Chapter 23: Shadows in the Mansion

The Vasiliev mansion was a labyrinth of secrets. Ana knew it from day one, but she never imagined to what extent the shadows of that place could devour those who dared to defy its rules.

The nights were her only respite. When everyone was asleep, when the murmurs ceased and Viktoria's gazes did not pierce her with their judgment, Ana walked silently through the corridors. It was on one of those nights that she discovered the forbidden door.

At the back of the east wing, where the candlelight barely reached to illuminate the walls, a dark wooden door, imposing and with an ancient engraving of dragons entangled in combat, caught her attention. He had never seen it open. He had always believed that it led nowhere, that it was just a vestige of the house's ancestral architecture.

But that night, it was ajar.

Anne's heart pounded as she gently pushed it open. On the other side, a dense gloom hid the details of the room, but the smell of old paper and wood enveloped her immediately. It was an office, an old and neglected one, but one that still contained vestiges of a buried past.

She approached a dust-covered desk and discovered a pile of yellowed documents, with lettering that had faded with time. As he leafed through them, his pulse quickened. There were names, agreements, transactions. All related to the Vasiliev family and.... something else.

Then, a name captured his attention like a cry drowned out in the silence.

"Anastasya Petrovna."

His hands shook. That was her name. But the date on the document was decades old.

The sound of a footstep in the hallway startled her. Her breathing stopped. She wasn't supposed to be there.

She blew out the candle with a puff and slipped out of the room, closing the door carefully. In the hallway, Viktoria's silhouette emerged from the shadows, his blue eyes locked on her with icy intensity.

-Playing detective, Ana? -he asked with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

Ana swallowed dryly.

Viktoria moved closer, her perfume enveloping her like an invisible trap.

-Some truths are better left buried," she whispered, brushing his cheek with her fingertips. If you keep sticking your nose where it doesn't belong, you might get buried along with them.

Ana held her breath. For the first time, she felt a fear different from the one Lucian inspired in her. A fear that came not from violence, but from the certainty that Viktoria was always one step ahead.

The house hid secrets. And she had just opened the first door to an abyss from which she might never be able to escape.