Page 168 of Stolen Empire
Artemy takes a seat on one side, and gestures for Katya and me to sit across from him.
We sit and talk for a few hours, about Katya's upbringing, her memories.
Artemy shows her pictures of places she remembers but only after she describes them to a T, especially features about those locations that aren't depicted in the photos, and when it's all said and done, he can only graciously accept that she's his cousin.
The conversation is tense and ends with a stern warning from Artemy to keep Katya safe or it's my blood, then a renewal of the pact with a handshake.
He'll back us, but he won't lose men over it.
And with the meeting finished, we walk back out into the cold afternoon.
Gavriil and his men remain alert by the vehicles, and I nod to him as we approach.
Katya climbs into the passenger seat, and I slide behind the wheel.
As I start the engine and prepare to drive away, Artemy stands on the porch watching us.
He looks like Lyovik must have looked, if the few descriptions I’ve heard are accurate.
We drive away from the country home, and in the rearview mirror, I watch the house disappear behind the trees.
"He accepted you," I say as we return to the main road.
"He accepted the blood tie," Katya corrects.
"That's not the same as acceptance. But it's enough to move forward."
The alliance is renewed because of her, and I couldn’t love her more.
But here and now isn’t the time to tell her.
It will come, in due time.
And when it does, I'll make sure she understands what it means.
That she belongs to me forever, and no one will ever take her from me.
27
KATYA
The abandoned rail spur is nothing but cracked asphalt, with rusted metal bones of old infrastructure jutting out of the ground at odd angles.
Dead and dormant trees surround the perimeter, with naked branches reaching toward the gray afternoon sky.
I ride in the passenger seat of Dimitri's SUV, and I can feel the thickness of the bulletproof vest under my clothes.
"You don’t have to do this," Dimitri says, but I know he's only trying to reassure me.
I do have to do this.
"We can find another way."
"No, we can't."
I keep my eyes on the road ahead.
"He needs to believe he has me. That's the only way he'll show himself."
