Olga heard the familiar click of the intercom and froze with a wet plate in her hands. Saturday. Ten in the morning. Again.
“Andrei, is that her?”
Her husband came out of the room with his phone in his hand, without looking up.
“Yes. Sveta only needs half an hour. She has to run to a job interview.”
Olga slowly placed the plate in the drying rack. It was the third time that week. The third time Svetlana had said it would be “only half an hour.” Yesterday, she had returned at eleven at night.
“Andrei, I need you to understand something. I have to spend time with Dasha too. Our daughter.”
“I understand. But Polina and Vika are quiet. You know that. They’ll sit down and watch cartoons.”
The door opened. Svetlana rushed inside, holding both daughters by the hand. She wore a low-cut dress, her hair was carefully styled, and bright lipstick covered her lips.
“Brother, you’re my lifesaver! Girls, go play with Dashenka.”
Polina silently took her younger sister’s hand and led her toward the children’s room. The six-year-old moved confidently, as though she had followed that route hundreds of times before.
And she had.
“A job interview on a Saturday?” Olga asked evenly.
Svetlana shot her a quick glance.
“Yes, believe it or not. Modern companies work weekends. Andryusha, I have to run. Kisses!”
She blew an air kiss and disappeared through the door.
Olga walked toward the window, then stopped herself and turned away.
Don’t look.
Don’t think about it.
“Did you notice how she was dressed?” she asked.
“So what? She’s applying for a job. She has to look presentable.”
Olga rubbed her forehead.
“People don’t wear evening dresses to job interviews.”
Andrei put his phone on the table.
“Olya, please. She’s having a hard time. She’s raising two children alone after the divorce. Dima abandoned her, doesn’t pay child support, and never sees the girls. I’m the only person she can rely on.”
“That’s what she told you?”
“Are you saying it isn’t true?”
Olga wanted to answer. She wanted to show him the photographs she had seen on social media the day before. Svetlana had been embracing a bearded man in front of a restaurant.
The post had been dated yesterday.
Exactly when Svetlana had supposedly been attending an “urgent interview.”
“Just pay more attention,” Olga said instead. “Please.”
Polina sat on the floor in the children’s room, building a tower out of blocks with Dasha. Vika hugged a stuffed bear to her chest and watched them silently.
“Aunt Olya, when is Mommy coming back?” Polina asked without looking away from the game.
“Soon, sweetheart. She promised.”
“She always promises.”
Olga sat down beside the girl.
“Do you miss her?”
Polina raised her head. There was no childish carelessness in her eyes. Only a guarded expression that did not belong on the face of a six-year-old.
“I miss our home. My toys are there. And my drawing on the wall.”
“What kind of drawing?”
“A butterfly. I drew it with pencils when I was little. Mommy got angry, but she didn’t erase it.”
Vika crawled over to Olga and pressed her forehead against Olga’s knee.
Three years old.
The little girl could barely speak in full sentences. She only knew separate words.
“Food.”
“Drink.”
“Sleep.”
“Where?”
“Where?” Vika asked now.
Olga stroked her hair.
“She’ll be back soon.”
Svetlana returned at nine in the evening. She smelled of something sweet.
Perfume?
Dessert?
“How are my little bunnies?” she sang from the doorway.
“Vika cried for two hours,” Olga said. “She couldn’t fall asleep without you.”
“Oh, she’s such a fussy little thing. Andryusha, thank you so much! You’re the best brother in the world.”
Andrei helped her dress the girls.
Polina put on her jacket by herself. Vika had to be held upright because she was almost falling asleep on her feet.
“How did the interview go?” Olga asked.
Svetlana froze for a second.
“Wonderful! It’s a very promising position. They said they’d call me.”
“What field is it in?”
“Olenka, you’re so curious! I’ll tell you later. I don’t want to jinx it.”
She grabbed her bag, picked Vika up, and left.
Polina turned around in the doorway and looked at Olga for a long moment.
“Thank you, Aunt Olya.”
“For what?”
“For the porridge. It was delicious.”
The door closed.
Olga turned to her husband.
“Eleven hours, Andrei. She left her children here for eleven hours.”
“Interviews can take a long time.”
“Stop it. You don’t believe that yourself.”
Andrei sat down on the sofa.
“Olya, she’s my sister. I can’t abandon her.”
“I’m not asking you to abandon her. I’m asking you to see the truth.”
“What truth?”
Olga took out her phone, opened the page she needed, and handed it to him.
“This one.”
