Chapter 75 Anya
The car ride took forever.
Or maybe it just felt that way because I was terrified.
What had I done? What was I thinking?
But it was too late. The car was already pulling up to Ivanov's estate.
The gates opened.
The mansion was massive. Bigger than Nikolai's.
The car stopped. The door opened.
"Miss Koslov. Welcome." A guard extended his hand.
I ignored it and got out on my own.
Another guard took my bag. "This way, please."
I followed him inside, through hallways lined with expensive art. Past rooms filled with furniture that cost more than most people made in a year.
Finally, we stopped at a door.
"Mr. Ivanov is waiting for you inside."
I took a breath and opened the door.
Ivanov sat behind a large desk. He looked up and smiled.
"Anya. You came. I am delighted."
"Where is my brother? You said I could see him."
"Of course. After we finalize the paperwork." He gestured to a chair. "Please. Sit."
I sat. My hands were shaking. I hid them in my lap.
Ivanov pulled out a contract and slid it across the desk.
"One year of service in exchange for one hour with your brother. Sign here."
I picked up the pen. My hand hovered over the paper.
This was it. Once I signed, there was no going back.
But Dmitri was worth it. He had to be.
I signed.
Ivanov took the contract and smiled wider. "Excellent. Welcome to my home, Anya."
"Now can I see Dmitri?"
"In a moment. First, I have something to show you."
Dread filled my stomach. "What?"
He opened a drawer, took out a file and slid it toward me.
"Your brother is dead. He was killed. Not by me."
I stared at the file. My vision blurred.
"Who?" My voice cracked.
"The evidence points to one man. Nikolai Markov."
"No. That is not possible."
"Look at the photographs. The forensics report. The timeline. It is all there."
My hands trembled as I opened the file. There were pictures of Dmitri's body. And there was a knife wound to the chest. The murder weapon, recovered from a river. It was a distinctive blade I had seen before. Nikolai's blade.
A receipt for a large cash transfer from an offshore account traced back to Nikolai's holdings, dated the day after Dmitri was taken. A witness statement from Ivanov’s factory worker who saw a man matching Nikolai's description leaving the scene.
The evidence was cold, methodical and damning.
"This is a lie. You fabricated this."
"Did I? Why would I kill the one thing that gave me leverage over you? It makes no sense. But for Nikolai... it makes perfect sense. Dmitri was a liability. A loose end. One he could not afford."
My breath came in short gasps. The room felt too small. "He promised me. He promised to bring him home."
"He promised to end your suffering. This was his way."
I shook my head, but the images were burned into my mind. The proof was there, in stark black and white.
Nikolai had lied. He had taken everything from me.
"He told me he loved me."
"And he does. In his own way. But love is weak. Power is not." Ivanov leaned forward. "He killed your brother to free himself of the burden. To own you completely."
I felt the last piece of my heart shatter. I had nothing left to doubt.
The man I loved was a monster. The proof was in my hands.
"Now," Ivanov said. "You belong to me. For one year. And there is nothing he can do about it. He is already here, in this building, signing over his empire to me. As a hollow gesture of guilt."
The door burst open. Guards rushed in, dragging Nikolai. His face was bruised, his hands bound. He saw me, his eyes wide with a desperate hope.
"Anya! Do not believe him! It is a trick!"
I stood up, clutching the file to my chest. "Is it? You told me you would save him."
"I tried! I was too late! Ivanov killed him!"
"Ivanov had no reason to kill him! You did! He was a problem for you! A reminder of your failure!" Tears streamed down my face.
I would never forgive him.
Nikolai's expression collapsed. "You think I could do that? You think I am capable of that?"
"The evidence does not lie." My voice was flat. "You lied. You killed him."
He stopped struggling. The fight left him. "Then there is nothing I can say."
I turned to Ivanov. "What happens now?"
"Now, we follow protocol. He will be detained. The council of families will be summoned to judge him for this crime. His empire is already forfeit to me by his own signature. You will stay here, under my protection, until the judgment is passed."
I looked at Nikolai one last time. The man I thought I knew was gone. In his place was a stranger covered in blood and lies.
"Do whatever you want with him," I said. "I do not care anymore."
The guards pulled Nikolai away. He did not look back.
Ivanov approached me. "You made the right choice. The only choice."
"I made no choice. You took them all from me."
"Survive the year. That is your choice now." He snapped his fingers. "Take her to her room."
The guards led me not to the basement, but to a guarded bedroom on the second floor. The door locked from the outside.
I sat on the bed, the file still in my hands. I read every page again. Each detail was precise, and undeniable.
Nikolai had killed Dmitri.
I laid on the bed and cried my eyes out. I had failed my parents by falling in love with a monster. And my innocent brother had paid with his life.
I could not even bring myself to go see his body.
My brother was gone.
And I would never forgive myself for it.
Time passed. I couldn't stop crying.
Then, I heard shouting from downstairs.
My door was unlocked. The guard who had brought me up here, stood there. His face was cold.
"Come with me. Now."
"What is happening?" My heart raced.
"The council heads have arrived early. Ivanov is presenting the evidence. Nikolai will be judged tonight.