Chapter 106 Chapter 106
Chapter One Hundred and Six
Dimitri's POV
The hospital was quiet when I arrived.
It was still very early. The sun was just coming up.
I had barely slept the night before. My mind kept racing. Thinking about what I would say to Alexei.
If he was even awake to hear it.
Sergei had come with me. He waited in the car while I went inside alone.
I took the elevator to the fourth floor. The intensive care unit.
Alexei had been moved here after his surgery.
The guilt sat heavy in my stomach.
I found his room at the end of the hall. Room 407.
I stood outside the door for a long moment with my hand on the handle.
Could I do this? Could I face him?
I took a deep breath. Then I pushed the door open.
The room was dim. Machines beeped softly.
And there, in the bed, was Alexei, my brother.
He looked terrible. His face was still swollen from the beating. His head was wrapped in bandages. Tubes and wires connected him to various machines.
He was unconscious. Just like he had been for weeks.
I walked slowly to his bedside. My footsteps were loud in the quiet room.
I looked down at him. This man who had caused me so much pain.
He took Irina from me, got her pregnant, kidnapped her and terrorized her.
He deserved what I did to him. He deserved worse.
But looking at him now, lying there helpless and broken, I felt no satisfaction.
Only emptiness.
"I am sorry," I said quietly. "I am sorry it came to this, Alexei."
He did not respond. Of course he did not. He was in a coma.
I pulled up a chair and sat down beside the bed.
"The doctors say you might have permanent brain damage," I continued. "That even if you wake up, you might not remember anything."
The machines continued their steady beeping.
"Part of me hopes you do not remember," I admitted. "That you wake up with a clean slate. A chance to start over."
I looked at his face. Trying to see the brother I remembered from childhood.
Before the violence. Before the cruelty. Before everything went wrong.
"We used to be close, you know," I said. "When we were young. Before father died. We used to play together, fight together and protect each other."
What had happened to us?
"I became just like you," I whispered. "When I beat you that day. I lost control. I became the monster I always hated."
Saying it out loud made it hurt.
"Irina left me because of it," I continued. "She saw what I was becoming. And she ran. She took our son and ran."
Tears were building in my eyes.
"And I almost lost them," I said. My voice was breaking. "Because I could not control my rage. Because I became you."
I wiped my eyes roughly.
"But I am not going to be like you anymore," I said firmly. "I am going to be better. For Irina and Nikolai."
I stood up and walked to the window.
I looked out at the city waking up below.
"I am starting therapy next week," I said. "Like grandfather did. I am going to work on my anger. My violence. All of it."
I turned back to look at Alexei.
"I hope you wake up," I said. "I hope you get a second chance. But if you do not... if you stay like this forever... I need you to know that I forgive you."
The words felt strange coming out of my mouth. But they were true.
"I forgive you for what you did to Irina," I said. "For what you did to me. For everything. Because holding onto that hate... was destroying me."
I walked back to the bedside, reached out and took Alexei's hand.
It was cold and limp.
"Goodbye, brother," I whispered.
And then I felt it.
A twitch. Just a small movement in his fingers.
My heart stopped.
"Alexei?" I said urgently.
His fingers twitched again.
Then his eyelids fluttered. And slowly, his eyes opened.
They were unfocused at first. He looked around the room. At the machines. Then at me.
My heart raced.
What if he remembers?
What if somehow he doesn't lose his memories?
"Where..." he croaked. His voice was barely there. "Where am I?"
"You are in the hospital," I said carefully. "You have been in a coma."
Alexei's brow furrowed. He looked at me more closely.
"Who are you?" He asked.
My blood ran cold.
I looked closely at him. His voice was innocent. It didn't sound like the fierce Alexei I know.
But his eyes… there was still that same fire in them. The fire that had always been there.
Was it normal?
"Who are you?" Alexei repeated. "I do not... I do not know you."
He yanked his hands from mine.
He really had lost his memory.
Everything. Everyone. All of it was gone.
"I am Dimitri," I said slowly. "Your brother."
"Brother?" Alexei repeated. He didn't look confused. "I have a brother?"
I nodded. Studying him closely.
"I do not remember," He said slowly. "I do not remember anything. Not even my own name."
"It is okay," I said. "The doctors said this might happen. Your memory might come back with time."
"Or it might not?" Alexei asked fearfully.
"Or it might not," I admitted.
Alexei looked down at his hands. At the IV lines. At his broken body.
"What happened to me? How did I become like this?" He asked.
How could I answer that? How could I tell him I did this to him?
"There was an accident," I said carefully. "You were hurt badly."
It was not quite a lie. But it was not quite the truth either.
"An accident," Alexei repeated softly.
He looked up at me again. His eyes were searching my face. They still held the coldness and brutality of an experienced Pakhan. Not the innocence of a man who had lost his memories.
And it unsettled me.
"You said you are my brother," he said. "Are we... are we close?"
The question hit me like a punch.
Were we close? We used to be. A long time ago.
"We have had our differences," I said honestly. "But yes. We are brothers."
Alexei nodded slowly. "Will you help me?" He asked. His voice was small and vulnerable. "I am scared. I do not know anything. I do not know anyone."
Looking at him closely again, his eyes weren't matching his expressions.
"Yes," I said, keeping my voice steady. "I will help you."
"Thank you," he whispered.
A doctor walked in with several nurses. They started examining Alexei. Asking him questions.
"Do you know your name?"
"No." He shook his head.
"Do you know where you are?"
"The hospital. My brother told me."
"Do you remember what happened to you?"
"No."
The doctor looked at me. "Complete retrograde amnesia," he said quietly. "He has lost all his memories."
"Will they come back?" I asked, not taking my eyes off Alexei.
"Maybe," the doctor said. "Maybe not. With head trauma this severe, it is impossible to say."
I nodded.
"Can I speak with you outside?" The doctor asked.
We stepped into the hallway.
"Mr. Volkov," the doctor said seriously. "Your brother is going to need extensive care. Physical therapy and psychological support. He is essentia
lly starting over from scratch."
"I understand," I said.
"He will need family support," the doctor continued. "People he can trust. People who can help him rebuild his life."
"I will be there," I said. "Whenever he needs me."
The doctor smiled. "Good. That will help his recovery immensely."
I walked back to his room and froze at the door.
Alexei’s voice was coming from inside.
His voice was low and urgent.
Who was he talking to?