In the city, there was a stifling heat, it seemed even the asphalt was melting, with temperatures soaring above thirty degrees Celsius. In a residential area, a young pregnant woman wandered confusedly through the courtyards of apartment buildings. She carefully looked for numbers on the corners of the houses but couldn’t find the address she needed. On a bench in the gazebo, as usual, elderly women sat and gossiped about everyone and everything. Irina approached them, sat down tiredly next to them, and rubbed her numb lower back. Her long dress clung unpleasantly to her body, and the straps of her sandals dug into her swollen legs. She asked:
“Good afternoon. Can you tell me how to find house number seven A? I’ve walked all over Molodezhnaya Street, I have no strength left! My phone died too… There really is no such house, it’s driving me crazy!”
One of the old ladies immediately perked up:
“Hello to you too! Let me tell you everything, my daughter-in-law lives in that building. When you leave this courtyard, turn into the archway, there will be a store called Aurora, and right behind it is house seven A, I know almost everyone there. Who are you looking for?”
Irina sighed:
“Well, I saw an ad to buy some things for a child, the prices are so high now, but this way it’ll be cheaper.”
The women immediately started chattering like magpies:
“Good for you! That’s right! Every penny counts, why waste money? Not like my daughter-in-law, the baby is only three months old, and his new clothes don’t even fit in the dresser. And most importantly, he doesn’t even get to wear them, he grows up so fast! I don’t understand this wastefulness!”
Ira thanked the women, tiredly got up, and went to the right building, thinking to herself: “Some economists they are. If I had my way, I would buy my baby all the best and quality things, a fancy imported stroller, and a spinning cradle. But the situation isn’t right, no close relatives, and life has twisted so that I literally have to count every penny. There’s no one to lean on, no one to ask for help…”
The needed apartment was on the ninth floor, and Irina pressed the elevator call button. Like many in old apartment buildings, it took a long time to arrive but finally did. It was quite battered, spat upon, with graffiti on the walls. Irina was already mentally calculating whether she’d have enough money for both the envelope and the jumpsuit, and perhaps she should bargain? Just then, the elevator suddenly stopped, stuck as if in the ground, the light went out! Irina didn’t even realize what floor she was on! She started pressing the call button for the elevator operator, in vain, the elevator seemed frozen and showed no signs of life!
Panic set in for Irina, who had been afraid of elevators since childhood after once getting stuck between floors for two whole hours! And she would never have taken it now if she hadn’t been pregnant. There was no way she could have made it up to the ninth floor in such heat!
Ira swore and kicked the door in frustration, began pressing all the buttons in hopes that something would work and it would move! Suddenly she felt sick, sweat streamed down her temples and back, drenching her eyes, she desperately needed air, and her back began to hurt, pain in her lower abdomen. Ira pounded the door with her fists with all her might and screamed:
“Somebody! Help! People! I’m stuck in the elevator! I’m pregnant! I feel awful! Please! Help!”
But time passed, and no one rushed to her rescue, everyone was at work during the day, few people passed by. Irina cried and realized that her real contractions were starting, bending her in an arc, then releasing her. She whispered: “God! Help! Do I really have to give birth alone in this filthy elevator! It’s completely unsanitary! What misfortunes are these! Why? Mothers!”
She tried with her last bit of strength to pry the doors apart and banged:
“Help! I’m giving birth! Somebody! People! Save me!”
Luckily, a young athletic guy named Andrey, who valued sports and avoided using the elevator considering walking very healthy, was coming downstairs. He heard the desperate cries of the woman, quickly realized that this junk had broken down again, and immediately called an ambulance and started yelling at the dispatcher:
“Are you out of your minds? The elevator at Molodezhnaya seven A is broken again, there’s a woman stuck in there, seems like she’s giving birth! Hurry up and free the person! How long will this disgrace continue! Every week the same thing! You just pretend to repair it!”
Hearing this, the elevator operator sobered up instantly, grabbed the necessary tools, and rushed to rescue the woman in labor. This was a serious matter, if something happened, the management would raise hell!
Meanwhile, Andrey tried to calm the poor woman through the door:
“Just don’t panic, breathe deeply! Calm down. The ambulance and the technician are on their way, they’ll help you soon! How are you there? Woman? Do you hear me?”
Ira screamed in pain once more and began to sink to the floor, trying to respond:
“I’m giving birth. I feel awful. Save me…”
And she passed out!
Andrey was so worried for the stranger that he tried to pry the damn door open himself, put all his strength into it, and suddenly succeeded! With one foot he held the door, and carefully pulled the woman onto the landing, the neighbors gathered around, put a blanket and a pillow under her head, and started spraying water, but Ira was still unconscious!
Then the elevator operator arrived, lamenting that it wasn’t his fault, the elevator was older than his grandfather, and parts for it were unobtainable!
Finally, the ambulance arrived, and the poor woman was immediately put on a stretcher and carried to the vehicle, yelling to Andrey:
“Are you the husband? Get in, you’ll come with us! This is serious, she’s started bleeding, it’s unclear if we’ll make it!”
Andrey was in such shock that he sat down and went along, nervously worrying all the way, feeling so sorry for this young woman in labor! How could this happen? What if she dies? Or loses the baby? What a tragedy has befallen this person! He patiently sat in the hospital corridor, not knowing how to tell the medics that he was not the father of the child, not to mention that he didn’t even know this woman! Just helped! But he didn’t leave, although he could have! He thought, what if some help is needed? Who will help her? It’s not humane to leave a person in trouble!
