The time for the meeting was set for midnight.
As if it weren't obvious. Sergei always did love some showtime.
The venue? A private penthouse in an unfinished hotel that had a view of the river. A location filled with silhouettes and had just enough silence to make you feel uneasy.
Lila stayed unfazed.
She dressed as if she already possessed the whole penthouse—a basic black suit and no jewelry or any visible arms.
There was no requirement for any.
For she was the arms.
The elevator doors opened into pitch black. Cracking sounds!
Two individuals stood guard at the entrance. Both were armed to the teeth but seemed unwell at ease.
One of my favorite forms of hospitality.
The two of them—without saying a word—ushered her down the hallway into the middle room, which was enormous and cold with only a few dim lights and the city burning outside the windows.
Across from her stood Sergei.
Still holding the glass of red wine that he didn't sip from.
He didn't stand once she walked in.
But rather smiled. The smile that was often seen on men waiting for their food to arrive during a feast.
"You've grown teeth," was the first thing he said.
As if I were forged from the steel tools. "I never lost them, you just never tried looking hard enough," she countered. While advancing.
The room had six people.
Sergei.
Three of his main captains.
Two unfamiliar men.
And now, this particular woman.
This particular woman only.
But Lila didn't slow. Didn't hesitate.
She did not lose pacing.
She stepped toward the vacant chair at the tail end of the lengthy table.
The spot that no soul dared to occupy.
And she claimed it.
Without uttering a word.
As if it were made for her.
________________________________________________________________________________
Sergei raised his brow.
"You've gotten bold."
"I had to," Lila replied. "Viktor trained me."
"Well, you've outgrown him, I see," Sergei chuckled.
Lila responded, "No. I've grown into myself," while reclining back and crossing her legs.
____________________________________________________________________
His wine was still spinning in its glass.
"Lila, this world isn't made for people like you to rise in."
"No," she answered. "It's made for people like me to quietly bleed."
Lila did not flinch and kept eye contact.
"Unlike most people, I do not quietly bleed. I set the table now, and I rule," she said with ease. She was answering in a calm tone.
His grin morphed into a subtle frown, but it was enough for her to notice.
Sergei's smile faded—just slightly. Enough for her to see it.
"You're not scared of me,"he pointed out.
"I'm not scared of anyone," she shot back without hesitation, "Not anymore."
____________________________________________________________________________________
He scrutinized her.
He watches her, studies her.
"You could lead," he stated with confidence.
"I already do," she answered back in a confident tone.
"With me, you could have even more,"he countered.
Brows furrowed, she asked, "More than Viktor?".
"No," Sergei said slowly. "Without Viktor."
________________________________________________________________
Silence.
Heavy.
Laced with meaning.
This was it.
Not a test.
A temptation.
A seduction.
He wasn't offering a partnership. He was offering a replacement.
Lila smiled—but it didn't reach her eyes.
"Is this the part where I will have to betray the man who gifted me a knife when the world chose to gift me nothing?"
Sergei is inclining further toward her.
"Is this the part where I betray the man who gave me a knife when the world gave me nothing?"
Sergei leaned forward.
"No," he said. "This is the part where you realize you've already outgrown his leash. The only question is whether you cut it—or let him choke you with it."
_________________________________________________________________________
Lila stood up slowly but deliberately.
"You think I came here to request power," she calmly stated. "That is incorrect."
"I came here to suggest to you that the power is already within you."
Each step she took toward him, every syllable that fell from her mouth was daggers on silk.
"From where I stand, you have observed me for way too long. You witnessed me reclaim my strength and you bided your time for Viktor's downfall. And now you presume I'm yours for the taking."
Stopping just short of the chair, she peered down at him.
"I refuse to be staked on a bold claim such as that."
In a whisper—but close enough for him to catch it.
"Consider this the gentle nudge that reminds you the next empire will not be passed down to men like you."
_________________________________________________________________________
And then—
She turned.
Walked out.
Didn't look back.
Didn't ask permission.
Didn't need validation.
Because the most dangerous thing in that room…
Wasn't Sergei.It was the silence that followed after she left.
It was the deadly quiet that came after she exited.