He pulls me to his chest, painfully tight, the metallic smell of fresh blood in the air. I cling to him, the sudden overwhelming relief making me weep, and when he buries his face in my hair, I feel him trembling.
“I have you. You’re safe. You’re safe.” The words vibrate in my soul.
“Is it over?”
Pavel appears in the doorway, a rifle in his hand, as he surveys the room and the carnage.
A wave of pain takes over, and I don’t know if I cry out before everything around me goes dark.
I wakeup in the emergency room. My sweater has been cut away at my shoulder and arm, and there is a big bandage over the place where Andrey shot me.
The doctor informs me that I passed out due to blood loss and points to the bag of blood that is currently attached to the IV in my hand. I try to recall what happened, try to decipher what is reality and whether or not I imagined part of it. Before I can, they finally let Dmitri in. There are dark bruises on his face and stitches in the gash across his forehead. The look of raw fear and pain in his eyes tell me he imagined the worst.
He sits beside me and takes me in his arms, being careful around my wound and the various IV lines attached to me. I press my cheek against his chest and listen to his heartbeat, taking in his warmth, his scent, the feeling of safety I feel in his arms.
I’m safe.We’resafe.
It’s really over.
I wait for the nurse to check my vitals and the baby’s again, wanting us to be alone before I speak.
I pull away but leave my hand curled in his shirt.
“Dmitri. Please believe me when I tell you I never betrayed you. I didn’t leave on my own accord. One of your guards told me you had ordered him to take me somewhere else for my safety. I didn’t have a reason not to believe him. I?—”
“Clara, I know.”
“I promise, I wouldn’t have left if I’d known. Dean and Andrey set me up to make it look like I was betraying you. I’m so sorry.”
“Clara.” Dmitri takes my chin between his thumb and forefinger, his eyes looking deep into mine. “I know. My guard spilled everything to Pavel.”
I swallow, blinking back the burning behind my eyes. “You believe me?”
“Not only do I believe you, but I didn’t allow thoughts of betrayal to enter my mind, no matter what it looked like. I told you I would trust you, and I did.I also promised you I wouldn’t touch the paralegal, and I didn’t. That was Andrey, I’m sure of it. I swear to you it wasn’t me, Clara.”
I believe him. Not just because I want to, but because I can see the truth in his eyes. I lean forward and bury my face in his shirt again, taking in his warmth, his scent, and simply his presence.
Another question slips into my thoughts, and I take a moment before asking it.
“What about Dean?”
“He’s out of surgery, and it looks like he’ll make it.” From the tone of his voice, Dmitri doesn’t much care if he lives or dies. In fact, he’s probably hoping he doesn’t survive. And I’m not entirely sure how I feel either. “If he does, the Feds have taken over the case now, and Michael will deal with him.”
“In the end, he did try to protect me from Andrey. I want you to know that.”
“Does that help anything?”
“No, but it’s something I want you to remember.”
Dmitri’s thumb brushes a stray tear from my cheek, gentle in a way I didn’t know he could be. We sit in silence for a moment, letting the weight of everything settle, neither of us quite ready to break whatever fragile peace we’ve found. Finally, I manage a shaky smile, and Dmitri pulls me closer, his arms a fortress against the world outside.
The silence stretches, filled with loss, betrayal, and slowly mending trust. I lean into Dmitri’s embrace, feeling the steady beat of his heart, a reassurance I never thought I’d have again. Outside, the city moves on, uncaring, but in this room, we’re cocooned from it all, piecing ourselves back together moment by moment. When Dmitri finally speaks, his voice is soft, almost reverent. “Whatever comes next, we face it together.”
I close my eyes and let myself believe him.
40
CLARA
