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She’s lucky to have such a mom. Of course, it’s tragic they were separated for so many years, but they seem on their way to making up for lost time. That is, if we can keep Abby safe. And alive. That’s going to take some work, although I think I know where we’ll start.
By taking care of that bastard, Madden.
When I passed Bogdan and Ilya on their way out for a jog this morning, they let me know about a request Abby made.
She wants her father out of the picture, realizing it’s the only way she’ll ever be safe. And she’s right.
While I understand it, I can’t deny I’m a little surprised. That she’s ready to say goodbye to a man who’s been her father for twenty years is intense. But her will to live is clearly stronger.
“Nanette, it is a privilege to look after Abby. In fact, to celebrate her birthday, we got her a chocolate cake. She told us that’s her favorite.”
Her eyes fill with tears. “How sad is it that I don’t even know that little detail about my daughter, that she loves chocolate cake?” She places a shaking hand over her mouth and her eyes well with tears. “But you know, Fedor, I have so much to be thankful for. Today is my little girl’s twenty-first birthday. And to think I’m actually spending it with her. I… I had lost hope this would ever happen. It’s like a dream coming true. And a nightmare finally ending.”
It must have been horrible, being separated all those years. And I can’t imagine how Madden could have been so cruel as to orchestrate it all.
Nanette clears her throat and stands. I get the feeling she needs a moment to herself. “I think I’ll go cut up some fruit I bought this morning in town. I wonder when Abby and the guys will be back. We can all eat together.”
My gaze snaps in her direction. “Nanette, Abby’s not with Bogdan and Ilya. I saw them on their way out to jog before I joined you. Isn’t Abby still in bed?”
She frowns. “What?”
I head to Abby’s bedroom. I push the door, already open a crack, and see that her bed hasn’t been slept in.
Where the fuck is Abby?
Nanette’s right on my heels. “What’s going on? Fedor, tell me, please.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
Before I can say a word, the front door to the villa opens and Bogdan and Ilya enter, wiping sweat from their brow and arguing loudly about some sports team.
But when the see the expression on my face, they stop short.
They instantly know.
Without needing to ask, the first thing each of us asks is whether she took off on her own. Would she do that? With her mother here?
Or is her mother part of it?
I scratch that idea. Nanette is more upset than any of us. If Abby did bolt, her mother had nothing to do with it.
Abby wouldn’t leave on her own, and I seriously doubt she’d leave her mother. She knows she’s safer with us than anywhere else. And she knows if she were to take off, the consequences could be very grave. Like deadly grave. She knows we guys don’t put up with any shit, even if it is from her.
Even if we are wrapped around her finger.
“Where is she?” Bogdan asks, pushing past me and into her room.
Nanette speaks up from behind us. “I… I thought she was with the two of you,” she says in a small voice.
“And I thought she was still in bed,” I add.
“Goddammit,” Ilya yells, staring at her unmade bed. “Who saw her last?”
“Me,” Bogdan says, walking around her room. “We were at the pool till late. Or should I say early? We had a swim and I came in to sleep. The sun was about to come up and I think she wanted to watch it. I should have stayed with her. But I thought she’d be safe on the terrace, on our property.”
Nanette sobs as little Bonita runs into the room from the yard where she was lying in the sun. She circles the room frantically, no doubt looking for Abby. I bend to scoop her up, but she wanted none of it. So I set her back down and let her continue to search for her momma. Her panic and sad whining is the perfect representation of how the rest of us feel. She’s just better at expressing it.
“Hey. Over here,” Nanette calls from Abby’s closet.
