Page 32 of Blazing Embers

I stare at him. My mind struggles to catch up.

“Why am I here?” I croak, switching to fluent Russian.

“Here,” the nurse says gently, offering a straw between my lips. I sip slowly. Not too much.

The doctor’s voice drops an octave. “You had a miscarriage six months ago. There were complications. Do you remember if you had a D&C?” His words buzz through my mind. What the fuck is he talking about—miscarriage? “I’m very concerned that whatever hospital treated you was being negligent.” He glances at his tablet once again. “You collapsed, bleeding badly. Thankfully, your husband found you and rushed you in here immediately. You had sepsis. I successfully removed the retained placenta. You were fortunate.”

My mind reels.Miscarriage? Sepsis? No D&C?

“Mrs. Dragunov, I know this is upsetting for you, but I have to ask, did you receive hospital treatment after the miscarriage?”

I blink at him. “I don’t understand.” My voice shakes. “Miscarriage?” My heart pounds. “My baby… isn’t real?”

“Sorry?” the doctor leans in.

“We’re overwhelming her,” the nurse snaps. “You saw what happened last time she panicked. Do you want her to code?”

“I’m trying to get answers,” the doctor says through gritted teeth, glaring at the nurse.

“And I’m telling you to back off,” she says, low and cold. The badges flash on her lapel like weapons. She’s no ordinary nurse—she runs this hospital.

The doctor backs down and addresses me. “Get some rest, Mrs. Dragunov. I’ll check in later.” He glares at the nurse. “Nurse Vera.”

When he’s gone, Konstantin steps forward as Nurse Vera releases the restraints on my wrists.

“Tara, are you okay?”

No. No, I’m not.

“I… I don’t know.”

“Please step out, Mr. Romanov,” Nurse Vera says. “I need to examine Mrs. Dragunov.”

Konstantin folds his arms over his chest stubbornly. “I don’t think so. I promised her husband?—”

“I can assure you, Mr. Dragunov will understand you stepping out for this kind of exam, Mr. Romanov.” The nurse's eyes look pointedly at the apex of my legs.

His eyes widen. “Oh! Right. I’ll be outside.”

He kisses my cheek and walks out.

The second the door shuts, Nurse Vera locks it and closes the blinds.

I stiffen. “What the fuck is going on?”

“You didn’t miscarry,” she says in Greek.

My jaw drops. “What?”

“The records are fake. I altered them.” She releases the restraints on my wrists, fluffs my pillows, and then lifts the top of my bed.

“Why did the doctor insist on calling me Mrs. Dragunov?” I ask in confusion.

“Because you and Mr. Dragunov got married in court two days ago,” Nurse Vera tells me.

“Are you fucking kidding me because that’s a really bad joke…” My eyes widen as the memories of getting married to Ruslan and having sex in the shower fill my mind. “Oh shit. I am married to him.”

“You will remember. The drugs will wear off, and the brain fog will go. But listen to me, Tara. You need to stay calm so we can get you out of here,” she warns me.

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