She takes my call jovially, presumably because of that big donation, or maybe she’s truly glad Mina finally found someone. I know Hanna talked to her about me, because I planted bugs while we visited Hanna. I’m more grateful than I care to admit that Mina’s grandmother approves of me, likes me even.
“Mr. Ivanov, what a nice surprise,” Adami says in fluent Russian. “What can I do for you?”
There’s no time to beat around the bush. “Mina needs help.”
Alarm replaces the warmth in her tone. “What’s wrong?”
“She’s injured.”
“What kind of injury?”
“Gunshot.”
Her breath catches. “Where are you?”
“On our way.”
“If it’s a gunshot wound, she needs surgery.”
“That’s why we’re coming to you.”
“Is she in trouble?”
“Yes,” I say honestly. “I wouldn’t be asking you otherwise.”
“I’m no longer an ER surgeon.”
“But you were for years.” I learned that as part of my research on the clinic. “Please. Mina is out of options. You’re her only hope.”
“I see.” There’s a short, strained silence. “Then I hope to God I can help her.”
I know what she means. If Mina doesn’t make it, both of us will feel responsible for not saving her. But I’m not going to think like that. If I want Mina to fight, I have to fight right beside her.
“You will help her.” I’ll threaten, torture, and kill to make it happen.
Her voice comes stronger, as if her mind’s made up. “There’s a staff entrance on the east side of the building.”
Closing my eyes briefly, I swallow a relieved exhale. “We’ll be there in ten.”
At the clinic, the guard waves us through the gates. Adami must’ve warned him about our arrival.
As promised, Adami is waiting at the eastern entrance. Her face is drawn, her cheeks colorless. “Bring her through. We’ll go via the basement. There’s less chance of running into someone.”
Ilya and I follow her down a flight of stairs and through a maze of underground hallways before surfacing on one of the upper floors. Adami leads us a short distance to a private consultation room. Thankfully, we don’t come across anyone. Once inside, she locks the door and closes the blinds on the window.
“What happened?” she asks as I carefully lower Mina onto the examination bed.
“She took a bullet in the side.”
“I haven’t done surgery in years,” the doctor reminds me.
“You’re all she’s got.”
She contemplates me for a moment before saying, “You better get rid of those bloody clothes and wash up. I’m going to need some help.”
“Ilya.” I motion at the door, indicating he should stand guard. At least his clothes aren’t covered in blood.
Leaving the Glock within reach on the counter, I strip down to my underwear and dump my stained clothes and boots in a trashcan labeled “Biomedical Waste.”
“You can scrub yourself over here.” Adami shows me a basin and shoves antiseptic soap and a clean towel into my hands.
I clean up as fast and well as I can while she unbuckles the pillow from Mina’s side, takes off Mina’s shoes, and cuts off the dress.
“My God,” she exclaims when she sees Mina’s bruises. “What happened to her?”
“I can’t tell you that.”
Glancing at my briefs, she says, “There’s an overcoat on a hook behind the door. I think you’ll find a pair of Crocs in the closet.”
I pull on the overcoat and shoes as Adami takes Mina’s vitals.
“Weak pulse and rapid heart rate,” she says, hurriedly gathering hermetically sealed instruments. “She lost some blood, but I don’t think she needs a transfusion.” She bites her lip. “I’ll only know for sure after an ultrasound. She should really be where she can be better monitored.”
“If I take her to another hospital, she’s dead.”
She briefly pinches her eyes shut before giving me a tight nod. “I’ll do my best. Turn her on her side and keep her like that.”
After washing the wound with soapy water, she examines it. “It’s a flesh wound. Mina was lucky. The bullet went straight through her side without hitting any vital organs. There don’t seem to be severed arteries or bullet fragments, and I don’t see any other obvious damage.” She presses around a purple bruise on Mina’s stomach. “We’ll have to do an ultrasound to ensure she doesn’t have internal bleeding. Either way, it’ll take her some time to recover. She’ll be weak, especially from the blood loss.”
“Can you keep her here?”
“You mean in secret.”
“Yes.”
She hesitates, then nods. “Okay.”
I hold Mina’s cold body as the doctor gets to work, stitching her up. Thankfully, Mina remains unconscious. Adami works quickly, disinfecting the wound and securing a bandage over the stitches.
When the doctor moves to the basin, I catch her wrist. “Will she be all right?”
“Her chances of recovering from the gunshot are good unless infection sets in.”
“She’ll live,” I say, needing the doctor to confirm it. I need her to say those words.
She gives me a strange look. “For now.”
“For now?” The prognosis throws my heartbeat into overdrive. “What do you mean for now?”
Her expression is oddly sympathetic. “She hasn’t told you.”
“Told me what?”
“Hanna said you and Mina are getting married. Is it true?”
Married. Fleeting shards of memories involving rubies and a ring and forever run through my head, but it’s hard to focus on anything when the doctor hasn’t given me the verdict I need. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“I need to know what your relation to Mina is.”
“We’re…” What are we? Kidnapper and captive? Boyfriend and girlfriend? Lovers? I can’t answer that question. I only know it’s not enough. Not nearly. I settle for, “Everything. She’s everything.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have made that comment. This whole situation…” She waves at Mina. “It caught me off-guard. Mina is very special to me.”
I fight the urge to grab the woman and shake her until her teeth rattle in her skull. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“I can’t divulge personal information to anyone who isn’t family. Mina didn’t even want Hanna to know. It’s best Mina