The labor lasted an incredibly long time, four hours had already passed when a nurse approached Andrey and said:
“Well, daddy, congratulations, you have a son, three hundred twenty, fifty centimeters. The baby is fine, don’t worry. But your wife is in a worse condition. The birth was very difficult, she lost a lot of blood, is still unconscious in the ICU, but the crisis seems to have passed. But they still won’t let you see her. Come back tomorrow. I’ll write you a list of medications, you’ll need to buy them for sure. They will help her recover faster.”
Andrey nodded his head and went home, never telling the truth. Why? He didn’t know. He didn’t decide right away, and now it was somehow awkward. A silly situation! Especially considering that Andrey was married. And he was just going to the store to buy bread.
Upon arriving home, his wife, Galya, interrogated him:
“Where have you been roaming, smarty? And you didn’t buy the bread! This is really out of line! You were gone all day, and you went out for a minute! Well, breathe in?”
Andrey irritably responded:
“Galya, stop it! You know I don’t drink at all, I go to the gym! What’s with this hysteria? This is serious…”
And he honestly told her everything, thinking his wife would understand, praise him for helping a pregnant woman! But that was not the case! His wife completely blew up:
“You as always! Looking for adventures on your own head! Do you think you need more than everyone else? Fine, you helped, you opened the elevator, but why did you go to the maternity ward? Or maybe she’s your lover? And the child is yours? Why are you so worried about someone else’s woman?”
Andrey just waved his hand:
“What are you talking about? I’m telling you, I don’t even know her! I just helped a person! Enough! I’m tired! I’ll finally go buy some bread!”
Galya immediately stood in the doorway and sternly braced her hips with her hands:
“No way, you won’t go, you’ve already gone once! Eat without bread! Or you’ll get involved in something else, it’s typical of you!”
Ira finally woke up in the ICU the next day and immediately shouted:
“Where’s my baby? What’s wrong with him?”
A doctor approached her and patiently explained:
“Finally, Irina, you’ve come to! Oh, you scared us all, to be honest! Don’t worry, your son is fine, you have a wonderful boy. But your condition was, let’s say, on the edge of life and death! We even had to do an emergency transfusion. Honestly, it’s a miracle we saved you. Your condition has stabilized now, and we’re transferring you to a regular room. In an hour, they’ll bring your son for feeding and leave him with you.”
Ira chattered:
“Thank you, doctor, so much! Could someone please bring my things and everything necessary for my son, the house key is in my bag, after all, you could say I was brought in from the street, good thing I always carried my documents and exchange card with me by habit.”
The doctor smiled:
“Why ask someone else? Your husband has been waiting outside your room since morning, waiting to be let in, he’s bought all the medications for you, and everything on the list that’s necessary. So everything’s alright. He was very worried, wore himself out in the corridor while you were giving birth. It’s clear he loves you very much.”
Ira looked at the doctor in astonishment, even turning pale:
“Excuse me, what husband? What are you talking about? I’ve been a widow for three months! My husband, Alexander Bykov, worked for a private security agency, and he died during the transportation of valuable coins belonging to numismatist Isaev. You’ve probably heard about it in the news, it was a high-profile case. The robbers didn’t spare anyone. I don’t know how I even survived his death, especially since I was already pregnant. We were building plans, coming up with names for the baby together, and then this happened…”
“Can you call that guy who introduced himself as my husband? I’m actually curious to see what this comedy is all about!”
The doctor went out and invited Andrei in. The young man gathered his courage and began to apologize from the threshold:
“Congratulations on the birth of your son! I’m sorry that they mistook me for your husband, I helped you out of the stuck elevator yesterday, remember? The ambulance team decided I was your spouse and told me to go to the hospital with you… But I just didn’t dare tell the truth. I understand, it turned into a comical situation…”
Ira acted as if she didn’t hear him at all, she crossed herself, and whispered like a madwoman:
“Sashenka! My dear! You’ve returned! My sweet! But how…I buried you…Can people really come back from there?”
And the woman fainted again. Frightened, Andrei ran to call the doctors, who gave her smelling salts, and she quickly recovered.
The angry doctor scolded Andrei:
“What the devil? Why are you driving your wife to lose consciousness? She’s weak enough as it is! She doesn’t need any stress!”
Andrei realized there was some misunderstanding and replied honestly:
“I’m not her husband! My name is Andrei Chizhov, I just helped this woman out of a stuck elevator, we don’t know each other at all!”
But Ira kept repeating, as if on autopilot:
“Sashenka, what are you saying? You are my husband, the deceased one, true… Oh, mommy…”
And she burst into tears, wiping her tears with the back of her hand and began crossing herself again.
Andrei asked the doctor:
“Could she be delusional from stress? She clearly thinks I’m her husband. Is that possible?”
The puzzled doctor tried to calm Ira down:
“Now, Irina, let’s breathe and calm down. Let’s sort this out without emotions. You’re still in shock, stressed from your husband’s death, it happens. I’ll order Nina to give you a sedative, and you can sleep a bit. Alright? But really, you should see a psychologist for consultation. This is a serious case, as I see it.”
Suddenly the woman screamed:
“You think I’m crazy, right? Doctor, please, in my purse, in the wallet, there’s a photo of Sasha, my husband, I always carry it with me! Please, bring it! You’ll see I’m telling the truth!”
The doctor obediently went and brought the woman’s bag, taken from the matron. When Ira pulled out the photo of her deceased husband, everyone gasped! It really was the same face as Andrei’s, indistinguishable! Only the hair was longer, combed to the side!
