“Hey.”
“Where are you, Ilana?” His voice was perfectly calm, with no hint of suspicion or panic.
“I came out for a walk. I am in the marketplace right now. I needed to get out of the house and have some time with myself.”
“Are you having a good time?” he asked. I could hear the smile in his voice. It felt like a small win to know he trusted me enough to let me get out of his sight without any guards or security. After everything that had happened, his concern was natural, but he was still being casual about it.
“I am.”
“I am glad, my love.”
In that moment, I finally came to a decision. This man, who had spent half his life not trusting anyone, trusted me. He trusted me enough to tell me everything of consequence, and hegave me a phone and let me go out alone. He trusted me enough to figure things out all by myself and was not hovering over me or suffocating me. All of it meant that it was about time I trusted him, too. I had to.
He deserved to know the truth.
“Are you coming home yourself, or should I come get you?”
“Can you come here? I want to talk to you somewhere outside the house.”
“Is everything okay?” A hint of concern emerged in his voice.
“Everything is perfect. I just want to sit down and have a conversation with you.”
“I’ll come right now. Where are you exactly?”
“I am right outside this café called Croissant and Coffee. I will take a table and sit here. And I am waiting for you.”
“I am on my way.”
The line disconnected before I could say anything at all, and a smile appeared on my face. I could picture him already getting into his car, putting it in drive to come see me. I walked towards the café and chose a table outside. It was a cozy setup, and everyone around seemed at ease. A waiter came and took my coffee order, and I noticed a man staring at me across the street.
Something shifted in my posture, and I grew serious, my blood turning to ice. I did not recognize the man, but the way he was looking at me was rather pointed. As if he knew who I was. My best bet was staying in the middle of people until Avgust came because this man could be linked to the kidnappers who auctioned me. I was not going to take any chances. In staring at the man, I did not notice the second car pulling in.
“Ilana.” Someone said my name, the familiarity of it making me freeze.
I turned around slowly and saw Kliment standing a few feet away, taller than I remembered, his face harder. Fyodor was right beside him, his eyes dark with worry and fury tangled together.
“You shouldn’t have come here,” I whispered.
“We have been looking all over the city for you,” Fyodor said, walking towards me. “Thank god we found you.”
“I explicitly told you not to come looking for me.”
Kliment’s gaze flicked over me, my clothes, my posture, my ring.
“Looks like our sister has found herself someone or something,” he said coolly, his expression impossible to decipher.
“You had me followed,” I accused them, growing angrier with every passing minute.
“We had to find you one way or the other,” Fyodor replied.
“This is dangerous. You shouldn’t be here. Please leave.”
My heart slammed against my ribs. Avgust would be here any second.
“And you can?” Kliment snapped. “You disappeared for months, Ilana. Months.”
Footsteps sounded behind me, making me turn around just as Avgust stepped into view. The air around us changed at once with Avgust’s eyes locking with Kliment’s. Kliment’s hand twitched, and Fyodor too seemed on edge. Avgust hardened, anything soft about him fading away at once.
