Dmitri

Prologue

I was an orphan. At twenty-three years old I was a newly made orphan, both my parents torn violently from this earth and I found them. Butchered. That's how the first cop on the scene had described it to the detective that arrived, I remembered his words vividly, "fuck, two victims, man and female, butchered. It was a fucking slaughterhouse in there man," and he was right. Both of them, my beautiful gentle mother and proud strong father, they weren't just butchered, they were slaughtered and the image of their bodies would never leave my mind. 

"Sweetheart, is there someone we can call to get you, family, a friend? You shouldn't spend the night alone," this was said by the female detective who was partnered with the one who had taken the other cop's statement. Her voice was gentle as she kneeled in front of me, I was sitting on the steps outside the big victorian-style mansion that my father had bought my mother as a wedding present thirty years ago, a place that held thousands of happy childhood-memories, and a mansion I never wanted to see again. I had a blanket wrapped around my shoulders, one of the officers had pulled it from the trunk of their car and wrapped it around me before sitting down with me until the detective came over to take my statement. I couldn't remember her name, but I was sure it was pretty, she was pretty too. She had shiny black hair and dark brown eyes in a rounded face. She was wearing jeans, and had on a long black wool coat that hugged her tall frame. Even crouching in front of me I could tell she was tall, my father had been tall too, but my mother was 5'7, same as me and I'd always wanted to end up with a man who was tall like my father. Someone's who's arms could engulf me and I would feel safe and protected from all the dangers of the world, just like I had in my fathers arms. And like I would never feel again. 

My breath hitched as I clutched the blanket tighter around me and the female detective moved to sit beside me, one of her arms snaking around my shoulder and tightening around me in a silent offer of support and comfort. Swallowing back a sob, I remembered her earlier questions and felt tears build in my eyes and trail silently down my cheek. "I don't have any other family," I told her in a shaky voice, and I didn't, it had always been just my parents and me and now it was just me. The detectives arm tightened around my shoulder and I felt another breath hitch as I turned my head to look at her. "Anyone else, a friend maybe?"

 I knew who I was going to call, not only because he needed to know, but because I knew he would not only keep me safe, he would find whoever hurt my parents like that and take care of it. Without answering, I dug into my jeans pocket and pulled out a phone, scrolling through my contacts until I found the number I was looking for. I had never used it before, my father had made me add it in case of emergencies years ago, and now I was going to use it. I pressed send, put the phone to my ear as the detective moved away to give me some privacy, but not too far away she couldn't keep an eye on me and I held my breath the entire time the signal went. 

"Da?" Closing my eyes at that familiar voice who was also foreign to me, I bent at the stomach and pressed my head to my knees as I sucked in heaving breaths to keep myself from falling apart right there and then. 

"Who is this?" His voice was growing impatient, an edge to it that reminded me exactly who it was on the other end and I finally mustered up enough control to reply. 

"Dmitri? It's Elena Lenkov, I'm in the Hamptons, my parents are dead, can you come get me?" My voice was vibrating with unshed tears and restrained sobs, and it felt like I waited for an eternity before his response came. 

"I'll be there in twenty minutes," I knew that was impossible, it took a lot more than twenty minutes to get from the city to the Hamptons, but I didn't point this out, I just whispered "okay" and went on to inform him hesitantly, "the police is here,". Another minute of silence, and then, "I'm on my way."