On the screen, Svetlana smiled into the camera. The same bearded man sat beside her.
The location tag showed a restaurant in the city center.
The photograph had been posted at three that afternoon.
Andrei stared at it silently.
“It could have been a business lunch,” he finally said.
“With hugging and kissing? Keep scrolling.”
He scrolled through the photographs.
His expression changed from disbelief to confusion, and from confusion to something resembling pain.
“Why didn’t you show me this before?”
“Because I hoped you would notice the truth yourself.”
A week later, Svetlana called on Sunday morning. Her voice rang with excitement.
“Andryushenka, I have incredible news! I’ve been invited to a training program in Saint Petersburg! Ten days of intensive classes. Can you imagine?”
Andrei exchanged a glance with his wife.
Olga stood by the stove, slowly shaking her head.
“What kind of training?”
“Personal growth! It’s an unbelievable opportunity. I’ll never get another chance like this. But I need your help.”
“Sveta…”
“The girls can stay with you for ten days. Only ten! I’ll bring their clothes, toys, and everything they need. Polina is already old enough to help with Vika.”
Olga took the phone from her husband’s hand.
“Svetlana, that’s impossible. We have our own daughter and our own plans. Ten days is too long.”
“Olya, surely you understand! I need to develop, to find myself. After the divorce, I lost all sense of direction.”
“And your children? They lost their sense of security too.”
“They’ll have a wonderful time with you! You’re both so responsible and caring. No one could look after them better.”
“No, Svetlana. The answer is no.”
There was a brief silence.
When Svetlana spoke again, her voice had changed. It became harder and sharper.
“Give the phone back to Andrei.”
“There’s no need. He and I agree on this.”
“Andrei!” Svetlana screamed loudly enough to be heard across the kitchen.
Her husband took the phone back.
“Sveta, Olya is right. Ten days is…”
“This is my only chance to change my life! Do you want me to spend the rest of my life depressed? Do you want me to achieve nothing?”
“But what about the children? Maybe Dima could…”
“Dima?” Hysteria rang through Svetlana’s voice. “Are you serious? The man who abandoned us? The man who hasn’t shown his face once in two years?”
“You told me he doesn’t pay child support. But I checked. Money is transferred into your account every month.”
Silence.
A long, heavy silence.
“You checked my bank account?”
“You showed me the statement yourself when you asked to borrow money. I remembered the payments.”
“Andrei, don’t you trust me?”
“I want to understand what is happening.”
“There’s nothing to understand! He pays a pathetic amount that couldn’t possibly support two children. He doesn’t see them. He isn’t interested in their lives.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s selfish! Because he left me for another woman!”
“Are you sure? He called me last week.”
Olga froze.
She had not known that.
“Dmitry called you?”
“Yes. He asked about the girls. He said he hasn’t been able to get permission to see them for months.”
“He’s lying!” Svetlana shouted. “He always lies! He’s a manipulator, he’s…”
“Sveta, stop. I want to understand the situation. Come over. We’ll talk.”
“There’s nothing to discuss! Either you take the children, or… or I don’t know what I’ll do!”
Andrei slowly ended the call.
“Was she threatening you?” Olga asked.
“I don’t know. She’s frightened.”
“Or cornered.”
Andrei sat down and remained silent for a long time.
“I have to help her.”
“Not like this. Not in this way.”
“Then how?”
Olga sat opposite him and took his hands in hers.
“Talk to Dmitry. Listen to both sides. Then decide.”
“You’re right.”
But Svetlana arrived before Andrei had time to call him.
She appeared that evening with two suitcases and two sleepy little girls.
“I’m leaving them here. Only for ten days. I’ll pick them up when I return.”
“Sveta, we haven’t agreed to this.”
“Andrei, please!” She grabbed his hands, tears shining in her eyes. “You’re the only person I can trust. You’re the only one who has never betrayed me.”
Olga stood in the doorway of the children’s room, holding Dasha close.
“Svetlana, this was never discussed.”
“Olya, I’m begging you. Ten days, and then I’ll disappear from your lives. I promise.”
“What exactly are you promising?”
“I’ll find a permanent job, rent a decent apartment, and stop bothering you.”
“You said the same thing three months ago. And a year ago.”
Svetlana straightened.
Her tears disappeared as suddenly as they had appeared.
“You’ve been against me from the beginning. You always have been.”
“I’m against you using my husband.”
“Using him? I’m his sister!”
Polina tugged at Andrei’s sleeve.
