Page 63 of Sapphire Tears

His expression shifts as the person on the other side of the phone speaks.

Kolya nods once. “I’ll be there shortly.” Then he hangs up. “I have to go,” he tells me, turning towards the door.

I reach out and snare his arm. “Wait, what? Why? Where are you going?”

He lets loose a weary breath. “It’s Adrian. They found him. It’s time to finish things.”

26

KOLYA

“You can’t!”

The fear in June’s voice is palpable. And it’s all for a man who had abandoned her the first chance he got. It pisses me off that she’s not demanding more for herself. Even now.

“I can’t what?” I challenge, twisting around so violently that she falls back a few steps.

She looks nervous, but she says it anyway. “You can’t kill him. He’s still your brother. He is still the father of my child.”

“Pretend he’s not.”

She swallows hard but stands up tall, refusing to yield to anything—to her fear, to my intimidation, none of it. I’d admire it if she wasn’t so damn infuriating. “My past is my past and it involves your brother. You’re just gonna have to make your peace with that.”

“To what end?” I ask. “You’re gonna marry him now, huh? Well, don’t bother inviting me to the fucking wedding.”

She takes another step back. “That’s not what I meant.”

“Didn’t we just have a whole conversation about this? I thought you believed me.”

“I do! I mean—I’m trying to. But even if I believed that Adrian was guilty of everything you say he is, I still don’t want him dead. And neither should you.”

“Jesus Christ,” I growl, running a hand through my hair. “What do you expect me to do, June? Sit down and have a friendly little banter with him? Shake hands and make nice?”

“Why not?” she pleads. “Why isn’t that an option? The two of you were close once.”

“Yeah, before he started blaming me for all his fuck-ups. I promised him I would protect him, June. I promised my mother the same thing.”

“So keep your promise.”

“That’s just the thing: I already did. For years. While Adrian kept screwing around and making one mistake after another, I kept that promise sacred. I could forgive his mistakes. Ihaveforgiven his mistakes. But now, he’s actively working against me. I can’t just let that go unpunished.”

She covers her face with her hands. She’s frustrated; that much is obvious. But I’m equally frustrated. Equally fed up.

“No one gives a shit about making nice in this world, June. You don’t win prizes for being a good little girl.”

She recoils from me, her expression twisting with hurt. “I’m not after a prize, Kolya,” she whispers forlornly. “I just want… more than this. The fighting, the betrayal, the lying, the revenge. I want—”

“A fucking fairy tale, is what you want.”

She flinches, then lets it soften into something more melancholy. “What’s wrong with fairy tales?” she whispers. “They usually end with happily ever after.”

“Even you are not that naïve.”

She sighs. “Let me talk to Adrian.” She seems to realize she’s made a mistake the moment the words leave her mouth. She glances up at me as I do my best not to lose my fucking shit. “I just want to be the mediator—”

“Yeah, is that what you want?” I interrupt. “June the peacekeeper? June the common cause? June the fucking Girl Scout, here to save the fucking day?”

She shakes her head. “I’m not your enemy, Kolya.”

---