Protective

Hard Truths

Yeremy

"Fuck you!"

Petyr had been saying it over and over again for the better part of an hour. Honestly it had been weeks. I was genuinely surprised that he hadn't cracked.

Just like Dmitri had promised him, he'd come in everyday and break just one of his bones. Today it was his right leg.

He left Mikhail alone to continue the interrogation, swearing that if he had to spend another second in the same room as Petyr he'd kill him.

I didn't know that I didn't feel the same way, but still I contained myself. There was still a bigger picture.

"I want Seamus, Petyr," Mikhail repeated, "Give me something, yes?"

"And what you'll let me go?" Petyr laughed manically, "I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't."

"Exactly, so you might as well talk," Mikhail said.

"No, no. I think I'll ride this out. Your hotheaded little son is bound to make a mistake and put me out of my misery eventually," he shook his head, "All I have to do is start talking about his sweet little sister. How is Lana? Does she miss me?"

I cut off his finger, he was lucky it wasn't his tongue but still he cursed me so I took out a tooth.

"You ever mention my daughter again and I'll skin you alive," Mikhail warned, "Everyday we'll do this and every night someone will spend that time making sure you're alive. Stitching your wounds, reattaching your limbs. I'll let you heal just enough for me to do it all again."

"How does that sound Petyr?"

He kept his mouth shut, instead he winced at his missing finger and because of the pressure I was putting on his leg.

I wanted to kill him so badly it hurt.

"Why don't you think about that?" Mikhail smiled before gesturing for me to follow him out of the room.

"I don't know how you manage not to kill him, Yeremy," he sighed, leaning against the wall, "It's all I can do not to bury him alive."

I smiled, "Sooner or later he has to talk. He knows it. He can't stomach this forever, especially not for Akio, Seamus, and Manuel. They couldn't care less about him."

Mikhail raised his eyebrows at me, "You know I'm surprised you're still here. I figured you'd go back to your business a week ago," he smiled.

It made me uneasy, did he know? No, he couldn't know. I had been careful, right?

There was nothing going on between us, I just didn't want to leave her side and she didn't want me to either.

"I didn't think she was ready," I admitted, "I don't think I'm ready."

It did nothing to lie to Mikhail Petrov. It was a waste of time. He'd see right through me just like she could.

Marco had helped him get the contact.

He had a point about my leaving though. I had a life to get back to, a house I was building. I couldn't run things from the States forever.

Moscow was my home now.

_______
Lana

"So when can I go home?"

"Home?" Dmitri asked, confused as he shut the door to the apartment.

"Yeah, you know. The ten acre home that I was raised in, all my stuff is there," I said sarcastically, "When can I go back?"

Dmitri sighed, putting down the bags of takeout he had run to get for us, "I didn't think you'd want to, you know after everything. I was thinking of just leaving you here, in my apartment."

I looked around and gave him a look, "You thought I wanted to stay in this bachelor pad. Like I need to see the million random piece of panties you leave around."

He laughed, "Well I couldn't bring them to the ten acre home we were raised in."

You could accuse Dmitri of being a whore but it wasn't that simple. He just didn't date.

I think he knew he was too emotionally unstable to drag someone else into our messy life so he did the once in a while thing. He didn't really move out.

He had this apartment but sometimes he'd stay with me and father at the estate.

"I don't want to live here, Dmitri," I said, "I want to go home."

"Well we've cleaned it. No blood stains or anything," Dmitri handed me a plate, "But won't it be like triggering for you?"

That sounded just like Yeremy. Nice to see I wasn't the only one he was rubbing off on.

"Maybe," I shrugged, "But I have to go back eventually, all my clothes are there."

"I can bring your stuff here."

"Are you looking for a roommate or something?" I set down my fork, "What are you not telling me?"

He sighed, "Everyone is dead Lana. Outside of Iosef, Alexi, and Boris, they killed everyone. Even Alena."

He held my hand but the tears were already starting as I tried to cry and keep my plate balanced on my lap, "But why? She didn't know anything."

This was just like when I thought about Yuri, how he died trying to protect me. How his wife would have to raise their children alone.

And what of Alena's family? She had just become a grandmother. She was so excited about baby Raisa.

It was silly to think but they did die for me. Maybe it was more complex than it being my fault, clearly other powers were at play outside of my small existence.

That much was evident after hearing Manuel, Akio, and Seamus talk.

But still, I couldn't help but feel upset.

"We've sent money to everyone's families," Dmitri said gently. It was a band-aid on a massive leak but I didn't need to tell him that.

"But when you go back, you won't recognize anyone," he explained, "I was hoping you wouldn't want to go back, then I wouldn't have had to tell you."

I laughed a little, "That makes absolutely no sense."

Eventually I would've found out.

He rubbed the back of his neck, "In hindsight it makes no sense," he put a hand on my knee, "But if you still want to move back in, I'll come with you."

I wiped my tears with a napkin, "I do."

I wanted to tell him that he didn't need to do that. Yeremy would be there, but for how long?

I wasn't so delicate and in my own head that I didn't notice how long it had been since he was in Moscow. He had been here taking care of me whenever Dmitri was away.

He made sure I ate and calmed me down after I had nightmares.

That was going to come to an end, I knew that. He couldn't run a drug business in country he was never in. It was too early for him to just abandon it.

Regardless I'd move on. I wanted to go home and sleep in my own bed. Maybe wear something that wasn't Dmitri's clothes that did not fit me at all.

It was time to move on. For both of us.

- - End of Chapter - -