by Eva K. More
Anton was losing color in his face, and sweat was gathering on his forehead, staining the underside of his arm-pits. “You’re crazy. Why should I have killed two nobodies on that day?”
Lina lurched forward and slapped Anton hard with the hand holding the gun. She was livid, furious, and trembling. It was the first time Kat witnessed the other woman being so emotional.
“It was my daughter!” Lina screamed. “Those nobodies in the elevator, they were my daughter and my friend!”
Kat knew, her father had told her. The day her mother had died, the daughter of her best friend had died with her. Shamefully, she hadn’t thought much about that little girl. But looking at Lina now - her mother’s best friend - she felt her sadness. No matter how vile Lina had behaved in the past, they shared the same pain.
“With you as a mother, I did that girl a favor,” Anton said, bracing himself on his good leg.
For a moment, Kat thought that he had some strength of his earlier days left and could manage to overpower Lina, who seemed to have lost some of her guard. But when Anton tried to push her, she pointed the gun downward and shot his foot.
This time his yelp was a notch quieter. His energy was fading, and he slid down the wall. His hands, already bloody from him touching the shot on his thigh, gripped his foot.
“You are crazy,” was all Anton managed to say.
Then the front door burst open, and a man dressed in an elegant grey suit entered the room, bringing attention to himself with his mere presence.
Kat watched Maryan assess the situation, his expressionless eyes starting with her, moving to Gabriel, then to the lifeless heap of Ivo’s body on the floor before finally moving to Lina and Anton. Maryan’s poker face was perfect, but he could not hide the tension inside him completely, as Kat could see his hands tightening into fists and his knuckles turning white.
Still, he lifted his mouth in a humorless smile. “Have I come too late?”
As if slapped out of her trance, Lina looked at him for a quiet moment and then shook her head. “No, your timing is perfect, dorogoy. Would you help bring him into the torture chamber? We are now starting his punishment for all his sins. Slowly.”
Maryan lifted his hand, and a handful of armed men came rushing into the room, gripping Anton and hoisting him up. Maryan did not once move his eyes off Lina and ignored Anton’s cries of mercy. Had Maryan known that Anton had killed Kat’s mother? Was that the main reason for his hatred toward the man?
“Thank you,” Lina said, walking up to Maryan instead of into the torture chamber. “You should probably take them home now. Unfortunately, I couldn’t prevent Gabriel from getting beaten. He did knock off two of Anton’s best men; after all, he is a fighter. You’ve raised him well. Kat, I only gave a bit more ketamine than the recommended dosage so she would be drowsy a bit longer.”
It took a moment for Kat to comprehend that Maryan was thanking that woman and that Gabriel’s grip on her shoulder had tightened.
Lina still looked like a hooker, still held some craziness in her vivid expression, but her smile was genuine when she looked in Kat’s direction. Addressing her and Gabriel, she said: “I hope you don’t mind me executing the revenge, but I’ve waited for a long time to do this.” Then she sauntered into the room where Anton was crying, already restrained by some metal shackles, and closed the massive metal doors behind her.
Finally, Maryan returned his gaze to Kat. “Do you need help?”
“No,” Gabriel said behind her. “I’m good to go, and I have her.” That he did, especially when he finally moved, so he was embracing her with one arm, and her automatic response was to turn her head to his chest. As Kat raised her eyes and directed them to her father again, she saw as Maryan narrowed his eyes in suspicion, letting them linger in the places they touched.
She didn’t know if it meant that he approved or that he simply didn’t want to broach the issue in this place, but he nodded and let them walk out like that.
Seeing the floor outside, littered with dozens of bodies, she was even more glad to be supported by Gabriel’s warmth.
at was packing the few things Maryan had given her during her stay. She had remained at his penthouse for the past five days to heal from the events at Anton’s house. The little wounds on her skin had healed quickly, but emotionally she had needed time to think, process, feel. It was a good thing she had been mostly left alone.
