Lena's POV
I didn't move for a full minute after Victor walked away.
I stood at the edge of the room with the untouched champagne growing warm in my hand and Victor's words replaying in my head like furniture being moved in a dark room. Every time I thought I had them in an order that made sense, something shifted.
Ask him what he was actually looking for.
The thing about Victor — the thing that made him more unsettling than straightforward danger — was that he hadn't threatened me. Hadn't intimidated or cornered or demanded. He had simply handed me a question and walked away, knowing it would do more damage than any threat could.
Smart. Calculated.
I hated that I could see exactly how it worked and still felt it working.
I put the champagne down on a passing tray and straightened b
