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She sat up and rubbed her eyes, the moonlight from the window illuminating the beautiful curves of her body. “Why are you here? I didn’t expect you until dinner tomorrow.”
“We decided not to stay.” There was no need to worry her with the real reason. Not in the middle of the night, at least. Doubtless she’d wring the truth from me in the morning. I pulled the quilt up and wrapped my arms around her. She leaned in for a kiss, and I bit back a hiss of breath as she brushed my split lip.
She pulled back. “What happened?”
“It’s nothing,” I said. “Let’s go to sleep. I’m exhausted.”
She sat up, lighting a candle and holding it close to my face. “Han!Whathappened?”
“Just a scuffle in the inn.” I didn’t meet her eyes. “It was nothing.”
“And Yakov?” She pursed her lips.
I shrugged. “A few bruises, same as me. Could have been worse.”
“Who started it?”
“Yakov, but he was provoked.” She raised a brow, but I held up my hand. “Truly! We tried to leave, but one of them blocked us. Yakov threw a punch, and we ran off.”
She took a handkerchief and the jar of salve from the bedside table. “He punched, and you ran? Then how did you get this?” She scooped some flowery-smelling ointment from the jar and used the handkerchief to dab it gently on my lip.
“We did run. They attacked—”
“They who?”
No avoiding it now. “A few soldiers,” I mumbled.
The handkerchief fell from her hand. “Soldiers? Han…” Her eyes filled with tears, her mood shifting in an instant. “I knew it was a bad idea for you to go.”
I ran a hand over my face. “I had to do it, Mila. They jumped on him. If I hadn’t pulled him out, he’d be dead.”
“And if they come after you, you’ll both be dead,” she snapped, wiping at her eyes.
I pulled her close again. “It’s fine, Milochka. We’ll be fine.”
“But what if they find out who you are? What if someone recognized you and told them where to find you? Han, they’ll hang you!” I could hear the fear behind the anger in her voice. Her hands clenched my shirt.
“Shh,” I whispered into her long, loose curls. “They won’t. We’re not important enough to chase around the countryside. As long as we stay away from Tsebol, they won’t come looking for us.”
“I’m scared.”
My heart twisted. Mila didn’t often admit her fears, even to me. I brushed a curl from her face and kissed her brown forehead. “I’ll keep you safe.”
She shoved me halfheartedly. “I’m not scared for me, idiot. I’m scared for you.”
“Nothing can keep me away from you,dorogusha.Not war, not soldiers, not Miroslav himself.” I kissed her, long and slow, until she relaxed under my touch. “I’ll always come home to you,” I said, resting my hand on her belly. “To both of you.”
“You swear?”
“On my father’s grave.” I blew out the candle and said a silent prayer that I’d be able to keep my promises. I didn’t believe the soldiers would hunt us down—most of them had seemed too drunk to remember the fight, and even if they did, finding us wouldn’t be worth the effort. Still, as I fell asleep, I couldn’t help thinking Borislav would never have allowed the country to come to this.
Chapter four
Consequences
Mila
Aweek after Han’s misadventure in Tsebol, I had the house to myself except for Marya Ivanovna. Han and Kyril Kyrilovich had gone into Selyik for the day on business, and I planned to take advantage of the solitude by working in the garden.
