ANA “Hello,” I call out “What’s happening? The door is locked,” I yell. “Rome,” I yell. “Dimitri, Zoran anybody.” No reply. Silence. I walk back to the bathroom with my heart pumping hard. What’s going on? Where am I? Where the hell is Roman? I look around the room nervously for my bag. That’s right, I left it at the wedding. Huh? I was on the boat. I sit on the edge of the bed while I go over the last thing I remember. We went to the wedding. The news exposing me as an heiress. My eyes widen and then we went to the boat and went to sleep. I frown. I don’t understand. I stand and walk to the bathroom and look at myself in the mirror. I look like shit and what am I wearing? I look down at the black nightgown I am in. I don’t own this nightgown, this is not mine. What the hell is going on? I start to bang on the door repeatedly, to alert somebody. “Hello. Is anybody there?” I scream. I start to panic. Where am I? Where is Roman? “Di
ROMAN I walk through the police station with my hands behind me in handcuffs. The officers all stop what they are doing and stare and I drop my head in shame. How could they think I did this to my wife? I adored her. I wish it was me dead instead of her. I am ushered into a cell and a pair of orange overalls lie folded on the bed.“Get changed, Mr Petrov,” the female officer says as she undoes the handcuffs behind my back. I hold my wrists in my hands as I stare at her. I don’t think I have ever been so close to the edge. I’m about to lose it.Stay calm, stay calm.“I said get dressed,” she snaps.I frown. “What? Here?” I snap as I gesture to the twenty something people who can see into the cell through the glass wall.She fakes a smile. “Get used to it. We save the privacy for non-murderers in the next cell,” she sneers sarcastically. The male guard snickers under his breath.“We need to do a full body search,” he replies.“You are not touching me,” I snap.She rolls
ROMAN The officer announces as he takes his handcuffs from his back pocket.The room falls silent.“You can’t be fucking serious!” Sasha yells.“Anything you say can and will be used against you,” he continues.The two police officers walk over to me and I push one of them away from me in shock. “What?” I yell.“He didn’t do it, you idiots!” Callie yells hysterically.“Callie, calm down,” Dimitri yells hysterically.Sergri walks down the stairs. “What’s going on?” he asks.“They are arresting Roman,” Callie yells.His face drops in horror and his eyes find me across the crowded room.One of the policemen tries to grab my arm and I rip it from his grip. “Get away from me,” I yell.The policeman shakes his head. “Don’t make this harder than it already is, Minister Petrov."I screw up my face. “Get the fuck out of my house,” I yell.Two of the policemen jump me and I struggle and Callie starts to scream.“I didn’t do anything,” I yell.“He’s innocent!” Dimitri yells. “Th
Chapter 183ROMAN My thoughts go to the toast I made at our wedding and I blow out a deep breath as my chest tightens up. “My darling Ana, today could have been beautiful in our lives but instead I am sitting in a bar drinking your favourite drink and discussing your burial status.” My eyes tear up, and a lone tear drips out. “I desperately wish we were drinking, having fun and celebrating our news,” I whisper as the words choke me up.My friends both frown. “What news are we talking about?” Sergei asks.“Ana’s period was due today. We were trying for a baby,” I reply on autopilot.“Fuck,” Sasha whispers as he runs his hands through his hair.Sasha’s eyes instantly turns sad and he grabs my hand over the table. I sit still, unable to show any emotion. I have no tears left, nothing more I can give up. I am dead inside.Sergei puts his elbow on the table and pinches the bridge of his nose as his tears form. “Do you think she was pregnant?” he whispers.I shake my head. “M
ROMANIt’s two o’clock and I shake my head as my email pings for what seems like the hundredth time today. I have just finished downloading all the videos and text messages from Ana off my phone into my cloud for lifetime protection. I can never lose those. I click open the email in annoyance. SashaTo: Roman PetrovAs a matter of urgency please supply me with the office schedule for the mergers and acquisitions the next four weeks.meetings schedules and abstracts will be printed up tomorrow morning by your secretary to be distributed tomorrow pm.SashaI roll my eyes, fucker.I barge into his office. “I know what you are doing,” I snap at him.Sasha is standing and looking through a file. His eyes don’t leave his folder. “And what’s that?” he replies sarcastically.“Trying to overload me with work so I don’t have time to think,” I stammer, infuriated. “I can’t have those schedules done today. I have put no thought into what I am doing.”His eyes look up from his folder.
ROMANWith a heavy heart I put the last of Ana's books into my duffle bag. I have wrapped them all in brown paper and then stacked them in her new shoeboxes, she didn't even get to wear most of them. I need to get them out of the house without being detected.For the last two weeks I have sat on our bed and read every word written by my beloved and there is absolutely no way in hell I am going to let them become public property in an investigation. She has put her heart and soul onto the paper of these books, thinking of the future we would have had.The level of intimacy that she writes about is nobody’s business but hers and mine. There is absolutely no evidence in them of who did this to her and I will not let them tarnish her in any way with her most intimate thoughts released to the press. I throw my gym clothes on top of the boxed books and take a deep breath. Just let me get them out of the house without being intercepted. I have arranged a safety deposit box in another