“Uncle Andrei, I want to sleep.”
Vika was already dozing on her feet, leaning against one of the suitcases.
Three years old.
‘
A tiny child who did not understand what was happening around her.
Andrei looked at his nieces.
Then at his sister.
Then at his wife.
“All right,” he said. “Ten days. But this is the last time, Sveta. The very last.”
Svetlana beamed.
“Thank you! You’re the best! I’ll bring you gifts from Saint Petersburg!”
She kissed her daughters without looking them in the eyes and hurried out.
The door slammed.
Olga silently walked into the bedroom.
On the third day, Olga found new photographs on social media.
Svetlana was on a beach.
Bright blue sea.
Palm trees.
The location tag showed Sochi.
She placed the phone in front of Andrei.
“So much for the training program in Saint Petersburg.”
He stared at the photographs silently.
Svetlana in a swimsuit.
Svetlana holding a glass of wine.
Svetlana embracing a tanned man.
A different man, not the one from the restaurant.
“Maybe she…” he began, then stopped.
“What? Flew to Sochi between lectures?”
“I don’t know.”
“I do. She lied to you. She has been lying from the very beginning.”
Andrei leaned back in his chair.
“What am I supposed to do?”
“What about me? What am I supposed to do?”
“Olya…”
She walked directly up to him.
“Andrei, listen to me. I’ve put up with this for six months. I tolerated the ‘urgent interviews,’ the ‘important meetings,’ and the ‘necessary trips.’ I endured it because I believed you would eventually understand what was happening.”
“I understand now.”
“No, you don’t. You keep choosing not to see it. Every single time. And I can’t do this anymore.”
“What does that mean?”
Olga walked into the bedroom.
She began packing Dasha’s belongings: dresses, tights, toys.
“It means I’m going to stay with my mother. Dasha is coming with me.”
“Olya, wait!”
“No.”
“You can’t just leave!”
“I can. And I am. Call me when you’ve dealt with this situation.”
“What situation?”
She stopped with the child’s suitcase in her hand.
“Your sister, Andrei. The children she abandons with us every week. The lies you keep swallowing without even questioning them.”
“That’s cruel.”
“Cruel? Do you know what is cruel? Having to explain to four-year-old Dasha why someone else’s children are always more important than she is. Why Aunt Sveta has left Polina and Vika again. Why her father is constantly too busy.”
Andrei stood between her and the door.
“Don’t leave like this. Let’s talk.”
“There’s nothing left to discuss. You know where to find me.”
She walked around him and left.
Dasha followed, holding her mother’s hand.
The little girl turned around and waved to her father.
“Bye, Daddy. Will I see you soon?”
“Of course, sweetheart.”
The door closed.
Andrei remained alone.
His nieces were asleep in the next room.
Someone else’s children in his apartment.
On the fifth day, someone rang the doorbell.
Andrei opened it, expecting a courier or one of the neighbors.
A tall man stood outside, dressed in jeans and a plain T-shirt. He had short hair, a direct gaze, and a calm expression.
“Andrei?”
“Yes.”
“I’m Dmitry. Svetlana’s former husband.”
Andrei stepped back.
“How do you know my address?”
“Polina wrote to me. She already knows how to use messaging apps.”
“She wrote to you? What did she say?”
“Daddy, come and get us. We’re staying with Uncle Andrei. Mommy went away.”
Andrei silently let him inside.
Dmitry looked around the small entrance hall, the corridor, and the children’s belongings piled by the wall.
“Where are the girls?”
“In the room. Polina is reading. Vika is asleep.”
“How long have they been here?”
“This is the fifth day.”
“And Svetlana?”
“In Sochi. With another man.”
Dmitry nodded as though he had heard exactly what he expected.
“May I see my daughters?”
Andrei led him into the room.
Polina sat on the bed with a book in her hands.
When she saw her father, she jumped up and ran toward him.
“Daddy!”
Dmitry crouched down and wrapped his arms around her.
The girl pressed her whole body against him, her shoulders trembling.
“Hello, sweetheart. I missed you.”
“I missed you too. Every day.”
Vika woke up because of the noise, rubbed her eyes, and stared at Dmitry.
“Daddy?” she asked uncertainly.
“Yes, little one. Daddy.”
She began to cry quietly, almost soundlessly.
Dmitry picked her up.
They sat in the kitchen.
The girls played in the other room, laughing genuinely for the first time in several days.
“She told me you abandoned them,” Andrei said. “That you don’t pay child support and have no interest in seeing the children.”
