CHAPTER TEN:
VIKTOR
Today was a new day. Viktor’s trip to the children’s home, combined with an evening of solace on the opposite side of the house from Alexandra to follow it, and a full night’s sleep, had allowed him to regain himself. This morning, over breakfast, he would be able to coax information from his wife.
Alexandra insisted she didn’t know about her father’s debts and was uninvolved, but despite how genuine her reactions had seemed, Viktor had his doubts. Given how close Alexandra was with her family, it was unlikely she wasn’t privy to some sort of information… which he could, in turn, use to trap her into confession.
Viktor entered the dining room to find Alexandra already seated and looking over the selection of food. He had asked the cook to set out only her favorite dishes from the day before: tvorog with an assortment of fresh fruit, marmalade-topped butterbrots, orange juice, and, just for kicks, a bowl of Rice Krispies.
Derek and the blue sucker yesterday had taught him that the secret to getting Alexandra to open up might be sweetness instead of fear. He hoped that remembering her favorites, then having the food ready for her this morning, would show her that he wasn’t so heartless. Simple as it was, he thought this breakfast might be a step in the right direction.
Then, he could get her talking, and hopefully she would slip and tell him something useful about her father.
“Good morning.” Viktor gave her a tight-lipped smile and sat across from her at the table. Alexandra was mid-bite into a butterbrot and took a second to answer.
“Thank you for breakfast.” She pointed to the bowl of cereal. “The Krispies are a nice touch.” She sounded hesitant, and Viktor resolved to work extra hard to make up for yesterday. Her trust would not be easy to regain.
“That really was funny yesterday,” Viktor said. He poured a cup of black coffee from a heavy metal pitcher and took a sip.
“Yeah. About yesterday.” Alexandra looked him over even as Viktor raised his hand out in a gesture to stop her before she said anything more.
“Yesterday was yesterday. Today is today. Things are rough for both of us. Let’s have a fresh start.”
Alexandra cast him a suspicious glance, but took another bite of breakfast and chewed with a thoughtful expression.
“I really enjoyed our conversation yesterday morning,” Viktor added when she remained silent.
His words hung in the air, the lack of response bordering on awkward.
“Me, too,” Alexandra finally said.
“I remember you saying you have lived with your parents your entire life. Do you miss them, now that you’re on your own?” Viktor asked, lifting his coffee to his lips. He didn’t want to seem too eager to talk about her family, but he also didn’t want to waste time with frivolity.
“Yes, and no.” Alexandra perked up a bit, as if his question had convinced her he was sincere in making a fresh start with her. “I’m excited to start a life of my own, but I also miss familiarity. Just the little things you don’t really think about… like the way my mother hummed to music while she cleaned, or greeting my father after a day of work and hearing about his day. Even the way the back door used to creak when we let the cat in and out,” she said. “I stayed home for university. I was driven to the campus every day, so I’ve never known another life. I never thought I’d miss it so much.”
“I can understand that.” Viktor leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table. “You mention your mother cleaning—she stayed at home while your father worked?”
“Yes. They have… a sort of traditional marriage, where she takes care of the home and he works, but at the end of it all I think it’s my mother who has the final say.” Alexandra smirked. “They were an arranged marriage, too. My mother had never met my father before, but they married—this was back in Russia, of course—and they have an amazing relationship. I really hope to have a marriage half as strong as my parents,” she added, sincerity clear in her eyes.
“So your mom rules the roost, so to speak?” Viktor asked.
“Yeah, so to speak. Any decision that needs to be made, my father goes to my mother first for her advice.” There was something about the way Alexandra spoke that made Viktor think perhaps she was envious of this aspect of her parents’ marriage—perhaps she craved that power, and that was the motive he’d been missing.
“What does your father do? You mentioned he was a businessman.”
“He’s in sales. Electronics, mostly, I think.” Her face lit up suddenly, and her smile widened. “Oh, this is so funny, but I remember being little and going out on a field trip. We all took a boat ride around the waterfront, in the bay area, and I asked every single person on that boat if they knew my father because I didn’t understand the difference between sales and sails, as in sailboats.” Her cheeks grew pink and she laughed at herself. “Like, can you imagine that? I was such a dumb little kid.”
Viktor couldn’t help but laugh with her. “And what did the adults on the field trip say when you kept asking?”
“They explained it to me—you know, the difference between the two words—and thought it was pretty funny. Now that I look back on it, it is pretty funny I guess, but I was mortified at the time. I felt so stupid.” She leaned forward and looked him over. The suspicion had faded from her eyes and she looked genuinely happy to be there with him, he realized.
Viktor found himself enjoying their conversation, too, and took a moment to appreciate her beauty. His gaze swept over her. In the moment, he felt torn. How could he be attracted to someone who might potentially want him dead?
He didn’t have much time for the question, though, because her next words took the breath right out of his lungs.
“Speaking of kids. Why were you at a children’s home yesterday?” Alexandra asked after another few bites of breakfast.
Viktor stared at her. If he let her know he had tenderness in his heart, then she would see him as a target. He couldn’t allow that to happen—not with what her family had done. “What? A children’s home... I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t play dumb. I saw you. Roman took me to a café—don’t worry, I was supervised the whole time—and I saw you walk out of Pathways.” She tapped her upper cheekbone playfully. “Saw you with my own eyes.”
Viktor took a long drink of coffee to stall while his mind raced. When he had allowed her to leave the bedroom yesterday, he’d assumed she would just spent time around the house, arranging her things or watching television. Pathways was his secret. If he confirmed he’d been there, what would she think of him?
“It’s okay, Viktor, geez.” She set her fork down and looked at him. Her expression softened. “It’s a beautiful way to pay tribute to your father, you know. Visiting children who don’t have fathers.”
The look in her eyes—it was deep and warm, and it lit Viktor’s soul like nothing before. He felt uplifted just by the way she was looking at him. And she wasn’t mocking him for visiting Pathways, like the men he knew would have. Her words rang true, and echoed right into his heart.
“I…” Viktor searched for something to say, but came up short. Across from him, Alexandra just stared into his eyes with a lovely, sweet smile.
He rose silently from the table, came around to Alexandra, and grabbed her by the shoulders so that he could raise her up, and then he kissed her.