Episode 92

Gavril

I pulled out a clean dress shirt from the closet and shrugged it on, adjusting the collar under my still-damp hair. After my time with Naomi in the music room downstairs, we had come up to the main floor to take a shower and get dressed. Our time of hiding was over.

I had work that deserved my attention, and the longer I waited to mobilize my side of the war, the worse off we would be.

Deftly working on the buttons, I thought about what I had told Naomi. Fuck, I loved her. I probably had loved her for a long time before I had dared to admit it to myself, but she was the future I wanted. It wasn’t just because of her carrying my child. She made me feel like I could be something more, like I could hang onto a shred of my soul while carrying out my duties as Pakhan.

With some minor adjustments, that is.

Going through my coats, I found one that suited me and shrugged it on, looking at myself in the full-length mirror. My past had driven me to believe that I couldn’t change anything