“A couple of the storage units near the back of the property.”
The storage units that I was forbidden to go near. I had watched trucks come and go at all hours of the day and night to load and unload those storage units, but I had obediently avoided the area.
My immediate thought was for my passport and my father’s trumpet. “Is the house okay?”
“From what we understand.”
I felt so confused. “Now what?”
“The storm has ended, so your uncle and his security detail are taking a helicopter back to his property, and I’m driving you and your aunt back.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll find your bags to make sure they end up with us. Wait here.”
I stopped him with my last question. “Who would attack my uncle’s home?”
“Well, off hand, I could name about five different families, but we won’t know who’s responsible until we look at the evidence.”
His candor dazed me. People rarely told me the truth. What did he mean, five other families? I wanted to ask more questions, but I knew this wasn’t the time. “Okay.”
“Just wait here.”
I stood off to the side, watching as the chaos unfolded. It seemed like the only sober ones were the security staff. Everyone, including my uncle, was swaying on their feet. There was a lot of shouting, but Axel and his counterparts moved with a dark efficiency, talking to each other, making coordinated movements, and guiding the hotel staff.
Within moments, more than half of the group had been ushered into their vehicles and driven off.
Axel reappeared. “The car is packed. Time to go.”
As I stepped outside, the deep, rhythmic thump of the helicopter vibrated through the air. Ahead of me, my Aunt Lena was getting into the back seat of a black SUV.
Axel and I didn’t speak, but he slowed his steps to match mine and opened my door for me. He waited for me to climb in before shutting the door behind me.
Aunt Lena glared at me, her face pinched with anger. She only ever voiced her opinions when Grisha wasn’t around. “You think you’re so clever, going behind my back with this risqué romance.”
I remained silent and refused to meet her stare.
She leaned closer, so close I could smell the mint of her toothpaste. “Axel’s a fixer. You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into.”
“Better him than Sergei,” I shot back.
She opened her mouth to speak, but at that moment Axel opened the driver’s door and got in.
The drive happened in silence.It was the middle of the night, and my entire body ached. I curled up against the back seat and stared into the dark abyss of the night. Axel seemed focused on the road, and my aunt sat beside me with her eyes closed.
My uncle’s home was a large estate on the edge of Moscow, and when we got close, Axel got a phone call that he answered on speaker. “Axel, the driveway is blocked with emergency vehicles. Advise you to take the back gravel road and cut through the east entrance from the side.”
Axel responded, “We’re heading that way now.”
A few moments later, Axel spoke to my aunt and me for the first time. “We’re being followed. Put your seat belts on.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” my aunt demanded in alarm. She spun around in her seat and looked out the back window.
I pulled on my seat belt. Axel called someone and spoke in rapid Russian, most of which I didn’t catch. It sounded like he was giving coordinates.
We were on a back road that led toward my uncle’s estate, and it was completely dark.
Behind us, car lights suddenly surged into view and came closer and closer to the back of our vehicle despite the terrifying speed at which Axel was driving. When we rounded the bend, we could see, up ahead, two cars parked lengthwise across the road, strategically blocking our pass. Axel slammed on the brakes and came to a stop about four car lengths away from them.
