Page 55 of Sinful Betrayal

“It’s been so long.” She throws her arms around me.

I freeze as she hugs me tightly, unsure of what is going on.

And who is Katerina?

I’m not sure I want to know the answer.

“Mrs. Koslov, why don’t we go and have a cup of tea in your rooms?” I pat her awkwardly on the back. “We can catch up.”

“Oh, that sounds wonderful,” She finally loosens her hold on me. “And please, enough with the Mrs. Koslov, it makes me feel ancient. You know you can just call me Maria.”

She hasn’t stopped smiling, and I wonder if it would be best to call Anton and let him know the situation.

Is she having an episode? Would it make her worse if I played along?

But then I remember how Anton handled her the other day, and I decide it’s best to play the part of this Katerina girl so as not to distress her.

“Right, sorry.”

Just then the maid reappears with the broom, and Maria scoffs loudly. “I should take this out of your wages.”

“I-I’m sorry, Mrs. Koslov.”

“Sorry doesn’t bring back the China that has been in my family for generations.”

The maid looks to be on the verge of tears, so I quickly usher Maria out of the kitchen and toward the lounge.

I realize then that I have no clue how to get into her rooms.

I look around the lounge, but the only door is the one that leads into the foyer.

“I don’t suppose you know how to get to your rooms?”

But she doesn’t seem to be listening. She’s wandered over to the bookcases and has picked up a framed photo of Anton with all of his cousins taken at Dimitri’s wedding.

“Such a handsome boy.” She presses a finger to Anton’s face. “He’s so lucky to have you.”

When she glances over her shoulder at me, I realize her eyes are a lighter shade of brown compared to Anton’s, but they crinkle at the corners in the same way his do when he smiles.

I can’t help but notice the fact that she looks completely different from how she was the other time I saw her.

Instead of wearing a nightgown with her hair in disarray, she’s dressed in a pristine cream pantsuit with her gray shoulder-length hair neatly styled.

If her nurse isn’t around, then somehow, she managed to get herself organized, which is surely a good sign, right?

Maybe I should call Anton on the off chance she’s having a lucid episode. I’m sure he wouldn’t want to miss it.

“They’re all handsome boys really, but I can’t take credit for these four.” Maria laughs. “They’re all my sister’s children. But of course, you know that.” She waves a hand.

“It’s lovely how close they all are.” I reach for another photo of Anton as a child.

He’s hugging his mother’s leg and grinning at the camera, showing off his missing front teeth. “How old was he here?”

“Four or five. He knocked his front teeth out two days before. He was riding his bike too fast down the hill at the back of our house. I told him to be careful but of course, he went flying over the handlebars.”

“Oh, no!”

“It’s his own damn fault. I was more upset that there was blood all over his new shirt, and he scraped his knees up real nice too.”

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