Page 109 of Shattered Cradle (Makarova Bratva Duet)

I smile. “I appreciate that.”

“I mean it. You’re going to have a baby. That’s when a girl needs her mother most.”

She says the words simply, thoughtlessly, with no ill intentions. But as she does, I feel something snap inside my chest.

She’s right. Of course she is.

I’m terrified about being a mother. Doing it alone.Beingalone.

And the one person who could have helped me through it is gone.

“I’m not your mother,” Yulia adds. “But I’ve had a child, too. I’d like to think I can help.”

My bottom lip starts to tremble, but I stop it in its tracks. “I’d love that, Yulia,” I mumble. “Really.”

She gives me a warm smile. When she folds me into her arms, I let her. “It’s okay,” she murmurs into my hair. “It’s all going to be okay.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I’ve been where you are right now,” she says. “Wife to a current don. Mother to the next. Feeling alone and scared and hopeless. I have hit rock bottom too many times to count. And every time, I thought I wouldn’t make it back to the light. But I did.”

We pull apart and I stare at her desperately. “I’m not sure I’m strong enough to do that.”

“Oh, trust me, honey,” she says gently. “You are. I’ll show you.”

26

ALEKS

I stare out my window, watching Olivia walk by the lake with my father, and thinking one thought over and over again.

She drives me fucking crazy.

At first glance, she doesn’t look like she should even be capable of such a thing. She’s pushing his wheelchair and talking animatedly. About what, I have no clue, but the old man seems to enjoy her company. At this point, he probably enjoys the company of anyone who isn’t Mike.

Still, it’s grating to see how close she’s getting to the people in my life. Where my father is concerned, I know she’s not at risk. But I’m wary about her connection with my mother.

Yulia is capable of far more than the littlekiskarealizes.

“Blink,” Demyan says behind me.

“What?”

“You’ve been staring out that window for fifteen minutes,” he explains. “Blink.”

I force myself from the window and turn to Demyan. “They’re walking by the lake again.”

“It’s some classic father-in-law and daughter-in-law bonding time. Hallmark would love to option the movie rights.”

I roll my eyes and plop into my seat. “Spare me.”

Demyan just smiles. “It’s kinda heartwarming. I would have thought you’d be happy about that.”

“Why would I be?”

“Well, she needs something to distract herself. And so does he. Waiting for death can be hard. Also, it lets you off the hook.”

“What hook?”

---