The doctor involuntarily crossed himself and muttered:
“I think I need a sedative too! What does this mean? You, sir, claim you’re Andrei, but you look like the deceased Alexander, Irina’s husband? And how can one not lose their mind here!”
A nurse entered the room:
“Pavel Semyonovich, you’re late for the staff meeting!”
The doctor adjusted his glasses and cap and said businesslike:
“As you can see, I have to go, you’ll have to sort out who is the husband and who is not yourselves! Feeding is in an hour, I’ll come by after lunch, Irina.”
After the doctor left, Andrei began to justify himself:
“I don’t know how this can be, Ira, honestly! We don’t know each other, that’s for sure. I thought for a moment you had really gone mad! But now I understand that your husband really looked a lot like me, you just mistook me. Things like this do happen!”
Ira excitedly chattered:
“Understand, Andrei, it’s impossible for two unrelated people to look so much alike, like two peas in a pod! I look at you, and still get goosebumps! Even the voice, the gestures, the smile, everything’s like my Sasha’s, understand! You must be his twin brother! There can’t be any other explanation! So, let’s think! My Sasha was from the countryside, his mother was named Alexandra Fedorovna, and his father, Artem Demidovich Bykov. Does that tell you anything? Maybe you know these people? Too bad they died long ago, now there’s no one to ask…”
Andrei shook his head negatively:
“No, I definitely don’t know them. I grew up in the city, an only child, my mother a singing teacher, Inna Sergeyevna, and my father an engineer, Valeriy Ivanovich Chizhov. As far as I know, we don’t have any relatives in the countryside! So this is definitely some mistake! You know, Ira, I must run, or else my wife will scold me again. I congratulate you again on the birth of your son, and I truly sympathize that your husband died. Can I help you with anything else?”
Ira handed him the house keys:
“Just one request, please bring the bag, it’s in the hallway, I’ll tell you my home address now, it’s all packed for me and my son. And thank you so much, Andrei, for saving my life and my son’s! I am eternally indebted to you!”
The guy agreed to help Ira again and went to her house for the things. The bag was indeed standing in the hallway, ready to be taken. But Andrei, out of curiosity, walked through the house. He was stunned when he saw a photo of Ira’s husband in a black mourning frame on her bedside table. The resemblance was indeed incredible! Even a chill ran through him. “Could Ira be right, and her deceased spouse is actually my twin brother? I need to go to my parents today and talk to them seriously. There must be some logical explanation for this!”
Andrei delivered the bag to Ira and asked for her husband’s wallet photo so that his mother couldn’t dodge a direct answer, and he drove straight to his parents’. On the way, he kept thinking, comparing, and remembering his childhood. And he couldn’t find a single case or moment when he might have suspected that he wasn’t biologically related to his parents! His mother still loves him madly, his father also put his soul into raising him, how could this be? If Sasha is indeed his brother, why did they grow up separately? And knew nothing about each other!
Andrei entered his parents’ apartment. Seeing her son, his mother joyfully rushed to embrace him:
“Andryusha, my son, come in! Why didn’t you call, I would have made you dumplings with cabbage, your favorite. Well done for deciding to visit the old folks. I’m just knitting you a sweater, you can try it on at the same time, see if it’s too small?”
His father also came out to greet his son, shook his hand, greeted him warmly. They all sat down to drink tea with a cake the man brought.
His mother, as always, was worried and asked about everything:
“How are you living with Galochka? Are you still fighting? Or have you sorted things out? I’m so worried about you, son. How’s work? Everything alright? You seem a bit preoccupied, I can feel something’s happened.”
Andrei hesitated and didn’t know how to ask about the most important thing, the reason he came?
“Work is fine, no problems, and with Galya it’s the same as always, like on a volcano. You know her explosive character, sometimes she nags me, sometimes I nag her, that’s how we live. You know, Mom, something happened recently. Just listen…”
And he honestly told his parents everything, then laid Sasha’s photo on the table, and exhaling, asked cautiously:
“Mom, can unrelated people really look so much alike? I and this man in the photo seem to have the same face. I don’t understand, honestly, but it’s very important for me to know the whole truth.”
And he looked at his mother inquisitively. She just glanced at the photo, and turned pale, began to cry softly. She whispered:
“Sashenka, my son. Can it be you died so young? How could this happen? My dear! Forgive me for everything…”
Andrei watched his mother in astonishment, the answer was clear, Sasha really was his brother! His father was also clearly puzzled, he was nervous and kept taking off and putting on his glasses.
