"He wasn't dating her, brother," I say, the words hard to pull from my throat.
"Don't call me that again." His voice is monotone, like he has no remaining emotion to spare. "I can't accept this."
"Not even what you see with your own eyes?" I ask.
"He's my brother-" Adam stops. "That's no longer a phrase that means anything." He looks at me with tears in his eyes. "You said this happened to Ava, too. Is that why she suddenly appeared in your life?"
"I rescued her the night I came to pick up Ilya. She was kept in an apartment a few doors down from his. Ava had a suggestion that she thought might help you," I say. "She thought that you could talk Ilya's captive. Her name is Jeannie. I spoke with her. She said that if it was important, she could talk to you. Only you," I clarify, "not your father."
He laughs, a short bitter burst. "I have to go," he says. "I have to talk to Ilya…" He doesn't move, arms hanging limply. "I don't know what to do."
"I understand."
"We'll speak tomorrow." He won't look at me, turning towards the door. "Tomorrow."
The next day…
Adam calls me. "I want to speak to the girl- Jeannie, you said." He sounds like a stranger. "And I want to talk to Ava."
"I will have to be present," I say. "Ava anticipated you would ask and she has already given permission. But if you are cruel to her in any way, it is over."
He chuckles bitterly. "It'sallover."
We meet at my parent's house. Jeannie has been staying there with Mother. "Jeannie's family is arriving tomorrow," I say, walking through the house with Adam. It's a six-story brownstone near Central Park, they moved here when she was pregnant with me.
Adam's folks live two blocks away.
We walk silently down the hall. I can feel the distance between us as I remember all the times we stormed through here,laughing. The first time I brought him here, shitfaced drunk, to sleep at our place so his parents wouldn't catch him. The night he stayed with me when one of our closest friends was killed in an explosion.
Ava and Jeannie are sitting on a big flowered couch under the window in my mother's office. The room is crammed with mountains of medical books, vases of flowers, and an explosion of plants.
Mother lightly touches Adam's shoulder before stepping back, realizing it's not welcome. "I'm so sorry Adam," she says softly. Jeannie stays where she is, drawing up her knees and trying to make herself as small as she can. Ava scoots a little closer, putting an arm around her hunched shoulders.
"Jeannie…" Adam clears his throat. "May I speak to you?"
"If Ava stays," her voice is muffled, "it's all right."
Mother frowns. "Are you sure, dear?" Jeannie looks up just enough to nod.
"You will speak to them with the same respect as you would your wife. Do you understand?" I don't want to leave. Ava shouldn't have to relive this. Neither should Jeannie.
He swallows convulsively, "I understand."
It takes everything I have to shut the door. To have a piece of wood stand between me and Ava's safety.
Mother sighs. "I'm going to make some tea, if I can hold off Galina, our cook, from doing it first. Do you want some?"
"No, thank you." I'm staring at the door.
"Would you like a drink of your father's strongest vodka?"
"Yes, please," I say.
She returns holding a glass, followed by a guard carrying a chair from the dining room. "I know you're not going to leave this spot so at least be comfortable." She kisses my cheek. "I'll be in the living room if you need me."
The study is not quite soundproofed, so I can hear voices rise and fall over the next twenty minutes, but no shouting. Every cell in my body is surging to protect Ava from his questions. The door finally opens, and Adam stands there, his hands limp at his sides. He's gutted.
"You were telling the truth."
