"How long have you been here?"
"All night." My voice is rough. Raw. "Valerie told me she's pregnant."
He goes completely still. "Pregnant."
"Yes."
A pause. Then carefully: "Congratulations, Boss."
"Is it? Congratulations?" I gesture at the empty bottles. "Or is it a death sentence? Another vulnerability for Patrick to exploit? Another chance for me to fail spectacularly?"
"It's a baby." He moves closer. Sits in the chair across from me. "Your baby. With a woman you love. That should be good news."
"Should be. Isn't." I drain the current glass. "All I can think about is Dmitri. How small he was in that crib. How the bullets looked too big for his tiny body. How I failed to protect him."
"That wasn't your fault."
"Wasn't it? I made enemies. I brought danger into their lives. I wasn't there when they needed me most." The words taste like ash. "And now I'm supposed to do it all again? Risk another child? Pretend I'm capable of protecting them when I've already proven I'm not?"
Mikhail is quiet for a moment. Then: "We need to eliminate Patrick before the baby comes. Can't have this threat hanging over a newborn."
The practical observation cuts through the spiral. "No. We can't."
"So we accelerate the timeline. Hunt him down. End this before Valerie starts showing."
"He's been careful. Strategic. We've been searching for weeks with nothing concrete."
"Then we make him come to us." Mikhail leans forward. "Use what he wants against him. Draw him out. Finish this so your child is born into safety instead of war."
It makes sense. Cold, brutal sense.
But the thought of using Valerie as bait while she's pregnant makes my stomach turn.
"I'll think about it." I stand on legs that aren't quite steady. "Right now I need to see her. Need to stop being a coward hiding in my study while she's probably terrified I'm going to reject her."
"Are you? Going to reject her?"
The question stops me at the door. "No. I'm terrified. Paralyzed, actually. But no. She's carrying my child. That makes her untouchable. Sacred. Mine to protect no matter what it costs."
"Good answer."
I leave him there and head upstairs.
Our bedroom door is still closed. I open it quietly, half-expecting her to be gone. Run away rather than face rejection.
But she's there. Curled on the bed in yesterday's clothes, face swollen from crying, eyes red and raw.
She looks up when I enter. Fear flashes across her features before she can hide it.
"Lev—"
I cross to the bed. Sit beside her. Don't speak for a long moment, just look at her. This woman who betrayed me. Whosaved me. Who's become everything despite every reason she shouldn't be.
"I'm scared," I say finally. "Absolutely terrified."
Her breath catches. "Me too."
"I failed them. Katya and Dmitri. I wasn't there when they needed me. And the thought of failing again, of losing you or this baby because I'm not fast enough or smart enough or prepared enough..." I have to stop. Breathe. "It's paralyzing."