Thankfully, the Bratva seem to be too occupied looking for us around Nikolai’s mansion, so nobody even looks at us on the way back. It’s another thing to get into the Messinas’ territory, but I guess the watchmen take me for a civilian driving through and let me pass. It’s helpful, of course, but I’ll have to test them again later. If I were a Mexican, such carelessness would get the whole family into trouble. But I don’t think about it too much. Right now, I have to get Sasha home.
By the time we arrive, she’s already fast asleep, so I look at her for a moment before sighing and getting out of the car only to open the back seat. Sasha winces in her sleep at the sound but doesn’t wake up, so I carefully gather her in my arms and pick her up.
“What’re you doin’?” Sasha mumbles against my chest, and something about her hoarse voice and meek body makes my heart beat like crazy. God, how can a woman be so effortlessly charming?
“Taking you home,” I whisper back at her, and it seems to be enough to put her back to sleep.
Despite the late hour, the lights in my house are still on, and only now do I realize that Misha must’ve been waiting for us. Also, wait, is this his teacher’s car? I open the door rather clumsily with Sasha in my arms, and as soon as I step inside I hear Misha’s voice.
“They’re back!” He runs out into the entrance hallway, but as soon as he sees Sasha he comes to a complete stop. “Mom? Wha-what happened?”
“She’s alright, don’t worry. She’s just tired.” I smile as cheerfully as possible through my own exhaustion and look at Mrs. Lee hesitantly lingering behind him. I’ve never actually talked to her in person, but Misha has told me plenty about her. “Mrs. Lee? I’m sorry you had to wait for so long.”
“It’s been four hours,” she says with reluctant annoyance as if she’s not sure whether she should show it. Her gaze darts to Sasha and the blood on my arms, and her eyes widen.
“We’ll pay you double for your trouble.” I look at Misha, hoping to see a chuckle at my joke, but his eyes are focused on Sasha only, so I sigh and look at Mrs. Lee again. “Thank you for staying with him. Good night.”
I don’t have the time or energy to deal with her, so I just nod and, readjusting Sasha in my arms, walk to the stairs. By the time I reach her bedroom, Misha’s hurried footsteps join me. He doesn’t say anything, only grabs my sleeve and looks at Sasha with a worried frown, and together we carry her to the bed.
As soon as her head hits the pillow, Sasha sighs and cracks her eyes open. “Where’s…”
“He’s here.”
I nudge Misha, and he rushes to wrap his arms around her. “Are you okay?”
“I am, teddy bear. I’m just very tired. Do you want to climb into the bed with me?”
Misha nods, and I step back, giving them some peace and quiet. No matter what, I’m not a part of the family, and it feels like they need each other right now. But when I reach the door, I hear Sasha’s voice which is surprisingly soft and quiet.
“Louis.” I pause to turn to her, and I see her eyes over Misha snuggled in her arms. I can’t read her expression, but I still feel warmth in the way she speaks to me. “Thank you.”
I almost want to joke or wave it off, but in the end, I smile and nod with my heart growing in my chest. “I promised to honor and protect you till death do us part, didn’t I?”
With that, I turn around to leave, and Sasha’s chuckle follows me into the hallway, keeping my heart warm all the way to my room.
As soon as I get into the bed, I pass out even faster than she did. My body is exhausted and my mind is heavy with the events of the day, feeding me vague dreams about escaping dark places with gunshots following me all night. I wake up a few times throughout the night, but by the morning I find some peace and even sleep in, waking up with the gray morning light streaming through the curtains.
Following an old habit, I check my phone as soon as I sit up in bed, and I see a few missed calls from Riccardo. Shit. I guess he wants to know what happened last night-the news must’ve reached him already. Does he know it was me who broke into Nikolai’s house? I thought I killed all the witnesses, but perhaps I missed someone on the way.
I decide to keep my phone mute for the time being and stretch my arms, heading to the shower. My muscles are still sore after last night, and my mind is kinda groggy, but I can live with it. I leave my bedroom a few minutes later and linger in the hallway, listening to the house. It’s still quiet -and as soon as I think that I hear Misha’s voice coming from Sasha’s bedroom. My feet automatically carry me there.
Is it okay for me to enter? I pause in front of the door, but in the end, my worry takes over my hesitation, and I knock on the door before slowly pushing it open.
“May I?”
Sasha quickly turns to me and sits up on the bed, but I don’t see the same hostile alertness that used to be in her movements before. She looks rather caught off guard, with her hair wet and messy after a shower and her emotions completely open on her face.
