The black car moved slowly up the long, snowy driveway. Nathan now Christopher sat in the back, adjusting his gold-rimd glasses. He felt the weight of the beard on his face and the strange pull of the contact lenses in his eyes. He reached into his jacket and touched the hard drive. It was his only protection in this house he was going to.
The car stopped, and a guard in a heavy coat opened the door. Nathan stepped out into the freezing Moscow air. He walked with a stiff, confident posture, his chin held high.
The front doors of the mansion opened, and the heat from inside hit him. The house was beautiful, filled with gold and expensive paintings.
"Mr. Vane," a voice ca.
Nathan looked up, Nikolai was walking down the wide marble stairs. He looked powerful and relaxed.
"Mr. Volkov," Nathan said, using his deep, posh British accent. He held out his hand. "Thank you for having on such short notice."
Nikolai shook his hand firmly. He looked Nathan right in the eyes for a long second. Nathan’s heart beat began beating faster, but he didn’t blink. The dark brown contacts did their job, because Nikolai didn’t recognize him.
"It is my pleasure," Nikolai said. "Investors with your... reputation... are always welco. Co, dinner is served. My wife is waiting for us."
They walked into a large dining room. The table was covered in white cloth and silver. And there she was.
Fiona or Viktoria was standing by the window. She was wearing a long, dark blue dress. Her hair was styled perfectly, but when she turned around, Nathan saw the sadness in her eyes that Nikolai was too blind to notice.
"Viktoria, my dear," Nikolai said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "This is Mr. Christopher Vane. He is interested in the dacha property."
Fiona looked at Nathan. For a mont, Nathan almost lost his breath. He wanted to scream her na, he wanted to tell her to run to him. But he kept his face like stone.
"It is a pleasure to et you, Mrs. Volkov," Nathan said, bowing his head slightly.
Fiona frowned just a little. She looked at him with a strange expression, as if she was hearing a song she used to know but couldn’t rember the words to. "Welco to our ho, Mr. Vane," she said. Her voice was soft, but it still sounded like his Fiona.
They sat down to eat. The food was expensive, but Nathan couldn’t taste anything., he had to play the part. He talked about London, about money, and about real estate. Nikolai talked about his power in Russia.
"You have a very beautiful family, Nikolai," Nathan said, taking a sip of wine, his eyes darted to the photo on the wall. "That must be your son, he looks very much like his mother."
Nikolai smiled, looking proud. "He is a good boy. He is the light of our lives."
Viktoria stayed quiet, picking at her food. Nathan noticed her left hand was trembling under the table.
"Mrs. Volkov," Nathan said, turning to her. "You seem very quiet. Do you not like the idea of selling the estate? I’m told you have a very strong connection to this land."
She looked up, startled. "I... I just want what is best for my family. Sotis I feel like I am still learning this place myself."
Nikolai laughed and patted her hand. "She had a very bad accident years ago, Mr. Vane. Her mory is not what it used to be. But she is getting better every day."
Nathan felt a surge of rage. He thinks she’s getting better because she’s forgetting , Nathan thought.
"mory is a strange thing," Nathan said, leaning forward. "I once knew a story about a girl who lived in a tower. She thought she knew who she was, but soone had switched her life with a ghost’s. She didn’t realize that her real ho was waiting for her across the ocean."
The room went silent and Nikolai narrowed his eyes at Nathan. "That is a very dark story, Mr. Vane."
Viktoria dropped her fork, and it made a loud clatter on the china plate. She was staring at Nathan, her eyes wide. The "Cupcake" story was pushing against the fog in her brain.
"Viktoria? Are you okay?" Nikolai asked, his voice turning sharp.
"I... I have a headache," she whispered. She looked at Nathan, and for a split second, he saw the real Fiona behind her eyes. She recognized the feeling of him, even if she couldn’t see his face.
"Perhaps I should go," Nathan said, standing up. "I didn’t an to upset the lady. We can discuss the business tomorrow, Nikolai."
"No," Nikolai said, standing up too. He looked suspicious now. "Stay. Viktoria, go to your room and rest. I will finish the wine with Mr. Vane."
Fiona stood up, her legs shaking. She looked at Nathan one last ti before the maid led her away.
Now, Nathan was alone with Nikolai. The guards were standing at the door and It was ti. Nathan reached into his pocket and pulled out the hard drive.