“I pay child support every month. I can show you bank records, receipts, and transfer confirmations.”
“She said you cheated on her. That you left her for another woman.”
Dmitry smiled bitterly.
“She initiated the divorce. She said she was tired of family life. She wanted freedom. She wanted to find herself.”
“And the children?”
“They stayed with her because that was what she wanted. I tried to obtain equal custody rights, but she blocked every attempt.”
“How?”
“She changed phone numbers. Moved without telling me. Told the girls I was a bad person. Told them I had abandoned them.”
Andrei said nothing.
Everything he was hearing turned the picture his sister had built over the years upside down.
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“I tried. I called you a month ago. Remember?”
“I remember. But Sveta…”
“What did she say?”
“She said you were trying to turn everyone against her. That you were manipulative and dishonest.”
Dmitry took out his phone and placed it in front of Andrei.
“Here are our messages. Read them.”
Andrei read.
Messages from Dmitry:
“When can I see the girls?”
“Polina isn’t answering. Is she all right?”
“Sveta, please, let’s arrange a visit.”
Svetlana’s replies:
“Not now.”
“The girls are busy.”
“They don’t want to see you.”
And then the final message from Polina’s account:
“Daddy, take us away.”
“That was yesterday,” Dmitry said. “I left immediately.”
“What are you planning to do?”
“Take my daughters home. And make sure this never happens again.”
“How?”
Dmitry took a business card from his pocket.
“I contacted child protective services. A representative will be here in an hour.”
“Child protective services?”
“Andrei, you need to understand. Svetlana left the children for ten days without any legal arrangement. Without their father’s consent. Without documentation. That is considered leaving children without proper guardianship. I have the legal right to take them.”
Andrei leaned back in his chair.
“She’ll be furious.”
“I know. But the children matter more than her anger.”
The child welfare officer was a middle-aged woman with an observant, penetrating gaze.
She inspected the apartment, spoke with the girls, and recorded statements from Andrei and Dmitry.
“Where is the children’s mother now?”
“In Sochi,” Andrei answered. “On vacation.”
“Did she formally notify anyone of her absence? Did she leave written authorization?”
“No.”
“Who decided that the children would stay here?”
“She simply brought them and left. I agreed because…” He stopped.
“Because?”
“Because she’s my sister.”
The officer nodded and continued filling out the documents.
“The father has the right to take the children. His documents are valid. Child support is being paid. His relationship with the girls is confirmed by messages and witness statements.”
Dmitry stood up.
“Girls, pack your things. We’re going home.”
Polina looked at him in disbelief.
“Really going home? With you?”
“Really.”
“And Mommy?”
“When she comes back, we’ll discuss everything.”
Vika clung to her father’s trouser leg and refused to let go.
Only three years old, yet she already understood that something important was happening.
Andrei helped pack their things.
When Dmitry’s car disappeared around the corner, he returned to the empty apartment and sat in silence in the kitchen for a long time.
Svetlana returned a week later.
She was tanned, rested, and smiling.
“Hello, brother! Did you miss me?”
Andrei opened the door.
“Come in.”
She walked past him and looked around.
“Where are the girls? Polina! Vika!”
“They aren’t here.”
Svetlana froze.
“What do you mean, they aren’t here? Did they go outside?”
“They’re with Dmitry.”
The color drained from Svetlana’s face in a matter of seconds, turning her tan into an ashen gray.
“What did you say?”
“Dmitry took the girls. With authorization from child protective services.”
“You… you allowed him to?”
“I had no right to stop him. And I didn’t want to.”
Svetlana stepped toward him, rage burning in her eyes.
“You didn’t want to stop him? You gave my children to a stranger!”
“He’s their father.”
“He’s a traitor! He abandoned me!”
“Svetlana, stop.”
She was not listening.
Her voice grew louder and louder.
“You betrayed me! Your own sister! And for whom? For the man who ruined my life?”
“You ruined your own life.”
Silence.
Svetlana stared at him as though she were seeing him for the first time.
No, not surprise.
Hatred.
“Say that again.”
“You ruined your own life. With your own choices. With your lies.”
“What lies?”
“The training program in Saint Petersburg? The interviews? The important meetings? All this time, you were abandoning your children so you could entertain yourself. You used me as free childcare.”
“I was trying to find myself!”
“You were looking for men. And you found plenty of them. A different one every time.”
Svetlana lowered herself onto a chair.
Her hands were trembling.
