I knew one detail of the story that I had kept from Amanda because I didn’t want to put her in danger, but the fact that Korniyov somehow stayed alive and just faked his funeral doesn’t sit well in my head.
- Alexander, don’t joke with me. You know what I’m capable of. - Korniyov shifts his fierce gaze to Lantsov, and he lowers his weapon. - Good, you have no chance of getting out of this without consequences. But your daughter has a chance to stay alive. - I see Lantsov’s gaze dimming as he leans onto the table.
- Don’t touch her. - Korniyov inhales and waves to his men to take Lantsov and his henchman away. They lead them out of my apartment while we continue to sit in silence.
As soon as we’re alone, Amanda puts the gun on the table and throws herself into my arms. She buries her nose in my neck, and I hold her tighter, as if this were unreal and if I let her go, she might disappear.
- Alright, kids, I think you need to talk, and we’ll have time for you to find out the whole story later. - Korniyov leaves, and all the guards follow him. We are left alone with Ami. She sits on my lap, pressing her forehead against mine.
- Adam, I was so worried that something might happen to you. I see tears glimmering in the woman’s eyes. I wipe one that’s rolling down her cheek with my fingers and kiss her on the nose.
- It's alright, Kitten, it's alright...
She kisses me on the lips, and everything fades away. I feel only her sweet taste mixed with blood. She holds me tighter around the neck, sinking her lips into mine. I stroke her back, pressing her to me. If I didn’t know that there were about twenty people behind the nonexistent door, I would take her right here. I don’t know why, but this danger and adrenaline act on me like a very strong aphrodisiac. Amanda feels my excitement and starts moving her hips.
- Ami, not here, we’re not alone. - The Kitten smiles, and in that smile, something devilish appears. She starts moving her hips against mine again, and I grip her butt with my hand.
- If you don’t stop doing that, I’ll fuck you in front of everyone. Even in front of your father. - Amanda smiles and licks her lips. And I don’t know how to react to this. I don’t care how many people are there. And even the fact that her resurrected dad is standing there waiting for us. I want this woman. I want her so much that my groin aches just thinking about how I could take her on this table. And how many times I have imagined it since she returned. How I’m fucking her here in all possible positions.
Someone clears their throat behind the door, and we realize we need to stop.
- Okay, Adam. But we will continue this. - Ami stands up, adjusting her dress, and waits for me. I need to switch to something else. Think of something terrible to make the erection go away. Because listening to my father-in-law’s frankness in this state isn’t very appealing. I take Ami’s hand, and we head to the kitchen.
Korniyov is sitting and drinking coffee, clearly waiting for us. - Well, now we have a chance to talk. - He offers us two cups, and we sit across from him. Amanda looks at him warily. He exhales and begins the story.
- Ami, as you already know, your mother is alive. - The woman shifts her gaze from me to him.
- How was I supposed to know that? How is she alive? - I notice surprise in her eyes and realize that I’m about to be in trouble. Yes, I knew that Amanda's mother was alive. And that her death in that accident was faked to protect her from some danger. I didn’t know the details, but Korniyov made it clear that for now, Amanda couldn’t see her. And when the time comes, they would surely meet. And perhaps that’s why I didn’t tell Kitten that her mother was alive because I knew she wouldn’t listen and would want to go to her. But I couldn’t expose her life to danger, so I kept quiet.
- Yes, she’s alive. I thought Adam told you. - Korniyov shifts his gaze to me, and I don’t see any judgment there, just understanding. - But perhaps he kept silent to protect you because it was equally forbidden for you to meet her until now.
Amanda’s eyes blaze with anger. She probably wants to strangle me right now. And I imagine her strangling me in bed. Adam, get a grip. This is too serious a conversation to think about how you’re taking Amanda.
- It doesn’t matter. I should have known my mother was alive. - Amanda stands up and begins to pace the room. I see how much this annoys her.
- Daughter, not now. You will definitely meet your mother. - Korniyov approaches her and hugs her. Amanda doesn’t resist. She walks with him, and they sit on the couch. I remain seated on the chair.
- But what about your illness? - she looks at him. He smiles again, pressing her to him.
- There was no illness. All of that was a fabrication. I needed to disappear. Actually, both me and your mother needed to disappear. The only option to start everything over was to let go of everything. Of our past lives. The only thing we couldn’t let go of was you, Ami. You know what you mean to us, both to me and to your mom. But for a while, we needed to vanish. The only option was death. And when I was informed that Vitvitsky wanted to arrange an accident, not showing up himself and pinning it on me, I decided to take this opportunity. Your mother wasn’t in that car. It was then we decided that I also needed to die. A death by shooting and all that could raise suspicions, so cancer was the best solution. - I listen to how the man tells all this and think about how well he managed to play because I truly believed he was sick.
- That day I came to Adam to tell part of our story and to say that your mother is alive. I wanted to do that at the funeral, but I couldn’t. I decided the time wasn’t right. Right now your wound is so strong that you would throw yourself to find her, and that couldn’t happen. Everyone had to believe she was dead, especially Vitvitsky; otherwise, he would start looking for her, and that would jeopardize our plan. - Amanda pulls away from Korniyov and continues to look at me and him.
- And then, after my death, you came, and the entire business officially came to you. - The man smiles and takes Amanda's hand. - I am proud of you, daughter. I always knew you would be a worthy replacement for me. And when I was informed about the story with Lantsov, you should have seen my smile. Even your mother said that, despite being raised by another man, you are my little copy. I am very proud of your character and how you take everything into your own hands. - I see Amanda’s eyes beginning to glow. She’s very happy with the praise. And I wonder how often I praised Amanda for her actions? Or did I only express fears that she was changing, that her life was at risk, and so on? Did I not realize in time that Amanda needed praise and support? Not help, but support. She is strong; she can handle everything herself. And I should have been there, but I missed that chance, missed that moment. And now I don’t know if we can patch things up. We’ve made so many mistakes. I look at Korniyov and see understanding in his eyes.
He continues his story...