Five Years Later
"You sure about this?" Raze asked, leaning against the hood of his car, arms crossed, skeptical as always.
Tesmee didn't even look at him as she adjusted her leather gloves. "She's just a friend. Not everyone grows up in blood and bullets, Raze. There's another world out there."
Raze scoffed lightly. "Yeah? Well, people like us don't usually get to visit it."
She turned to face him, her expression flat. "We don't talk about work. He doesn't know me and I intend to keep it that way."
"Good luck, then," Raze muttered, stepping back as she slid into the driver's seat of her BMW M8 GTR.
The engine roared to life. Without another word, she pulled out fast, tires screeching, tearing down the road like she had something to prove or something to outrun.
But no matter how far Tesmee drove, the past always had a way of catching up.
At the Volkov estate, Tesmee stepped out of her car, eyeing the grand structure with quiet caution. She'd never been here before only heard whispers about it. It looked exactly like the kind of place you'd expect power to live in: massive, polished, and unnervingly quiet.
Before she could walk up the steps, the door swung open.
"Tesmee!" Elizabeth's voice came out bright and excited, cutting through the silence.
Tesmee barely had a second to react before Elizabeth was already wrapping her arms around her. "It's been the longest time," she said, her signature smile in full display.
Tesmee allowed a small smirk to pull at the corner of her mouth. "Two years, right?" she said stiffly, still slightly caught off guard by the warmth.
"Two years and three months," Elizabeth corrected, stepping back to get a good look at her. "And you missed my wedding."
Tesmee exhaled lightly. "Yeah… I'm sorry about that. Life got complicated."
Elizabeth waved her off. "You're here now. That's all I care about."
Tesmee glanced up at the estate again, taking it in. "Big place. First time seeing it in real life."
Elizabeth grinned. "Welcome to the madness."
Definitely still gotta get hella worse than that, Tesmee thought to herself, brushing her hand down her dress with a quiet exhale.
"Well, let's go inside! There's a lot of people I want you to meet," Elizabeth said cheerfully, grabbing Tesmee's hand and pulling her toward the grand doors before she could object.
Tesmee's heels clicked against the marble as she followed, the inside already buzzing with polite conversations, soft music, and the weight of wealth pressing in from all corners.
She kept her guard up. If she was stepping into the lion's den, she needed to look unfazed doing it.
Inside the lavish sitting room, Tyric sat with the rest of the Volkov family his parents and siblings scattered across the velvet couches, laughter and small talk filling the space.
The moment Elizabeth entered, still holding Tesmee's hand, Tyric stood.
He didn't say a word. He just stared cold, unreadable, his jaw tight.
"Tyric, baby," Elizabeth said cheerfully, oblivious to the sudden shift in atmosphere. "This is Tesmee Rous. Tesmee, meet my husband, Tyric Volkov."
She gestured between them, trying to spark warmth that wasn't there.
Tesmee stepped forward, extending her hand with caution.
Tyric met it. A firm shake. No smile. No words.
Just a long, cold stare that made the air between them heavier than it already was.
They both nodded slightly, like strangers forced to acknowledge each other—calm on the outside, but tension brewing underneath.
"Nice to meet you," Tesmee finally said, her voice calm, almost too neutral.
"You too," Tyric replied flatly.
The words held no weight. Just formalities empty and cold.
Elizabeth, still smiling, looked between them, oblivious or pretending not to notice the tension.
"Well, this is the whole family," she said, gesturing to the room.
Tesmee gave a small, tight grin. The kind that didn't reach her eyes. It faded almost instantly, vanishing like breath on glass.
She gave a polite nod toward the others, but her mind was elsewhere on the man still watching her like she was a puzzle he couldn't place.