Page 45 of The Darkness is Calling

Him and my mother.

“So we decided to see each other less during this period. It’s better for his safety.”

One perfectly shaped eyebrow rises as far as her expression allows.

“How convenient for you too, isn’t it?”

“You make it sound as if I don’t want to spend time with him.”

“Do you?”

I close my eyes and tilt my head back, exhaling loudly. But behind my eyelids appears a dark face with messy hair and eyes in different shades. Even in a moment like this, he has the power to awaken a storm of emotions inside my body, in the form of restless butterflies that make my stomach tighten.

“I think this is the strangest time of my life,” I confess to my friend.

“How can I help?” she asks, sad and worried.

“You can’t.” My answer is sad, looking at her again. “Just be here with me, because I don’t see things getting better anytime soon.”

“And do you think this wedding will fix anything, Katya?”

Before answering, I think carefully about what I truly feel. About what I am afraid to admit out loud, even though it is time to do it.

“No. But if I don’t go through with it, it will be even worse.”

Chapter 11

Ekaterina

Dinner this evening unfolds in the same quiet manner as the day before. We all circle around harmless conversations about the weather, except for Artem, who eats in silence, avoiding looking at me. He won’t lower himself to the level of ordinary mortals – like the rest of us – who are discussing something so frivolous.

Yaroslav is not exactly the most talkative either, but at least he offers an opinion here and there, while Sasha chatters even with his mouth full, like a child overflowing with energy.

After dinner, the youngest leaves for his nightly entertainment, while his older brothers retreat to the office, along with Dima and two other men.

I didn’t even see when they arrived or where they had been hidden, but I cannot help noticing their serious faces and black suits, as if those are their uniforms.

Both of them look at me curiously, but one of them, with greasy hair slicked down by too much gel and a swollen belly, seems more insistent.

I ignore him quickly, because before entering the room, Artem stops and turns toward me, signaling for the others not to wait for him.

“You don’t have any plans tonight?”

I stop near the stairs. “I will watch a movie.” He seems to think for a moment before

speaking again.

“And you’re not playing tonight?”

His question catches me slightly off guard, but

I do not even blink.

“No.”

“Pity,” he says shortly, then turns toward the

office without giving me the chance to ask for any details.