Czar Gregovivk

“She has been found.” Ramsés’ low voice sounds beside me, making me turn to look at him. “Baby just sent me a message saying she’s coming here with her husband, and she told me about the girl.”
“Where was she?” I ask, anxious, feeling the air return to my lungs upon hearing that Mabel has been found.
“At your property.” The Egyptian pats my shoulder and smiles. “See, I told you she never passed through the men; nothing gets by them.”
“I need to go to her, Ramsés...” I shove my hands into my pants pockets and glance at Jonathan, who is far off across the hall, talking with Hu Li and Santana.
“You’ll go after this circus is over.” He takes a deep breath and scans the room. “Right now, you need to concentrate and keep your mind focused here. There’s nothing to worry about; I’ve ordered the entire guard to stay close to the house, watching her. Almost all my men are with her, except for Raja, who’s here.”
I breathe deeply, knowing Ramsés is right, but I still want to go to Mabel, to look into her eyes, to have her in my arms.
“You two will work things out. You’ll have time to talk to her after you expose Morgana; your submissive will understand…”
“She called for Gomorra; Mabel is no longer my submissive,” I say softly, my nostrils flaring as I draw in a sharp breath.
“She wrote it down on a piece of paper; she didn’t say it face-to-face, in front of witnesses.” He pulls a cigar from his jacket pocket and lights it.
“But it’s still valid; she nullified the game.” I close my eyes, remembering every feature of her face as she slept in my arms last night.
“But she doesn’t know that.” Ramsés laughs and nudges my shoulder. I open my eyes and turn to him, finding him grinning at me. “Use this instead of this, my friend.” He points from his head to his heart. “By Ra, that’s why you’ll never see me bow to a companion; is there anything sadder than seeing a master with a collar?”
“I thought of that when I saw Jonathan’s situation with Ginger, but Mabel changed my thoughts when she entered my life.”
“In my culture, men don’t bow to women, Czar. You’ll never see a Bedouin kneel before a camel,” he says seriously, exhaling smoke from his cigar. “We have rules and discipline; if you let yourself be blinded by a woman, it’s a sign of weakness. When Ramsés of Naca has a companion, it will be because I’ve handpicked an obedient, docile, and calm woman who will follow my orders. I prefer a gentle camel, not a wild horse that will destroy my tent. You should have looked for a quiet, obedient woman, my Russian friend.”
I watch him for a few seconds, observing the astute, calm Egyptian who hides his strong temper behind his serene eyes. Ramsés isn’t the kind of man I’d want to test; he can go from peaceful to explosive anger in seconds. I presume that a woman who doesn’t meet his expectations would push him out of his comfort zone, bringing his aggressive side to the forefront. I think it would be interesting to see, as the astute Egyptian always boasts about maintaining his calm in any situation.
“I’ll appreciate getting to know the well of silence and obedience when you find her.” I laugh and lift my head, watching the tall woman walk to the center of the hall in a long white dress. “Morgana has arrived.”
I tighten my lips, locking eyes with hers. I see the cynical smile spread across her lips as she approaches me.
“And she didn’t come alone; I presume that’s the blood of your blood behind her,” Ramsés speaks low beside me.
I divert my gaze from Morgana to Kaiser, my half-brother, who slithers in like a venomous snake, lurking to strike.
“What’s that worm doing here?!” I grind my fingers in my pocket and breathe faster, feeling rage.
“I thought it wouldn’t be wrong to invite him.” Her voice rings out as she smiles at me when she stops in front of me. “After all, soon Kaiser will occupy the seat that rightfully belongs to you.”
The cold smile on my brother’s lips remains impassive as he stands behind Morgana’s chair.
“I’ll have the pleasure of watching you rot in a dark cell, where I’ll have the privilege of throwing you, Morgana, while your filthy soul goes to hell to meet Freire!” I snarl through clenched teeth, pulling my hands from my pockets, crushing them into fists. “You will pay for everything you’ve done.”
“What have I done? Besides pointing out your mistakes? You’re weak, Czar, and your father was wrong when he chose the incompetent son to take his place...” I grab her wrist as her arm stretches toward me, her fingers reaching to caress my chin. “You’re hurting a counselor in front of a meeting, Gregovivk?”
“I’ll do much more than hurt you, Morgana! Tonight!” I crush my lips with the same force I’m using to grip her wrist.
“So much denied potential; we could have had a lot of fun if you’d stayed with me, Czar...” I release her in disgust as she lets out a low moan, savoring the mark of my fingers on her pale skin. “Your father should have let me take care of you after your mother died; I would have educated you to be a true master.”
“Don’t talk about my mother, bitch!” I step closer and glare at her, feeling the urge to crush her neck and break it like a twig in my hands. “Don’t you dare speak about caring and my mother in the same sentence; you’re nothing but a cold bitch who couldn’t even care for her own child...”
“What...?” Morgana’s white skin turns even paler, her eyes widening as she looks at me in confusion.
“LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!” Adrien’s loud voice calls everyone’s attention as he enters with Oliver and walks to the center of the room to take his seat.
Morgana looks at me one last time before turning to sit in her chair.
“You saw her reaction?” Ramsés speaks low, looking at me seriously as we turn and walk to our seats. “For a brief moment, it was as if she was surprised…”
“I noticed!” I reply, sitting down and watching everyone take their places.
I keep my eyes on Morgana, watching her silently stare at the floor while the disgusting worm Kaiser stands behind her with his hands in his pockets and his face turned up toward me. I hold my gaze on him, meeting his anger with my own, not breaking eye contact for a second until my half-brother finally breaks the stare and turns his face away.
“Baby has arrived,” Ramsés murmurs, sitting beside me. I lift my eyes and see Baby standing beside her husband near the bar.
“We gather here today due to an alarming fact that has been haunting Sodoma.” Oliver rises and speaks seriously, scanning the room with his somber face. “A counselor has been murdered, and the following day, his submissive was killed.” He gestures toward Sebastian’s empty chair before lowering his hand. “And all this in the same month that a counselor was accused of harming a guest in his home—the home where we gather today.”
I feel all eyes on me as I glare at Morgana.
“As some of you may know, an old participant of Sodoma committed suicide in New York, Freire.” Oliver pauses, looking around the room. I lift my head and see him studying me with a calm expression. “And all this in such a short time... I wonder if anyone else would like to share something with the other counselors here before the private investigation conducted by Sodoma concludes…”
“There’s something strange about the dead boy, Sebastian’s submissive...” Morgana points to the vacant chair of the deceased counselor, looking thoughtful. “He was the same young man who brought the girl who fled the privileges to this house on the night Counselor Czar touched her…”
My face turns immediately toward Morgana, understanding exactly what this bitch is insinuating, throwing the information into the air, implying that I could be the one who killed both Sebastian and Macro.
“Counselor Czar, is this true?” Oliver asks, making me look at him.