Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 107079 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 535(@200wpm)___ 428(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107079 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 535(@200wpm)___ 428(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
I looked down at Alison. I did now.
A nurse I recognized from the huddle around Bronwyn burst out of the curtained area and yelled down the hallway in medical jargon. A moment later, another nurse ran to her, pushing a cart of equipment. What does that mean?! My chest tightened. Bronwyn was so different to our family, with her gentleness and her books and her enormous sandwiches. And maybe that was why she was exactly what our family had needed. She’d become someone I really liked, someone I’d die to protect. If she died…
I felt so fucking useless: Bronwyn had been in my mansion, where she was supposed to be safe, and that bastard Grushin had nearly killed her anyway. He must have intercepted the bakery delivery...God, all of us could have eaten those pastries. Alison nearly ate one! I tightened my arm around her.
It was a race against time, now: could we stop him before he wiped us out? And I was way, way out of my comfort zone. Billionaire bankers, who could wipe out our empire with the stroke of a pen? City officials being somehow controlled by a former spy? This wasn’t my world. My hands tightened into fists. Just give me someone to shoot!
Radimir suddenly emerged from the curtained area and marched towards us, chest shuddering as he fought to control his anger. We all jumped up. “What’s—” I began.
“Her heart stopped,” Radimir said, his voice strangled. “They’re trying to restart it. They made me leave. I was in the way.”
He began to pace, eyes down and shoulders hunched. I understand anger, and I should have known to leave him alone, but I wanted to help. I put a gentle hand on his shoulder.
He whirled to face me. “It’s your fault!” he snapped, shoving me in the chest. “This is your mess! Your side of the business! Your fucking FBI agent!”
I staggered backwards...and took it. A few months before, I would have yelled back at him. Now I understood what he was going through: I remembered kneeling over Alison in the warehouse, begging her not to leave me. Alison reached out and squeezed my hand.
Radimir went to stand by one of the big glass windows, staring out at the rain. There was silence for a moment. Then he rubbed his face with his hands and turned to me. “I’m sorry,” he croaked. “I’m sorry, Gennadiy. I just don’t know—”
I nodded.
Radimir’s voice was shaking. “I don’t know what I’m going to do if she dies…”
A doctor ran out of the curtained area. “Mr. Aristov!” He stopped in front of Radimir. “We’ve managed to get her heart going again...for now.” He led Radimir back towards the treatment area.
The rest of us reluctantly shuffled back to the waiting area, pale and drawn with worry. As we sat down, Alison rubbed her hand across my back. I turned to her...and pulled her into my arms, crushing her against me.
And then all we could do was wait.
59
ALISON
I kept looking around at the other families in the waiting area, there because their kid broke an arm playing baseball, or their uncle had a stroke. We were there because some guy poisoned one of us. And we couldn’t even go to the cops: the FBI were still hunting me, and even if they weren’t, the cops would be happy to let one gangster kill another, just like my boss had said. I’d never realized how lonely this life was, outside of the safe, secure system we all take for granted. We were completely on our own: that’s why family was so important to the Aristovs. And for me. I was one of them, now.
A half-hour after we arrived, a lady in her seventies raced in, nimble despite her walking stick, and asked where her granddaughter was. Gennadiy went over and embraced her, and introduced me: she was Baba, Bronwyn’s grandmother, who’d raised her after her parents died. Then three of Bronwyn’s friends showed up, scared and desperate for news. Radimir emerged briefly to tell us that it was still touch-and-go and took Baba in to see Bronwyn. I caught one tiny glimpse of her through a crack in the curtains. She looked waxy and gray, and there was a tube going up her nose. Ah, Jesus…
For five hours, we all paced and waited. And then Radimir came staggering out through the curtains, looking like he was about to collapse. “She’s going to be alright,” he croaked. “She’s responding to the treatment.”
There was a chorus of relieved sighs, and we all hugged Radimir. I saw him give Gennadiy an especially hard squeeze, and Gennadiy patted his back: It’s okay.
An hour later, we were allowed to go in and see Bronwyn. Gennadiy, Radimir, and I were in with her when she opened her eyes. Radimir threw his arms around her and held her tight. “Krasavitsa!” he breathed. “I thought I’d lost you!”