Vasili Thorne

Vasili Thorne, a character in the Crimes of Passion series, is a Prince of Drakovia, and one of Trystan's half-brothers. He makes his first official appearance in Book 2, Chapter 1.

Appearance
Vasili has short wavy brown hair, brown eyes, dark skin, and a light stubble. He wears a gray turtleneck sweater, black round glasses, beige pants, a watch on his left wrist, and a black trench coat.

Personality
Vasili is a cunning strategist. He is smart, ambitious, and cool-headed. He is well-liked by the Drakovian people as he's seen as a patron of the arts, and he's a champion of tradition and a generous tipper. According to Trystan, he is also a sucker for decorum and rule-making, and wouldn't risk the queen's ire to provoke Trystan or you. He is considered to be the family diplomat, and in his youth, he was considered to be the dependable and patriotic "spare" to Trystan's "heir".

However, when you realize he's the killer, he is shown to be actually very power hungry and believes his actions are simply a means to an end.

Background
Vasili is a socialite, and he's close with his full-blooded siblings and his parents. He's also amicable with all of his half-siblings, although the Queen's feelings about him are unknown. He is a key figure in fundraising for the expansion of the Drakkos children's hospital, including a new arts programme to encourage mental stimulation and wellbeing for long-term patients. Additionally, he's on the boards of the Drakkos Opera Society, the Drakovian Historical Preservation Society, the Drakovian Film and Television Fund, and is even President of the official Drakovian book club.

Book 1

 * Chapter 17: The Long Goodbye (Determinant)

Book 2

 * Chapter 1: To Catch a Thief
 * Chapter 3: Drakovian Intelligence
 * Chapter 4: Objection
 * Chapter 5: A Rose Among Thornes
 * Chapter 6: Served Cold
 * Chapter 7: The Drakovian Heir
 * Chapter 8: Unite and Conquer (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 9: The Royal Tea (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 10: The Mask Drops
 * Chapter 11: Footage Not Found
 * Chapter 12: Fashion Victim
 * Chapter 13: In Memoriam
 * Chapter 14: Illegitimate
 * Chapter 15: The Drakovian Nightingale
 * Chapter 16: Heavy Is the Crown (Mentioned)

Trystan Thorne
Vasili and Trystan used to be close when they were young, but Vasili grew up in Trystan's shadow, and he considers him/her to be a flight risk. During his/her trial, Vasili says that because Juliana wanted changes that could have resulted in Trystan being removed as heir to the throne, this could have potentially been a motive to kill her. Throughout the chapters, Trystan refers to Vasili as his/her favorite brother and is fond of him. However, in Chapter 15, Vasili reveals that the feelings are not mutual.

Vasili reveals that he has always held a grudge against Trystan and felt he was better suited to rule Drakovia instead. Vasili thought Trystan was an idiot, irresponsible, immature, and selfish in his/her youth and did not love the country as much as a future ruler should. Eight years ago, when Trystan and Juliana left Marguerite's debut fashion show before it started, and Emika and Kaspar informed her of their departure instead of sparing her feelings with a white lie, Vasili was upset for Marguerite, and seethed internally, justifying his murderous thoughts towards Trystan.

Knowing Trystan and Juliana's whereabouts -as Trystan had asked both Vasili and Astrid to cover for their departure - Vasili took a boat to meet up with Trystan's yacht. His plan was to kill Trystan with an overdose of glitter, and free Juliana of their arranged engagement. He believed no one would question Trystan's death as it would make sense due to his/her party-loving reputation. Then, he and Juliana would be free to marry, and with the passing of the Act for Heir Equity, he would rule with her as his queen, and with Sebastyan, Lydea, and Marguerite beside them.

However, when Juliana told Vasili that she loved Trystan and didn't allow him/her to be killed, Vasili instinctively killed her instead and framed Trystan for her death. With Trystan exiled for Juliana's death, Vasili would not have to worry about him/her being an obstacle in the line of succession and would let time erase Trystan from the thoughts of Drakovia's citizens.

This plan was thwarted by Trystan's return to the spotlight when the both of you gained worldwide recognition in stopping the serial killers behind the Hand of Mahra. To Vasili's frustration, Drakovia's citizens clamored for Trystan's return as a hero and Vasili had to work quickly to convince Nadja Zoric to prosecute Trystan instead. He suggested Dmitri Omakoff manipulate his interview with Trystan to bring about a confession, and gave Juliana's mothers a letter that Juliana had written to him, alluding it was actually written to Trystan. When the court exonerated Trystan instead, Vasili planned to frame Trystan for Nadja's murder.

Sebastyan Thorne
Vasili and Sebastyan were close brothers, the latter looking up to his older brother and wanting to bring the Act to fruition to benefit him. Eventually Sebastyan had put together that Vasili had murdered Juliana and Nadja and planned to go forward with this information, resulting in Vasili murdering him as well.

Juliana Georgescu
In Chapter 15, Luke's dossier on Vasili brings up the fact that Vasili attended the prestigious Lake Skryty Summer Camp at the same time Juliana did. You surmise that they had become teenage sweethearts, and was Juliana's secret lover whom she had written letters to, first with intimacy (these letters were subsequently burned by Vasili), and years later with disgust (the latter of which was used as evidence against Trystan during his/her trial). Vasili was in love with her, and was upset that she chose Trystan over him.

Later, if you decide to hear Vasili's whole story, he confirms your theory. In the middle of her relationship with Vasili, she was betrothed to Trystan. When her feelings for Trystan evolved, she stopped fighting for the Act and returned Vasili's locket to him. Vasili's feelings, however, did not change. When Trystan left Marguerite's debut fashion show with Juliana, Vasili believed he had the opportunity to rid himself Trystan by murdering him/her and framing it as an accident. When Vasili approached Juliana with his plan, she argued with him, and would not have any part in killing the man/woman she loved. When she refused and told Vasili that Trystan would be a great king/queen, Vasili killed her by injecting her with Glitter, causing her to stumble and hit her head hard. He held her as she died in his arms, and later he took her body on his skiff and gave her a burial at sea.

Trivia

 * His character model resembles a version of Your Character from Veil of Secrets.
 * He and his family share the same surname as Garrett Thorne from Open Heart: Second Year and the default surname of Attorney as well as Reese from Surrender.
 * He is the oldest of Trystan's half siblings and the second oldest of all the Thorne children, as he would have been next in line after Trystan had he been legitimized.
 * In Book 2, Chapter 14, he is revealed to be the big bad of the book who committed all the murders to ensure the passage of the Act for Heir Equity, so that he could seize the throne.
 * His crimes include murder, conspiracy and treason.
 * In Book 2, Chapter 15, you can either execute him or arrest him for the murders.