Drake Sisters 03 - Oceans of Fire

question. He knew. He knew what she feared the most. “Can you really think so badly of me? I spent close to three years tracking that child killer. For the first year, I did it alone—my superiors refused to even admit the possibility that there could be a serial child killer in Mother Russia. Twice they relieved me of duty for seeking help from agencies outside of our country. And all the while he was out there, luring children to him.”
    “Aleksandr,” she protested.
    “No, Abbey. Let’s get this out in the open. I fully admit I made mistakes. I told the clerk to send you into the interrogation room. I thought he’d follow orders. I had no idea Ignatev was working behind the scenes to bring me down and that he had his men in place. When everything went to hell, I weighed my options. In my mind I thought you’d be perfectly safe, my men would hand you a drink, walk you out, and it would be over.“
    She rubbed her chin on her drawn-up knees, hugging herself as she rocked back and forth. “But it didn’t work out that way.”
    “No. Ignatev took the opportunity to strike at me. His men, not mine, were in the interrogation room with you. You weren’t safe, although I didn’t know that at first. I was scrambling to do damage control. I was so close to solving the case and didn’t want to get yanked. When I found out what happened, and that Ignatev’s men had you in their control, I had to move fast to get you out. At that point I couldn’t come forward about what had happened because if I had taken the blame for everything, not only would I have been off the case, but I wouldn’t have been able to get you free.”
    Abigail looked at him. “What did you do?”
    “Whatever was necessary to get you out of there. They would have killed you. Ignatev wanted to strike at me, you weren’t cooperating, and he wanted the violence against you stepped up. It was only my reputation that kept it from happening in the beginning. And yes, Abbey, if I had to sleep with another woman to save your life, I damn well would have done it. I would have done anything to save you. Is that what you wanted to know about me?”
    His eyes blazed fire at her. Aleksandr, always so calm and in control, looked as if he wanted to shake her. She studied his face, the lines that hadn’t been there four years earlier, the edge to his mouth and his strong jaw. What was it she was really so afraid of? Would she have wanted him to abandon the dead children? Would she have wanted him to abandon her? He had probably saved her life, just as he had saved other children from a madman.
    The realization was slow in coming, but Abigail knew she loved him for those very qualities, his single-minded determination to bring a killer to justice, his protective instincts that made him aggressive in his search for a serial killer. So many good traits, so what was it she feared so much?
    “How did you get me out of Russia?”

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    His gaze hardened. “I did what I had to do. That’s my life, Abbey. That’s who I am. You’re the only person I’ve ever loved. Do you think I’d do less for you than I would for those poor children? Damn you for asking me that.” He leaned close to her, his face inches from her. “I have a lot of things to apologize for, I know that, but getting you out of Russia, saving your life, is not one of them. If I had to sleep with forty women, kill forty men, or trade my life for yours, I would have done it and I’m not about to ask for forgiveness for it. If you want to pass judgment on me, go ahead.”
    “Where is there a future for us, Sasha? I can’t be in Russia. I don’t know if I can live with the extremes you’re willing to go to. What are we doing?”
    “There has to be a future for us. We have to find a way. Are you happy without me? Can you truthfully say you’ve been happy hiding in the sea with your dolphins, living your life without me, Abigail?”
    Abigail sat up and brushed back her hair. “Grab your tea before it spills.”
    She pointed vaguely at a spot ahead of him and when Aleksandr turned his head the mug of tea nearly hit him in the face. It seemed to be floating in the air. Her sisters and aunt had disappeared, leaving them sitting in the middle of a circle made of a type of wood he couldn’t identify and what seemed like hundreds of lit candles. He took the mug of tea right out of the air and watched Abigail do the