Prologue
The crystal chandelier above Marie's head seemed to tremble with an excess of questions she didn't know the answers to. In front of her, on a mahogany table, lay three samples of invitations. Cream vellum, gold embossing and a font so elegant it is almost illegible.
- Marie, for God’s sake, look at me, not at those scraps of paper! - Jenny’s voice cut through the sterile silence of the living room like the sound of shattering glass.
The young woman sighed, pushing the floral catalog away.
- But the wedding is in six weeks. Victor can't handle the catering and guest list alone. You know how he is... to him „it doesn't matter" means a logistical disaster. Since he became my father's partner, he has no time to sleep, let alone choose the color of napkins. He trusts my taste, I can't leave him alone with all this.
Jenny approached her friend and slammed the luxurious wedding planner shut with a bang. In her hands appeared a smartphone, with an open railway map of Europe.
- That's why you have to leave. Or else you'll walk down the aisle as the best organized but most unhappy bride in London.
– This is not a misfortune, Jen. It's a responsibility. - Marie replied, adjusting the diamond ring on her finger. It was heavy, perfectly clean and... safe. Like Victor. Like their years together spent in the shadow of their father's office buildings.
- Victor is my best friend. He works side by side with my dad, building our future, and I'm supposed to be his support, not his problem. I wouldn't forgive myself if something went wrong because of my departure.
- You will have this responsibility for the next half-century as a wife of success. Now, you have one last chance to do something unpredictable. - Jenny leaned over, and her eyes glistening.
- Listen to me; train. No airports, no check-in lines. Just us, backpacks and all of Europe moving outside the window. Interrail, Marie. Berlin, Paris, Vienna, maybe as far as Italy itself. The clatter of wheels, cheap wine and no stiff banquets.
Marie felt a strange cramp in her stomach. The vision of a rail compartment and an escape from deadlines was tempting, but at the same time unrealistic.
- I can't field Victor. He is too loved to protest, but we both know that without me, these preparations will stall. My father wouldn't forgive me for that. Besides... trains? Second class? You know I even take a taxi to the office.
- And that's the problem! - Jenny almost screamed, grabbing Marie by the shoulders. - You forgot what it's like not to know what's going to happen at the next station. You want to enter into marriage with a spreadsheet in mind? Marie, this is supposed to be your bachelorette party. Not one night at the club you'll forget in the morning, but a journey you'll remember forever. The last time you're gonna be just Marie. Not the fiancée, not the future wife of a partner of a big boss, not the daughter of an IT tycoon.
Marie looked at the map on her phone screen. Thin, black lines of track crisscrossed the continent like a spider's web of possibility. For a moment, she imagined the hum of a train and the wind in her hair instead of the smell of expensive server rooms, and air-conditioned offices.
- Victor will agree. - Jenny continued more quietly, seeing the hesitation in her friend's eyes. - He's too good a man to forbid you a little freedom. The question is, do you have the courage to allow yourself a bit of... chance?
Marie looked again at the gold letters on the invitation: Marie & Victor. Everything was so certain. So arranged.
- It's only a week? - she asked in a whisper, her heart beating faster for the first time in months.
Jenny smiled triumphantly.
- A week that can hold a lifetime. Pack your suitcase, Marie. But the smaller one. The one you won't be afraid to get dirty.
Shortly after Jenny left, Marie felt that if she didn't do it now, she would never do it. The air in the hallway seemed thick with the smell of wax on the floors and an old wood. She stood before the heavy mahogany door of the study, that now belonged to Victor.
Until recently, this place was her father's stronghold. However, Robert Sinclair's illness and his emergency hospital stay changed the balance of power at home. Doctors were relentless – IT tycoon had to slow down. Temporarily handing over the reins of the company to Victor was a natural step for his father. He trusted him more than anyone else; he saw him as a younger version of himself - predatory, effective, and flawless.
Marie breathed deeply, trying to calm the shaking of her hand. She still doubted whether Jenny's idea wasn't pure madness, but the promise she'd made to her friend, weighed on her like an uncomfortable ticket.
She opened the door. Victor sat in a deep leather armchair. In the dimness of the study, the only light source was a lamp on the desk, reflected in the amber liquid in his glass. He looked through the documents with the same focused expression Marie had seen from him hundreds of times. In that light he looked gentle, almost defenseless, but Marie knew it was an illusion. Beneath this smooth exterior lay a man who had built an empire out of nothing, leaning on her father's shoulder.
Victor was strict and consistent – these qualities led Robert Sinclair to consider him a worthy partner for his only daughter. Marie remembered their beginnings: she, a sophomore, and he, an ambitious programmer with a vision of market control. Victor dreamed of fame and power, and her father gave him the keys to that door. Their marriage was to be the culmination of this alliance – a fusion of hearts and interests that would move them to a luxury estate in California upon marriage.
He was perfect for her. Safe as the foundation of a house. And yet, when he proposed to her at a family dinner, Marie felt not joy but... surprise. She knew he loved her, but she had never thought of herself as a wife before. She wanted a career, a journey, her own path. She accepted the proposal because Victor was the logical choice. Because her father was happy. Because with Victor, nothing could have happened to her. But was that enough to call it love?
Finally, she went inside.
- Victor... - she started quietly.
The man raised his head. A smile immediately blossomed on his tired face, which did not always reach his eyes.
- Hello honey. - his voice was deep, laced with hoarseness.
- Do you have a moment? I would like to talk about something.
- For you I always have time. Sit down. - he pointed to the chair in front of him, the same one his father's contractors usually sat on.
Marie sat on the very edge, feeling her heart pound her ribs.
- It's about... about what will happen before our wedding.
Victor put a glass of brandy on the oak counter. The metallic sound of hitting the wood made Marie tremble.
- I'm listening, Marie. Spit it out.
- Jenny... I mean, the girls came up with a some trip. A week in Europe, by train. A little bachelorette party before everything becomes... official. I know this is a terrible time, that dad is sick and that the entire company is on your shoulders, but... - she spoke faster and faster, as if she was afraid he would interrupt her.
Victor stood up. His silhouette against the window seemed enormous. He walked around the desk slowly and stood right in front of her. He took her hands – they were cold compared to his warm embrace. He picked her up and pulled her towards him, locking her in the safe embrace, which Marie knew so well.
She waited for opposition, for rational arguments about deadlines and catering, but instead that, Victor pulled her hair back from her forehead and smiled.
- I think that's a great idea.
His answer walled her up.
- Really?
- All this fuss about our wedding and your father’s illness... . You're clearly overworked. You need a reset before you become the queen of my California estates. Go, have fun. I don't understand why you have doubts at all.
Marie felt a sudden surge of relief, and at the same time... a strange twinge. Victor was too perfect. Too understanding.
- Thank you. - she whispered and kissed him on the cheek. He smelled of expensive tobacco and brandy.
- Are you sure you can handle everything by yourself? - she asked as she stood in the doorway.
Victor laughed softly as he sat back down in her father's chair.
- Marie, I manage one of the largest IT companies in the world. I think I can easily choose flowers for the tables. Go and don't worry about anything.
Marie closed the door, leaving him in this dark, mahogany world. She felt she had just been given the freedom pass she was afraid to ask for, but deep down she knew one thing: this suitcase she would start packing in the evening, would be heavier than Victor might have imagined.
