HIS For The Taking

chapter 4

A figure passed, tall, broad-shouldered, moving with purpose. A staff member, or a guard? She couldn’t tell. They stopped at a cabinet, rifled through papers, then left without noticing her. But the image of the papers stayed etched in her mind. Maps. Schedules. Lists of names. Someone was tracking everything.

Back in her room, she paced, piecing fragments together. Dimitri’s warning, the East Wing, Ivan Viktor, the hidden surveillance files… She was tangled in something bigger than she could comprehend.

Her gaze fell on the drawer where she had first discovered the folder. For a split second, she imagined opening it again. Seeing the photos, the names, the connections. Her pulse spiked, but restraint won. One misstep and Dimitri would know.

Instead, she sat, knees to her chest, mind racing. She had to be smart. Watch. Wait. Learn. Survive.

A soft chime from the door startled her—her breakfast tray had been replaced. On it, a single envelope. No markings, no name. Just her initials, elegantly scripted: L.C.

Hands trembling, she opened it. Inside: a single photograph. Ivan Viktor. Standing in a crowded city square, unnoticed by anyone around him. Written on the back, in fine print: Do not trust what you see.

A shiver ran down her spine. Dimitri had hidden truths before, but this… this was personal.

The mansion, the rules, the warnings they were all shields. And behind those shields, someone or something was waiting.

Liana swallowed, determination hardening. She wouldn’t be a pawn. Not here. Not anywhere. Not when secrets like this could change everything.

Her fingers curled around the photograph. She didn’t understand it all, but she knew one thing: she was already in the middle of a war she hadn’t chosen and she would need every ounce of cunning, courage, and fire to survive it.

The soft hum of the mansion felt different this morning less like silence, more like anticipation. Liana lay on her bed, fingers curling around the photograph of Ivan Viktor. The note on the back seemed to burn into her skin: Do not trust what you see.

A shadow fell across the room before she could hide it. Dimitri stood in the doorway, arms crossed, dark eyes unreadable. “Awake?” His voice was calm, but every word carried an edge that made her pulse spike.

“I—” Liana stammered, trying and failing to slip the photo beneath her pillow.

He stepped inside, and the air between them seemed to crackle. “Do you understand why I warned you?” he asked, gesturing at the photos. “Some truths aren’t meant for you to know.”

Her chest tightened. “Then why… why show me this?”

“Because,” he said slowly, “one day, you will need to understand. And I will expect you to survive it. You are not a guest in my world, Liana. You are a player.”

She swallowed hard, eyes locked on the wall of secrets. The danger, the power, the enigma of Dimitri it was intoxicating. And terrifying.

Her fingers clenched at her sides. She would not be just a pawn. Not if she could help it.

“You tested my boundaries.” He continued, a small, knowing smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “And I allowed it. For now.”

Liana swallowed, heat rising to her cheeks. “Allowed it… or expected it?”

Dimitri’s gaze sharpened, and for a moment, the room seemed to shrink around them. “Both.”

He leaned closer, and she could feel the faint, dangerous warmth emanating from him.

“Today,” he continued, stepping back just enough to reclaim the space, “I have a task for you.

“What kind of task?” she asked, voice steadier than she felt.

He tilted his head, studying her like a predator assessing its prey.

“Nothing you cannot handle. Tonight you'll attend an event with me. “You’ll be there to watch, to listen, to understand how this world moves.

Trust your instincts… I want to see them sharpened. That’s your task.”

She nodded, keeping her voice even. “I understand.”

Dimitri’s smirk returned, faint but unreadable. “Good.”

He left without another word, leaving the room colder, heavier, yet strangely electric. Liana sat up, the photo of Ivan Viktor still clutched in her hands. Whatever game she was stepping into, she now knew there was no turning back.

The knock on the door came just as Liana was pacing the length of the room, her restless energy ricocheting off the polished walls. She turned, half-expecting Dimitri, but instead it was one of the house staff. They didn’t linger, only bowing slightly before depositing a long garment bag on the bed and slipping out without a word.