She heard a knock and turned to the door. Maryan was standing in the open door, immaculately dressed as always, gazing upon her with a warm expression.
“You are leaving already?” He softly asked.
Kat wasn’t sure if she detected sadness behind his eyes or if it was only her imagination, but she was glad when he stepped into the room. Finally, she felt ready to talk to him. Looking at Maryan didn’t hurt anymore because instead of being filled with dread and hatred and confusion, she was simply curious. In only a short time, his face had become familiar to her, and yet she drank in every line and wrinkle on it, memorizing it.
“Yes,” she said finally, returning to her packing. “It’s time I get back to my own house.”
Maryan sat on the bed, next to the designer duffle bag he had given her. He looked elegant and fatherly with his frown.
“Are you sure you are ready?” he asked.
“As ready as I can be.”
He nodded at her response and looked to the floor. This time she could not hide her smile, small but genuine.
“I’m returning to my life because living in your loft looking above the city-” she looked out the window and marveled at the sun reflecting on the rooftops outside, “it feels otherworldly. I need to deal with reality, and despite everything, or maybe even because of everything, I’m ready to do exactly that. I’m not that naïve little girl I was months ago. I feel more cautious and yet stronger.” Taking a deep breath, she nodded, as if confirming herself. “I’m ready to face the whole world now.”
Maryan couldn’t hide how proud he felt, but still, he remained reserved. “That’s wonderful, Katherina.”
Kat pushed the bag to the side and made herself sit next to him. It was easier not to look at him as she spoke her next words because, despite her new-found bravery, some things still made her anxious.
Nervously she watched him rearrange the expensive gold watch on his wrist.
“You know, I said ‘my own house,’ not ‘my old life.’ I’m happy that the thing with Ivo and Anton is over, but now that I’ve had enough time to process everything, I kind of- I’d really like to keep in touch with you. Maybe get together sometime, get to know each other. That kind of thing.” She restrained herself from talking further and outright call him ‘papa,’ as she now remembered more and more she did when she was little. She even had a couple of memories of her mother, not many, and mostly sounds, but she thought that it was maybe because Maryan was here, which made remembering her childhood with him easier.
Emotionally, this was the most exposed she had felt in a long time, especially when Maryan remained quiet.
Is this the right course of action? She wondered, her confidence paper-thin.
However, Maryan finally reacted, and his hand slowly moved and intertwined with hers. “I’m glad,” he said, his voice tight. Still keeping her head firmly straight ahead, Kat could have sworn that his eyes appeared glassy when she took a sideways glance. She squeezed his hand, showing him that she was equally affected.
Not a man used to emotions, he let go of her only a short time later and stood up, clearing his throat. “We can have dinner here next Friday. What do you think?”
“Sure”
“Perfect. Is there something else I can do for you today?”
“Actually,” Kat said, halting him in his steps. It amused her that he seemed so eager to hide his feelings; the big bad mafia boss wasn’t supposed to be happy. “I’d like some answers. I’m really curious, and I’m not sure I’ll be able to sleep another night without knowing.”
Ma
ryan lifted his eyes in surprise and grinned. “I’m not sure curious is the right word; it appears that you are quite stubborn, Katherina.”
Kat shrugged, “Does one exclude the other?”
“Curiosity isn’t always a good trait. Mixed with stubbornness, it can be even dangerous. If you ask me, you should be careful first, then curious.”
“Should I be careful with you, then?” she asked, still with a smile on her face.
Maryan’s stoic expression lost some of its sternness and got replaced it with a bit of fierceness. “Never. It’s just the advice of an old man.”
Kat grinned at that. Her father was a peculiar figure, trying to parent her on a subliminal level. “Then, if I can talk freely with you, will you answer my questions?” She was getting the feeling that he was stalling for time. He didn’t appear nervous, that would have been against his very person, but a man so full of mysteries wasn’t too keen on spilling some secrets.
