Epilogue
Ava
Six months later
The coffee shop in the Korolyov Hotel and Casino is exactly the kind of place Mom loves. Cozy and overpriced, with motivational quotes on chalkboards and plants hanging from the ceiling. I smooth my hands over my dress, trying to calm my nerves.
"You're fidgeting," Renat observes from beside me. His hand finds mine under the table, warm and steady. "Relax, milaya."
"Easy for you to say. You're not the one about to tell your mother and sister that you're pregnant with a Bratva baby."
His lips twitch. "Our baby. This is just news. Good news."
I hope he's right. Mom and Brit have been... adjusting. To my marriage. To my new life. To the fact that I fell in love with the man who was sent to use me as bait and kill my father.
It's complicated.
But they're trying. After Renat paid off Mom's mortgage, set up a trust fund for Brit's college, and hired private security to keep them safe, they started trying a lot harder to understand.
Money talks, apparently. Even in matters of the heart.
The bell over the door chimes, and I see them. Mom looks healthier than she has in years, her hair freshly cut, wearing clothes that actually fit instead of her usual worn-out sweats. Brit walks beside her, seventeen and beautiful, carrying herself with a confidence I never had at her age.
They spot us and head over. Mom's smile is warm but cautious. She still doesn't quite know what to make of Renat. I understand though. He is intimidating in size alone.
"Hi, sweetheart." She kisses my cheek, then nods at Renat. "Renat."
"Karina." He stands, ever the gentleman, and pulls out their chairs. "Brit. You look well."
My sister grins. "Thanks. College applications are kicking my butt, but the tutors you hired are helping a lot."
"Good." Renat settles back beside me, his hand returning to mine under the table. "That's what they're there for."
We order drinks and pastries, making small talk about Brit's classes and Mom's new job at the community center. She volunteers there now, helping other families in crisis. Finding purpose in the wreckage Dad left behind.
We don't talk about him, and we never talk about what he did. Though all three of us are in therapy individually to help live with it.
Finally, Mom sets down her latte and looks at me directly. "So. What's the big news? You sounded excited on the phone."
I take a deep breath and then blurt out the words the only way I know how. "I'm pregnant."
Silence.
Then Brit squeals and launches herself out of her chair to hug me. "Oh my God! Ava! You're going to be a mom!"
I laugh, hugging her back. "Yeah. I am."
Mom's eyes fill with tears. Happy tears, I realize with relief. "Oh, baby. That's wonderful. How far along?"
"Three months. Just got past the scary first trimester." I rest my hand on my barely domed stomach. "We wanted to wait to tell everyone until we were sure everything was okay."
"And it is?" Mom asks, her voice tight. "Everything's okay? You're healthy? The baby's healthy?"
"Perfect," Renat answers for me. "We have the best doctors. The best care. Ava and the baby are both doing beautifully."
Mom nods, wiping her eyes. Then she reaches across the table and takes my hand. "I'm happy for you, Ava. I really am. I know this whole situation is... unconventional. But I can see that you're happy. And that's all I've ever wanted for you."
"I am happy, Mom." I squeeze her hand. "I know you don't understand how I could fall in love with someone like Renat. How I could choose this life. But I did. And I don't regret it."
"He treats you well?" she asks, looking at Renat now with a mother's protective scrutiny.
"He treats me like a queen," I say honestly. "He gave me everything I ever wanted. Security. A home. A future. Love."
"And he'll protect this baby?" Brit asks, her hand on my shoulder. "No matter what?"
Renat's expression goes soft in a way I rarely see in public. "With my life. This child will want for nothing. Neither will Ava. I swear it on everything I am."
Mom studies him for a long moment, then nods. "Okay. I'm so happy for you both."
We spend the next hour talking about baby names and nursery colors and all the normal things expecting parents discuss. It feels surreal. Normal. Like maybe we can build something beautiful out of the ashes our father left behind.
When it's time to leave, Mom pulls me into a tight hug.
"I wish things had been different," she whispers. "I wish your father had been the man we thought he was. I wish you could have had a normal life, fallen in love the normal way."
"I know, Mom." I hug her back. "But this is my life. And I'm happy with it."
"Then that's enough." She pulls back, cupping my face. "Be happy, baby. That's all I ask, and know I’ll always have your back, whatever comes to pass."
Renat and I say our goodbyes and head back to the car.
"That went well," Renat observes as we pull out of the parking lot.
"Better than I expected." I rest my hand on my stomach again, still getting used to the idea that there's a tiny life growing inside me. "They really are trying."
"They love you. They want you to be happy." He reaches over and covers my hand with his. "And you are happy. Aren't you?"
"Deliriously." I lean my head against his shoulder. "Six months ago, I was terrified and alone and convinced my life was over. Now I'm married to the love of my life, pregnant with his baby, and actually looking forward to the future. It's insane."
"It's beautiful." He presses a kiss to the top of my head. "You're beautiful. Our life is beautiful. Our family will be beautiful."
Family. The word makes my chest tight with emotion.
"I love you," I tell him. "Even though you kidnapped me. Even though you're a killer. Even though loving you makes absolutely no logical sense."
"I love you too, milaya." His hand tightens on mine. "Even though you made me feel things I swore I never would. Even though you completely destroyed my carefully controlled life. Even though loving you has made me weak in ways that could get me killed."
"You're not weak." I sit up to look at him. "You're the strongest person I know."
"I used to be." He smiles, and it's the real smile. The one he only gives me. "Now I'm soft. Domesticated. Completely at the mercy of a five-foot-four woman who has me wrapped around her little finger."
"Don't forget the baby. Soon you'll be at the mercy of a tiny human who will have you even more wrapped."
"I can't wait." His hand moves to my stomach, that possessive gesture I've grown to love. "Boy or girl, they're going to be perfect. Beautiful like their mother. Strong like their father. Loved beyond measure."
"Spoiled rotten by their aunts and uncles," I add, thinking of the Korolyov brothers. All of them have been surprisingly supportive. Well, supportive in their own violent, overprotective way.
Adrik gave us a house as a wedding present. An actual house on the family estate he has been building. Six bedrooms, a pool, a yard big enough for kids to play in.
Yakov threatened to murder anyone who so much as looked at me wrong.
Dariy built a state-of-the-art security system for the nursery.
Rurik started a college fund with more money than I'll see in ten lifetimes.
And all of them, all of these dangerous men, have made it clear that this baby, their niece or nephew, will be protected by the full force of the Korolyov empire.
I settle back in my seat, my hand on my stomach, watching the Phoenix landscape give way to desert as we head back to Vegas. Back to our home. Our life. Our future.
Six months ago, I was drowning. Now I'm flying.
All because a devil in designer clothes walked into my apartment and offered me something I couldn't refuse.
Freedom. Safety. Love.
Him.
And I'd choose him again. A thousand times over. Even knowing everything I know now.
Especially knowing everything I know now.
Because this, this life, this love, this family we're building, this is worth everything.
Even the darkness it took to find the light.