gor com

ed with confusion and

she snatched her toy and hurled it against the wall

omfort and care, entered the room. The sight of

asked softly, her voice a bal

d as she spoke, her small shoulders heaving

d Anastasia to call him by his name, neve

g a gentle hand on Anastasia's shou

rmination, her small hand trembling as it clenched into a

at dinner," N

, almost imperceptible gesture, i

r favourite fish soup." She tried to inje

's own lips curled into a quick, relieved smile, a mirror to

esent. Polina was always too busy, too preoccupied with her own affairs t

: comforting her nightmares, tending to her b

hat she was missing, how precious these

laced a steaming omelet before him. He took a bite, his expr

nto his plate, his face

hing the plate away with a forc

usion. She had made

table, his chair scraping harshly against

wering saltiness hit her tongue, and she quickly spat it o

dden but her eyes sharp with satisfaction. A smirk tugg

lina, but the satisfaction of seeing Igor

ought her fleeting joy. Yet, as days turned into weeks, Anastas

e shadow that Igor cast. The man she had known as cold and dist

house. Whispers, once ig

ing the notorious Taipan gang. His life was a web of deceit, power, and violence, en

was thick with the scent of dust. Ig

eerie shadows across his face as he took

d uncomfortably, flanked by six of his men wh

ou have to wait a little while before exporting th

to command the room. His four men stood like s

despite the dread creeping into his bones. "I sug

his cigarette, letting the ashes fall to the co

people I know," Igor said. "Those

tightened, and he quickly stammered, "There's

eyes as he exhaled his cigarette smoke. Without breaking his gaze

en faded, leaving behind the cold, lifeless bodies of the

e blood on his forehead. The smoke from his cigarette

ith dark amusement, "I think this town

er-loyal right-hand man and bodyguard, whose

shed. This was the world they ruled, a world where loyalty was

power extending far beyond the sh

with a precision that left no room for resistance. The town, once rif

s favor, aligning their ambitions with his deadly influence. They knew that to oppo

warehouse, Igor knew that this was just anot

aning her room, Anastasia found h

could and couldn't go, but her curiosity, sharp and i

rting point. As she stepped into the hallwa

ended to the third floor. Here, she discovered the separate

fourth floor. She hesitated, this part of the house felt different. But

At the top, she found herself in a narrow passageway. The silence here was t

neatly arranged chairs around the large table, all facing forward as if waiting

ing in her ears. With a trembling resolve, she turne

that adorned the wall. A gruesome painting dominated the room, depic

the spot, her breath hitching. She quivere

e eyes landing on a polished black sculpture of a naked woman,

eached for the door, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the hallway