He looked at her, sighed, and shook his head before tilting the corners of his mouth up in amusement. “Fine.”
“Can you tell me about Lina?”
“Figured that would come,” Maryan said, slowly walking back to the bed and sitting down again. Even though he turned sideways, he didn’t look at Kat, but out the window and into the blue sky.
“She has always been a friend,” Maryan said carefully.
“So, you have known her for a long time?” Kat asked.
“Very long.”
“Did you know her daughter?” She continued, still feeling awful about that little girl.
“Barely,” Maryan frowned. “Lina was always closer to your mother; she was the one who introduced us. If I remember correctly, they went to school together. I can’t deny that I’m relieved that it wasn’t you on that awful day, Katherina. But what happened should have never happened anyway.” He said and closed his eyes for a second.
The questions were drowning her mind, and she needed to select the correct ones lest she managed to upset her father.
“How come Lina works for you now? Didn’t she somehow make you responsible for what happened?” Kat asked, remembering the reaction of her Baba when she had asked about her parents.
Maryan played with his watch. “When her daughter died, she went to a bad place,” he said. “She started drinking, taking drugs, even tried taking her life on a few occasions. When she ended up on the streets, I found her. Ultimately her daughter had died because of me, so I offered her a place to stay. In a way, she was angry and frustrated. But she never blamed me.”
Carefully choosing her next words, Kat kept her voice low. “It wasn’t your fault, you know?” When Maryan remained quiet, she probed. “Do you blame yourself?”
“Sometimes. In a way.”
Kat didn’t know how to answer or help him. “Do you blame yourself for what happened to her daughter or for what happened to her afterward?”
Maryan’s laugh was bitter. “No. That she chose herself. After all, I wouldn’t have made her a whore. That, she did to herself.”
“Maybe, she is punishing herself for having outlived her daughter,” Kat said, relieved that her father was generous rather than evil. He had a conscience. And Kat had seen the self-destructive streak in Lina's eyes. Not that she could blame the woman.
“Maybe,” Maryan said.
“And in this situation with Anton… Did she betray you, or did you know everything?” Kat asked.
Maryan looked out at the city, his long fingers now relaxed.
“That’s a loaded question.” He replied and took a couple of seconds before answering. “Lina doesn’t work for me. She works for herself; she is smart that way. She is driven by, maybe, the most understandable of selfish reasons, and she wanted to end the human trafficking ring maybe even more than anybody else. She knew who you were from the beginning; after all, you do look like your mother, and whenever we talked, she assured me that she would keep you unharmed. I guess it wasn’t the complete truth,” Maryan’s expression darkened for a second before he shook his head as if clearing his thoughts. “I guess it doesn’t matter anymore. She did inform me every time they supposedly caught you, but she did it whenever it suited her schedule. Otherwise, she knew I would have come and gotten you, no matter what.”
“And it wasn’t all planned, was it? Ivo could only leave the factory because he used her as a shield. But why didn’t she come back to you afterward? She wasn’t a slave to Anton, and you already had all the information you needed concerning the human trafficking ring, so why did she stay with him? Did she know that he was responsible for the elevator?” Kat’s brain rattled.
“She wasn’t sure, none of us where. Maybe I should have known.” Maryan’s dry laugh was bitter. “But I didn’t want to believe that someone on my radar had destroyed my family. Ultimately that would mean that I could have prevented it… I guess Lina must have stumbled upon some kind of clue during her investigation about the trafficking. But-” his eyes met hers, “believe me when I say that, had I known her plan involved you, I’d have stopped her beforehand.”
Kat nodded. Lina was even more mysterious than Maryan. To her, the woman embodied everything that had gone wrong in the world, and yet there was a sliver of clarity Kat had glimpsed inside Lina’s head.
“What about the brothel?”
Maryan stroked his mustache with his forefinger and thumb and shook his head, grinning slightly. “That brain of yours- you’ve got that business savvy from me. What would you do with it?”
