Captive

Tough goodbyes

I stood there is disbelief for a second or two unable to move. My legs felt like lead and a numbness came over the rest of me. My breaths became short and choppy. Nikolai was serious... He wanted me to go back to America.

I could hear Dimitri and Nikolai arguing outside the door in Russian. For once Dimitri didn't sound like he was in control of the debate. Nikolai must have been scolding him.

Every time I thought about Dimitri my heart twisted in pain. I let myself fall for him only to be told that he had something to do with my fathers death. The only ones who can give me answers right now are Brody and Steven. I hate Brody's guts and Steven is not someone I want to be alone with. But still Steven's words echoed in my head making me feel uneasy.

He recognized the phone number I typed into his phone. He said it belonged to an old friend of his. I thought that it belonged to a detective working on my fathers case. I don't know what connections Steven has with the detective but it would explain how he got the police papers. 

That night Dimitri hadn't even tried to come in the room. I didn't hear him outside either. Nikolai must have told him to leave. I felt kinda lonely. Suddenly a rap at the door caught my attention! Could it be Dimitri?! Wait? What? Dimitri is not someone I should be hoping for.... Right?

I slumped out of bed and waddled over to the door. I opened it only to be greeted by Tank's head trying to squeeze through the crack in the door.

I looked up to see Karolek.

" Hi Anna, I heard you and the Boss got in a fight." He said as he awkwardly scratched the back of his head.

" Yeah." I mumbled.

" Do you wanna talk about things. We have hot coco in the kitchen. And the lounge has leather recliners, not to mention a huge fireplace." Karolek suggested with a smile.

" It depends, where is Dimitri?" I asked not wanting to run the risk of running into him right now.

" He and Nikolai left a while ago to spend the night at the hospital with Boris and Ivan." Karolek explained as he refused to look me in the eyes.

" Well if that's the case then let's go." I said as I quickly threw on a robe and walked with him to the kitchen.

He heated up milk in a teakettle over the stove. Once it was hot he poured it into two cups, then he dropped a few pieces of chocolate in each. With a quick stir the white milk turned to brown.

" Here you go." He said handing me a mug.

I took a sip and couldn't believe my taste buds. The hot chocolate was so rich and creamy it surprised me. I had only ever had the powder kind.

" This is really good! Thank You!" I told him as I took more sips. It was hotter than the deepest pits of hell but I didn't care, it was that good.

" You're welcome, I'm glad I could make you feel a little better. I like it more when you smile." Karolek admitted as he dropped a piece of bread on the floor for Tank.

" Now where are those leather recliners near the fire place?" I asked ready for part two.

" Oh yah! Right this way." Karolek said as he took off out of the kitchen. Tank and I tailed him the whole way there and I was thankful to see it looked really cozy.

We sat down in parallel chairs to each other and sipped our hot coco as we watched the flames lick at the fire wood. The warmth made me calm and the reclining chair helped me relive some of my stress.

I looked over at Karolek and noticed Tank resting his head on his lap. Suddenly a tear rolled down my cheek without my consent. My heart twisted into a painful knot.