Chapter 14: The Wife in the Shadows

The days at the Vasiliev mansion had become a routine of shared silences and furtive glances. Anne was no longer startled when Lucian appeared out of nowhere to look for her. His presence, once imposing and terrifying, now felt like an inescapable constant, a refuge she learned to accept.

Until she discovered the truth.

It was an accidental discovery.

Ana was organizing the library when she heard Viktoria talking on the phone in the hallway. Her tone, always sharp and dismissive, had a note of twisted amusement.

-No, he hasn't asked anything," Viktoria said, with a derisive laugh. Of course she doesn't know. She's a naive little girl... Lucian? Oh, we know what my brother is like. He's always been charming with his new toys, until he gets bored.

Ana felt her skin crawl. She knew they were talking about her. She stood motionless, holding her breath, until Viktoria walked away.

Her heart was pounding, what was it that she didn't know?

The answer came that very night.

Lucian had requested her presence in his study, an event that had become commonplace in recent weeks. It was one of the few times I could see him in a more relaxed setting, away from the eyes of others. I was supposed to pour him a glass of wine and leave, but this time, his curiosity got the better of his obedience.

While he was going through some documents, Ana dared to let her gaze roam the room. And there, on his desk, she saw a framed photograph.

A woman with fine features, dark eyes and a smile that seemed to hide something behind her perfection. Her hand rested on Lucian's arm. She was not just a woman. She was his wife.

Anne felt the ground beneath her feet disappear.

-What are you looking at? -Lucian's voice snapped her out of her trance.

Ana looked up, her gaze and his colliding in the tension-laden air. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know how to react.

Lucian followed her gaze and saw the photo. For the first time, something like a shadow crossed his expression.

-I never told you? -he asked, as if it were an unimportant detail.

Ana shook her head, feeling the weight of the revelation pressing down on her chest. He had never mentioned it. He had never given her a reason to even imagine it.

Lucian sighed and took the photograph in his hands.

-It's abroad," he said, with an eerie calmness. An arranged marriage, nothing more.

Anne wanted to believe him, wanted to convince herself that it didn't matter. But something inside her screamed that this changed everything.

And the worst thing was the question she didn't dare ask:

If he already had a wife, why did he want her?