Kat lifted her eyebrows in surprise. “Me? I’m not-”
“Humor me, sweetheart.” He said, and something warm filled her insides, remembering that that was how he always called her when she was little.
“I don’t know. I think this is a degrading, harmful thing. When I was there, I met that girl- Star. That was her name. She looked at me like there was something broken inside. I’d try to help her somehow, but I don’t how. I’ve never really been in her situation.”
Maryan nodded. “Good thinking. That’s why I’ve left it to Lina. You might not believe it, but her heart is on the right side. I’m sure she’ll make the most of these girls.”
Kat mulled over his words. “Did you love… my mother?” That wasn’t what Kat had wanted to ask. She wanted to know if he loved Lina. Maryan had been talking about her with a specific voice and an odd expression on his face, but she had chickened out. It didn’t feel right to ask him that. And, probably, it was time to change the subject.
His loud laugh reverberated in the room. Kat liked the sound of it and the lines on his face. “You really don’t hold back, do you?”
“No.” She replied with a smile.
When his laughter ceased, he looked more relaxed and comfortable than before. “I’m not a saint, Katherina, and at that time, I was young and thought that I had control of the entire world. Money, power, and women. But yes, in my own way, I loved your mother. She was a good woman, rebellious, but friendly and beautiful, just like you, and when she put you in my arms… I loved you from the start.” And although he wasn’t touching her, she felt his love in his fond gaze, and her heart thawed.
He proceeded to tell her the story of how they met and how she spent her first few years. He told her stories of their time together at the cabin in the woods, and Kat listened carefully. The stories sounded so foreign, and she couldn’t quite believe that he was talking about her life. Still, with every passing second, she felt herself falling into this world of forgotten memories and enjoying his tales.
She wished she could remember more about being a small girl in her father’s strong hands because he portrayed so much affection that tears burned behind her eyes.
“You might not remember me, and I might be a stranger for you now, but I’ve accompanied you your whole life, always in the background. I was still there by your side. Your first day of school, the day you graduated, the-”
“I do remember some thi- Wait, you were there then?”
He reached into
his pocket, taking out his smartphone. He dabbled with it for a moment, before showing her the screen with a photo album that carried her name. It spoke volumes that he was bringing these memories with him every day.
Maryan showed her the first picture. Immediately she recognized the woman holding the baby; after all, her grandparents had a lot of pictures of her mother.
“That was your first birthday. And here, here we are in the cabin. Now your first day in kindergarten and here your first school day!”
Awed, she looked at the pictures and basked in the glow of his evident pride.
Then, another thought occurred to her. “Do you have any other children? I- I sometimes remember small things about the cabin, mostly sounds of Gabriel and I playing outside, but-” she paused, mid explanation, trying to put her ideas in order. “Other times, there is another child, a blond one, but I can’t place him anywhere.”
Mid swipe, Maryan paused with his hand on a page. The smile he shot her was apologetic. “I have an older son from my first marriage.”
Kat gaped at him. “You were married? I have a brother?” At least this time, the knowledge of an extended family hadn’t had her stomach filling with dread but with nervous anticipation. “Does he know about me?”
“That’s another loaded question. No, he doesn’t know that you’re still alive, and he isn’t in the city at the moment. You see, we keep family above everything. I couldn’t risk him exposing us because he wanted to fulfill his brotherly duties – he’s hot-headed that way. Let’s postpone that talk for next week, maybe.” He made a face like something sour had moved past his taste buds.
Dazed, she wanted to protest, but Maryan pointed at the album in his hands, continuing with the pictures.
“This is from your graduation; It was especially hard to get a close-up because so many people always swarmed you and I had to stay undetected by your grandparents. Speaking of them. How are they handling the situation?”
It was Kat’s time to play with her hands nervously. It wasn’t like she hadn’t worried about them; she was just overwhelmed by everything that had happened.