Page 70 of Savage Surrender

Oleg sharpened his gaze, looking from me to his brother.

“What am I missing?” he asked.

“The boy died, Oleg.” Boris hung his head and rubbed his temple, oblivious that his drink had spilled out. “The boy died with his mother.”

“What boy? Maxim?” Oleg faced me.

“He’s alive.” I shook my head, unable to believe what I was hearing from this drunk. “Maxim is alive. He was deaf and left with several issues from a traumatic birth. A birth my mother didn’t survive.”

“Oh, shit,” Viktor whispered, catching on.

Eva had paled too.

“I was told that he died,” Boris said, louder but not clearer. His slurred speech was consistent, but he was determined to speak. “I was told Anna died. She bled out, but the boy didn’t make it either.”

Oleg glowered at him. “How would you know?” he ordered.

“Because he was my boy.” Boris stared at his sibling with sad eyes.

“Oh, God,” I repeated.

“You slept with Anna Petrov?” Oleg roared.

Boris flinched, lifting his glass to his lips for a comforting drink, but he realized it was empty. “I… I did. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to, but she was so miserable and we were talking, and… I did. Anna was carrying my son, but she told Igor that it was his.”

I covered my mouth, stunned beyond belief. “But he’s alive.”

“Who told you the boy died?” Oleg said.

“Igor,” Boris said. “He told me that Anna passed away and the baby did too.”

I shook my head. “Maxim is very much alive.”

“That’s why he hid him,” Eva guessed. “He hid him because he was a bastard.”

“Maxim is a son of Baranov blood?” Oleg asked, frowning at his brother.

Boris nodded. “I never wanted to tell you. You would be so furious that I’d complicated family politics.”

“Of course you fucking have!” Oleg roared.

Once again, Boris flinched. “I never thought it would be an issue. I never thought anyone would know. She didn’t make it and I thought he didn’t either.”

“Igor must have done a paternity test,” Eva said.

Oleg nodded. “And when he saw he had a son ofourfamily, he kept him all this time.”

Viktor narrowed his eyes. “Probably to use against you when the time is right.”

Oleg growled. “Yes. Most likely, that devious fucker.”

“I thought…” I staggered to sit. “I thought that he just hated him because he was deaf and weak, not a strong soldier.”

“Maybe that too,” Oleg said, “but more so, to use him as a pawn. To hold him over the Baranov name.”

“Anna was so miserable with him,” Boris said. “With how much Amelia nagged me about drinking too much and not being a leader at all, I wanted to feel like a hero to someone. So, I caved. We had an affair and agreed to hide the boy as Igor’s.”

“Is that why my mother left?” Eva demanded hotly.

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