Page 5 of Wicked Deceptions
“It will be fine.” She reaches into the basket next to her and pulls out a ball of yarn and some knitting needles. “Do you know how to knit? It helps pass the time.”
“Yes, my grandmother taught me.” I take the knitting needles and begin to knit. I decide I will knit my brother a scarf. Winters in Paris are not nearly as cold as they were in Saint Petersburg, but they still can get rather chilly. Mikhail’s scarf is getting tattered some, so this will be a nice surprise for him. Perhaps I will have it done before the cold winter months return.
Gabriella’s suggestion to knit really does help pass the time. I look at the clock and realize it has been two hours since Jonathan left. “Should Jonathan be back soon?” I ask Gabriella.
Before she can answer, we hear footsteps in the hallway and then the door opens. Jonathan looks tired and worn down. I can see by the look on his face he doesn’t have good news. I jump from the chair and run to the door. Looking out, I realize Mikhail is not with him. “Where is he?” I ask. “Did he go straight to our flat?” Mikhail should be here, right behind Jonathan.Where is he?
Jonathan takes my arm and walks me back to the chair. Leonid immediately rises from his seat, walks to stand beside the chair I am sitting in, and rests his hand on my shoulder.This is bad. A pit in my stomach settles as I brace myself for what Jonathan is about to say.
“I’m afraid, Katerina, I do not have good news for you.” He looks down as his hands wring together. “I talked with a few of the men who were still at the factory.” He pauses and takes a deep breath. “From what I could gather, war protesters entered the factory and opened fire. They were arrested rather quickly, but not before they shot several of the workers. Mikhail was one of them. He did not survive.”
“No!” I scream. “No, no, no!” I shake my head and rise from the chair. “You are lying!” I’m angry and lash out at Jonathan. “Mikhail will be home any minute. He would never leave me here alone! Why are you lying to me?” I am hysterical. Gabriella tries to calm me, but I struggle against her. My brother can’t be dead. He’s all I have. If he dies, I have nothing. I will be left here in this godforsaken world, alone. I close my eyes and shake my head, whispering a silent chant of “no, no, no, no.”
After several minutes, I begin to calm. The reality of Jonathan’s words settle in, and the initial shock subsides. My first rational thought, although I doubt how rational it is, I say aloud. “I must see him.”
“I don’t think that is a good idea, Katerina.”
“Please, Jonathan, I need to see him.” He looks at Gabriella and pleads for her support.
“Love, perhaps you can find a way. Katerina needs some confirmation her brother is gone, and perhaps it will provide her with some closure.”
Jonathan looks at her in surprise, as I am sure that is not what he wanted her to do. Gabriella understands. I give her a brief smile in thanks.
“I guess I can arrange that, but, Katerina, it is rather gruesome. It’s not what any young lady should see. I do not recommend it.”
“Jonathan, I’m begging you. Please take me to him, please. I have to see him for myself to believe it to be true.”
He gives his wife a worried look and then nods. Turning toward Leonid, he says, “You should come with us. She is going to need you after she sees what I saw tonight.”
Leonid nods, and we leave the house to walk to the factory.
When we arrive, the factory is still full of workers, running as if it were the middle of the day instead of the middle of the night. Because they make ammunition for the war effort, the demand is great. They have workers there around the clock. Mikhail was fortunate enough to work the day shift so that he could be home with me at night.
“Where is he?” I ask Jonathan. I’m still crying. My tears will just not stop flowing.Mikhail cannot be gone. He cannot!
He takes me to the back of the factory and out the back door. It leads to an alley filled with trash. Lying in the midst of all the trash are several bodies. I scan the array of dead bodies until I spot my brother. “Oh dear God!” I exclaim as I run to him. “Mikhail! Mikhail! No!” I drop to my knees.
Jonathan and Leonid follow me and allow me some time with my brother. His body is lying on the side edge of the small pile. I sit on the ground and pull him to me, then hold him in my arms, coddling him. “Mikhail, why? Why did you leave me? We were in this together! You promised!” I can’t stop the tears as a flood washes down my cheeks. Laying his head in my lap, I brush the hair away from his eyes. They are still open. I gently close them and kiss his forehead.My whole family is gone. Mikhail, come back to me. Let this all be a bad dream.
After a few minutes, Leonid tugs on my shoulders. “Come, sweetheart, you cannot help him now.”
“How could they leave him here like this? They treat him like he is an animal. He is a human being. He is my brother!” I wipe tears from my cheeks as I stand. “We need to take him home and give him a proper burial.”
“Katerina, we have no money to properly bury him,” Leonid says sadly. “We must leave him here, sweetheart.”
I fall to my knees again, grab my brother, and pull him into my arms. “No! I cannot leave him here! I will not leave him here!” I sob again. “My brother saved my life! He’s all I have left. I will not leave him here!”
Leonid backs off, and everything is silent except for the heartbreaking sounds that come from me while I cry for my brother. My sobs begin to subside, and the reality of the situation stares me in the face. I turn toward Jonathan and ask, “What will they do with these men?”
He gives me a sad look. “They will be taken away at midnight and burned. They were left here so if any family wanted to claim them, they could.”
I give it one last effort. “Then we must take him, Leonid!” I turn back to face Jonathan. “Please, I cannot leave him here!”
“We have no choice,” Leonid replies. He grabs my arm and helps me up from the floor. “We must leave him.”
I’m screaming, “Mikhail! Mikhail!” and sobbing uncontrollably as Leonid pulls me away.
“Come, child, we must go.”