Inna Sergeyevna sighed deeply and began to recall her distant youth:
“I was eighteen then, and my fiancé, Artem, was already twenty-five. We had such a love, just like Romeo and Juliet, we fought, then made up, and our parents fought and didn’t let us come together, they thought we weren’t a match! But it turned out that I soon became pregnant, had to calm everyone down, and begrudgingly had a wedding. I gave birth to twins, you, Andryusha, and your brother, Sashenka. But just with the arrival of two babies, our family life with Artem immediately fell apart. I was exhausted, couldn’t manage anything, and my husband wasn’t rushing to help, stayed late at work, drank on weekends, and then decided to have an affair. We argued a lot, and after a year decided to divorce, it was simply impossible to live like that any longer. My husband insisted in court that we should also split the children equally, so to speak! He took Sashenka and left for his village, to his parents. And I stayed with you. We hated each other so much at that point, we agreed never to cross paths again, and to erase each other from our lives, so our children wouldn’t even know about each other! That’s how it happened. A year later, I met Valera, fell in love, he was a very decent, calm, faithful, and worthy man, he accepted you as his own and adopted you, gave you his surname and patronymic. And I was only glad, as they say, out of sight, out of mind! I didn’t know anything about Sasha’s fate all these years, but often thought about him and remembered. And only now, when you told me he died, did I realize what we, my first husband and I, had done! There’s no more my Sashenka on this earth! You can’t return anything and can’t ask for forgiveness now. That’s the story, son. And your mother is not a saint at all. This secret has tormented me all these years, it seemed we did the right thing legally, but not morally…
Andrei was in shock, he stood up, then sat down on the stool again, walked back and forth in the kitchen:
“Mom, how could this be? I just can’t believe it! What did you do? Why did you separate us from our brother forever? That’s just wild! Okay, you divorced, couldn’t get along, I understand that, but what about the children? Why did you forbid us to see each other, to be friends, is that fair? It turns out Ira was right, Sasha is my twin brother, and her son turns out to be my nephew and your grandson, by the way! And the poor woman is going crazy with grief and despair, thinking that now she’s alone in the world and no one can help her! Is this right? Mom? Answer! How could you calmly live, raise me, and your soul not ache for your second son? Sorry, but I don’t understand this, kill me! I have to go…
The woman frantically grabbed her son by the sleeve:
“Please forgive me, sonny! I beg you! Just don’t distance yourself from us and dad now, please! We love you more than life!”
But Andrei jerked his arm away and just muttered:
“Yeah, of course. I’ll call…”
He rushed out into the street, as if scalded, it seemed he couldn’t breathe and a huge lump kept rising to his throat, he wanted to howl, roll on the ground, and cry like a little child! Thoughts were confused, there was a terrible mess in his head: “How could mom do this? Why were they so cruel to us? How can you split children, as if they were property? I’m a living person, I had the right to know that I had a real brother! This is just unimaginable folly! How can I even communicate with my mother now? And the father, whom I loved so much, turns out not to be my dad at all, but a stepfather? And no one ever uttered a word about it! What a monstrous and grand lie!”
Andrei’s hands trembled as he dialed Ira’s number, but then hung up! No, she can’t be upset now, she’s feeding the baby. I need to calm down first, and then tell her everything when I’ve calmed down myself. But now he knew for sure that he wouldn’t leave this woman, he would help her in everything, and take care of his nephew. For his brother’s memory, he was obliged to take care of his wife and son. His mobile rang, it was Galya. Andrei thought irritably: “Now it starts!
And sure enough, his wife was yelling into the phone, fuming:
“Andrey! Where have you gotten lost? You’ve been away from home all day! Did you find yourself another woman? Come back home immediately!”
The man didn’t argue, he simply had no energy left to do so, and quietly replied:
“Galya, stop talking nonsense. I’ll be home soon and tell you everything. I have such news that you could either stand or fall!”
He knew his wife’s quarrelsome nature but still hoped that she would understand and support him, and come to love Ira’s son too, and bond with him. After all, they were not strangers.
But contrary to Andrey’s expectations, a deafening scandal erupted at home! Galya screamed so loud that it was deafening:
“Have you lost your mind? What are you blabbering about? What brother? What nephew? Do you think I’m some dumb fool to believe all these fairy tales? Just say that this child is yours, from a lover! I knew it, it wasn’t for nothing that you were dragging her to the maternity hospital, fussing over her now! Oh, you dog! So that’s where you disappear to all day! Oh, I’ll show you now!”
His wife lunged at him wanting to slap him! But Andrey was not in the mood to endure it, he was simply stunned by such an ugly hysterics from his wife! He caught her hand and snapped:
“Just try to touch me! I’ll file for divorce right away! I’m so sick of you and your womanly scandals! I thought you would understand, support me, but you! Don’t lose your mind, I don’t have anyone else! I told you the truth, believe it or not! And I won’t leave Ira, and I’ll help raise her nephew! Period!”
He slammed the door and locked himself in the bedroom! He grabbed his head and kept thinking: “How long can these scandals go on? Is this even a family? What a shrew of a wife! And yet, he once liked Galya’s spicy character! Fool! If only he knew what it would lead to, he would never have married her!”
Meanwhile, Galya sulked until late at night, mentally scolding Andrey, considering him a cheater and a traitor, not realizing that her husband wasn’t lying! The woman was very combative: “Well, nothing, we’ll still fight! I didn’t get married to share Andrey with some hussy! Just you watch, who will conquer whom! But what a cheeky guy, instead of confessing to cheating and repenting, he’s feeding me tales! Feeding me fables!”
Despite the wild scandal at home, Andrey arrived at Ira’s discharge from the hospital with flowers and balloons. He couldn’t miss such an event! The woman came out so happy, clutching her precious child to her heart, pleasantly surprised that her husband’s brother showed such attention to them! Other mothers were picked up by husbands or relatives, and she didn’t want to leave the maternity hospital alone! When she saw Andrey, a million emotions stormed inside her! On one hand, he was the spitting image of Sasha, he looked at her so tenderly that she wanted to bury herself in his strong embrace, as before, and feel loved and happy again! But she kept checking herself: “Snap out of it! This can’t be! It’s wrong! Andrey is not Sasha! And he’s married! And he’s just Uncle Max’s real uncle! And he cares about me in a family way, and that’s all!” But all her logical conclusions were at odds with the desires of her heart, tormented by longing for her husband! It pleaded and asked for affection and love, and didn’t want to listen to any arguments!
