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Mischa smiled at me today. It reminded me of you.
I miss sleeping next to you at night. It feels like I’m missing a part of my body.
Bee’s driving me crazy up here. Can’t wait to kick her out one day. Probably through the door—possibly through the window.
I heard you singing to our son in the nursery yesterday. It makes me prouder than you know to see you become his mother. I couldn’t have chosen better if I’d tried.
Some of my favorite ones are the simplest, though.
I love you.
I miss you.
I dream of you at night.
Once the class is done, I say goodbye to the girls and settle Mischa into his blue baby Björn. I leave the class with a sense that maybe it’s time to turn the page on this weird state of limbo I’ve been living with Dmitri.
WREN: Hey Bee, class is done. You can bring the car around.
BEE: Be there in five. Just picking up a couple of pints of Häagen-Dazs for our movie date tonight.
WREN: You’re a saint.
Per protocol, I’m supposed to stand inside the building until I see Bee’s car drive up, but I’m so inside my head today that I forget and wander out onto the pavement. It takes me a couple of seconds to register that the two black SUVs that usually accompany me to the class are no longer parked on the opposite side of the road.
The sidewalk is weirdly empty, too.
No pedestrians. No passing traffic.
Hell, the crows that normally hang out on the deli awning across the street aren’t there, either.
Why does it feel like someone made it all go?—
“Hello, my dear. It’s been a while.”
A shadow accompanies the voice. Both make my skin crawl.
I take a step back before I even see his face. “Vittorio,” I hiss, wrapping my arms around the baby Björn protectively.
He’s aged since I last saw him. New wrinkles like cracks in the earth of his skin, and cold sores peppering his lips. But that smile is as slimy as it ever was. “Your security detail won’t be coming for you anytime soon, my dear,” he croons. “I’m your ride today.”
My body goes cold and I step back. “No?—”
He moves forward and snatches my arm. He may be old and one strong breeze away from death’s door, but his grip is like iron around my bicep. “Cooperating is in your best interests, darling, especially with that precious little bundle strapped to your chest.” His tone is almost paternal, but the glint in his eyes is most definitely not.
Bee, where are you?
Vittorio twists me towards his flashy silver car. “Let’s take a little drive, shall we?”
I try to conceal my phone as we head towards the car, but just after he pushes my head into the backseat like some second-rate criminal, he leans in and presents me with his open palm. “I’ll take that, if you don’t mind.”
I scowl at him. “And if I do mind?”
“You can either hand over the phone or the baby. Your choice.” I shudder and hand over the phone and he nods with satisfaction. “I thought so. Now, strap in, tesoro. I want you to be safe.”
The moment he shuts my door, it locks with a thud, sending a shiver of dread down my spine. Right on cue, Mischa starts crying. I hold him as tight as I can and whisper into his ear, “It’s gonna be alright, little one. I promise, I’ll keep you safe.”
God only knows how.
