THE CALL
1278 Words
Viktor picked up the phone steadily, trying his best to control the chaos in his mind. His voice was smooth, low and careful.
"This is Viktor Travious."
Silence followed then a breath.
"...Hi."
The sound of her voice came out quiet and uncertain. The fragility of her human voice hit him harder than he expected. It wasn't just the bond tugging at his heart this time, it was her. The softness and calm it gave his mind in place of the chaos and hardness he always knew. The only real thing in a world which he had become distant. The only reason, one thousand years felt fulfilling.
“Kaira,” he said her name, it rolled off his tongue like he had been saying it in his heart before she even called.
“You called,” he added, his voice almost a whisper, making Leonard turn towards him with a mischievous expression.
“I didn’t mean to bother you,” Kaira blurted out, her words breaking. “I shouldn’t have called... this was probably a mistake.”
“It wasn’t,” he said calmly. “You don’t call someone twice by mistake.”
Kaira’s heart skipped a beat. She wasn’t sure what she expected, he was the Domineering Viktor Travious after all. Maybe some arrogance or Coldness won't be misunderstood. But not this. Not the quiet man whose voice felt like velvet in her ears. It reminded her of that night, the way he looked at her.
"I have questions, a lot of it.” Kaira's voice came out soft, too soft
He leaned against the desk, with his voice falling deeper into gentleness. “What questions?”
“I don’t even know in particular what I want to ask,” she admitted. “But everything’s been weird. I feel like I’m losing my mind. I don’t sleep properly. I have these... dreams. I can't get my mind off that day at the hotel. Why did you kill that man? I feel like I'm losing my mind."
Viktor closed his eyes for a moment. He was making sure the words he uses don't anger or scare her. She was already tormented because of him. And she didn’t even understand any of it yet.
“You’re not losing your mind,” he said. “There's just so much you don't know about yet.”
“Know about what?” she echoed.
"The truth,” he murmured. “About us.”
“That's more confusing,” she said, her voice tight.
“I will explain, but you need to give me the chance.”
She went quiet again. Then: “Who are you, Viktor?”
He hesitated. The real answer wasn't something that should be done through a phone call. There's a lot of explanation he needs to do, but she needs to be willing.
“I’m someone who’s been waiting to meet you. Longer than you can imagine.”
Kaira’s breath caught. She didn’t speak right away.
Then, in a voice that was a mix of curiosity and stubborn denial: “I don’t believe in fate.”
“You don’t have to,” Viktor replied, a faint smile tugging at his lips. “But it believes in you.”
Another pause. Then she whispered, “Why do I feel like a tug at my heart since that day? Like… why do I feel scared and drawn at the same time?”
The words hit him harder than any blade would have. Because even with centuries of control, restraint and power, nothing had ever undone him the way her voice did just then.
“Because you’re mine,” he said softly.
Kaira froze.
“I... what?” she breathed.
“Nothing you’re feeling is random. It’s not delusion neither is it madness.” His voice dipped lower and more certain. “It’s a bond, Kaira. One that I've waited and hoped for all my life. But now that I have found it, I won't let it slip away. I won't let you slip away.
She didn’t answer for a few seconds.
Then: "This was a mistake," she whispered. "I shouldn't have called."
"Kaira, wait..."
But she had already hung up.
Viktor didn’t move for a long time. He lowered his phone gently, his fingers lingering on it a bit longer as if releasing it would sever something sacred.
“She called,” he said under his breath with a smile, it felt like a huge step closer, to him.
_______________________________________________________
Kaira’s fingers trembled as she ended the call, her breath catching in her throat. What had just happened? She had called him but it had felt deep and intimate. But she didn't know him on a personal level. Didn't understand this strange pull. It felt as if he existed somewhere in her soul, but she didn't like this.
“Kaira?”
She stiffened. A familiar voice that she couldn't mistake echoed behind her filled with irritating authority. Slowly, she turned to see Lex standing at the doorway, one brow arched as he stared at the phone on the table and then at her.
“What are you doing?” he asked casually, stepping further into the staff lounge, with his hands tucked into the pockets of his trousers. His shirt sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, the usual clean-cut manager look, but his eyes on her were sharp and calculating like he was suspicious about something. He had returned from the board meeting at Thompson's enterprise to pick up something from his office before going back home when he decided to look for Kaira.
"Nothing just taking a rest, any problem?" Kaira said quickly sliding her phone into her pocket. She didn't even notice Lex came to the hotel.
Lex tilted his head slightly, a knowing smile creeping onto his face. “No problem but you look pale though. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” She said, touching her face, before she stood up about to leave the lounge room.
“You know, some people have been sniffing around the hotel lately. Especially from the Travious Corporation. Makes me wonder if my beautiful cousin Kaira is keeping something juicy away from her own family.”
She scoffed. “Family is a funny word, Lex. And I have nothing to do with them.”
A frown appeared on Lex's face but it disappeared too soon.
“Anyways, I find it very interesting they seem so invested in a nobody cleaner girl.” His tone was smooth and low. “They haven't tried to reach, have they?”
Kaira met his eyes, trying to keep her voice firm. “Why would they?”
Lex leaned in just slightly, his voice low and sharp. "I’m going to figure out why they have been asking about you, remember you a nobody Kaira, with nothing but dead parents to your name, don't ever dream too big.”
Kaira's heart clenched but she stayed strong.
He took a step back, flashing her his perfect and wicked grin. “Now grab your things. You are going home with me. Don’t argue.”
“I’m still on shift,” she replied flatly.
“Not anymore.”
Lex did his best when it came to controlling his emotions., but beneath it, he was hiding his curiosity and his envy. And something else, something almost close to fear, if not fear.
He didn’t know anything about Viktor Travious, neither had he met him in person but ever since Kaira started working at the hotel, he knew something had changed.
An idea came up in his mind. A way to elevate Thompson's enterprise might come through this situation.
- Writer
