Page 16 of Nine Months to Love

“Stefan said you had an affair.”

“I did.” No hesitation, not an ounce of shame to be found. “With his uncle. But not for the reasons Stefan believes.”

The path opens onto a small waterfall, maybe twenty feet high, tumbling into a clear pool. Rocks jut out of the water, creating natural stepping stones. It’s beautiful, peaceful—nothing like the chaos in my head.

“Careful,” Natalia warns as I move toward the water’s edge. “The rocks are slippery.”

I take another step and my foot skids on wet moss. I catch myself, but before I can even begin to fall, Natalia’s already there, gripping my elbow, guiding me to a dry boulder.

“Sit,” she commands, and before I can protest, she’s kneeling in front of me, lifting my foot into her lap. “Let me check your ankle.”

“I’m fine?—”

“Humor me.” Her fingers probe gently along the bones, testing for swelling or tenderness. When she’s satisfied I’m fine, she sits back on her haunches and pulls something out of her purse. It’s a notebook. “I took this from Matvey’s safe before I left. One of many he kept hidden in the manor Stefan lives in now.”

She holds it out to me. The leather feels old, soft from years of handling.

I reach for it, then hesitate. “Why are you giving this to me?”

“Because you need to know the truth about who Stefan’s father was. Maybe then you’ll trust me.”

I open it to a random page. Before I can read more than a few words, Natalia’s phone rings. She answers in rapid Russian. When she listens to the response, her whole body goes rigid.

“The house has been breached,” she says, standing quickly. “Stefan’s here.”

My heart slams against my ribs. Through the trees, I can suddenly hear shouting, the crack of gunfire. He found me. Of course he found me.

Natalia grabs my arm. “There’s a path on the other side of the waterfall. We can get away?—”

“No.” I pull free, but I clutch the journal to my chest. “I’m not running.”

She studies my face, and something like understanding passes through her eyes. “You’re not sure who to believe.”

“I’m not sure about anything anymore.”

More shouts, closer now. Men’s voices calling coordinates, sweeping the woods.

“You’ll figure out the truth soon enough,” Natalia says as she backs away. “One way or another.”

I hold out the journal. “Take this back?—”

“Keep it. I stand by what I said: You need to know the truth and so does Stefan. His father isn’t the hero or the martyr he thinks he is.”

She vanishes deeper into the woods just as Stefan bursts through the trees, Taras and two other men flanking him. His eyes find mine immediately, scanning my body for injuries, and the relief that comes over his face is palpable.

“Olivia.” He’s across the clearing in three strides, hands cupping my face, thumbs stroking my cheeks. “Are you hurt? Did she?—”

“I’m fine.”

“Where is she?” Taras demands, weapon drawn, eyes searching the tree line. “Which way did she go?”

I look at the waterfall, then back at the path we came from. Stefan’s watching me, something dark and knowing in his eyes.If I tell them the truth, they’ll catch her easily. And Stefan... would he kill her on sight? His own mother?

The journal burns against my side where I’ve tucked it under my jacket.

“That way.” I point toward the dense woods to our left. Away from the direction Natalia actually went. “She ran that way when she heard you coming.”

Taras signals the other men and they crash into the underbrush, leaving Stefan and me alone by the water. He hasn’t let go of my face.