Dmitri

Chapter 1

"You have got to be shitting me," this was rumbled in a low voice by the male detective who had just come out of the house, I looked toward him to see both him and his partner, the pretty female detective looking towards a sleek black sports-car pulling up in the driveway behind all the police cruisers. 

I knew who it was immediately, which was why I pushed to my feet on the steps and started running, not even thinking about what I was doing. Dmitri was barely out of his car before I barreled into him, the impact taking him back a step before his strong arms wrapped around me and held me tight to his big frame and that's when I lost it. 

It was silent, but my body shook with my sobs and I clutched onto him as if he might disappear at any second, and when my pain became so strong that my knees fell out beneath me, he swung me up in his arms and leaned back against the hood of his car as he kept me cradled in his arms. I felt his lips against the top of my head, heard him whispering soothing words to me as one of his hands rubbed gently up and down my arm and I pressed my face into his neck and sucked in a huge breath. I had no idea how long he held me like that, comforting me and taking care of me as I cried myself dry, but even when the tears stopped coming and my sobs died away, he didn't let me go until he was sure I wouldn't break down again. 

"Volkov," I was still curled into him, his arms tight around me and I felt him tense as the male detective's voice broke into my breakdown-drama, and I turned to look over my shoulder at the elder detective who looked between me and Dmitri with inquisitive eyes. I wasn't surprised the man knew who Dmitri was, I figured their wasn't a cop in the city of New York who didn't know the name Dmitri Volkov, and that was not because Dmitri was a hero-cop. 

Carefully, Dmitri put me back down on my feet but he kept one arm around my shoulder and twisted me so my body was pressed along the side of his, my head resting on his chest as I looked up at the detective who's name I couldn't remember. 

"Detective Carson," so that was his name, not that I really cared, but since he was obviously the lead detective on my parents case, it was probably good knowledge to store away for later. 

"I take it you two know each other," Detective Carson's eyes shifted between Dmitri and me again, paying close attention to Dmitri's arm around my shoulder before returning his attention to Dmitri. 

Dmitri answered with a question of his own, and when he did, my body tensed against his, "Mikhail and Tasha?" My eyes stayed locked on Detective Carson as he ran a hand through his graying dark hair and blew out a breath, his eyes going over his shoulder where I saw his partner eying us carefully. Carson's eyes turned back to us and they settled on me for a second before he stepped closer and spoke so low I barely heard him, "worst shit I've seen my entire career and I've had a long one, but your girl she saw it all, she doesn't need me to repaint the picture for her." At his words I whimpered because suddenly an image of my mothers beautiful green eyes came to me, only they were devoid of the vibrant light that was always present, and instinctively I pressed myself closer to Dmitri as if he could take the memories away. 

"Elena," Dmitri's soft voice came at me and I tilted my head up to look at him, his beautiful steel gray eyes searched my husky blue, and whatever he saw made his jaw clench and his arm spasm around my shoulders as he pulled me even tighter against his body. 

"She give her statement?" Carson nodded, his eyes soft on me and I swallowed because I was trying really hard not to break down again, but the compassion in his deep blue eyes made it really difficult. "I'm taking her home, you need anything else from her, you tell me," I should probably object to this, I was perfectly capable of answering a phone or taking a trip to the police station, but I didn't because I was just too tired and if Dmitri wanted to take care of that I was happy to let him do it.