Andrey began to help and look after Ira, often walked in the park with little Maxim, took him to consultations, and financially supported them, buying them groceries and everything necessary. The guy considered it his duty and enjoyed their company. Unlike the scandalous and loud Galya, Ira was quiet, thoughtful, and very domestic, could cook a lavish meal out of nothing, her home was always clean and cozy, there was a special, good atmosphere that calmed Andrey.
One day Andrey decided to ask the widow:
“Irish, tell me everything you know about Sasha’s death! Everything seems strange to me. It’s a weird story. Understand, I want to get to the bottom of the truth and find out who killed my brother? These scoundrels must answer for what they’ve done in full, not enjoy their lives. It’s a matter of honor for me, you see?”
The woman sighed heavily and began to recount, though these memories were very painful for her:
“Sasha worked for the private security firm ‘Shield’, was in good standing with the management, did everything conscientiously, was paid well. That time, he was tasked to escort a transaction of the well-known numismatist Isaev, who was transporting valuable antique coins. Everything seemed usual, and the task was simple — to guard the valuable property until the deal was done. But on the way, the security agency’s car was attacked by bandits who shot everyone at close range. It happened near the eastern tram depot, where few people are around, so there were no witnesses. My Sasha and two other guards died on the spot from multiple gunshot wounds, never regaining consciousness. The coins were stolen, they were not in the car… That’s all I know. I still can’t come to terms with Sasha’s death, I cry into my pillow at night.”
Andrey frowned:
“Listen, give me the address of this security agency, I want to talk to its owner, maybe I can find out something? Doesn’t it seem strange to you? How could the attackers have known about the upcoming deal, and how did they guess to ambush at such a convenient place…”
Ira got scared:
“Andrey, maybe you shouldn’t? I won’t survive if something happens to you too. You are the closest person to me and my son, you care about us so much.”
The man hurried to reassure her:
“Don’t worry, Irish, I’ll be careful. But agree, it’s unfair that Sasha is no longer here, his son grows up without a father, and the killers are free! Someone must seek the truth!”
Andrey decided to visit the owner of the ‘Shield’ security agency the very next day. He had his own plan, and he was very hopeful. The man decisively entered the boss’s office and started right from the doorway:
“Well, hello, Alexey Petrovich! How are you? Doesn’t your conscience bother you? Don’t the dead haunt your nights?”
The owner, seeing Andrey, jumped up as if scalded, and began to back up to the window and gasp:
“Sasha? Bykov? It can’t be! You’re dead, you’re gone! I was personally at your funeral! Have you come back from the other side, or am I going mad?”
He started rubbing his eyes and shaking his head, trying to ward off this delusion!
Andrey rasped a laugh:
“Scared? I’ll come to you every day now until you tell the truth! I know you’re involved in my murder! Now confess, you scoundrel!”
Alexey Petrovich broke out in sweat, he felt sick, a sticky, penetrating fear seized every cell of his body. He couldn’t stand it and began to stammer:
“Go away! Disappear! Please! I’ll tell you everything, just vanish! My men took you down at the depot and two knuckleheads to boot! They even sent me photos as proof. There was such a jackpot on the line! Do you even know how much those damn coins are worth? It’s a fortune! But fate has already punished me! When they brought me those boxes of coins, and I opened them, there was only sand! Understand, sand in bags! Ordinary river sand! Someone had sniffed out everything before me and beat me to it, leaving me high and dry! Satisfied? Now go, I’ve told you the truth! What else do you want, Sasha?”
Andrey turned off the recorder in his pocket and said:
“Be damned, murderer, you will answer for everything! Burn in hell!”
The man rushed out of the office and immediately called the police, waiting for them in a nearby park. Andrey was shaking, his thoughts were jumbled, but still, he rejoiced: “I did it! This brute believed I was a ghost and confessed! Now he will pay for everything, you hear me, brother? I found your killer! I did it!”
Alexey Petrovich was taken to the station, and Andrey provided the investigator with the recording of the confession, and the rest was a matter of procedure. Under pressure from the investigation, the agency owner confessed to everything and turned in his accomplices. The case was solved, and the scoundrels received maximum sentences. But even the experienced investigator never figured out who actually stole those valuable coins and where they went. If someone had tried to sell them, the police would have known immediately. But they vanished without a trace!
Relations between Andrey and Galya got worse, they barely communicated! The woman completely went off the rails, interrogating her husband every day with passion, if he was delayed, scrutinizing him thoroughly, looking for traces of infidelity in his things, in his bag, and phone. She was literally obsessed with this thought, and no matter how much Andrey reassured her that he was only helping Ira because of the nephew, she didn’t believe and became even more inflamed! Although the man understood, there was some truth in her words. Yes, there was nothing between him and Ira, but he desperately wanted there to be. He was incredibly attracted to Sasha’s wife, and he adored Maxim, enjoying taking care of him. And yet, how many times he had asked Galya to have a child, she wouldn’t, always making excuses, either her career, or it wasn’t the right time, or let’s wait…
Now, when his wife sensed a threat to the family and was ready to get pregnant and give birth, Andrey no longer needed it! He increasingly caught himself thinking that he no longer loved Galya. Between them, even before meeting Ira, the warmth and harmony had disappeared, and that spark of passion that had united them at the beginning had long since died out. All that remained was a bitter aftertaste and complete disappointment…
Ira too couldn’t sort out her feelings, she eagerly awaited each meeting with Andrey, she felt so easy and good with him, but there was just one but… With him? Or was she continuing to love the image of her Sasha? How to understand? Her soul was in complete turmoil! On one hand, she was drawn to Andrey like a magnet, and she couldn’t do anything about it. On the other, Ira understood, Sasha’s brother was married, and she had no right to cross that line! And he was probably helping her out of brotherly affection, from the heart, and that’s all! She felt that to give in to temptation would be to betray her Sasha! And he would not forgive her from there! So they continued to be friends, but there was always something more in the air…
Galya definitely knew what she felt, she was not tormented by doubts! She absolutely hated Ira and her offspring, who appeared out of nowhere! She saw her as a rival and harbored a sinister plan, dreaming of revenge! After all, Galya was used to Andrei loving her and obeying her in everything, indulging all her whims and never daring to refuse her! And she was satisfied with that. Financially, her husband provided well for her. And love had nothing to do with it, Galya had always been mercenary and did not believe in all that sentimental nonsense! But now what? Her husband was seriously smitten with this widow, and completely slipped from under Galya’s control! He even gave her part of his salary! He nagged her all the time about how Maxim was already smiling, holding his head, and how cute he was! It was unheard of! The more Galya screamed and demanded that her husband stop interacting with this Ira, the more he bristled! The effect was the opposite! The woman understood that if it weren’t for this damned boy, Andrei would have stopped his extracurricular activities! And one day she took a desperate step!
