CHAPTER THREE

Irina's POV 

Three weeks had passed since that night.

Three weeks of waking up and wishing it had all been a terrible dream. Of avoiding mirrors because I could not stand to look at myself. 

Three weeks of pretending everything was fine when nothing would ever be fine again.

I had not seen Alexei since that morning. He disappeared the day after the party, and I was grateful. I could not face him. I could not look into those forest green eyes without remembering.

Dimitri noticed something was wrong. Of course he did. He knew me too well. But I lied and lied and lied until even I almost believed my own words.

It was just a stomach bug, I told him. Just exhaustion. Just stress.

But it was not.

The sickness came every morning now. I threw up until there was nothing left. I stopped eating because food made it worse. I lost weight I could not afford to lose.

And I knew.

Deep down in a place I did not want to look, I knew what was happening to me.

I was pregnant.

With Alexei's child.

The thought made me want to scream. Made me want to tear my own skin off. Made me want to disappear into nothing so I would not have to face what was coming.

Because Dimitri would find out eventually. There was no hiding something like this forever. And when he did, everything I had built over four years would crumble to dust.

He would hate me.

He would think I betrayed him.

He would never believe it was a mistake. That I had thought it was him.

The fear ate at me like acid.

I tried to hide it. I wore bigger clothes, and avoided him as much as I could.

I did my duties quickly and left before he could ask questions.

But today, he had asked me to wash his hair.

It was something I did often. 

It was something intimate and quiet that I usually loved. But today my hands shook as I filled the basin with warm water. Today my stomach churned with nausea that would not go away.

Dimitri sat in the chair by his bathroom sink with his head tilted back, and his eyes closed. He looked peaceful. And very beautiful.

I poured water over his hair carefully, watching it darken and stick to his scalp. My fingers worked shampoo through the thick strands, massaging his scalp the way he liked.

"That feels good," he murmured.

I tried to smile but my face felt frozen.

I felt dizzy suddenly. Just a little. Just enough to make me pause.

I blinked hard and kept working, rinsing the shampoo away with shaking hands.

I felt dizzy again. Harder this time.

My vision blurred at the edges. My knees felt weak. The basin in my hands suddenly weighed a thousand pounds.

"Irina?" Dimitri's voice sounded far away. "Are you..."

The basin slipped from my fingers. 

Water splashed everywhere.

And then the floor rushed up to meet me.

I heard Dimitri shout my name, and felt strong arms catch me before I hit the ground. Then everything went black.

When I woke, I was lying in Dimitri's bed. The room was dim, and quiet. My head pounded with a dull, persistent ache.

I tried to sit up but a wave of nausea pushed me back down.

"Do not move."

I turned my head and saw an old man sitting in a chair beside the bed. Dr. Petrov. I recognized him from when one of the guards had been shot last year. He was the Volkov family doctor.

Fear shot through me like ice water.

"What happened?" I asked, my voice hoarse.

"You fainted," he said gently. "Dimitri Volkov brought me here to examine you."

"Where is he?" I asked carefully.

"He had a meeting he could not miss. But he left strict orders that I take care of you."

I closed my eyes. Of course he had a meeting. Dimitri always had meetings. The Bratva did not stop just because a maid collapsed.

"I am fine," I said. "Just tired. I can go back to work now."

"I am afraid that is not possible." Dr. Petrov's voice was kind but firm. "You are very weak. You have not been eating. Your body is under significant stress."

"I will eat more. I promise. I just need to..."

"You are pregnant, Miss Irina." He said suddenly. The words hung in the air like a death sentence.

I stared at him. My mouth opened but no sound came out.

"About four weeks along," he continued. "That is why you have been so sick. The morning sickness should pass in a few weeks, but you need to eat. You need to rest. You need to take care of yourself and the baby."

The baby.

The word made everything real in a way it had not been before.

There was a baby growing inside me. Alexei's baby. A constant, living reminder of the worst night of my life.

"No," I whispered. "No, that is not possible."

"I am quite certain of the diagnosis." He replied calmly.

"Does Dimitri know?" My voice cracked on his name.

Dr. Petrov hesitated. "I have not told him yet. I wanted to speak with you first. But he will need to know eventually."

