The cadaver was still radiating heat.
Victor stood over it in silence, looking blankly as he bled out a man whose life he had terminated, a brother in arms. Remembrance of the gunshot resonated among his synapses like it had no desire to erase what he had repeated.
Lila had exited the location long before this stage.
It was not on the rationale of pettiness. Lila simply did not desire to remain in hideous places like these.
She had made her arguments clear.
Now it was Viktor's turn to have the choice.
___________________________________________________________________________
Fifteen minutes later, Kirill strolled into the office carrying the phone with him and fuming, looking like he wished he were Angel.
"Yes," Kirill said. "Sergei is looking for a rendezvous."
Viktor's eyes chose not to divert from the ground, "Inform him that I do not schedule engagements with snakes."
"Do you not take these sorts of engagements?"
"That one is not for you."
Now Viktor shifted his empty stare towards Kirill.
"Have you no other business with me?"
"Not with you."
"Inform me when there is business with me." Kirill went ahead and gently placed the gadget on the office desk.
"Tell Kuril the snake is expecting me but is reluctant to accept."
The remark caused Victor's ear to twitch furiously enough to shake the ice off his solitude in his tongue grenades.
"Kuril claims it is Lila he wishes to pay a visit to."
Viktor's expression was that of a lion lost in zoo cages as he shot daggers at the device with his eyes contorted as if hearing a sick joke.
"Who supposedly sent Lila to bay meet…"
"Yes, on behalf," both fists of Kiril raised, Nun on cross prime slot marked her wrist.
"He said it's not business," Kiril murmured. "It's legacy."
__________________________________________________________________________
"So it's something to bring me alive?"
Once. Quiet. Bitter.
Remember the Legacy
Sergei was an old mafia member. He is bound to the olden 'rules' of the world. Old grudges tend to haunt people. He, however, was a strategist and would only reveal his cards if they were significantly ahead in the game.
In this context, Requesting Lila is using an alias as much as they want. She was a poker piece for them to use, not a living being with autonomy.
Simply speaking, Viktor was a far more powerful man, and Sergei's wanting her wasn't even close to that. And as for Lila, she took her time with him.
Viktor was still silent. Viktor raised his glass and took a dry sip of the bourbon so flaming hot, before saying 'Sergei has requested a rendezvous'.
For this segment, employ a transition style that focuses on the dialogue. One that feels as if there is sudden dialogue, showcasing quick traversal within characters.
She blinked—"Now why would he be expecting you?"
In a separate paragraph, I will continue.
____________________________________________________________________________________
When Lila walked back, she looked different. Wearing a black turtleneck and a hair bun, her slightly exposed collarbone held a scar not unlike a childhood fairytale, hinting at narratives she would harbor beneath her skin.
"And what do their expectations leave for me to fulfill?"
Viktor's tone was quiet. "I will ask you why."
"What do you mean by needing me?"
"Why are you contemplating this change?"
Lila cocked her head to the side. "Do you predict that I shouldn't?"
"I believe if you walk out into that room without me—" He leaned forward, voice dark, "—you send a message we can't take back."
Her stare remained fixated on Viktor. Calm, but not so cold.
"Or," she said gently, "maybe we send a message we should've sent a long time ago."
__________________________________________________________________________________
Viktor stood. The chair creaked behind him.
"No, you're mine," He said. Not angrily, not possessively, but emptily.
"Which I never intended to avoid," Lila replied as she stood up to Viktor.
"Then why make the change?"
"Because Sergei is starting to look at me in a way the rest of the world has been beginning to," she answered. "Not your shadow or your girl."
Lila paused before adding,
"But as something you built towards."
___________________________________________________________________________________
That breath they both shared transformed into silence.
Calmly, she asked, "Will you prevent me?"
Viktor studied her for minutes, and eventually, after all that time, revealed— razor sharp, devoid of ownership.
"No."
_________________________________________________________________________________
Because the goal isn't power.
But trust.
And for the first time, something terrifying yet beautiful came to his understanding:
A queen did not sit beside him as a ruler.
He had ignited a sovereign of her own accord.