That day, Ira, as usual, was walking with the baby in the park, the weather was wonderful, early autumn. She admired the yellowing leaves and faced the warm sun. Maximka was sleeping soundly. Ira looked at her watch, soon six o’clock. Andrei was about to arrive, he had promised to get a walker for his son from his acquaintances. After all, the baby would soon be on his feet, and they would be handy. Ira took out her compact. She looked at herself, adjusted a curl that had escaped from her hairstyle, and smiled to herself. Her mood always improved in anticipation of meeting Sasha’s brother.
Suddenly, a stranger in a tracksuit and a hoodie burst out of an alley, she dashed towards Ira in two leaps and sprayed her face with pepper spray, shouting:
“This is for everything!”
Ira screamed from the sudden pain in her eyes, it burned so much that she completely lost orientation for a moment and only came to her senses when she heard her son’s cry! To her horror, the baby’s voice was getting farther away! But Ira couldn’t see anything, her eyes were terribly teary. She groped for the stroller, it was empty! The woman screamed in a voice not her own:
“People! Help! My child has been stolen!”
Passersby rushed to follow the stranger’s trail, but it had already gone cold! Ira fumbled for her phone in her pocket and asked someone from the crowd to dial Andrei’s number, and call for an ambulance and police. The man rushed like scalded and encountered a terrible scene in the park. The mother, driven mad with grief, wept, clutching her head, she rocked the empty stroller as if the baby were still in it and howled:
“Maximka! My son! Where are you? Where should I look? I can’t bear it, I’ll die without you! Lord, why is this happening to me!”
A frightened Andrei hugged her like a child, trying to comfort and soothe her:
“Ira, calm down, come to yourself, please! The life of your son depends on what you can remember and tell now! Pull yourself together, I beg. Believe, we will find him together! Now, drink some water, breathe out, and answer the questions. What happened? Who took the baby?”
Andrei somehow calmed Ira and instilled a ray of hope in her, and she began to describe to him and the police officer all the details, trying not to miss anything. Patrols combed the streets, alleys, and stations, nothing! Maxim was nowhere to be found. According to the descriptions, the kidnapper was a slim woman about thirty years old in a nondescript gray tracksuit with a shoulder bag. They couldn’t really put together a composite sketch, Ira still couldn’t see well. Her eyes were swollen and painful, and tears continued to pour like rain.
At the station, they asked Ira for the hundredth time:
“Think carefully, who could have taken revenge on you? Did you have enemies? It’s not the nineties anymore, and children are no longer kidnapped in broad daylight. This is some sort of madness!”
Ira’s head ached terribly, swollen from tears, and she kept repeating as if on autopilot:
“I don’t know, I had no enemies. I beg you, return my son to me, tell me, is he alive? Where should I look for Maxim now?”
Andrei also read the descriptions over and over again, thought, analyzed, and suddenly it dawned on him! The guess was so terrible that he even didn’t want to believe it. He mechanically dialed his wife’s number, but the subscriber was unavailable! Then Andrei rushed home, but there was no one there! And then he remembered, Galya had a gray tracksuit! He rummaged through all the clothes in the closet, but couldn’t find it! He had no more doubts, the man kept calling his wife again and again, for a full hour, all to no avail! He grabbed her notebook, called all her countless friends, no one knew anything, no one had Galya as a guest! Andrei started to rummage chaotically through his wife’s things, not even knowing what he was looking for! And then he felt a photo in her home terry robe! It was a photo of little Maximka! Andrei had made it for himself once as a keepsake, showed it to Galya hoping that seeing how lovely his nephew was, she would want to meet him too and stop mistreating him! On the back of the photo was written the word “HATE,” and the photo itself was stabbed all over with a knife.
All the pieces fell into place, Andrei even felt sick, and he rushed back to the station, showed everything to the policemen, and started blurting out:
“I understand everything! It’s Galya, my wife stole my nephew! No one else. She was terribly jealous of Irina, didn’t believe that I was helping her like family, thought Ira was my lover! I kept trying to reach her, to explain that it’s not like that! But she seemed not to hear me! But I never even thought that she would decide on such a thing, that she hated an innocent baby so much! Lord, this horror in my head is unimaginable! Why did she do this? Where is she hiding Maxim, and what does she plan to do with him?”
