Chapter 19 - Valery #2
“I see. And when last did you have your period?” she asks.
“Excuse me, what does that have to do with…Oh,” I stammer, looking into her face as she raises her brows at me. “Do you remember when you last had your period?”
I nod. “It’s been a while. I think I’m about two weeks late, but I’ve been really stressed, so it could be late because of that.”
“Well, before I prescribe you anything for the nausea, I’d need you to do a quick pregnancy test. You can use the bathroom around the back.”
“Oh. Ok. This is happening now?”
“It’s up to you, honey. I’m just telling you what I can do for you.” She shrugs and offers me a box containing one pregnancy test. “Will this be cash?”
“Yes, please, cash.”
I pay for the box and carry it around to the public bathrooms at the back of the pharmacy.
Alone in a cubicle, I stare in horror at the test. Is this really happening? Is this real? Shit. I don’t see how things could get any worse. I already feel completely isolated and alone. What am I going to do if I find out I’m pregnant?
Briefly looking at the instructions on the insert, I get the gist of it and unclip the cap from the stick, hold it under my stream, and then clip it back on to wait.
I wait, standing in the small cubicle. I bite at my lip, and I think about all the possibilities, all my fears, and everything that might happen if that test strip shows positive.,
Which it does.
Two solid red lines.
Confirmed.
I’m pregnant.
I sit down heavily on the closed toilet lid and forget how to breathe.
The test is still in my hands, and, horrified, I drop it to the floor, wanting to run away from the truth.
But I can’t.
This is happening, whether I’m ready or not.
I am pregnant with Jaroslav’s child.
And I have no idea how to tell him.
***
It takes me forever to convince myself to go back home, to my brother’s place.
I hurry straight upstairs again and hide away from their questions, even though I promised them I would speak to them today. I can’t. There is no way I can face any of them after finding out that I’m pregnant.
Jaroslav is the one I need to speak to, but clearly, he isn’t bothered in the least that I’ve left.
Checking my phone for the hundredth time, I find no messages or missed calls from him, or anyone for that matter.
Curling up on my bed, I pull the blanket over my head and fall asleep because I desperately need to escape everything that’s happening, and this is the best way I know how.
***
Something slams loudly downstairs, and I bolt awake in fright.
My room is dark. It’s late, and I’m bewildered from the deep sleep I was in. Did I imagine that noise?
Someone shouts, and another loud sound echoes up the stairs from the living room. Climbing out of bed, my heart is racing with fear. What’s going on? Is someone in the house? Are we in danger?
I quietly slip my sneakers onto my feet. I’m still wearing my jeans and t-shirt from today, but I want shoes on in case I need to run.
I tiptoe out of my room, downstairs, and toward the living room. The closer I get, the more clearly I can hear. My brothers are arguing with each other.
But they aren’t distressed in the sense of someone breaking in; they’re fighting over what to do with whoever they have with them. I press close to the wall and sneak closer.
“Just let me see her,” Jaroslav says calmly. His voice is clear above the rest and has goosebumps spreading over my arms and a warm shiver running down my spine. He’s here? How? Why?
“Shut up. You are our prisoner. You don’t get to make demands,” Diomid snarls. Prisoner? What in the world is going on?
“You’ve spent the last few days blocking any calls I’ve made to her phone and the messages. Why don’t you just let me talk to her face-to-face, seeing as you are so adamant to stop me from speaking to her on the phone?”
“No. We blocked your calls for a reason, Jaroslav. You aren’t going anywhere near our sister ever again,” Matvei snarls angrily.
My heart rages when I hear them admit they’ve tampered with my phone, and I burst into the living room, my fists clenched at my sides. “What is he talking about? Did you block my phone?” I shout angrily.
Matvei, Diomid, and Timofey turn to look at me. Oleg looks down at the ground. He’s the savvy one. He’s the one who would have done the blocking.
No one answers me, though, and I shout again. “Did you block my phone?”
Matvei steps away from Jaroslav, whom I can’t even look at, and cautiously raises his hand. “Yes, Valery. We wanted to keep you safe,” he says quietly.
“How dare you? You had no right to do that. And what is Diomid talking about? Prisoner? Have you taken Jaroslav prisoner?”
For the first time, my eyes meet his, and my heart comes to a standstill. My entire body heats with emotions, and I can’t say another word.
“It’s ok, Valery,” Jaroslav says. He looks as calm as ever. Not worried, not fearful, not as a prisoner should look.
Diomid growls and steps between Jaroslav and me. “Yes, we took him prisoner, because we intend to make him pay for what he did to you.”
“But you don’t even know if he did something to me,” I blurt out, frustrated.
“We know you well enough, Valery. We can see when you’re hurting.”
I shake my head. “Let him go right now. Let him leave,” I demand.
The room is heavy with tension as my brothers look between each other and then back at me. I raise my brows, glaring at Matvei. “Tell them to let him go.”
He sighs heavily and tilts his head back, looking at the ceiling. Finally, he gives in. “Let him go,” he says abruptly. Then he turns to Jaroslav. “I’m sorry. I made a rash decision based on an impulsive idea. I see now that it was stupid and that we’ve risked the alliance.”
My heart clenches tightly while I wait for Jaroslav’s response.
He looks at me when he answers, “It’s alright, Matvei. But I’m not ready to leave. I’d like to stay for dinner.”
My jaw drops open as I stare at him in disbelief. “You should go,” I stammer.
“I’d like to stay.” This time, he looks at Matvei, and I understand that it’s turned into a negotiation in relation to the alliance. Matvei owes him for kidnapping him.
“You are our welcome guest, just for dinner. And then you have to go.”
“Thank you,” Jaroslav says.