Chapter 7 - The Grand ContinentalThe ballroom of the Grand Continental was a glittering sea of crystal chandeliers, expensive champagne, and whispered malice.
When Mia walked down the grand marble staircase on Viktor’s arm, wearing an emerald-green silk gown that caught every flicker of light in the room, every conversation in the hall died instantly.
The most feared men in the underworld—syndicate heads, arms dealers, politicians with blood on their ledger lines—turned their heads as one. They weren't looking at Mia’s dress; they were looking at the fact that Viktor, the undisputed apex predator of the city, had his hand resting possessively at the small of her back. In the syndicate, affection was weakness. Showing your soft spot in public was an invitation for a knife between the ribs.
Yet, Viktor’s face was carved from granite, his silver eyes daring anyone in the room to blink out of turn.
"You're making everyone very nervous," Mia murmured through a fixed, polite smile as they reached the floor.
"Good," Viktor replied softly, his breath warm against her ear. "Comfort breeds complacency. Complacency breeds betrayal. Let them be nervous."
"Is that why you brought me here? To show your enemies you have a new weakness?"
Viktor stopped walking and turned to look down at her, his expression darkening. "You are not a weakness, Mia. You are the only real thing in this entire room."
May you like
Before she could answer, a sharp, brittle voice cut through the music from across the floor.
"Well, well. The stray brought a pet to the ball."
