ECHOES OF BLOOD
(Konstantin's POV)
The first thing people notice about power is how loud it is.
The money.
The respect.
The bodyguards.
The expensive offices.
The private meetings.
The influence.
What they never notice is the silence.
The silence that comes when you're alone.
The silence that comes when everyone leaves.
The silence that forces a man to sit with his own thoughts.
And tonight—
that silence was unbearable.
I stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Johannesburg.
The city glittered beneath me.
Beautiful.
Alive.
Mine.
Or at least that was what I used to believe.
A glass of whiskey rested in my hand.
Untouched.
The amber liquid reflected the lights of the city.
Usually it helped me think.
Tonight it did nothing.
Because for the first