Ira seemed to go mad, she jumped up, rushed to Andrei, started shaking him by the lapels of his jacket and shouting:
“It’s all your fault! It’s all because of you! If my son dies, it will be on your conscience!”
Then suddenly she collapsed, fell to her knees, and began to sob more than ever, whispering:
“Andriusha, my dear, please, find Maxim! He is my reason for living, after Sasha’s death, my son is the most important thing to me, I love him madly!”
The policemen were stunned, understanding that such an inadequate reaction from Ira was only from grief, a state of affect! They sat her down on a chair, the major took out a bottle of brandy from the cupboard, poured her a generous dose and sternly said:
“Drink it, down in one go, like medicine! Tears won’t help the grief here, you need to focus and think together, where could Galina be hiding the child!”
Then they decided not to torture the mother mad with grief any further and let her go, but, realizing that she couldn’t be alone right now, asked the medics to keep an eye on her. The subdued Ira was taken to the hospital by ambulance, while Andrei stayed at the police station, he had to, was obliged to help find his nephew!
The investigator began to reason aloud:
“So let’s think logically. Your wife, as you say, is consumed with hatred. Think, is she capable of the worst? Could she kill a child? That’s the main question now!”
Andrei waved his hands:
“No, what are you! Galya is unbalanced, impulsive, yes! But she’s not a murderer! She couldn’t even drown kittens at the cottage! I don’t even want to think about that! And why would she? I think going to prison was definitely not part of her plan! She loves herself and a well-off life too much!”
The investigator suddenly perked up:
“You said at the cottage? Where is your cottage located? Maybe that’s exactly where your wife hid the child? We checked all the stations, no one bought a ticket with such a small child. Does Galina drive?”
Andrei blurted out:
“We have a car, but my wife doesn’t drive, and she doesn’t have a license. Our cottage is in Avdeyevo, fifty kilometers from the city. But the village is almost abandoned, we only have a plot and an old house there. I sometimes grill shashlik there with my friends. The nature is beautiful, the forest all around, the lake is clean. You think she’s there? But why would she take the baby there, to such a remote place?”
The investigator nodded his jacket:
“You know, women in a state of jealousy and aggression are unpredictable! Later we will reason why and for what! Can’t delay, every minute is valuable! Are you with us?”
On the way, the policeman kept calling someone and giving orders:
“Igor! Check all the taxi parks, perhaps the kidnapper took a taxi! She must have somehow reached that village. Not every hitchhiker goes there! And also show Irina’s photo in the ‘Karapuz’ children’s store, it’s right on the way out of town. After all, she snatched the child from the stroller, she must feed him, right? I really hope so! I’m afraid to think about the other outcome!”
An hour later, Andrei and the policemen were at the place! The man opened the house with his keys, they checked everything! But neither Irina nor the baby were there, nor were there any other signs of anyone’s presence!
Everyone was very upset, the thread leading to Maxim’s salvation was cut! And they were back in a dead end! It was unclear what to do next?
And then they were unintentionally helped by an overly curious neighbor, Fyodorych. He told them that he had recently seen some visiting lady loitering around the house, he hadn’t noticed a child, but she had a hefty bag over her shoulder. She loitered, but never knocked, however, she asked the grandmothers if there were any vacant dwellings in the village, and also went to a local healer for something! In short, she was kind of strange and nervous!
The policemen rushed to the healer, and thank God, Maximka was there, with granny Manya. But Irina herself was nowhere to be found! The old woman told them:
“Oh, what a strange story it turned out to be! I was about to go to the local policeman tomorrow! This frail woman showed up at my place, brought a baby, and started spouting some nonsense, help me for Christ’s sake, shelter the baby, he’s sick, he sleeps all the time. She left him with me, and then ran off somewhere! Promised to come back tomorrow. I started looking after the little boy, he’s healthy, robust, but indeed, he just sleeps and sleeps, as if he was drugged. I brewed him some chamomile, somehow managed to get him to drink it, hoping it would help! But my heart wasn’t in the right place! Who is she? Whose child? She doesn’t look like his mother! Some sort of devilry! The boy had been sleeping since noon, almost a day. He only recently came to, I gave him some boiled goat’s milk, he ate a little. But he’s still weak. So take the child, I don’t need other people’s problems, sort it out yourself, what’s what! And you’ll probably find the runaway in the marshes, she was asking where to spend the night. And right there is an abandoned house of our gamekeeper. I bet she went there!”
Andrei didn’t hesitate, and drove back to the city with his nephew, to the hospital, and on the way he called Ira:
“Irochka! Maximka has been found! In the village, at the healer’s, where my cottage is! I’m taking him to the children’s hospital.”
Ira immediately screamed in a voice not her own:
“To the hospital? What did that viper do to him? My son! Is he alive?”
Andrei hurried to reassure her:
“Don’t panic, Maxim is alive and well, just slept too long, the old woman suspects he was drugged, better let the doctors check him. So you come too, I’ll be waiting for you there!”
Ira hardly remembered how she got to the hospital, her heart literally bursting from her chest, she prayed to God only for one thing: “Lord, let nothing bad have happened to my son! I’d rather die myself, just not him!”
Thank God, the baby was fine, Galina really did mix a sleeping potion in his formula so that he wouldn’t cry and give her away on the road. The doctors confirmed that Maxim was healthy and discharged Ira and her son home! Poor woman didn’t leave her son for a minute, kept kissing him and hugging him, and then started begging Andrei for forgiveness:
“Thank you, Andriusha, for helping find my son! And forgive me for God’s sake, for lashing out at you then, at the station, I wasn’t myself from grief! Thank God, everything ended well! But I still don’t understand, why did your wife do all this? Did they find her?”