"No." I sat up too fast and the room spun. "No, you cannot tell him. Please. You cannot."

"Miss Irina, he is going to find out one way or another. It is better if he hears it from..."

"Please." Tears streamed down my face. "Please do not tell him. Not yet. I need time. I need to figure out how to explain. Please."

The doctor looked at me with sad, knowing eyes. Like he understood more than I was saying.

"I will give you one week," he said quietly. "One week to tell him yourself. But after that, if you have not, I will have to inform him. For your safety and the baby's."

One week.

Seven days to figure out how to destroy the only good thing I had ever known.

Dr. Petrov left medicine for the nausea and strict instructions to eat and rest. Then he gathered his things and left, closing the door softly behind him.

I lay in Dimitri's bed, staring at the ceiling, my hand pressed against my still flat stomach.

A baby.

I was carrying a baby.

And I had no idea what to do.

Hours passed. The light outside faded from gray to black. I heard footsteps in the hallway. Voices. The sounds of the house settling into evening routine.

I should get up, go back to my quarters, and pretend everything was normal for as long as I could.

But I could not move. I could not face the world outside this room.

The door suddenly slammed open. And Dimitri stepped inside. He looked furious. His jaw was clenched tight. His hands were balled into fists at his sides. His ocean blue eyes burned with rage that made my blood run cold.

I have never seen this side of him.

This was not the Dimitri who was gentle with me. This was the Pakhan. The monster Moscow feared.

I scrambled off the bed on shaky legs. My whole body trembled. I wanted to run but there was nowhere to go.

Dimitri took three long strides and stopped in front of me.

"You are pregnant." His voice was deadly cold. The kind of cold that could freeze hell over.

My eyes widened. My mouth opened but no words came out.

How did he know?

How did he find out?

But words traveled faster than light in this house. Someone must have told him. A maid. A guard. Someone who heard the doctor. Someone who could not wait to spread the news.

"Who dared touch you?!" His voice was low and lethal. Each word cut like a blade.

I took a step back. Tears filled my eyes. My throat closed up.

"Dimitri, please..."

"WHO?!" He roared.

CHAPTER FOUR

Dimitri's POV 

The word exploded from me like a gunshot.

"WHO?!"

Irina flinched. She wrapped her arms around herself like that could protect her from my rage. Tears streamed down her face. Her whole body shook.

"Dimitri, please..." she whispered.

"Tell me." I stepped closer. My hands clenched into fists at my sides. Every muscle in my body was coiled tight. "Tell me who put their hands on you. Tell me who dared touch what was mine."

"I... I cannot..."

"You will." My voice dropped to a deadly whisper. "You will tell me right now or I will tear this entire compound apart until I find them myself. I will line up every man and put a bullet in their head one by one until someone confesses."

"I am sorry," she choked out through her sobs. "I am so sorry. I did not mean for this to happen. I did not want this. I thought..."

"You thought what?" I demanded. "You thought I would not find out? You thought you could hide a pregnancy from me?"

"I thought it was you!" The words burst out of her like a dam breaking. "I swear on my life, Dimitri. I thought it was you."

The world stopped.

I stared at her, trying to process what she just said, trying to make sense of words that made no sense.

"What did you say?" My voice was barely audible.

She looked up at me through her tears. Her amber eyes were filled with pain and desperation.

"The night of the party," she whispered. "Someone came into your room. It was dark. So dark. He wore your robe. The black silk one I laid out for you. He had your height. Your build. Your hair. And I was so sure it was you. I would never... I could never..."

Understanding crashed over me like ice water.

My brother.

It had to be.

We were identical. Same face. Same body. Same hair. Only our eyes were different. And in the dark, she would not have seen his eyes.

"No," I breathed. My chest felt like it was caving in. "No, it was not..."

Before I could finish, the door slammed open with enough force to crack the frame.

Alexei stood there, breathing hard. His forest green eyes were wild.

He had found out. Someone had told him what was going on.

"Dimitri, wait..." he started.

"You." The word came out quiet, amd deadly. I turned to face him fully. "It was you."

Alexei's face went pale. He opened his mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.

"I did not know," he said quickly. "I swear I did not know it was her. I was drunk. I could not see straight. I thought..."

