Chapter 5 - The Sister with Sapphire Eyes
The journey back across Long Island Sound was a blur of roaring engines,
flashing red emergency lights, and the sweet, peaceful sound of Vera’s steady
breathing.
Wrapped securely in Ilya’s blue blanket, nestled against my chest in the heated
cabin of the interceptor boat, Vera had fallen into a deep, exhausted sleep
within five minutes of leaving the freighter.
Valentin sat in the jump seat directly beside me, his shoulder pressed firmly
against mine, his large hand resting gently over Vera’s back.
He had removed his tactical armor, sitting in his dark sweater, his eyes never
leaving his daughter’s sleeping face.
“Boris Rostov was on a private jet to Zurich twenty minutes ago,” Maksim
reported from the navigation console, holding a satellite phone to his ear. “Our
men in Geneva confirmed his flight plan. He knows the Volga Star was
intercepted. He has abandoned Katarina.”
Valentin’s jaw set into stone. “Let him run to Switzerland. He will find out
that the Alps are not high enough to hide him from me.”
He turned his gaze to me, looking at my soaked uniform, my shivering shoulders,
and the way I was cradling his daughter with maternal ease.
He unbuttoned his heavy, cashmere-lined shearling coat, draped it gently over my
shoulders, and pulled the lapels together around my neck.
The coat was warm, smelling of cedarwood, dark tobacco, and rain.
“You’re shivering, Leah,” Valentin murmured softly.
“I’m just glad she’s safe, Mr. Sokolov,” I whispered, pulling the heavy wool
tighter around myself.
“Stop calling me Mr. Sokolov,” he said, his voice dropping into a low, velvety
register that sent a shiver down my spine that had nothing to do with the cold.
“My name is Valentin.”
I looked up, meeting his piercing blue eyes. “Valentin.”
A faint, breathtaking smile touched the corner of his lips. “Good.”
We reached the estate marina at 2:30 AM.
The storm had begun to subside, the howling wind dying down to a steady,
rhythmic rain falling over the calm harbor.
As we walked up the stone steps toward the main house, the heavy oak doors swung
open.
Ilya sprinted down the hallway in his flannel pajamas, tears streaming down his
face, completely ignoring the armed guards stationed along the corridor.
“Vera!” he cried out.
Valentin knelt down, letting Vera slide from my arms to the floor.
The two children collided in a tight, weeping embrace on the Persian rug. Ilya
wrapped his arms around his little sister, burying his face in her hair,
pressing the frayed blue blanket around her shoulders.
“I kept your doll safe, Vera,” Ilya sobbed. “Papa brought you back.”
“Leah gave me your blanket, Ilya,” Vera giggled through her tears, kissing her
brother’s cheek. “She said we’re having cinnamon toast.”
Standing in the grand archway of the foyer, watching the two children hold each
other under the warm chandelier light, I felt tears spill freely down my cheeks.
Two hours ago, they were broken orphans living in the shadow of terror. Tonight,
they were whole again.
Valentin stood up from the floor, walking slowly over to where I stood beside
the grandfather clock.
He looked down at me, his gaze sweeping over my face, lingering on my lips for a
heartbeat before rising to my eyes.
“Maksim,” Valentin called out without looking away from me.
“Yes, boss?”
“Call the private medical director at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan,”
Valentin commanded. “I want an executive medical transport dispatched to the
university clinic in Stony Brook immediately.”
My heart stopped. “Valentin... why?”
Valentin reached out, his warm, scarred fingers gently tucking a damp strand of
hair behind my ear.
“Your sister, Maya,” Valentin said softly. “She is being transferred to the
private pediatric oncology suite at Lenox Hill tonight. The chief of
neuro-oncology will take over her care by sunrise. All treatments, all
surgeries, all rehabilitation costs are fully endowed under the Sokolov Family
Foundation.”
A gasp of pure, overwhelming shock tore from my throat. “Valentin... no... that
clinic costs millions of dollars...”
“Your sister will receive the finest medical care on this continent, Leah,”
Valentin whispered, stepping closer until his tall frame completely shielded me
from the world. “You gave me back both of my children tonight. There is nothing
in this city that I will not give you in return.”
My knees gave out under the weight of the relief.
Before I could fall, Valentin’s strong arms caught me around the waist, pulling
me effortlessly against his chest, holding me tightly against his heartbeat.
May you like
I buried my face in his neck, weeping with the raw, untamed gratitude of a
sister whose impossible prayers had finally been answered.
