Page 87 of Fall of a Kingdom

“Da?”

“Take Piper.Now.”

She all but thrust her daughter at me. No sooner had I brought Piper to my chest than Barrett collapsed onto the Persian rug of the foyer.

I watched in horror as she began to twitch and gasp as foam appeared at the corners of her mouth. I rushed into the den so I could set Piper down in her bassinet, but it wasn’t in its usual place, so I placed her gently on the rug in front of the unlit fireplace and rushed back to Barrett’s side.

She was no longer seizing when I returned, but I rolled her onto her side and cradled her head in my lap. My heart thundered in my ears.

Color returned to her cheeks and a moment later, she opened her eyes and blinked a few times. She caught her breath and then asked, “What happened?”

“I think you had a seizure,” I said, panic slicing through me.

“A seizure,” she repeated. “Where’s Piper?”

“She’s on the rug in the den. I’m calling an ambulance,” I commanded.

“Don’t. I’m fine.”

“Fine?You just had a seizure. What if you’d been alone? What if you’d been alone holding Piper?”

“I don’t want an ambulance here,” she said quietly. “I don’t want anyone to know. I’m scared, Sasha. I’m so fucking scared.”

I cradled her in my arms like she cradled Piper. And then I rocked her back and forth, crooning words of comfort in Russian.

“No one can know about this,” she said. “Not Flynn, not Quinn. No one. Not until I find out what is happening to me. Promise me, Sasha. Promise me you’ll be my confidante.”

“Barrett—”

“Promise me,” she insisted, her voice filled with terror.

“I promise,” I heard myself say. “But you’re going to the hospital. Right now.”

* * *

Barrett refused to go to the local hospital, concerned that doctors and nurses in town might recognize her. It took a long time, but we drove all the way to Inverness with Piper in the back seat. I’d suggested calling one of the nannies to come and watch Piper, but Barrett hadn’t wanted to leave her daughter. She was too emotional after what had happened at the house, and there was no reason to fight it.

She hadn’t called Flynn, and I hadn’t pressed her to do it, knowing what the outcome would’ve been. She would’ve shut down, and I wouldn’t be here now with her. At least she hadn’t fought me when I suggested taking my car.

My knuckles were white as I clenched the wheel, trying desperately to stay within the speed limit.

Barrett touched the window that was dotted with fat raindrops, tracing the glass like she could feel the water on her skin.

“I’m not having an affair,” she said, shattering the silence between us. The windshield wipers swished with rapid force. “I’ve been having…hallucinations.”

“What kind of hallucinations?” I prodded.

She paused, and I wasn’t sure she was even going to say anything more, but she said softly. “Igor. I’ve been hallucinating Igor as though he is real. They aren’t memories, Sasha. They aren’t daydreams. I see him everywhere I go. I can’t escape it.”

My breath caught in my throat.

“At first, I thought it was just guilt. I thought I hadn’t put him and my past behind me. Now, I know that’s not true. Something is wrong, Sasha.”

Understanding flashed in my brain. “That’s who you were talking to in the kitchen…”

She nodded.

“You haven’t been having an affair,” I repeated.