The Imperial Revenge

Chapter 8

June 1919

There had been too much that happened between November 1918-June 1919. Kaiser Wilhelm II, Papa's cousin, abdicated the German/Prussian throne. Apparently, the country will be made into a republic or small countries. Who knows? Also, it seems different countries are trying to declare war on the Bolsheviks.

In the meantime, I've been going on walks more. I was still using my crutches but it was good practice to one day get off of them. According to Ilya, I needed to start eating more and building muscle. An athletic lifestyle could cure disease. Which I didn't trust that one bit but who knows, maybe it would help.

"Good morning." I said coming up the stairs then into the kitchen.
"Good morning, Alexei. Do you know where Ilya could have went by any chance? He left without a word this morning." Ilya's sister asked. I shook my head at her. "Oh well. For breakfast, you get to eat sausage and eggs. Timofey says you need to eat all of it and drink two glasses of milk. It's important for you to stay healthy."
"Alright fine." I sat down. I quickly ate all of my food. I also drank my two glasses of milk. Afterward, I stood in the living room and stretched my legs. I meditated while stretching and stayed calm. It was peaceful. That was until Ilya burst into the housing and dragged a boy by his ear. The door slammed and they came into the living room too. Everyone quickly surrounded the two of them.

"Listen! I was up North doing business. This boy here tried to steal my horse. Now, we have two options. We can kill him or we can try to initiate him to the group. That's the only thing worse than being dead. What do you all think?" Ilya said. Different men in the group started to speak very loud over each other. Majority of them were wanting to kill him. But the boy looked harmless and probably hungry. He needed help.
"Ilya, please don't hurt him." I shouted. The room went quiet and the attention all went to me. "I mean, there's truly no point to killing him. He looks hungry and dirty. I'm assuming the lad simply wanted to see if you had food. We can teach him all the different subjects we know. I just know that our values and morals can make him a brave man."
Ilya sighed. "You're wise beyond your years, Alyosha. Alright, we shall let him live. Socialize now."

Everyone disbanded and went on to do what they like. I walked over slowly to the boy.
I gave a weak smile at him. "Hello, what is your name?"
"Rodion. Rodion Lebedev."
"I'm Alexei Savenkov."
Suddenly, Rodion trapped the collar of my shirt. "I promise that I will be loyal and kind to you for all of my life. I am forever at your service, Alexei. You've saved my life and I owe you."
I snickered. "I know. You can sleep on the sofa since there's not enough room in the basement."

"Oh my God!" I heard Ilya's mother scream off the top of her lungs. It came from upstairs and I wasn't going to attempt going up. I waited downstairs until I could hear what all the commotion was about. Ilya's sister came to me after she ran upstairs and then back down.
"What's happened?" I asked her.
"My father...he's dead."