Page 41 of Shadows of the Past
Without another word, Maksim strides toward the stairs. When he reaches Ivan at the top, an entire conversation seems to pass between them in silence, just through their eyes.
I could say there’s pride in Ivan’s expression, and somehow that realization dulls my emotions. Maksim didn’t do this outrageous act to prove something to me; he did it to prove something tohim.
“JULIA!” Maksim’s shout jolts me back to reality, and I nearly trip over myself as I scramble up the stairs after him.
I want to yell at him for walking so fast, but I’m already out of breath trying to keep up, so I hold back. I’ve caused him enough trouble already.
The moment we step into his room and the door shuts behind us, we both exhale deeply, releasing breaths we didn’t realize we were holding.
“Are you okay?” I ask hesitantly, shifting from foot to foot as an overwhelming urge to throw myself into his arms takes over.
For a few seconds, he stands there with his hands on his hips, pacing back and forth across the room. There’s such a dark energy radiating from him that even I feel like leaving the room.
“Am I okay? NO, JULIA! I’m NOT okay!” he snaps, his voice raw with fury. “You were almost raped! What if I hadn’t come home early? What if you hadn’t managed to escape him at first?”
I can feel his anger; it’s palpable, and I wish I could physically take it from him with my hands because I understand it all too well. Now that the adrenaline has worn off, I realize how close I came to something horrific. Maybe I would’ve made it to Akim…or maybe that man would’ve caught me again with no way out.
“But I did escape,” I say softly, taking a step closer to him. “And you came back early.”
There’s so much regret in his eyes that it makes my chest ache. Before I can stop myself, I move closer and take his hands in mine. He studies my face like he’s trying to figure out why I’m so calm, why I’m not trembling with rage like he is.
“If something had happened to you…” His voice trails off; he doesn’t need to finish the sentence.
I rest my head against his chest and listen to his heartbeat. So erratic. So uneven. Remembering that he had heart issues as a child makes me whisper into his shirt, “Please calm down. Your heart is beating way too fast.”
“The damn thing’s broken from birth, Julia,” he mutters bitterly.
Something inside me cracks at his words because it doesn’t feel like he’s just talking about anatomy, it feels deeper than that. Emotional scars layered over physical ones.
I wish I could show him how my heart beats differently when he’s around, how it races just because he walks into a room. And it’s that storm of emotions that pushes me to say something that freezes him in place like a statue.
“No, Maksim,” I whisper gently. “It’s not broken…just incomplete.”
Chapter 16
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Julia
Three days have passed since the incident with the man who broke down my door and chased me down the stairs, and it’s as if the whole thing has been erased from everyone’s memory. No one looks in my direction anymore. No one even dares to breathe near me.
Every day, Maksim paints fake bruises on my arms for appearances, though they’re pointless this time because my body is already covered in real ones from fighting off that animal.
Maksim has retreated back into his impenetrable bubble, shutting me out like before. The only time he lets his guard down is at night when we lie in bed and our hands intertwine beneath the covers.
The training? It’s…going okay.
I’ve discovered that the machine gun is definitely my favorite weapon, but hand-to-hand combat? I’m terrible at it. I’m too impatient, burn through my energy too quickly, and every time I mess up, I see the flicker of irritation on Maksim’s face.
He never touches me during training; his strikes always stop just an inch short of making contact, but it’s enough to send a clear message: someone else wouldn’t stop.
Akim, on the other hand, has become the only person I actually talk to anymore.
This morning, when Maksim and I leave the mansion and head toward the barn for another round of pistol training, Akim surprises me by walking up with a bouquet of sunflowers in his hands. My favorite flowers. My eyes instantly well up with tears.
“Akim,” I whisper, reaching for them like they’re the most precious thing in the world.
“Happy birthday, Julia,” he says softly, looking a little awkward but sincere.
