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My eyes remain fixed on Aurora, as I move closer to the bed. “Will she be okay?”
“She should be. Her vital signs are stable, and that’s encouraging. I’ve started an IV infusion with normal saline to maintain her circulation and support her body’s clearance of the drug. Depending on what the toxicology results show, we’ll determine whether she needs any specific antidote or additional treatment.”
I finally look at him. “If anything happens to her, Doctor, you had better start counting your last days. So I advise you bring your A game.”
The color drains slightly from his wrinkly face. He’s worked for my family for years. He knows me well enough to understand that I’m not making an empty threat.
“I will do my best,” he says carefully. “The syringe Dimitri recovered was brought to me. I’ll have the contents analyzed so we can identify exactly what she was injected with.”
“You do that.”
He nods and returns to his work. I remain beside Aurora until he’s finished. Once the doctor leaves, I sit on the edge of the bed and take her hand.
Her skin is warm, she’s breathing, she’s here. I lean forward and press my lips to her forehead.
“Please don’t leave me.” The words come out rough. “I’m sorry, baby. I’m so fucking sorry I wasn’t there.”
I kiss her forehead again, then her temple. “I should have protected you.”
Hours ago, I was sitting in a meeting discussing business while someone was hurting my wife. I should have been there. I should have been the one standing between her and every threat.
A faint sound pulls me from my thoughts.
“Roman…” Aurora’s eyes flutter open.
I graze the pad of my thumb along her cheek. “I’m here.”
Her gaze finds mine, unfocused and heavy with sedation.
“I’m here, solnyshko.”
She seems to recognize my voice because her fingers tighten weakly around mine. Then her eyes close again.
“Aurora?”
Her breathing remains steady. She’s out. I sit there for another few seconds before finally forcing myself to stand.
I step outside and call Sergei. “Anything?”
“Nothing yet, Boss.”
My jaw tightens. “Then you’re not looking hard enough. Pull every CCTV recording from the café and the surrounding streets. I want every camera covering that entire area. Traffic cameras, building cameras, private security feeds, everything. That woman walked into that café and walked out. Someone saw her.”
“Yes, Boss. We’ll find her.”
“You’d better.”
❦ ❦ ❦
Hours later, the doctor finally returns. I stand the moment he enters the room.
“Well?”
He removes his glasses and exhales. “The toxicology results confirm that Aurora was indeed injected with a sedative.”
“What kind?”
“A potent one. The dose was substantial enough to cause profound sedation and respiratory depression if administered in a larger quantity. She was fortunate. The woman who injected her didn’t administer the full dose. Had she done so, the situation could have been considerably more dangerous.”