"You thought what?" I took a step towards him. Then another. "You stumbled into my room. You put your hands on my woman. You took what was mine!."

"I did not know!" His voice rose. "How was I supposed to know you hid her in your room? You never told me about her. You never said anything!"

"I should not have to tell you to keep your hands off my personal maid!" I roared. "I should not have to tell you that she is off limits! That she is the one thing in this whole filthy world that belongs to me and only me!" I roared.

"I was drunk," Alexei said again, but there eas no regret in hos tone. "I do not even remember most of it. I just remembered..."

I hit him. 

My fist connected with his jaw with all the force of my rage. He staggered back, blood spraying from his split lip.

"Do not," I said softly, "talk about that night. Do not you dare talk about what you did to her."

Alexei wiped the blood from his mouth. For a moment, I thought he would fight back. We had fought before. Countless times while growing up. But we always fought together, never against each other.

"Dima... if I had known..."

"But you did not know." I stepped closer. Close enough that we were almost nose to nose. "You did not know and you did not care. You just took what you wanted like you always do. Women, territory, everything. You take and take and take and never think about the consequences."

"That is not fair..."

"Fair?" I laughed. A harsh, bitter sound. "You want to talk about fair? She thought you were me, Alexei. She gave herself to you because she thought you were me. And now she is carrying your child! Your bastard! Tell me, brother, what part of that is fair?"

Alexei flinched like I had struck him again. Behind me, I heard Irina sob. The sound cut through me like a knife.

"I will fix this," Alexei said. His jaw was tight. His green eyes were hard. "I will take responsibility."

"Responsibility?" I repeated slowly. "What does that mean?"

"It means..." He took a breath. "It means she is mine now. The baby is mine. I will take care of them both."

The words hit me like bullets.

I stared at my brother. At my twin. At the other half of my soul. And I saw a stranger.

"No," I said softly.

"Dimitri..."

"No." My voice was louder now. "She is not yours. She will never be yours. This was a mistake. An accident. You do not get to claim her just because you were too drunk to know whose bed you were in."

"The baby is mine," Alexei said firmly. "That makes her mine too."

"She belongs to me," I said through clenched teeth. "She has belonged to me for four years. I found her. I bought her. I protected her. She is MINE!"

"She is carrying my child." Alexei's voice dropped. Became serious in a way I had never heard before. "That changes everything."

"It changes nothing."

"Dimitri, be reasonable..."

"Reasonable?" I was shaking now. With rage. With pain. With betrayal so deep it felt like I was drowning. "You want me to be reasonable while you stand there and claim the woman I love?"

The words hung in the air.

I had never said it out loud before. I had never admitted it even to myself. But now it was out there. Raw and impossible to take back.

Alexei's smirked. "You love her?"

"Of course I love her," I said quietly. "I have loved her since the day she walked into my life. I have loved her through every moment of every day for four years. And I never touched her. I never forced her. I waited. I wanted her to choose me freely. To come to me because she wanted to, not because she had no other choice."

"Dima..."

"And you took that from me." My voice broke. "You took her. You took her choice. You took everything."

"You know I didn't not mean to."

"But you did." I looked at my brother. "You did, and now everything is ruined."

Silence fell between us. Heavy and suffocating.

Behind me, Irina's sobs had quieted. I could feel her watching us. Waiting to see what we would decide about her life. About her future. Like she had no say in it at all.

"She was mine first," I whispered, my voice deadly calm. "And you stole her from me."

Alexei straightened his shoulders. His jaw set in that stubborn way I knew so well.

"She belongs to me now," he said. His forest green eyes were serious. Determined.

The words hung in the air like a death sentence.

"I know." Alexei's voice was quiet. "But the baby changes everything. You know it does. She is carrying my child, Dima. That makes her mine. That is how our world works."

My fist tightened. 

He was right.

CHAPTER FIVE 

Irina 

I stood frozen, watching the two brothers face each other like wolves circling for a kill.

My heart pounded so hard I thought it might burst through my chest. My hands trembled. My legs felt like they might give out at any moment.

This was my fault.

All of this was my fault.

I know." Alexei's said, his voice was quiet. "But the baby changes everything. You know it does. She is carrying my child, Dima. That makes her mine. That is how our world works."

