down the tunnel route. Never showed up because he never needed to. He gave the orders, watched from afar, cleaned up after.”

Alexander lets out a short breath through his nose. He pulls one hand from his pocket and brings it to his chin.

“Makes sense.”

“It shouldn’t,” I shoot back. “He was too comfortable to slip. He’s supposed to be one of us. Since when do we allow retaliation from someone claiming to be an ally?”

Alexander goes quiet longer than usual. His thumb brushes along his jaw—slow, familiar. A gesture that means he’s not thinking about now, but already working on a plan.

“Since someone who’s gotten too comfortable starts thinking they get to pick sides—and the worst of all is when they choose the side opposite ours.”

He lifts his gaze to me, that flicker of anger burning in his eyes.

Alexander can be cold—can be controlling—, but when his darkest side begins to wake, everything has the potential to turn to ashes.

“He messed with the tunnel route—he knew exactly where we’d pass through,” I went on, my voice low, forcibly controlled. “He crossed into our territory. And he almost touched her.”

That makes Alexander fully turn. His gaze shifts—just a degree. Not much. Just enough.

“Almost,” he repeats. “But he didn’t.”

“Because he failed,” I reply. “Not because he didn’t try.”

He nods once. “And he didn’t try alone.”

“No,” I agree. “Volkov doesn’t get his hands dirty. He opens doors.”

Alexander lets out another short breath—heavier this time.

“Then the question isn’t why he did it,” he says. “It’s who actually ordered him to. Volkov sells out easily—throw a suitcase full of cash in front of him, and you can bet he won’t think twice.”

I take a step closer, closing the space between us.

“You had allies in that meeting.”

“I did,” he confirms. “And now I have fewer—and I don’t trust any of them.”

The silence stretches again. That’s when I notice—again—how empty the house feels. Harper would already be here if she’d noticed I was back.

“Where is she?” I ask, looking around.

Alexander doesn’t answer right away. His gaze drifts to the window.

“She’s not here,” he says.

My chest tightens. “Why not?”

“Because I received Alexei,” he replies simply. “And I didn’t like the timing.”

I clench my fists. “You sent her away.”

“I told Viktor to get her out of the building,” he corrects. “And I don’t know where they are—they were supposed to be here.”

I drag a hand down my face, the other landing on my waist, restless.

“Why the hell didn’t anyone tell me about the attack?”

Alexander holds my gaze, unflinching—his expression locked in that way he uses when he knows the answer won’t sit well.

“Because you were on a mission?” he says, raising a brow, still staring at me with that cold, calculated look that pisses me off to no end.

I let out a short, dry laugh—humorless—and turn away, taking two steps before stopping again, my whole body too tense to stay still.

“So let me get this straight,” I say, my voice rising. “While I’m out hunting the bastard pulling all the strings, you decide to keep me in the dark about her. No updates. No context. No idea what the fuck is actually going on.”

I turn back to him, jaw locked. “Do you have any idea what that means to me?”

“I did what needed to be done,” Alexander replies, in the same calm, controlled tone as always.

“No,” I cut in immediately. “You did what was fastest.” I run a hand over my face, feeling the heat rise in my blood. “You know I’d find a way. I always have.”

“And that’s exactly why I didn’t call you,” he shoots back. “You would’ve vanished with her and left the problem unresolved.”

My chest heaves, breath coming too shallow—like my body already decided to fight before I did.

“Who the hell disappeared with her, huh?” I snap, my voice echoing through the room. “The most impulsive one of us—our own damn brother.”

I take a step forward—then another—unable to stay still.

“You know this, Alexander. You know Viktor acts first and thinks later when it comes to her.”

I run a hand through my hair, pulling hard.

“It’s been like that since we were kids. Since before she was taken. He’s always felt the need to protect, to decide, to choose for her.”

“He’s not irresponsible,” Alexander cuts in.

“I never said he was,” I growl. “I said he’s impulsive. And that changes everything when someone’s hunting Harper.”

I slam an open hand on the table beside me, the sharp sound breaking the silence of the house.

“Do you have any idea what you did to me?” I go on, the anger now overflowing without brakes.

“You kept me out. Left me in the dark. Had me chasing ghosts while she vanished off the map with someone who feels more than he should.”

Alexander holds his ground, but his eyes sharpen.

“He would never touch her. Or put her in danger. He wants to find out who’s behind this as much as we do. That’s why he came to Moscow—because we need Viktor’s impulsiveness and his tech skills.”

“I know,” I shoot back. “I never said otherwise.”

I swallow hard, my jaw grinding.

“But wanting isn’t the same as crossing lines. And you know that.”

Alexander crosses his arms, stepping in closer.

“You know what I think?” he says, voice low—too controlled to cause anything less than damage.

“I think you’re scared that the same thing that happened to you happened to them. That Harper let her guard down with Viktor the second she got here. And, brother…”

He tilts his head slightly.

“I can guarantee you—there is something there.”

The words hit me like a poorly aimed punch—not hard enough to knock me down, but landing exactly where they shouldn’t.

“You’re full of shit,” I shoot back instantly, but my voice is already losing its edge.

“I’m not,” he says. “I’m talking about what I saw. What’s always been there.”

I take a step back, letting out a humorless laugh.

“She’s mine.”

“She’s no one’s,” Alexander says, cold. “And that’s what terrifies you.”

I open my mouth to respond—but the sound cuts through the room before I can.

An engine in the driveway. Tires on gravel. A headlight slices through the snow outside the window.

We both turn at the same time.