CHAINS OF DECEPTION
911 Words
Smoke still lingered in the air as Marco led me out of the safe room, his hand firmly on my back like I was made of porcelain. But I wasn’t fragile. I was pissed.
The once-imposing Varela estate now looked like a war zone. Shattered glass crunched under our feet. The elegant marble hallway was scorched black. Someone had sent a message—and they made sure it screamed.
“Julian?” My voice cracked as I searched the shadows. “Where is he?”
Marco’s jaw tightened. “Handling it.”
I grabbed his arm. “Handling what? You’re not telling me everything.”
He ran a hand through his hair, eyes darting around like someone was listening. “We think it was Viktor’s crew.”
Viktor, that name again—like a match against gasoline.
Marco lowered his voice. “But that’s all I know for now. You need to focus on staying alive.”
“Alive?” I laughed, bitter and loud. “Marco, this house is a coffin with curtains. And I still don’t even know what war I’m in.”
He hesitated. “That’s… by design.”
I was about to press when footsteps echoed ahead. Julian appeared—clothes ripped, soot smeared across his face like war paint. He looked like hell and still walked like a king.
“You’re supposed to be in the safe room,” he said coldly.
“You were supposed to keep this place from getting blown up,” I snapped. “Are you hurt?”
“It’s nothing. It’s been taken care of.” He brushed past me. “Marco, I want Viktor found. No more games. I want blood.”
Marco looked between us, then nodded and vanished into the smoke.
I folded my arms. “You’re just going to bark orders and leave me in the dark?”
Julian’s eyes narrowed. “Asha, you’re not built for this.”
“No, Julian. I chose this. You dragged me into it. The least you can do is tell me what’s happening.”
He stared at me for a beat, jaw clenched, but walked away. The silence he left behind was heavier than the dust in the air.
Ten Years Ago
At the Moretti, Lorenzo and Varela estate garden party. I was thirteen. Viktor was twelve, always climbing things he wasn’t supposed to. Julian, the scholarship student oversees, was fifteen—suited up even then, standing beside his father like a carbon copy.
I remember Viktor slipping me a small flower crown he’d made from the hedges. “For Her Highness,” he grinned, dirt on his nose.
Julian rolled his eyes. “You’re wasting time with that.”
Viktor didn’t even look at him. “She likes it. That’s all that matters.”
That was the last time I saw them laugh together.
Later that evening, my father pulled me aside.
“One day, this empire will be yours to protect,” he said. “Not just the company, but everything we’ve built. You’ll marry well. Choose wisely.”
I had no idea then that he meant a kingdom of blood.
Present day.
The front doors swung open. The scent hit first—perfume laced with venom. Then came Sophia. Her heels clacked on the marble like a metronome of doom.
“Well,” she said with a razor-sharp smile, “so you’re the new wife.”
“And you must be the ghost Julian forgot to bury,” I replied, before I could stop myself.
Her eyes gleamed with something close to respect. “Not bad. You’ve got claws.”
Julian entered behind her, stiff as stone. “Sophia.”
She purred, “Julian. Long time.”
“Not long enough. Why are you here?”
“To pay my respects.” Her tone was syrupy. “To the fallen estate. And to the woman you’ve chosen to replace me.”
The air cracked between them. I felt like an extra in someone else’s nightmare.
“You’ve overstayed your welcome,” Julian said through clenched teeth.
Sophia didn’t flinch. “I came with a warning. Viktor’s not playing anymore. And you’re too proud to see it.”
Later That Night
I couldn’t sleep. Every creak in the walls sounded like footsteps. I wandered the hallway, trying to piece together truths no one would give me.
That’s when I heard them.
Julian and Sophia. Down the hall. Voices like knives.
“You’re losing control,” Sophia said. “You think you’ve built an empire, but you’re just patching holes. Viktor’s coming. He’s not the boy we knew.”
Julian’s voice dropped into something feral. “He’s nothing. He lost the moment he walked away.”
Sophia laughed, low and lethal. “You still don’t get it, do you? Viktor didn’t walk away. He waited. He’s built something new. And he’s not alone.”
Then came the words that sent a chill through my spine.
“If you don’t let me back into The Order,” she whispered, “you’ll lose everything. Including her.”
Back in My Room
I backed away before they saw me and stumbled into the dark. My room felt colder, smaller.
And then I saw it.
A folded note on the nightstand.
I picked it up with trembling hands.
“Never trust anyone. The Order is watching. –V”
Viktor wasn’t a memory anymore.
He was the storm coming for all of us.
- Writer
