Page 74 of Conquer
Chapter Twenty-Two
Hours later, Vadim and Ena have temporarily boarded up the terrace door. Irina is gone to only God knows where and Magda—somehow—is sleeping in her bed. I linger near her more than I should, planting kisses over her forehead and smoothing my hands along her back until I’m sure she’s asleep.
When I creep downstairs to check the progress of the cleanup, I find Vadim, leaning against a counter, his face in his hands. “She killed two guards,” he explains, fixing me with a haggard, exhausted expression.
“Is she dead?”
He sighs. “No. Though she easily could be, with the amount of insulin in her system. But… I couldn’t let Magdalene grow up believing she killed her own mother. Irina doesn’t deserve to impact her life any more than she already has.”
“So where is she?” I gather up the nerve to ask, fearful of the answer.
And he knows it. “Do you want me to say I let her go?” he wonders tiredly, shooting me a searching glance. “That she repented and is in prison forever and will never harm another soul? I will not lie to you—”
“And I don’t want you to. So, tell me the truth,” I prod.
“Why? Do you want to be disgusted? Do you want to hear that I sold her to the highest bidder? That the bitch will suffer for ever daring to touch my daughter? My family? Would that bother you?”
“It might,” I admit. “But I think I’ll get over it.”
He cocks his head, not expecting that answer. Maybe he can hear it in my voice—I’m not lying. Compelled to explain, I let the true depth of my conflicted emotions wash over me. Disgust. Fear. Hate.
All of those things old Tiffy—even in the midst of her divorce—could never imagine feeling to this extent.
“Magda jumped in the pool just to keep Irina from taking her away.” I can’t disguise my horror. “How can a seven-year-old be forced to choose between drowning or her own mother? She can’t swim. She wasthatafraid of her. If I didn’t hear her… If I didn’t get to her in time…”
“She’s intelligent,” Vadim states. I’m in his arms before I know it, crushed to his chest, and I relent to the embrace. “Sheknewyou’d get to her in time.”
And she must have known that Irina wouldn’t even bother. The thought is so grim that any lingering unease I may have felt at her fate is instantly washed away.
As the Sunday school teacher deep within me might say—an eye for an eye.
But I appear to be the only one in a grudge-holding mood—one glaring event of the day stands out, and I rear back, poised to watch his expression.
“You and Maxim…”
He winces, his lips curling.
But I’m ruthless. “You broughtMaximwith you. Hehelpedyou.” I sound so childish, like I’m taunting him—but I can’t help the silly glee that has me grinning. “You two were quite the dynamic duo—”
“I met him at the club,” Vadim says, his tone far more somber than mine. “I intended to discuss our mutual headache. As it seems, our interests converged far more quickly than I initially thought.”
Some of my excitement deflates at his frown. His eyes take on that distant gleam that they do when only one person is on his mind. “Magda called you,” I say, my voice rasping. “God, she must have been terrified.”
His brow furrows in surprise. “Commanding actually,” he says, a rare smile sneaking onto his mouth. “She demanded I come to rescue you. I tried to convince her to hide somewhere safe and wait for me, but she hung up.” He looks torn between fear and grudging admiration.
“It seems she didn’t just inherit your good looks,” I tease, stepping into him again, letting my head rest against his chest. “She got your stubbornness too.”
Chuckling, he brings his hand to my scalp, cradling me against him. “It seems she picked up some traits from you as well,” he murmurs, sounding amused once more. “Your remarkable ability to enthrall those around you, for one. I only had to say her name for Maxim to come.”
His voice deepens, revealing just how much that confuses him. His brother came when he needed him the most.
Could the rift between those two ever be mended?
I picture two beautiful little girls, and I’m hopeful that they might be up to the task.
* * *
It should beimpossible to expect things to return to normal after the events of the past few days. In some ways, they still aren’t. Vadim and I wake up to find Magda squirming in between us, her bear firmly wedged under her arm, her fanny pack still on.
