To The End With You

C h a p t e r F i f t y - E i g h t

Photo: OTMA with their parents, uncle mimi and Dimitri Pavlovich 1916

February 1916
I find Misha back in the infirmary quite quickly. He needed immediate leg surgery as it was wounded badly. I assisted in the surgery of course. He is after all a friend of mine and a father to be. It is quite exciting actually, her baby bump is barely visible but it is there. After we finish the surgery we put him on a bed to rest and to wake up from the surgery.

I haven't told Evelina that he is here, I do not with to put stress on her or the baby that she is carrying. I will tell her once he wakes up, hopefully before lunch since she is coming by to eat lunch with me. "Romanova 3! We need you!" I hear a nurse shout for me. I quickly run after them into the surgery room, running past Olga and Mitya which I mentally barf at.

I join the others as I assist in the surgery, poor man had to have his leg amputated. Mama isn't around much as she stays running russia while papa is at the front. Rasputin is around 24/7 calming her and assisting in advice. Everytime I am around that man he scares me, especially since I can't even figure him out. We finish the surgery as I go to wash my hands a fellow nurse comes to me and says, "A patient is asking for you" I look at her confused, "Which Patient?"

"Zima" she answers. Misha wants to speak with me? Maybe he wants me to call over Evelina to make sure everything is alright. "I'll be there in a second" I say as I finish washing my hands and change out of my surgery outfit. I walk over to the room that Misha is laying in. He is sitting up while having a cup of tea. He notices me immediately, "Vanya" is all he says. I smile as I sit down next to him, "Welcome back Misha!" I greet my old friend.

"You are my angel"he says taking my hands and kissing them, "My darling angel Vanya"he mutters into them. I quickly take them away feeling uncomfortable, "How is your leg?" I change the subject. "It is much more better now with you in my presence!" he says. "That is good, have you called evelina?" I asked him. His face scrunches, "No"

"Oh, then maybe I should call for her after all she is pregnant with your child, don't you wish to see her?" I ask him. "No" he says sounding a bit annoyed. "Well-," but I came cut off by a familiar voice.

"Valechka" I hear. I turn around and see Igor standing in the doorway I clap my hands in excitement as I run over to hug him. "Igor!" I exclaim, thank goodness he is alright. He is back, that means papa and Alyosha are back as well. "What are you doing here?" I pull back and look up at him as he towers over me. "Your papa is back in Petrograd so I came with him." He explains. "Shouldn't you be at the palace?" I say teasingly. He gives me a cheeky smile as he pinches my cheek, "I had to see my darling Valechka first" he teases. "I thought I would stop by to say hello so that you wouldn't anticipate seeing me all day, you know you must think clearly during surgery I can't distract your thoughts" he teases me as I laugh blushing slightly.

I hear a cough as I turn around, I completely almost forgot about Misha. "Who is this?" Misha says in a not polite tone. "This is my cousin, Prince Igor Konstantinovich" I introduced him. "Igor, this is Misha, he is my friend and a fellow soldier" I explain. Igor politely goes up to Misha and sticks out his hand for a hand shake, Misha just eyes him and looks at me, "Vanya can you get me some more tea? I am not in the best shape".

"Of course!" I say, I look at Igor, "Come on you can tell me everything as I prepare him some tea". Igor smiles as he is about to follow me before I hear Misha, "Wait!". Igor and I both turn around and look at him, "Prince Igor can stay here, I have heard so much about the man but never got speak with him." Misha says with a tone that I can't uncover. I look at Igor, "it's alright we can go on a walk when you get home".  I look back at Misha to find his face red and annoyed, "I will be right back" I say as I go to the kitchen.

I come back to find Igor gone. "Where did Igor go?"I ask Misha, feeling disappointed. "Thank you"he says taking the tea from me. I check my watch trying not to think about Igor, did I upset him? Did I anger him? Is that why he left? "You know Evelina-," but I am cut off as Misha takes my hand. "You must promise me that you will stay away from him"he looks me dead in the eye. What the hell? What does he mean. I frown, "What?"

"I spoke to him while you were away, he doesn't have good intentions with you, he doesn't care for you as I do, he does not love you as I do, Vanya you must stay away from him"he grabs my hand tighter. I stand with my eyes wide and my mouth open, "Love?" I repeat. "Yes Vanya! I love you! I realized that marrying evelina was a mistake on my deathbed I was thinking of you and not her! I need you Vanya! I can't stand her! I will divorce her as soon as the war is over and we can be together!"

I shake off the shock, he still has feelings for me? he still cares for... that bastard! His wife is pregnant and he loves another woman? What is wrong with him? "She is pregnant with your child"I say slowly. "I don't care Vanya, my love, they mean nothing! I will leave them for you!" He cries out. Evelina has been nothing but nice and this is how he treats the women he married, that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with?

"What is wrong with you?" I say in disgust as I pull my hand away. "Why would you ever think that I would be with you? After what you were going to do to Evelina, abandon her, abandon your unborn child! You are careless! I would never want to be with you. As I told you in Romania, we could have not been together and now especially I would never want to be with you" I snap at him. He stares at me frozen, "and I don't appreciate you controlling who I speak to! If I want to marry Igor I will!" I yell at him while boiling in anger.

I walk out of the room, not wishing to see his face ever again as I run into Evelina. "Vanya! I have heard that my Misha is here!" She says worriedly. My stomach drops as I swallow my bad gut feeling, "Do not worry yourself Eve, he is fine, he awake and well." I explain to her. "Which room is he in?" She asks her voice filled with worry still. "Room 3" I say as she walks past me, leaving me with the basket filled with our lunch. I decide to give them alone time as I step outside to eat lunch alone.