Page 99 of Eternal
“How’s my favorite child feeling? Is Kat taking good care of you?”
“You’re tiring, Vik,” I reply, taking a slow sip of my water.
He laughs, cracks his neck, and leans back on his chair. “It feels like it’s been years since I came here to have dinner with you two. Nothing changed.”
Kat walks back in with a massive bowl of fries. “It’s becauseVishahates when people invade her space.”
I nod and look back at Vik, then casually steal a fry. “Plus, you two are too loud. This is supposed to be my peaceful home.”
Vik snorts and steals the fry right out of my fingers. “Peaceful home, huh? Harboring a killer? How many knives and guns are you hiding in here? Fifty? Sixty?”
“Stop stealing my food,” I grumble, glaring at him, but he’s too busy munching on the fry to care.
Kat’s voice cuts through as she looks at Vik like he’s a lost child. “You know, she gets angry when you do that.”
“I miss when it was quiet,” I mutter, rubbing my eyes like I’ve just woken up.
The dinner table feels like a family setting, complete with that warm, cozy lighting and the smell of roasted meat and fresh bread. It’s everything Katarina could’ve hoped for. But me? I never actually sit here. I always eat on the couch, alone.
Vik throws a piece of bread at me, smirking. “And I miss when you were half asleep in Damir’s car. You looked cute, angelic even.”
“Grumpy old bastard,” I mutter, taking a bite of the bread.
“Vik, your eyebrows are furrowed. Relax,” Kat mocks him.
Vik doesn’t look up, he focuses on his plate, cutting through the meat. “I’m concentrating.”
I roll my eyes. “On not choking on your food?”
He glares but stays quiet. “If you keep talking, I’ll put you back to sleep.”
“Oh no, I’d miss your delightful company,” I reply dryly.
“Can you two ever be serious?” She grabs the wine bottle and starts filling my glass first, then her own, giving Vik a pointedlook. “She’s recovering, don’t make her stand up and fight you, or I’ll kill you myself.”
We eat through Vik’s terrible jokes, with Kat adding her two cents about how working with him every day is like being trapped in a perpetual bad mood. But then, the conversation shifts.
“You know,” I say, breaking the silence, “Something’s off with the Turkish mafia this week. I’ve been hearing whispers. Something with their casinos. Do you know anything about it?”
Kat glances at me with a knowing smile before turning back to Vik. “Yeah, we have someone inside, don’t we?”
“Yeah. Not an informant. A kid who works at one of their clubs.” Vik says, taking another sip of his wine. He looks at me, assessing. “What are you really asking? You don’t ask things like that out of curiosity.”
I take my time with my next question. “What if I go in and take them all out? You think you’d mind if I cleaned the house?”
Vik sets his glass down slowly, his eyes narrowing. “Depends. You think they’re gonna be a problem for the Bratva? If they are, go for it.”
Kat’s brow furrows, clearly surprised. “Are you seriously telling her to go in and kill everyone? What happened to laying low, because it’s getting messy out there for the Zennites?”
Vik shrugs, almost bored. “Azra does whatever the hell she wants. You should know that by now.”
I lean back, still eating some fires, looking between them. “So, you’re not stopping me?”
Vik takes another slow sip, his eyes never leaving mine. “Why would I? I promised I’d have your back. If this is part of your revenge, then I’m with you. But if you get yourself killed, I don’t want to hear about it.”
This is a part of my revenge… And he’s by my side.
Kat laughs, almost too loudly, and sets her glass down a little too hard. “Perfect but tell her to take a break first. She’s still hurt, Vik.”
