Page 37 of Unbreakable Vow

“Oh, no.” Izzy swishes her hand through the air. “It’s not like that at all. There’s been no contact between that side of his family and him forever.”

“How sad.” It’s been ten years since my grandmother passed away. I lost all four of them before I was out of high school. It’s hard to imagine not having had them in my life though.

“Mrs. Petrov.” Mrs. Yugov rushes into the room with my cell phone in her hand.

Mrs. Petrov.

That’s me now.

My face heats at hearing it for the first time.

“Your phone.” She brings it to me as I get to my feet. “It was on the kitchen counter. It’s been ringing.”

I’d been so nervous when I heard the doorbell ring announcing the judge’s arrival, I’d forgotten it. I swipe the screen to find that I’ve missed four calls from Mom’s facility. Switching over to the voicemail app, I quickly scan the texts of the messages left.

Mom’s fallen.

“I have to go.” I turn to the left, then the right, not sure where I’m going. I stop, take a breath. “I’m sorry. But I have to go. Can you please tell Sergei that I’ll be back as soon as I can, but I really have to see to something.”

“Sure.” Marlena follows me as I hurry through the living room toward the foyer. “Is everything okay? Do you want us to come with you?”

“Yeah, maybe we should come with. You look a little pale,” Izzy offers while they stay close on my heels.

“No. No.” I find my purse in the front closet and pull it from the hook. The strap gets caught on the hook beside it and I have to fight the damn thing to get my purse. “I’m fine. I just need to go.”

“Maybe we should get one of the guys to drive her,” Marlena whispers.

“I don’t need a driver. I’m fine. I just need my keys!” They’re not in my purse.

“I think they’re in the garage,” Mrs. Yugov offers. “There’s a box with all the keys to the cars just inside the garage.”

“Oh. That’s right.” I run my hand through my hair and take a breath. “I’m sorry to run out like this, it’s really rude. I’m not usually rude, but I just… well, I have to go.”

Marlena and Izzy nod.

“It’s all right. Don’t worry about us, you just do what you need to. We’ll let Sergei know you’ll be back later.” Marlena opens the door for me that leads to the side room that will take me to the garage.

“Thank you!” I run through the mudroom, thankful that I wore my flats today with this sundress instead of a pair of heels.

My car keys aren’t in the box, and my car isn’t even in the garage.

I clench my fists. He hid my car!

There are three SUVs parked in the three-car garage. Each one is bigger than anything I’ve driven before, but how hard can it be?

She scratchedthe passenger side of my Denali!

My blood heats at the sight.

It’s bad enough I’ve had to chase my wife down to this nursing home, but when I get here, I find my car—that she stole out of my garage—scratched and dented.

Was she hurt in this accident? And why the hell did she not stop to report it? Or call me?

I made sure to have my phone number in her cell, at the same time I installed the tracking app. She should have called me when she was hit. Or better, she could have answered my calls when I placed them.

Sidestepping two paramedics working their way down the steps carrying their EMT bags, I charge the entrance of the assisted living facility, Generations at Lincoln Square.

The thick stench of cleaning chemicals sucks the air from my lungs once I’m inside. Old furniture dots the small waiting area to side of the front desk that looks like it’s been a permanent fixture of the building since it was built in the seventies.

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