But it won’t help my case.
“Thanks,” I tell him as I leave his office.
I turn the corner and collide into someone.
I lock eyes with him. Singuard Volkov.
What the fuck is he doing here?
Mikhail is the only lawyer working today at his law firm.
Which means he’s here to see him.
“Ah,” says Singuard, flashing me a grating smile.
He’s thirteen years older than me. And I’m way taller.
“Mr. Sokolov. You’re the last person I thought I’d see coming out of a lawyer’s office.” He flashes me another smile. You can tell he works in politics. He looks like he hasn’t seen the sunfor the last decade. “You’re the reason I was kept waiting five minutes for my appointment.”
“I know what you fucking did.”
Singuard raises his eyebrows. Bylat. He’s so professional and proper. He needs roughening out a bit. I’ll be the one to show him you can’t hide behind suits and white-collar jobs forever.
We’re all animals at the end of the day.
Especially him.
“I know you killed that twelve-year-old boy.”
Singuard frowns. “I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re?—”
“My father’s innocent. And he will win. I’ll make sure of it.”
“Are you sure about that?” A horrible smile crawls onto Singuard’s face.
“Yes. Mikhail knows the truth.”
“Maybe he does,” says Singuard. “But lawyers tend to be selective, depending on how much money their clients are paying them.” He flashes me a wink. “If I were you, I’d be making the most of your father’s custody, paying him visits instead of trying to make amends. Let me give you a word of advice.” He steps closer. “What you’re doing here is a waste of time.”
Nausea rolls through me, anger following. He did it. He fucking slaughtered that twelve-year old boy and had my father arrested for manslaughter.
“When your father goes under trial, you won’t be able to visit him.” Singuard steps closer. “And then, when he’s found guilty,he’ll be serving time in Kharp. Yes.” He smirks. “You heard that right. The village is sixty kilometers away from the Arctic Circle. There’s no transport in and out. Even if there was, you wouldn’t be able to visit him— visitors aren’t allowed.” Singuard smirks. “Your father will be found guilty. He’ll be sent to Kharp, serving time in the freezing cold for years. By the end of it, he’ll be begging for a bullet in the head to end his suffering.”
White-hot anger flashes through me.
“You won’t get away with this.”
Singuard brushes past me, the smile widening on his face as he heads into Mikhail’s office. “I have already gotten away with this, Valerian.”
I wake up the following morning, the dream receding from my memory. Sweat drips down my forehead. I feel the anger from that day in my sleep. I still relive it like it happened yesterday.
Along with that rainy afternoon when Father was sent away to Kharp.
The last image I have of him was his hand waving goodbye through the car window. He couldn’t even raise it all the way because of the handcuffs.
“I’ll make the world pay.” Those were my final words to him before the police shoved him into the back of the car. “I promise.”
I tear the sheets away from me, getting ready for the day.