“Louis!” Misha jumps up on the bed, getting tangled in the blankets on the way. “Are you gonna join us? Mom, can he join us?”
I chuckle, watching him fight the bedsheets while Sasha murmurs something in Russian under her breath and moves to help him. “It depends on what you’re doing.”
“We’re trying to-ouch, Mom!” Misha pulls his twisted ankle out of the sheets and turns to me as if nothing. “We’re trying to decide what to have for breakfast!”
I can’t help but laugh at that, endeared by his sweet childishness, and when I catch Sasha chuckling, my gaze darts to her. Our eyes meet, and something in my chest tightens at the sight of her smile and the glint in her eyes. It’s been a while since I saw her so happy, and deep in my heart, I know I want to see it every day.
“Well, what are the options?” I step into the room and, keeping an eye out for any sign of protest from Sasha, take a seat at the foot of her bed.
“Mom says I have to eat cereal.”
“And what do you want?”
“And I want pizza!” Misha purses his lips, looking at her from the corner of his eye, and Sasha rolls her eyes.
“We don’t have pizza. Or do you want to ride in a car for twenty minutes to get it?” She looks at him with raised eyebrows, but Misha confidently nods a few times.
“Yes, I do.”
“Oh, teddy bear…”
“Wait, but what if we do this?” I raise a hand, and they both turn to me simultaneously with the same curious look. “I order pizza by phone, Misha and I drive there to pick it up, and then we have breakfast together at home. What do you think?”
“Yes!”
Yeah, it doesn’t take a lot to get Misha on my side. I look at Sasha, and after a moment of thinking, she shrugs. “I wouldn’t mind having an hour to myself.”
“Then it’s decided.” I clap my palms against my lap with a chuckle while Misha gets down on the floor and heads straight to the door.
“Wait, where are you going?” Sasha looks at him with a frown, and Misha, already holding the door handle, turns to her with quite a patronizing expression.
“Didn’t you hear, Mom? I have to get dressed.”
With that, he leaves, and both Sasha and I chuckle. It’s funny to watch a ten-year-old act with such confidence-I don’t want him to ever change.
Still smiling, I turn back to Sasha, and our eyes meet again. My heart tightens for a moment, and even though I know I have to leave as well, I look around, looking for a reason to stay. “So…how are you? Are you feeling okay?”
“Yeah.”
She seems thoughtful and rather distant, staring down at her blanket with a frown. Is that a hint that it’s time for me to leave? Probably. I mean, why would she want me here in the first place?
“Well, I guess I have to get ready, too. See you later.” I raise a hand in an awkward goodbye-god, why do I feel like an idiot-and move to get up, when Sasha quickly looks up.
“Wait, I think-I want to talk to you.”
Oh? I didn’t expect that, but I guess after yesterday there are some things to discuss. So I nod and sit back down, thinking about what to tell her. Should I ask her about Nikolai? Should I tell her not to be so careless again because she’s important to me and-
“Louis…I’m sorry,” Sasha murmurs, and all my thoughts come to a halt. Huh? I look at her with a frown, but Sasha still keeps her eyes on the blanket, frowning at her thoughts and looking unexpectedly vulnerable. “I can’t believe I trusted Father more than I trusted you. And for years, god, for nine years, I blamed you for Mom’s death and dreamed about killing you.”
Oh, so she’d been planning her attack for a while, huh? Well, after what I learned yesterday I can’t be mad at her, so I sigh and shake my head. “It’s not your fault. You didn’t know.”
“But I should’ve known.” Sasha curls her hands into fists and raises her head with a look of remorse and anger at herself. “I should’ve known you’d never do something so horrible.”
“But hadn’t I betrayed you before ?” I chuckle joylessly, avoiding her gaze. It doesn’t feel right to listen to her apologies because I know for sure Sasha was not the only one to make a mistake nine years ago. “Hadn’t I treated you like an asshole? I broke your heart and refused to even talk to you about it. Honestly, you had every right to hate me.”
“I don’t know.” She sighs and shakes her head with a sad smile on her lips. “Everyone goes through a breakup, and…maybe if I knew how to handle it, Mom would still be alive.”
“What do you mean?” I frown, turning on the bed to face her properly. “She didn’t come to us because of you.”
“She did.” Sasha swallows and looks at me with torment in her eyes. “She wanted to find you there. She wanted to make things right between us.”
What? I blink. No, what…what the hell?
“Why would she do that?”