Rurik brushed his teeth, silent.
The unanswered question lingered in the air. “He sent me to England,” she found herself saying. “There was a beautiful hotel full of gardens and a massage parlor. It was a retreat, Rurik, that’s all. A way to spoil me. Don’t be mad at my brother. He thought I needed a vacation. It was a nice thing.”
Rurik spit in the sink. “When does he leave?”
“Two more weeks.”
“You’re safe till then.”
Rurik walked out of the room, and Luerna fell against the wall.
Rurik was gone. He’s been gone for days. Usually, he’d tell her where he was going and how she could contact him if she needed anything, but he just left without a word. Not even a goodbye to their children. It shouldn’t bother her, but strangely, she couldn’t find her birth control pills.
Luerna sat watching her children playing in the pool with their two uncles. And though she clapped and laughed at the right moments, she was imagining if she were to run, what she’d do first. Some things needed to be packed. She didn’t want to forget special items like baby photo books and their first set of little baby shoes. She had the memorial heart of the baby she lost years ago kept in the safe.
It was liberating thinking about freedom. Rurik had much less power, even with his threats.
It was late afternoon, and the sun was setting. It was wonderfully warm for the beginning of summer, and like the warmth, hope was slipping into her numb hands, returning feeling to her after so many horrible winters. Luerna wrote a small text message to Levka.‘Hypothetical, could we leave in ten days?’
His response came seconds later.‘It’s a possibility. Why? Are you okay?’
She struggled with a reply. She didn’t want Levka to worry because, like before, when he freaked out thinking Rurik was hurting her, he would have tried to save her. It would be dangerous, and the possibility of one of her kids witnessing anything bad was too high. If she was going to leave, she wanted it to feel like they were going on vacation. She wanted that calmness, that excitement. She didn’t want one of her children to feel fear or dread.
Luerna sat up straight as Levka came toward her. Panic was the first to ignite, but his easy-going smile kept her from sprinting in the other direction. Rurik was gone, and Levka and Adrik were working together on some project, allowing him to have access to her home.
Levka’s attention stayed on the water. Alexei told him to come in, but he was still recovering from his injuries, and he never liked Gil, so the less he interacted with the adopted Morozov son, the better. Instead, he squatted at the edge of the pool. “Hi,” he playfully spoke to her two-year-old; currently sitting on the stairs were her dolls. “What’s going on here? Are they having a pool party?”
Irina held up a doll for him, and he happily took it.
Luerna watched like it was magic. Her five-year-old twins swam up beside Irina, talking like crazy about silly things, and Levka appeared interested, laughing at the right moments. He was actively listening as if they were important to him. Even her nine-year-old, Sofia, journeyed closer. She was timid, not talkative or friendly, but she was nosy. twelve-year-old RJ stayed on the opposite side of the pool, glaring and untrustworthy, while Alexei and Gil drank.
When the boys began to splash him, Levka laughed and dodged, backing away from the pool. He approached and sat beside her. Far enough not to accidentally touch her but still able to talk to her without others hearing her. Alexei watched with a smile, but Gil was more annoyed and got out of the pool and left.
Levka greeted her, daring to touch her eyes with his before he turned his head back to the pool. “I hadn’t seen the twins since they were newborns. Do you remember?”
Luerna thought back to the day when Levka came into the living room during one of the most miserable moments of her life. Remembering things during that time was hard, but Levka stood out like a full moon. “I couldn’t believe you wanted to hold a baby.”
“You couldn’t remember who was who.” He cackled.
“I still can’t. They trick me all the time.”
He chuckled low and glanced back at her. “You alright?”
Luerna sat back in her chair, looking away from him. “I’m fine.” She clenched the handrails. She found herself wanting to fling herself into his arms. She hadn’t seen him in days, and it felt like months. She yearned for his care, for his touch, for his lips. His ability to seem unaffected in her presence made her uneasy. He was too good at this while she was new.
“What happens in ten days?”
“Nothing,” she lied. “The kids finish their schooling before the summer. That’s all.” The semester ended days ago, but he didn’t know that.
He vaguely nodded. Levka glanced over his shoulders, searching for guards, for security. He was surprised there weren’t cameras in every corner. “Four months. Can you hold out?”
The number was numbing. Four months to wait. A hundred and twenty days. Now that the end was near, to stay even another hour was killing her. But she nodded and swallowed any emotion before whispering, “That’s fine.”
“This deal with your brother screwed us, but I need it. When we take off, he might not hate me so badly. And eventually, after your father dies, he’ll let us back in the family.”
Her brows knit, and tears came, burning the back of her eyes. Levka wasn’t only thinking of here and now, he was planning ahead, planning their future. He was trying so hard to give her a happy ending. It was unreal how much he cared for her. But why did he love her so much?
Does it matter?She wanted his love, and even if she didn’t believe she was worthy of it, she would earn it.
