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Natasha hears the shouting and races out the terrace door behind me. We both move at top speed toward the tall, dark hedges, but we aren’t fast enough to stop Andrei before he enters the archway and disappears in the darkness.
“Eva!” I scream hysterically, praying she’ll hear me over the storm. I hope she does and knows it’s a warning.
I’ve never been in the maze before, and the thick hedges disorient me as I spin in a circle in the rain. Shadows loom under the artificial light and distort the path, making a dark lane that’s not there. I reach out, stumbling into leaves and gripping branches, trying to keep my balance. I slip and land in a patch of mud, feeling hopeless but not giving up. I can’t. I kept her secret, and now everything could go wrong.
Natasha runs into me while shouting Andrei’s name. “Have you seen him?” she asks breathlessly. I shake my head, and she points to another path. We split up, blindly racing in opposite directions.
Soaked to my skin, I find the exit out, but Andrei is blocking it. His gun is out and pointed at someone.
Eva?
No. Impossible.
I stand behind him to get a better look. And see Eva holding tightly onto the arm of a man I’ve never seen before.
Her mystery lover. The man that Emma saw.
Tall, bald, with a thick gray beard. He’s dressed well, and the dark, oversized raincoat over Eva’s shoulders must be his. He turns and pulls Eva into his arms. Despite his age, his body is sturdy and lean. I have no doubt that in his younger years, he was quite handsome.
“Igor fucking Karamazov,” growls Andrei. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
Igor Karamazov? This is him? The man who has been trying to kill my husband? The one that has brought death and destruction crashing down on our heads?
He doesn’t look like what I expected. But what did I expect? I expected a man who looked like a ruthless villain, not an old man clutching his lover in his arms while another man holds them both at gunpoint.
“Andrei Vasilyevich, wait,” Igor says. “Let’s stay calm.”
“Let go of my mother.” Andrei warns. “Your men almost killed me and my wife tonight. You’re not harming my mother.”
I watch motionless, in shock, observing them as if I’m a spectator and have nothing to do with the drama in front of me. The shock has taken over my limbs, freezing me in place. I stare at Eva and the look of surprise on her face. Is she surprised to have been caught?
Or is she surprised to see Andrei again?
“Andrei, please lower your gun!” she shouts over the rain. “Igor is not here to hurt you.”
“Why else would he be here, Mother?” Andrei scoffs. “The coward sent his men so many times. Maybe he’s decided to try himself.” Andrei shakes his head in disgust. “Emma wasn’t there. She didn’t come home with us tonight.”
Eva turns to face Igor. “You said she would be coming home. You told me she was safe.”
“Eva, darling …”
“Darling?” Andrei’s eyes go from Igor to Eva and back again.
Realization slowly warps to horror on his face.
“No.” His voice is breathless, overcome by disbelief. “No, tell me this isn’t true! Him? How could you withhim?”
Natasha falls out of the hedges. Andrei spins around, aiming at her. She raises her arms immediately and then stares at Eva and Igor. The second Natasha sees Igor, she pulls her gun as well.
Eva puts herself in front of Igor, shielding him with her tiny body.
“No, Natasha!” yells Eva. “This is family business.”
“Family business,” Andrei scoffs. “He’s not family. You’ve traded one monster for a worse one.”
Eva reaches for Igor and takes his hand. “No, Andrei. Igor is family. He ismyfamily.Heis Sonya’s father.”
Andrei’s gun trembles as he stares open-mouthed at Eva.
