We entered Anichka's room. The girl hugged her knees as she contemplated the view. Her swollen eyes turned toward us. She rubbed her face, red from crying. How desperate had she been, seeing Trix like that?
"Are you going to hurt me?" Her voice caught.
"Answer all my questions, and I'll spare you." The aura pouring from Kiara was unyielding, like a flaming whip. It heated my skin and rang through my bones.
Even accustomed to her, a warning of danger pulsed in my heart. I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms.
Ah, yes… I knew that expression well. Terror had settled in Anichka's eyes. She swallowed hard. Fresh tears spilled.
Kiara sat on the edge of the bed.
The princess flinched. "P-please… I only wanted… I didn't know she… I just wanted to protect my… my sister."
"I know. I believe you." Kiara's friendly tone. The resemblance to Maia was inevitable. They made us relax after piercing our souls with a silent threat.
"You do?" The princess wiped her eyes.
"Of course." Kiara rested her elbow on her leg, studying her for a moment. Silent. Analytical. Then the sharp smile appeared. "Now tell me what's going on. Otherwise…"
"What about my sister? How will I know nothing's going to happen to her?"
Kiara smirked. "The dog that threatened you is all bark and no bite."
I held back a laugh. The princess seemed to understand. A little, at least. Her defensive posture relaxed.
"You're more than a princess, right? You're the Pakhan's daughter too, aren't you?"
Anichka's eyes widened. She looked from me to Kiara. Barely tried to hide it.
"Your face says everything."
"H-how do you know?" She began trembling again.
Kiara gestured in the air. "From the moment I saw you, something felt off. When we made the plan, I lied about when I'd rescue you. Also adjusted Cloakify to inhibit the security nanosensors in the Pakhan's room." Her eyes glittered. "When I started your rescue, what I saw through the rifle's scope… you look so alike."
"Enough! I get it." Anichka bit her lip.
Kiara tilted her head and burst out laughing. Then grew serious. Projected her hostile aura like claws toward the girl. "Good. Now tell me… what did you tell him?"
Denden's words finally made sense.
The girl exuded the scent of horror. She squeezed her fingers restlessly. Aware of her situation. Her shoulders dropped. Anichka yielded. "I told him the truth. My mother hired mercenaries from São Paulo to protect me during the escort."
"You knew Vorovskoy mir was trying to take you to your father, right?"
The princess sighed. "It was the only way. They'd take me to him, and the failure would be yours." She lowered her head. "Then you came. Everything changed." Her fists clenched. "I tried to warn him, but all my father did was double the guard." She scowled.
Kiara raised an eyebrow. "Why did you do this?"
"I want to live with my papa."
Wow. She really was telling us everything.
Kiara smoothed her hair. "Imagine a princess living with a Pakhan. And the scandal of an empress having a daughter with a mobster. Tsk. Nothing but good things."
Anichka looked away, flushed. "I wanted—"
Kiara silenced her with a wave. "Fuck, honestly? I give zero fucks about this shit. Once we hand you over, our mission's done. Don't even wanna hear about you afterward."
Anichka's eyes grew frightened.
"But when you attacked Trix, things changed."
The girl lifted her head. Desperate. "W-what do you mean? A-are you going to kill me?"
"For your own good, hope Trix forgets all this when she wakes." Kiara's shadow darkened the room.
"Y-you can't do anything! They know where I am. I have a—"
"Nanotracker?" Kiara's voice was sharp. "Why d'you think we did all this? Before rescuing you, I stopped by the security room and destroyed your tracking code. You're clean of anything that could give away your location." Kiara sneered.
Anichka huffed and crossed her arms.
CRASH Something broke in the other room.
I looked at Kiara and ran.
Shards of glass scattered across the floor. Trix tried to support herself on the sofa's arm. Failed miserably. Her movements were stiff. Her eyes settled on me.
I approached to help. "How are you feeling?"
"What the fuck happened?"
Great. Answered a question with another. "What's the last thing you remember?"
"Dunno. Was sleeping… feels like a rock fell on me."
Distressed, Anichka followed Kiara.
Trix pointed at the princess, brow furrowed. "You! You did something to me, svoloch'!" She tried to stand, but her legs weakened.
"Don't pus—" I swallowed the words. Silently asked Kiara for help.
She took my place. "Stay still. Your body's still recovering."
Trix sat. Hatred stamped across her face. Hatred directed at Anichka.
The tension was palpable. One wrong move would cause an explosion. One thing I had learned: their fury had no barriers. A merciless rage with a recipient. Whoever the target was would have that wrath poured over them.
"I-I…" The princess wilted beneath Kiara's gaze and lowered her head.
Trix's gaze was a blade about to cut. One more second, and Anichka would be dead. She relaxed, though barely, sprawling on the sofa. "What the fuck happened?"
"First, how are you feeling?"
"Dunno. Controlling my movements is fucking hard. Weird. My head hurts like hell. I'm dizzy."
All right. Her cortex had suffered damage, but the detoxification had worked as intended. She would need nanobandages to accelerate healing. Perhaps within half a lunation, she would regain control of her body. I nodded to Kiara. You'll be okay, Trix. I'll do everything I can for your recovery.
"Better rest. When you wake, I'll explain everything. Then you decide what to do."
"Ah, fuck it." Trix rolled her eyes.
The truth? However strong they were, mercenaries grew exhausted too. Besides, she was mentally confused.
"All right. Better lie down in bed." Kiara gently took Trix by the arm and led her to a bedroom.
Anichka and I remained. Uncomfortable silence.
The girl seemed to hold back a sea of emotions. Watery eyes. "D-do you think… she'll kill me?"
Her words unsettled me. Her fear barely brushed me. That dread of death was far from my heart. How could I answer such a significant question with an empty expression? To a sixteen-cycle-old girl? How would she see me, so indifferent to death?
Of course I had felt fear since this journey began. But I feared the unknown. If death crossed my path, I would welcome its embrace as part of life-passage-life. Maia must have gone through this too. The moment she read that death was one more cycle.
Anichka's question stirred something whose existence I had never known. Killing someone terrified me. The cold-blooded execution of so many beings horrified me. Thousands of deaths happening every day haunted me.
Worse. The deaths that could happen by my hands. Yes, I had already killed someone. Killed a person, yet it had seemed legitimate. That volunteer's death wore the mask of legality. The question awakened what had fallen dormant since Maia's death: for me, life had lost its meaning.
I shrugged. "I don't know. I really don't."
Anichka bit her immaculate nails.
I lowered my eyes to the scars Burj had given my hands. Remembered Maia's hands, covered in scars. Far more than mine. I had always wanted to hear their stories. Settled for the thought that we shared a pain.
I leaned against the sofa and rested my head. Allowed myself the pleasant feeling of safety, even beneath a thin, fragile veil.
The fireplace crackled softly, casting shadows on the walls.
For a moment, it seemed nothing could touch us. I closed my eyes. Relaxed my mind. The memory of Maia warmed my heart.
Now all we could do was wait.