"I lied to you, Nikolai," Nathan said, his British accent slipping away, replaced by his real, cold voice. "I’m not here to buy your house."
Nikolai froze, he recognized the voice. He looked at the beard, then at the man’s eyes. "You..."
Nathan placed the hard drive onto the table. "Look at the files, Nikolai. Look at the photos of the real Viktoria, the one who died in Russia while you were being handed my girlfriend."
Nikolai reached for his gun, but Nathan didn’t move.
"If you kill , you’ll never know the truth," Nathan said. "And she’ll spend the rest of her life living a lie that will eventually kill her. Open the drive, Nikolai. See what Natasha did to both of us."
Nikolai slowly pulled the hard drive toward him. He opened a laptop sitting on a side table and plugged it in. Nathan watched his face. He expected Nikolai to be shocked or at least expected the man to fall apart or be angry at Natasha.
Nikolai scrolled through the photos of the real Viktoria—the woman who had actually died of a car accident in Russia. He saw the dical reports and the evidence that the woman upstairs was Fiona Brown. He sat there for a long ti, the blue light of the screen reflecting in his eyes.
Then, he slowly closed the laptop, his face didn’t change. He wasn’t crying, and he wasn’t confused. He looked at Nathan with a look that was as cold as the snow outside.
"So?" Nikolai asked. His voice was a low, dangerous growl.
Nathan blinked, confused. "What do you an, ’so’? You just saw the truth! She’s not your wife. She’s my girlfriend. Everything you’ve lived for almost three years is a lie. Mateo is my son!"
Nikolai leaned across the table. He didn’t look like a victim. He looked like a man who had made a decision a long ti ago.
"I don’t care," Nikolai whispered.
Nathan felt like he had been punched. "You don’t care? Nikolai, she’s a human being, not a trophy! You’re living a lie!"
"It is a lie that makes happy," Nikolai said. He stood up, his height towering over the table. "I loved the real Viktoria, and she died. Then, this woman was brought to . She was broken, I fixed her. I gave her a na. I gave her a son who loves her. To Mateo, I am the only father he knows."
"You didn’t fix her! You’re keeping her in a cage!" Nathan shouted, forgetting his fake accent.
"Quiet!" Nikolai hissed, looking toward the stairs. He didn’t want the sound of Nathan’s real voice to reach the bedroom. He stepped closer to Nathan, his hand resting on the gun at his waist. "Listen to , Nathan Keith. I don’t care about your DNA tests neither don I care about your photos, she is mine now. I have the papers. I have the power. And I have her heart, even if it is built on a mory she can’t find."
Nikolai pointed toward the front door.
"Leave," Nikolai ordered in a voice so low it was almost a hiss. "Go back to your country and never return. If I see your face near my gates again—if I hear your voice near my wife or my son—I will not talk to you. I will kill you myself. I will bury you in the snow where no one will ever find you."
"You can’t keep this up forever," Nathan spat, his eyes burning with rage. "She’s already starting to rember. She recognized the story! She felt in the room!"
Nikolai’s eyes flashed with a mont of fear, but he covered it quickly. "She has a headache, she will take her dicine, and tomorrow she will forget you ever existed. Now, get out before I change my mind about letting you live."
The guards stepped forward, grabbing Nathan’s arms. Nathan didn’t fight them. He knew he couldn’t win a gunfight in this house. He looked at Nikolai one last ti.
"You’re a monster, Nikolai. You’re no better than Natasha."
"Maybe," Nikolai said, turning his back. "But I am a monster with a family. You are just a man with a hard drive and a fake beard. Goodbye, Mr. Keith."
The guards shoved Nathan out into the cold night. The heavy wooden doors slamd shut, and he heard the locks clicking into place. He stood in the snow, his breath coming in ragged gasps. He had shown the truth, and it hadn’t mattered. Nikolai was going to keep the lie alive because he was too selfish to be alone.
Nathan walked along the lengthy driveway, the wind lashing against his face. He opened the gate and turned around to look at the house’s windows aglow inside. Sowhere there, Fiona was receiving "dicine" to ensure that she forgot about the man she almost recognized.
He put his hand into his pocket and discovered that he still had the little toy car. He pressed hard until his palm felt the sharp plastic edges of the car.
"You want her? You think you can hold her captive?" Nathan murmured in the direction of the dark forest. "You think that a gate and a few bodyguards will stop ?"
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