“Andrei, you were the only person who stayed beside me. You were the only one who helped.”
“Exactly. And that is why I’m not doing it anymore.”
“What?”
“Helping you. Turning a blind eye. Pretending everything is normal.”
“You’re abandoning me?”
“I’m refusing to be your accomplice.”
Svetlana jumped to her feet.
“I’ll get my children back! I’ll file a complaint! I’ll prove that Dmitry…”
“Prove what? That he pays child support? That he has spent months trying to see his daughters? That he has never hit them, screamed at them, or abandoned them with other people?”
“He poisoned you against me! He turned you against me!”
“No, Sveta. You did that yourself. With your own actions. With your lies.”
She grabbed her bag and headed for the door.
“You’ll regret this. All of you will regret it!”
“Maybe. But the children will be safe. That’s what matters.”
She slammed the door so hard that the coat rack shook.
Olga called that evening.
“How are you?”
“Terrible. But I did the right thing.”
“I saw Dmitry’s pictures with the girls. He posted them half an hour ago. Polina is smiling.”
“She is?”
“Andrei, come over. We need to talk.”
“You want me to come?”
“Yes. Dasha keeps asking about you.”
He closed his eyes.
The tension of the previous days slowly began to ease.
“I’ll be there in an hour.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Six months later, Andrei received a message from his mother.
“Svetlana has gone to Italy. She left with some man named Marco. She wrote a note saying she had found happiness.”
He showed the message to Olga.
“How do you feel about it?” she asked.
“I don’t feel anything. She’s an adult. It’s her choice.”
“And the children?”
“Dmitry has filed to terminate her parental rights. He believes it will be better for Polina and Vika.”
Olga put the phone aside.
“Do you agree with him?”
“I don’t know. But I understand him.”
Dasha ran into the room holding a drawing.
“Daddy, look! I drew our family!”
There were three figures in the picture: one large, one smaller, and one very small.
Beside them stood a house with a window and smoke rising from the chimney.
“It’s beautiful, sweetheart.”
“And who is this?” Olga asked, pointing to a figure in the corner of the page.
“That’s Polina. She lives far away now, but I still remember her.”
Andrei hugged his daughter.
“That’s good. Remembering people is important.”
Three months later, Svetlana returned.
Marco had turned out to be married. She had discovered the truth when his wife arrived at their rented apartment with two children.
Svetlana appeared at her mother’s home without warning.
She had lost weight. Her eyes were dull. Her clothes were wrinkled.
“The children?” she asked.
“They’re with Dmitry. He moved to another city.”
“Which city?”
“I’m not telling you.”
“Am I forbidden from seeing them?”
“No. But Polina doesn’t want to.”
“Does Polina hate me?”
Andrei remained silent for a long time.
“She’s afraid of you. She’s afraid you’ll disappear again.”
Svetlana began to cry.
Quietly this time.
No screaming. No dramatic outburst.
Tears simply rolled down her cheeks.
“What am I supposed to do?”
“I don’t know. Maybe start by looking at yourself.”
“It isn’t my fault. Everyone is against me. Dima turned the children against me. You abandoned me. Olya never accepted me from the beginning…”
Andrei stood up.
“Sveta, nothing will change while you keep searching for someone else to blame.”
“You’re cruel.”
“No. I’m honest.”
He left.
Behind him remained his sister, a hunched figure sitting on someone else’s sofa, surrounded by a life she had built for herself.
Olga was waiting for him at home.
Dinner was on the table. Nothing elaborate. Just simple, homemade food.
Dasha was already asleep.
“How is she?” Olga asked.
“Bad. But she still refuses to admit anything.”
“Admit what?”
“Anything at all. She says everyone is against her. That the world is unfair.”
Olga sat beside him.
“Andrei, you did the right thing.”
“I know. But it doesn’t make me feel any better.”
“It will. Eventually.”
He took her hand.
“Olya, forgive me. For not listening to you. For choosing not to see what was happening.”
“You’ve already apologized.”
“Ten times.”
“It isn’t enough.”
“It is. What matters is that you finally understood.”
“Understood what?”
“That helping relatives doesn’t mean encouraging their weaknesses. That loving your sister doesn’t cancel your love for your wife. And that children must never be used as shields or weapons.”
Andrei embraced her.
“I love you.”
“I know.”
“And Dasha.”
“She knows too.”
Their home was quiet and warm.
It was an ordinary evening in the life of an ordinary family.
A family that had survived a storm and remained standing.