“If you don’t leave, I’ll call the police,” he said.
The man laughed quietly.
“Police?” he repeated. “Ma’am, don’t play the heroine. We’re not doing anything illegal. We’re just waiting for the mother to sign some papers. For the child. A good deed.”
“He won’t sign,” said Maria.
“He will sign,” replied the other, the more silent one. “Everyone signs when they have no choice.”
I felt my blood boil.
“She has a choice,” I said, stepping forward. “And you will leave.”
The man looked at me, then smiled wider.
“Ah, that’s the hero,” he said. “Humanity.”
The word sounded like a mockery.
Maria took my hand.
“Don’t give in,” he whispered. “They’re perfect for you to do something stupid.”
At that moment, the third-floor window opened and Mila peered in. Her face was as white as a sheet.
“Nikola!” he shouted quietly.
“We’re coming!” I replied.
Maria led me to the entrance. The men didn’t stop us. They just watched, with the look of people who know they can wait.
In the room, Raya was breathing heavily. Mila was next to her, squeezing her hand.
“They came,” Mila whispered. “They said that if we don’t sign, it will be bad.”
Mary kneels down to Heaven.
“Raja, don’t sign anything,” he said. “Do you understand? Nothing.”
Raya tried to nod, but her strength was low.
“I… I can’t take it anymore,” she whispered. “I don’t want… Mila to suffer…”
“She will suffer more if they take her,” Maria said. “You know her. You know.”
Raya closed her eyes. A tear rolled down her cheek.
“Nikola…” she whispered.
I got closer.
“I’m here,” I said.
Raya squeezed my hand with effort.
“If… if I’m gone…” she began, but her voice broke.
“Don’t talk like that,” Mila whispered.
Raya opened her eyes and looked at her daughter.
“You need to… listen…” he said. “And remember. So they don’t lie to you.”
Mila was trembling.
– Tell me, mom…
Raya took a breath.
“Vladimir… is not just your father,” he whispered. “He is the man who… buys destinies.”
Maria tensed.
– Raya, if you have information… you need to tell me now. About the case. About the defense.
Raya barely nodded.
“There’s… a document…” he whispered. “In the closet… under the clothes… a letter… a confession…”
Mila turned to the cupboard, opened it, and began rummaging through it. Her hands were shaking.
He took out an envelope. Old, yellowed.
“Is that it?” he asked.
Raya nodded.
– Give it… to Maria.
Maria took the envelope and opened it carefully. Inside were handwritten sheets of paper. Raya had obviously gathered her strength for a long time to write them.
Maria read the first lines and turned pale.
“This…” he whispered. “This is a confession.”
“What for?” I asked.
Maria looked up at me.
“For fake loans,” he said quietly. “For people Vladimir let sink. And for… a death disguised as an accident.”
My stomach clenched.
“Death?” I repeated.
Maria nodded.
“God, this is dangerous,” she said.
Raya smiled weakly.
“I… have nothing to lose anymore,” he whispered.
At that moment, there was a loud banging on the door downstairs. Voices. Footsteps.
Mila screamed softly.
Maria stood up.
“We’re leaving,” he said. “Right away. Now. We’ll move them.”
“But mom…” Mila burst into tears.
Maria looked at Raya. Then she looked at me.
“Nikola, help me,” he said.
I swallowed and nodded.
We lifted Raya carefully, placed her in a wheelchair that Maria had apparently brought in advance. Raya was breathing heavily, but her eyes were wide open.
“Don’t let…they take me…” he whispered. “Don’t let…Darling…”
“No,” I said, my voice firm.
We went up the stairs. We could already hear the men downstairs.
“Open up!” a voice growled.
Maria looked at me.
“Now you will see what pressure means,” she whispered. “But we will show them that even pressure has its limits.”
And as we descended towards the danger, I said to myself quietly:
Not everything is as it seems.
And tonight I would prove that kindness is not weakness.
It is war.
Chapter Eleven
We managed to get out through the back exit, which few people knew about. Maria was prepared. In her car there was a blanket, water, even a small bag of medicine.
When we left, Mila was sitting in the back next to Raya, holding her hand as if the world would fall apart if she let go.
“Where are we going?” I asked, watching in the mirror as a building fell behind.
“In a place that Vladimir doesn’t suspect,” Maria said. “Temporarily.”
“He suspects everything,” I muttered.
Maria didn’t argue.
“Then we will beat him,” he replied.
Raya was breathing heavily. At one point she whispered:
“Dear…if…if…”
“No,” Mila interrupted her. “There is no “if.” You will stay.”
Raya barely smiled.
“You are… stronger than you think,” he whispered.
Mila’s eyes filled up again.