Dimitri looked at his twin with hatred, his fist tightened. At first, I thought he was going to agree.

"Get out," he said quietly.

"She is carrying my child," Alexei said, his expression firm and unyielding.

"We're not entirely sure about that," Dimitri whispered, his voice shaking with rage he could barely contain.

"Neither do you," Alexei shot back.

And like that war was declared in that moment. Not with words or weapons, but with the silence that followed. The silence of brotherhood dying.

I watched the two men I had destroyed. Two brothers who had been inseparable. Two halves of one whole. Now standing on opposite sides of an invisible line drawn in blood and betrayal.

"Dimitri," I whispered. My voice came out broken. "Please. I am so sorry. I never meant..."

"Do not." He did not look at me. His eyes stayed locked on his brother. 

"Do not apologize for something that was not your fault."

"But it was," I said desperately. "If I had just turned on a light. If I had just looked closer. If I had..."

"If I had not hidden you in my room," Dimitri interrupted, his voice cold. "If I had not kept you secret like you were something to be ashamed of. If I had just told my brother to stay away from you. There are a thousand ifs, Irina. None of them matter now."

Alexei took a step forward. "Come with me," he said, looking at me for the first time since he entered the room. "I will take you somewhere safe. Somewhere you can rest."

"She is not going anywhere with you," Dimitri said flatly.

"She is carrying my child. That makes her my responsibility."

"She is my maid. She lives under my roof. She is under my protection." Dimitri's voice rose with each word. "You do not get to take her just because you made a mistake."

"A mistake that resulted in a child," Alexei countered. "And that changes everything. You know the laws as well as I do."

"Laws?" Dimitri laughed bitterly. "You want to talk about laws? You broke into my private quarters. You touched my woman. You..."

"I did not know!" Alexei roared. "How many times do I have to say it? I was drunk. I could not see. I thought it was just another room. I did not know she was there. I did not know she thought I was you. I. Did. Not. Know."

"But you know now," Dimitri said softly. Dangerously. "And you are still trying to take her from me."

"I am taking responsibility for my actions. That is what a man does."

"A man does not sleep with his brother's woman." Dmitri said. 

"I did not know she was yours!"

"EVERYONE KNOWS SHE IS MINE!" Dimitri's shout echoed through the room. Through the hallways. Probably through the entire mansion. "Everyone in this compound knows that Irina belongs to me. That she is the only woman I have ever given a damn about. The only one I have ever protected. The only one I have ever..."

He stopped. Closed his eyes, and took a breath.

"The only one I have ever loved," he finished quietly.

My heart shattered.

He had said it twice nowm.vHe loved me.

Dimitri Volkov loved me.

And I had destroyed that love with one terrible mistake made in darkness.

"I am sorry," I whispered again. Tears poured down my face. "I am so, so sorry."

This time, Dimitri looked at me. His ocean blue eyes were filled with pain so deep it took my breath away.

"I know you are," he said softly. "But sorry does not change anything. Sorry does not make the baby disappear. Sorry does not turn back time."

"Then what do we do?" I asked desperately as tears streamed down my face. "Please, Dimitri. Tell me what to do. I will do anything. Anything to fix this."

"You cannot fix this," he said. "No one can."

The door burst open for the third time.

An older man strode in. He was gray-haired and scarred, but he moved with authority that made both brothers straighten instinctively.

He was Mikhail Reznikov, their Godfather.

"Enough," he said. His voice was deep and commanding. "Both of you. Enough."

"Godfather," Dimitri said, surprised. "This does not concern you."

"It concerns me when my boys are about to kill each other over a girl." His dark eyes swept over the scene. Me standing by the bed, tear-streaked and trembling. Dimitri rigid with fury. Alexei bleeding from his split lip. "What has happened here?"

"Ask him," Dimitri said coldly, gesturing at Alexei.

"I am asking both of you."

Silence fell. Neither brother wanted to speak first. Neither wanted to admit what had happened.

Finally, Alexei spoke. "The maid is pregnant. With my child."

His expression did not change. "I see," he said carefully. "And how did this happen?"

"He was drunk," Dimitri said. His voice was flat. "He stumbled into my room during the party. It was dark. She thought he was me. And now she is pregnant with his bastard."