Curiosity tugged at her. She unzipped the bag, and the sight made her breath catch.

The dress was unlike anything she’d ever owned silk in a shade of midnight blue that shimmered almost black under the light. It clung in the right places but flowed at the hem, the kind of fabric that seemed to obey its wearer’s every movement. The neckline was daring, dipping just enough to draw the eye, balanced by delicate sleeves that dusted her shoulders. Tiny crystal embellishments lined the waist, catching the glow like stars scattered against the night sky.

Liana brushed her fingers over the fabric, unsure if she should be flattered or unsettled. A dress like this wasn’t chosen randomly. It was deliberate,meant to make a statement.

By the time she’d changed, the transformation startled even her. She hardly recognized the woman in the mirror poised, elegant, every inch the partner of a man like Dimitri Volkov. And that unsettled her more than the dress itself.

A soft knock again. This time, it was him. He didn’t say a word at first, his gaze sweeping over her with that quiet, unreadable intensity. A muscle ticked in his jaw before he finally spoke.

“Perfect,” Dimitri said simply, offering his arm.

They descended the grand staircase together, their steps echoing in tandem. Outside, the mansion’s courtyard was alive with activity sleek black cars waiting, drivers stationed, guards moving with sharp precision. One of the cars had been set aside for them, doors opened before they even approached.

As they slid inside, Liana caught sight of another line of vehicles pulling away, each one carrying men dressed sharply, shadows of power in tailored suits. It wasn’t just a dinner. It was a show of force, of reach, of influence that spread far beyond the confines of his estate.

The city lights blurred past as they drove, Dimitri silent beside her, his presence steady yet unreadable. For once, Liana didn’t try to fill the silence. Her thoughts were too loud, pulsing with the question she didn’t dare voice yet what kind of dinner required an escort like this?

And more importantly, what role was she about to play in it?

The car eased to a stop in front of a grand estate blazing with lights, and Liana had to remind herself to breathe. Through the tinted glass, she saw sleek vehicles lined up like jewels in a crown, valets moving briskly, and guests in glittering gowns and tuxedos gliding up the marble steps.

Her palms smoothed the midnight-blue silk of her dress.

“Stay close,” Dimitri murmured as he stepped out first, his presence commanding even before he extended a hand to her. Cameras flashed from discreet corners; whispers sparked as they ascended the stairs together. To them, she must have looked like his polished companion. To her, it felt like stepping into a lion’s den.

The dining hall was a theatre of power. Crystal chandeliers spilled golden light over round tables dressed in ivory linen. Politicians, CEOs, and figures she half-recognized from news articles clustered in groups, laughter chiming like coins dropped into a fountain. Waiters glided past with trays of champagne, their expressions carefully blank.

Liana’s task was simple: observe. But as soon as she entered, she felt the weight of eyes skimming over her, assessing. Every smile held a question, every handshake between Dimitri and another man seemed loaded with history.

She kept her posture composed, though inside she catalogued,not things, but people.

Liana sipped her champagne, letting her lashes lower as though she were bored, while her mind worked furiously. The sheer scope of his influence wasn’t shocking she had already known he was powerful. What unsettled her was the precision. Everyone here bent toward him in ways so minute they could almost be missed. It was like watching gravity itself at work.

At one point, a man leaned a little too close, his smile oily as he asked, “And you are…?”

Before Liana could answer, Dimitri’s arm slid around her waist. “She’s with me,” he said smoothly. The man chuckled, but Liana felt the steel under Dimitri’s words. It wasn’t an introduction. It was a warning.

Through it all, she observed quietly, piecing together alliances, grudges, and unspoken deals. This wasn’t just dinner. It was a chessboard and Dimitri, she realized, wasn’t playing the game. He was the game.

And she? She was both his shadow and his witness, wondering what it meant to be tethered to someone whose influence reached into every corner of the room.