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The young woman in scrubs gave him a long once-over, and suddenly she seemed to have some sort of back issue because she thrust her breasts out. “Sure. I can find her for you. Are you her son? She talks about you all the time. She said how handsome you are, but she doesn’t have any pictures. She’s right.”
Lara frowned. By all accounts, Natalia had come here because she’d developed dementia a few years back and could no longer care for herself. Clearly, the woman had forgotten that her son was dead. Or maybe she simply hadn’t wanted to remember. Lara couldn’t imagine how devastating it would be to lose a child.
She stepped up next to Connor, just barely managing to avoid rolling her eyes at the obvious flirtation. “He’s not her son. He’s with the INS and he has a few questions to ask her.”
“My lovely coworker and fiancée is right.” Connor’s arm slipped around her. “Could you please tell us where her room is? We just have a few questions for her concerning an immigration issue.”
They’d decided to say they were here to ask about her visa and possible immigration law violations. Despite the fact that Connor no longer worked for the Agency, someone had kindly provided him INS paperwork to back him up.
“Oh.” She sounded disappointed. “I’ll need to see your credentials.”
Connor flashed her a badge. She glanced at it, then looked at her schedule.
“She’s in 127, but some in that wing might still be in the garden. They sit outside on warm days for an hour. I’ll take you out there.” The nurse’s gaze slipped past Connor, who was still giving Lara PDA, and settled on Dax. She immediately perked up again. “Are you with the government, too?”
Dax gave her an easy smile. “I am, but I didn’t bring my fiancée along because I’m single, darlin’. Lead the way.”
Connor chuckled as they started to walk down the gray tiled hall. “Dax is a bit of a player. I should have warned you.”
“Everly told me he’s a manwhore,” Lara murmured. “Likable, but definitely slutty. But you can’t go around telling everyone I’m your fiancée.”
“I haven’t given up yet. We should know in a couple of weeks. I’m looking at it optimistically. I think you’re pregnant and we’ll be getting married.” He leaned over and kissed the top of her head. “If not, I’m willing to keep trying.”
That shouldn’t have warmed Lara’s heart. Damn it, he’d plotted to steal her secrets. He’d deceived her. He’d violated her trust. Yeah, he’d also apologized more than once, comforted her, spoken what was in his heart, and told her that he loved her. Her head warned her that giving in and giving him another chance would be stupid. Her stubborn heart wanted to throw all caution to the wind.
The nurse stopped in front of one of the rooms about halfway to the outer door. “This is her room. Looks like Maxine is still outside. This is her roommate, Mrs. Simms. She’s recovering from a bout of pneumonia so she stayed inside. Do you need to see Maxine’s license or her social security card? She’s from Ukraine, but she’s been in the States since she was a young woman. I find it hard to believe she’s in some kind of trouble.” The nurse stepped in and opened a nightstand drawer. “Her paperwork is in here somewhere.”
“We can ask her about that,” Dax said.
The nurse shook her head. “You might find that hard. Some days her dementia is worse than others.”
“Hey, come over here.” The curtain that separated the two sides of the bedroom shook. “Come here.”
“I’ll be there in a moment, Mrs. Simms. I’m helping these people right now.” She moved to the small wardrobe, opening it up.
Lara glanced around the curtain. “Can I help you?”
A frail looking woman lay on the bed, reaching out a trembling arm that looked as fragile as a matchstick. “You’re here for Nata?”
Lara’s eyes widened and she stepped behind the curtain. Mrs. Simms knew that Maxine was really Natalia? “Yes.”
“They watch her. She says she can feel them watching her. Did they kill her?” Her voice came out on a shaky breath.
Lara shook her head. “No. She’s fine. Does she think someone’s going to kill her?”
The old lady nodded. “She’s a little crazy, but who isn’t? She made me promise her if she died I would give the authorities— Wait, are you the authorities?”
She nodded vaguely. “My coworker and fiancé can show you his paperwork.”
Since Connor had floated that cover story, she figured she’d better stay consistent. Not that she enjoyed saying that they were engage. Well, not much.
“Swell.” The gray-haired woman looked around as if to see if they were being watched. “Nata made me promise that if she died I would give the authorities the note.”
“Note?”
“Yes, but if she’s fine, I can’t give it to you.”
Another note. Lara paused, wondering if this woman would nap or head down to dinner soon, something so she could search the room. That note had to be important. Or perhaps they could persuade Natalia to give it to them. What kind of secrets had she kept all these years?
“I’m going to talk to her now,” Lara said. “It was nice to meet you.”
“She’s not bad. I don’t know why they watch her. A woman needs her privacy. But they’re always watching and looking. Perverts, I tell you.”
Maybe Natalia wasn’t the only one with a little dementia. She was still talking to herself as Lara walked back to Natalia’s section of the room. Connor was looking at Maxine’s supposed paperwork.
He looked back up at the nurse. “This isn’t enough. I’m going to need to talk to her.”
“All right, but don’t forget I told you so. If she slips into whatever language she speaks, just wait. She comes back to English eventually.” The woman in scrubs sighed and led them back out.
“What note was the woman talking about?” Connor asked, leaning over to whisper in her ear.
“I don’t know. She said it was something Nata told her to give up in case she died. According to her, people watch Natalia. Why? If the Russians know where she is, why wouldn’t they take her out?”
Connor led her through the door and out into the garden. There were several people in wheelchairs, a few caregivers. “Could be a couple of reasons.”
“She’s out by the pond.” The nurse pointed to a small duck pond where a woman sat on a bench.
“Thank you.” Connor nodded to the nurse.
Dax gave her a wink. “Hopefully I’ll see you on the way out.”
“Count on it.” The nurse sighed a little as she walked away.
Dax shrugged. “She could be helpful.”
Yes, she would likely be very helpful to his penis. She shook her head and started toward where Natalia Kuilikov sat. “Ms. Sava?”
The woman sitting on the bench turned slightly. “Yes? You have my tea?” She might have been in the States for a long time, but she still had a heavy Russian accent. “I hope it’s not cold this time. Tea should be hot. We’re not barbarians.”
“I’m sorry.” Lara moved to the seat beside her. “I don’t have any tea. May I sit with you?”
She turned her patrician nose up. “If you must. It would have been more polite if you had brought the tea.”
Lara studied the woman who seemed to be at the heart of the mystery that had upended her entire life. Her dark hair was now streaked with gray, but she kept it in a neat bun at the back of her head. While many of the other residents wore robes and pajamas, Natalia was dressed in slacks, a neat white shirt, and a tidy cardigan.
“Ms. Sava, I’m a reporter. I run a blog about politics. I came here this afternoon to ask you a few questions. These are my friends.” Connor and Dax stepped from behind the bench.
Natalia’s eyes widened and she stood. For a moment, she thought the older woman was going to walk away, but then she stepped forward, and she wrapped her hands around Connor’s arms. “My Sergei, he send you.”
Lara went absolutely still, the sound of that one name brin
ging everything to a halt. Sergei.
Connor had gone still, too. He looked down at the small woman and nodded. “Yes. He sent me. I hope you know he sends you his regards.”
She smiled like the heavens had opened up. “I knew one day he would come for me. My sweet Sergei.”
Lara started to open her mouth to ask a question, but Dax shook his head and gestured for her to move away from Natalia.
