Chapter Forty Two Sarah #2
“Trust me, we will. They will be tortured for days for what they did to Maksim…and Vasily.”
At the mention of the kind bodyguard, I asked, “Is he…?”
When Aleks glanced down at his hands, I knew the answer to my question. “Did they stab him, too?”
With a shake of his head, Aleks said, “They used a silencer to shoot him in the head.”
Tears pricked my eyes. He had been so kind to me. And I knew he was the one who had helped get Silas to rehab.
And now his life had been cut short. I knew he couldn’t have been older than thirty.
Thinking about Maksim again, I asked, “Will you tell me what happened in the bakery?”
“He was outnumbered and stabbed. What more is there to tell?”
“How many times?”
“Almost too many in the gut.”
I shuddered. “They just stabbed him and left?”
Aleks clenched his jaw. “They wanted him to suffer. Bleeding out from a gut wound is pretty painful.”
“How did you get to him in time?”
“He hit the panic button on his watch. Dima knew none of us could get to him in time, so he called an ambulance.”
I furrowed my brows. “Wait, but how did you get him to the house if you called an ambulance?”
“I can’t tell you all of our secrets, now can I?”
“You bribed the EMS and took the ambulance?”
He shook his head. “Yes, we bribed them, but we did an exchange for him.”
“Jesus,” I muttered.
“You’re the one who wanted to know.”
“Maybe I was wrong to ask.”
We pulled up to a gated driveway. Oleg punched in the code, and the gates slowly opened. Leaning forward, I stared out the window as we drove along the wooded area. To my surprise, armed men were stationed along the route.
Turning back to Aleks, I said, “You guys aren’t taking any chances, are you?”
“No. We’re not.”
Just as I had imagined, the Korolov compound was a mansion bigger than the one Maksim and I had stayed in when we first met.
After Oleg pulled the SUV to a stop, Aleks came around the car to get me.
After I hopped out, he took me around the side of the enormous mansion.
He keyed in a password, and the backdoor swung open.
I hurried to keep up with him as he started down a hallway.
After a quick ride down on the elevator, the doors opened to reveal what looked like the ER of a hospital. Blinking in surprise, I stepped out and followed Aleks over to one of the rooms.
A curtain separated the room. When Aleks flicked it back, I gasped at the sight of Maksim on the bed with several tubes running in and out of his body. Kira sat on one side of the bed, and Mila on the other.
At the sight of me, their haunted eyes lit up. “Sarah, thank God,” Mila said, as she popped out of her chair.
Tears stung my eyes. “I’m so sorry,” I choked out.
Mila came over to wrap me in her arms. “Thank you for coming.”
“You don’t need to thank me.”
She pulled away to stare intently into my face. “After learning what Maksim did to you, you’re damn straight I owe you a thanks. I’m not sure if I would’ve been as forgiving as you.”
“I second that,” Kira remarked from her seat.
Glancing past her, I stared at Maksim’s body. Although he was shirtless, bandages covered his chest and abdomen. “How is he?”
“The same. His vitals are improving, and he’s stable. The doctor just can’t understand why he’s not waking up.”
My feet seemed to move of their own volition, carrying me to Maksim’s side. At the sight of his mangled body, I couldn’t keep the tears from overflowing my eyes.
“We’ll leave you with him,” Mila said in a low voice.
Swiping my eyes, I argued, “You don’t have to do that.”
She gave me a sympathetic smile. “I think we should.”
“If you insist.”
“We’ll be right outside if you need us.”
“Okay.”
The breath whooshed from my body as I watched the three of them leave the room. When the door closed behind them, I fought to catch my breath. My erratic heartbeat wasn’t helping matters either.
Since I felt a little dizzy, I dropped down into the chair Mila had been sitting in. For a while, I just sat in silence, listening to the beeping of the machines and watching Maksim’s broad chest rise and fall. I’d sat in this position too many times to count at my father’s bedside and Silas’s.
And then I leaned forward to take his hand in mine. I swallowed a sob at the sight of the blood still staining his skin. Slowly, I stroked my fingers over his. “Hey, it’s me,” I finally said.
“It’s Sarah. I want you to wake up right now, do you hear me?”
When his face remained unchanged, a mirthless laugh tumbled from my lips.
“I don’t know why I was expecting to boss you around and suddenly you’d wake up.
I guess I was on some sort of power trip or something.
I mean, I know you’ve said I had the magic touch before, but I guess that only works when we’re having sex, huh? ”
I exhaled a ragged breath. “You weren’t kidding when you said you’d do anything to talk to me,” I teased.
After the words left my lips, I groaned.
“Can you tell how nervous I am? Although I’m a fan of gallows humor, that was an especially bad joke.
I’m sure if you were awake you would give me that look of yours–the one I like to call the Slavic Side-eye.
It’s funny because Aleks does the same thing, so it must be hereditary. ”
Scooting closer to the edge of the hospital bed, I said, “Speaking of Aleks, you would’ve been really proud of him. He came busting into my office and forced me to face my fears to come see you.”
Tilting my head at him, I asked, “Did you know I was afraid to talk to you or see you? I know that sounds crazy considering what a ball buster I usually am.”
My fingertip traced the letters of the ink on his fingers. “That’s all I can think of for the reason why I couldn’t talk to you.” Sighing, I said, “I’ve been strong for so fucking long, Maksim. Dad’s condition is deteriorating faster and faster, and no matter how hard I try, I can’t save him.”
A sob choked off in my throat. “Like I told Aleks, I’m so afraid if I give you another chance, you’ll hurt me again. And when you do, I know I won’t survive it.”
With a shake of my head, I sobbed, “I’m not talking about moping around and not talking to people. I’m talking about a full on mental break with white vests and grippy socks. Considering Silas’s mental illness, it isn’t too far-fetched to imagine me completely losing it.”
Swiping my eyes, I said, “And what would happen to my mom and to Sammy then? And to my dad. I love you so much, but I had to love myself more in this situation. Or I guess I should say I loved my blood more, which deep down feels so incredibly selfish. You’ve done so much for my family.
Over and over you’ve proven to me you’re a stand-up guy who made a really bad mistake.
And after he made it, he couldn’t bring himself to ruin what happiness he’d finally found for himself. ”
Rising out of my chair, I leaned over the rails on the bed. I brought my lips to Maksim’s ear. “Come back to me, Maksim. Come back to your family who loves and needs you.”
With my heart beating out of my chest, I said, “Come back to me who loves you and needs you. Give me the opportunity to give you another chance.”
After placing a kiss on his jaw, I kissed a trail over to his mouth. I pressed my lips against his, tasting the salt of my tears on his mouth.
With my lips hovering over his, I murmured, “I forgive you.”
When he remained still and unmoving, I slid down the side of the bed to the floor and sobbed uncontrollably.