Victoria spent the better part of the morning with her youngest daughter, Lonette, the two of them tucked away in the sunlit garden. Drake hadn’t pressed her about yesterday’s conversation with Binky, and for that she was grateful. She still needed time to turn the old man’s impossible request over in her mind. Impossible, yet somehow unavoidable now.

“Mommy, look!” Lonette called out, launching into a wobbly but determined cartwheel across the grass. Victoria set her worries aside and smiled, clapping softly. “That was perfect, sweetie. You’re getting so strong.” “I agree,” Drake said, appearing at her side with a steaming cup of coffee. He handed it to her, his fingers brushing hers.

“Watch me do two in a row, Daddy!”

“I’m watching, sweetheart,” Drake replied, his gaze following their daughter. As Lonette tumbled forward again, he leaned closer to Victoria and lowered his voice. “Mom called. She said you wouldn’t tell her what you and Dad talked about. Is it that bad?” “It’s…complicated,” Victoria murmured. “But I think you and I need to talk about who Binky might turn to if he refuses to give Anton the second ring.” “I’m not stepping into his place, and no one would ever take Leslie seriously. Anastasia is illegitimate and knows nothing about this life - she’s got enough on her plate with the pregnancy. He’s running out of options, and even whispering other options feels dangerous. It's bad enough that Alex was paralyzed over this issue.” Victoria hesitated, choosing her words with care. “You know…Natasha could probably talk him out of this whole mess. Maybe if you reached out to her -”

Drake went rigid. Old shadows flickered across his face. “No.” “Drake, I know how you feel about her, but -” “No,” he cut in, sharper this time. “I don’t know how you could even suggest that. She wouldn’t lift a finger to help any of us.”

He turned on his heel and walked away before she could say another word, leaving Victoria alone with the fading sound of Lonette’s laughter and the weight of everything still unspoken between them.