He looked at me. His gaze was kind but searching. "Is this true, child?"

I nodded, unable to speak.

"And you thought he was Dimitri?"

I nodded again.

He sighed heavily, looking older and tired. "This is a mess," he said quietly. "A terrible, and tragic mess."

"I am taking her with me," Alexei said. "The baby is mine. That makes her mine too."

"She is not property to be claimed," Mikhail said sharply. "She is a person. A young woman who made an innocent mistake and is now caught between two brothers who are too angry to think clearly."

"I am thinking perfectly clearly," Dimitri said coldly. "My brother took what was mine. And now he wants to parade her around like some trophy. Like proof of his conquest."

"That is not what I am doing," Alexei protested.

"Then what are you doing?" Mikhail asked. "Why do you want her? Do you love her?"

Alexei hesitated for a moment. But it was enough.

"She is carrying my child," he said again. "That is reason enough."

"No," Mikhail said firmly. "It is not. A child deserves to be raised by parents who love each other. Not by a father who claims the mother out of obligation."

"Then she stays with me," Dimitri said.

"And what happens when the baby is born?" Mikhail challenged. "When every time you look at it, you see the brother who betrayed you? You think you can love that child, Dimitri? You think you can look at her holding Alexei's baby and not hate her for it?"

The question hung in the air like a guillotine blade.

Dimitri said nothing. His jaw was tight. His hands clenched into fists.

He could not answer. Because we all knew the truth.

He would hate me. Eventually. 

Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But one day he would look at me and see only betrayal. Only pain. Only everything he lost.

"There is no good solution here," Mikhail said quietly. "No answer that makes everyone happy. But we need to find a way forward that does not end with you two killing each other."

"He took her from me," Dimitri said. His voice cracked. "How am I supposed to forgive that?"

"I do not know," Mikhail admitted. "But if you do not find a way, this will destroy you both. It will destroy the empire you built together. It will destroy everything your parents died to give you."

"Our parents," Dimitri said bitterly, died because they trusted the wrong people. Because they let their guard down. I will not make that mistake."

"You think I am your enemy now?" Alexei asked quietly. "After everything we have been through? After all the blood we have spilled together?"

"You made yourself my enemy when you touched her."

"It was an accident!" Alexei slammed.

"That does not make it hurt any less!" Dmitri slammed too. The shout echoed through the room. 

Dimitri's composure finally cracked. Tears gathered in his eyes but he refused to let them fall. "You were my brother," he said, his voice breaking. "My twin. The only person in this world I trusted completely. And now I cannot even look at you without wanting to put a bullet in your head."

Alexei flinched like he had been struck. "Dima..."

"Do not call me that." Dimitri's voice turned cold again. Distant. "That name is for my brother. And I do not have a brother anymore."

The words were final and irreversible.

"You do not mean that," Alexei whispered.

"I mean every word." Dmitri's eyes were cold.

Mikhail stepped between them. 

"Stop. Both of you. This is not the time for declarations you cannot take back."

"It is done," Dimitri said. "He chose her over me. Now he can live with that choice."

I chose to take responsibility," Alexei protested. "That is not the same thing."

"It is exactly the same thing."

"Enough!" Mikhail's voice cracked like a whip. "I am taking charge of this situation before you two do something stupid. Dimitri, you will keep control of the eastern territories. Alexei, you will take the western territories. You will split everything down the middle. No overlap. No conflict."

"You are dividing us?" Dimitri asked slowly.

"I am preventing a war," Mikhail said firmly. "If you two stay together, you will kill each other within a week. So you will separate. You will each run your own territory. And you will stay away from each other until you can be in the same room without violence."

"And her?" Alexei asked, looking at me.

Mikhail glanced in my direction. "She will have to choose."

My breath caught. "What?"

"You will choose," Mikhail repeated gently, turning to me. "Do you stay with Dimitri, the man you love? Or do you go with Alexei, the father of your child? It is your decision, girl. Who do you choose?"

I looked between the two brothers. Dimitri, who I had loved for four years. Who had been gentle with me. Who had protected me. Who had loved me back.

And Alexei, who I barely knew. Who had taken my innocence thinking I was someone else. Who now wanted to claim me out of duty, not desire.

How was I supposed to choose?

How could anyone make that choice?