Chapter 105 Chapter 105
Chapter One Hundred and Five
Irina
I froze.
My hand was still raised in the air.
My palm was stinging from the impact.
I’d slapped Dmitri.
Why had I slapped him?
I really did not know.
Behind me, I heard the paramedics gasp. Mikhail's men shifted uncomfortably.
Everyone was staring at us.
Dimitri stood completely still. His head was turned to the side from the force of my slap. His cheek was red.
I waited for him to explode. But he didn't.
Instead, he turned his face back to me slowly. And I saw tears in his eyes. Streaming down his blood-stained face.
"I am sorry," he whispered. "I am so sorry, Irina."
He pulled me into his arms, hugging me so tightly I could barely breathe.
His whole body was shaking as he cried on my shoulder.
"I am sorry," he kept saying over and over. "I almost you."
Tears streamed down my face too. "I am sorry for running away and putting the baby in danger."
"No," Dimitri said fiercely. He pulled back to look at me. His hands cupped my face. "You had every right to leave. I was becoming a monster. You were only trying to protect our son."
We stood there, holding each other and crying.
"I thought I would never see you again," I whispered. "I thought I was going to die."
Dimitri's arms tightened around me.
"I thought I was too late." He said. His voice was rough.
"But you came for me," I said. "That is what matters."
One of the paramedics cleared her throat gently.
"Excuse me," she said softly. "But I need to finish examining you, Mrs. Volkov. And the baby needs to be checked too."
I looked down. I was still holding Nikolai tightly in my arms.
"Here," the paramedic said kindly. She held out her arms. "Let me take him while we finish your examination."
I hesitated. I did not want to let him go. Not even for a second.
"It is okay," Dimitri said gently. "I will watch him. I promise."
I nodded slowly. Then I handed Nikolai to the paramedic.
She took him carefully and walked to the other side of the room. Dimitri followed her. His eyes never left our son.
I sat back down on the couch. Another paramedic came over to check my injuries.
"You have some cuts and bruises," she said. "And your shoulder is dislocated. We need to pop it back in."
"Do it," I said. I was too tired to care about the pain.
She counted to three. Then pulled my arm sharply.
I screamed. The pain was blinding.
But then it was over quickly. My shoulder was back in place.
"There," the paramedic said. "You will be sore for a few weeks. But you should heal."
Across the room, Dimitri was holding Nikolai now. The paramedic was checking the baby over.
I watched them together.
Dimitri looked down at Nikolai with such love in his eyes.
"He is perfect," the paramedic said to Dimitri. "No injuries. He is a strong baby."
"He is a fighter," Dimitri said proudly. "Just like his mother."
My heart swelled.
After the paramedics finished, Mikhail came over.
"We should go back to Moscow. Away from this place." He said.
"Yes," Dimitri agreed. "I never want to see St. Petersburg again."
We were driven to a private airfield. The same one we had landed at what felt like a lifetime ago.
A jet was waiting.
I climbed aboard carefully. My whole body was aching.
Dimitri followed with Nikolai in his arms.
We settled into the comfortable seats. Mikhail and Sergei sat across from us.
"Thank you," I said to Mikhail. "For saving me and my baby."
"You are family," Mikhail said simply. "I would do anything for family."
The jet took off. Lifting us away from that horrible city.
I leaned against Dimitri's shoulder. He had one arm around me. The other was holding Nikolai.
I closed my eyes for the first time in days, and I felt safe.
When we landed in Moscow, there were cars waiting to take us back to the estate.
I had thought I would never see this place again.
But here I was.
The staff were waiting inside. They had prepared everything.
"Welcome home, Mrs. Volkov," the butler said warmly. "We are glad you're back."
"Thank you," I said.
Dimitri carried Nikolai upstairs. I followed slowly.
"You should rest," Dimitri said when we reached our bedroom. "You have been through hell."
"I want to see the nursery first," I said.
Dimitri smiled. "Of course."
He led me down the hall to a room I had never seen before.
He opened the door. And I gasped.
It was beautiful. The walls were painted in soft blue. There was a crib made of dark wood. The shelves were full of toys and books. And a rocking chair was by the window.
"When did you do all this?" I asked in wonder.
"I told the housekeepers to prepare it the day he was born." Dimitri admitted.
Tears filled my eyes again. "It is perfect," I whispered.
Dimitri placed Nikolai gently in the crib. He yawned and settled into the soft blankets.
"He looks so tiny in there," I said.
"He will grow," Dimitri replied. He wrapped his arms around me from behind. "And we will fill this room with his laughter."
Over the next few days, we settled into a routine.
I was healing slowly. The cuts were fading. The bruises were turning yellow.
But the nightmares were worse.
Every night, I woke up screaming. Reliving that moment on the table. I could still feel the knife against my skin.
And every night, Dimitri held me until I stopped shaking.
"It is okay," he would whisper. "You are safe now. I am here."
During the day, we worked on the nursery together.
We hung pictures on the walls, organized the toys and added little touches to make it feel like home.
"This room is too large for such a tiny baby," I joked one afternoon.
We were standing in the middle of the nursery. Nikolai was asleep in his crib.
"He is a prince," Dimitri said seriously. "The heir to the Volkov empire. He deserves the best."
"A prince?" I laughed. "That is a bit much, do not you think?"
"Not at all," Dimitri replied. He walked over to the crib and looked down at our sleeping son. "He is a king in my eyes. And kings deserve palaces."
I walked over and stood beside him. Together, we watched Nikolai sleep.
His tiny chest was rising and falling. His little fingers were curled into fists.
"He really is perfect," I whispered.
"Just like his mother," Dimitri said.
I looked up at him. "I am not perfect."
"You are perfect to me," Dimitri insisted. He took my hand. "And I promise, Irina. I will never give you a reason to run from me again."
"I know." I said.
Dmitri would spend hours with Nikolai. Feeding him, changing him, holding him and talking to him.
Watching them together made my heart swell.
One evening, about a week after we returned home, Dimitri came to find me.
I was in the library, reading.
"Irina," he said quietly. "I need to go somewhere tomorrow."
"Where?" I asked.
"The hospital," Dimitri replied. His face was troubled. "To see Alexei."
My stomach dropped. "Alexei?"
"Yes," Dimitri nodded. "I need to see him."
"Do you want me to come with you
?" I asked carefully.
"No," Dimitri said immediately.
"Okay," I said. "But please be careful."
"I will," Dimitri promised. He kissed my forehead. "I am not going there to hurt him. I just need to see him."
"I know," I said. "Go. Do what you need to do."
That night, I held Dimitri extra close in bed.
Tomorrow would be hard for him. I could feel it.
"I love you," I whispered into the darkness.
"I love you too," Dimitri replied. His voice was heavy. "More than anything in this world."