“He built his reputation well. But he was not as ambitious or as ruthless as he should have been. Age and illness was making him weak. And the sicker he got, the more he spoke about you.”
I raise my eyebrows and hold my breath, unsure if I want to hear what was coming next.
“He was nervous of you,” Budimir says. “He was uncertain of how you might lead, but he was still convinced that you would rise to the challenge.”
His words slap me right across the face. I feel a strange sense of loss pass through me.
It makes me realize how little time I spent with Stanislav. How little I really knew about the man.
All our conversations inevitably turned into arguments. After a point, I had tried to avoid them altogether.
Perhaps if I’d put my pride aside, I might have been better able to know th