Andrei sighed heavily:
“I’m still in shock myself, I never expected Galina to be capable of such a thing! I feel my guilt, towards you and my nephew, you’re right, it all happened because of me! One thing I know for sure, I can never live with Galina again! I had no idea what was going on in her inflamed brain! Well, nothing, now she’ll get what she deserves! Who would have thought, to kidnap someone’s child in broad daylight!”
Ira quietly said:
“I want to talk to her, it’s important for me to know why she did it!”
Galina was taken into custody, facing a decent sentence for child theft. From hatred and arrogance, not a trace was left, the investigation isolator quickly sobered up the woman, it seems that only now did she realize what she had done! The woman always sat, huddled in a corner, on a dirty mattress, and looked at the walls covered with damp and mold with horror, didn’t even touch the prison food, she was nauseated by the smell alone! Galia thought in horror: “Lord! What have I done! I’ve ruined my life! To hell with that boy and Irina? Why did I latch onto them like a bulldog? What did I achieve, such a fool? Now I’ll spend five years here, maybe ten! I’ll come out an old woman, with a criminal record! Who will need me then?”
Ira, despite Andrei’s protests, asked for a meeting with Galina, although she was a bit afraid of it, considering the woman insane and mentally unhealthy! Ira thought that Galina would curse her, throw a fit, but it all turned out completely differently. A quiet and silent woman was brought into the visiting room, Ira stared at her wide-eyed. Attractive, well-groomed, striking, you would never say that she was capable of such a thing! And her eyes, they were not evil, on the contrary, frightened and somewhat resigned! Ira exhaled and began first:
“Galina, I came here with only one purpose. I don’t need your apologies or repentance, I don’t believe in them. I need the truth. Why did you attack me in the park and kidnap Maxim? Did you want to kill him? Tell me honestly? But why? What did I do to you? And my little son? We aren’t even personally acquainted! Tell me the truth, and I will leave immediately.”
Galina lowered her eyes, it was visible that she was very ashamed:
“Don’t talk nonsense! Also say, to kill! If I wanted to kill, I would have killed! My hand didn’t rise. Why did I attack? Because until you appeared in our life, I had everything! A beloved husband and wealth. But you took it all from me!”
Shocked, Ira took out a photo of her deceased Sasha from her bag, handed it to Galina:
“I didn’t sleep with Andrei! He’s the twin brother of my deceased husband, that’s all! Do you understand how hard it was for me, pregnant after my husband’s death? Thank Andrei for extending a helping hand! He’s just taking care of his nephew, that’s all! I don’t know what you’ve concocted! But even so, is that a reason to steal a child? Why did you take him to the village? I can’t understand!”
Galina suddenly grabbed her head:
“Don’t torment me! I don’t know! As if a demon possessed me, I lost my mind from jealousy and malice, wanted to hurt you, to take revenge! And it seemed like everything worked out! Only it didn’t bring me any relief! I was terribly scared when the baby slept for so long, apparently I overdid it with the sleeping potion, he just wouldn’t wake up! Already at the cottage I suddenly realized that I don’t know what to do with him at all? I didn’t even think to buy food, diapers! And raising him wasn’t part of my plans! And it was too pitiful to just abandon him somewhere! He’s just a child. So I left him with the local healer, hoping she would take care of him. And I thought about spending the night in an abandoned hut and running away! Forgive me, I’m a scoundrel and a wretch! I got tangled up! Only in prison did I realize, after all, I don’t really love Andrei, and he’s suffered enough with me! I just clung to him and didn’t let go! But was it worth it? I ruined my own life, and yours too! It’s a pity that nothing can be changed now, and it’s too late for me to realize it! I sobered up!”
Ira quietly asked:
“And if you could change everything? What would you do?”
Ira looked at her hopefully:
“I would leave, forever, to the sea. And start a new life, from scratch. But alas, it’s impossible…”
And she quietly cried, sincerely, shaking all over. Galina was led away, and Ira sat in the chair for a long time, motionless, thinking about something.
When Andrei learned that Ira had withdrawn her complaint, he was indignant:
“What are you doing? Why? Galina completely lost her mind and must be punished for everything she did!”
Ira stubbornly answered:
“She’s already punished, her conscience will torment her for the rest of her life. Everyone has the right to correct their mistake and start life anew…”
Andrei moved into Irina’s house, started gradually putting everything in order. It was getting colder, they decided to clean and whitewash the basement. Check the jars of preserves. After her husband’s death, Ira hadn’t even looked there! Wasn’t up to it. That’s when they were in for a surprise! They found those very valuable coins that disappeared during transportation, for which Sasha was killed! Ira sifted them from hand to hand, cried over them for a long time, and resolutely said:
“We need to give these ill-fated coins to a numismatist, all of them! They have Sasha’s blood on them! I don’t need such riches! Apparently Shurik guessed that something was brewing and decided to rehide the valuables, he played it safe, and not in vain. He did his job perfectly, but at what cost!”
The couple did just that, gave all the valuables to the rightful owner. Although the coins were insured, Isaev paid them a decent sum for the found coins. They decided to use this money to thoroughly renovate the house, and to erect a sturdy monument for Sasha. After all, he was a true hero.
Andrei divorced his wife, and she indeed left, and never appeared in their life again, just as she had promised. And Ira and Andrei together raised Maximka, rejoiced at his first tooth, his first steps, and between them, a new, bright, and pure feeling blossomed – sincere, deep love for each other!