Chapter 108 Chapter 108
Chapter One Hundred and Eight
Dimitri
Back at the hospital.
I had frozen at the door when I heard Alexei's voice.
He was talking to someone. On the phone maybe?
His voice was low. Completely different from the confused, frightened tone he had used with me just minutes ago.
I knew it. I knew something was off when I saw his eyes. The fire was still there. They didn't look like the eyes of a man who had forgotten who he was.
And God help me if it truly was what I was thinking.
I pushed the door open slightly. Just enough to peek inside.
Alexei was sitting up in bed with a phone pressed to his ear. His back was to me so he didn't see me.
"...yes, I know," he was saying. His voice was sharp and commanding. "The plan is still in motion."
My blood ran cold. What plan? What was Alexei planning?
"Dimitri bought it completely. That fool. He really thinks I have amnesia." Alexei continued. "When I get out of here, I will take my son and his mother. And they won't be able to stop me."
I felt like someone had punched me in the stomach.
That scumbag!
My guts were right. Alexei had not lost his memory. It was all an act. He had fooled us all.
But why? What was he planning?
I gripped the door frame so hard my knuckles turned white. Trying to control my rage.
I fought the urge to run in there and really strangle him, killing for real this time.
Because of him, I almost lost Irina. She was almost killed by a crazy doctor who harvested women's organs.
"I will call you later," Alexei said, lowering his voice. "Someone might come back soon."
He hung up. Then he settled back into bed.
I stepped back from the door quietly so I don't alarm him. My heart was pounding so hard I thought it would burst from my chest.
My fist tightened. My nails dug into my plans, causing blood to trickle down.
I went straight to the head doctor's office. Dr. Petrov. The one who had been treating Alexei.
"Mr. Volkov," he smiled when I walked in. "What can I do for you?"
"You can tell me the truth," I said, closing the door behind me and locking it.
He froze. "I... I do not understand,"
I walked towards him slowly. He backed up until he hit the wall.
"My brother," I said quietly. "Does he really have amnesia?"
"Yes," Dr. Petrov said quickly. "Complete retrograde amnesia. We ran all the tests…"
I grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the wall.
"I said tell me the truth!" I growled.
Dr. Petrov's eyes went wide with fear. He clawed at my hand.
"I... I cannot... breathe..."
I loosened my grip slightly. But I did not let go.
"Talk," I ordered.
"He... he..." Dr. Petrov gasped. "He threatened us. He said if we did not say he had amnesia, he would kill our families."
Rage flooded through me. But I kept my voice calm.
"So he does not have amnesia," I said.
"No," Dr. Petrov admitted. "He woke up a week after fully conscious. His memory was intact. The wound didn't really affect his brain. But he told us to tell everyone he had amnesia. That he remembered nothing."
I let go of his throat. He slumped against the wall, coughing hard.
"Was he ever in a coma?" I demanded. My blood boiling with rage.
"Only for the first week," Dr. Petrov said. "After that, he was awake."
I pulled out a small scalpel from the doctor's desk. The kind they used for surgeries.
"If you are lying to me," I said, pressing the blade against his neck. "I will know."
A thin line of blood trickled down his skin.
"I am not lying!" Dr. Petrov cried. "I swear! He made us say those things! He threatened us!"
The nurses in the room were huddled in the corner, shaking with fear.
"Is he telling the truth?" I asked them.
They nodded frantically.
"Yes," one of them whispered. "Mr. Alexei told us exactly what to say. How to act. Everything."
I stepped back and put the scalpel down.
"Get out," I told the nurses. "All of you."
They scrambled for the door, practically running.
I turned back to Dr. Petrov.
"If you tell Alexei about this conversation," I said quietly. "I will come back. And I will not be so gentle next time."
Dr. Petrov nodded quickly. "I understand. I will not say anything. I promise."
I left the office and went straight to Alexei's room.
He was lying in bed with his eyes closed.
I walked in and closed the door behind me.
"I know you are awake," I said, my eyes cold.
Alexei's eyes opened slowly with that confused, innocent expression.
"Dimitri?" He said. "Is that you?"
"Drop the act," I said coldly. "I know the truth."
For a moment, Alexei kept up the pretense. Then slowly, his expression changed.
The confusion disappeared. Replaced by a cold, cruel smile.
"Well," he said. His voice was completely different now. "That did not take as long as I thought it would."
"What are you planning?" I demanded.
"Planning?" Alexei repeated. He sat up in bed. "I am planning to take back what is mine."
"Nikolai is not yours," I said.
"He has my blood," Alexei replied. "That makes
him mine."
"You raped his mother," I said through clenched teeth. "That does not make him yours."
"Semantics," Alexei waved his hand dismissively. "The point is, I have a son. And I intend to raise him."
"Over my dead body," I growled.
"That can be arranged," Alexei said calmly.
We stared at each other. Two brothers, still at war.
"Let me propose something," Alexei said finally. "A compromise."
"I am listening," I said warily.
"You can have Irina," Alexei said. "Keep her. I do not want her anyway. She was always too weak. Too emotional."
My fists clenched. But I stayed silent.
"But I get the boy," Alexei continued. "Nikolai comes with me. I will raise him to be my heir.”
“You must be joking.” I scoffed. It was a ridiculous joke.
“I’m dead serious.” Alexei said coldly.