Zenovia
I was in my last week of pregnancy. I already had a doctor that would help me deliver the baby when the time comes. Living in Bender (Tighina), Moldova, for almost seven months was not easy, especially that I had to cope with my morning sickness all alone, without help, in my second trimester. But I did it, and now, it was another ordeal to come. The most crucial one.
My family nor my best friend neither had any clue where I was. It was so that none of them could tell Maksimillian where I was. I rarely even send them news or a picture of me, so that they would not have to worry if I was still alive or not. It was just to assure them that I was fine.
I was careful not to show any landmark, though. The pictures I was in were always inside an establishment or in the little house I rented. I had little savings that I withdrew in cash, so that I needed not use my card. Maksimillian might use his connections to find me using that one. I even ditched my phone and did not use one, so that I would not be tracked.
I was also back to painting and was happy about it. I sold the pieces for a cheap price just to get me by.
But why and how I ended up in Moldova after that night I confessed my feelings for Maksimillian during our lovemaking? It was because of something terrible that happened.
I recalled that Maksimillian phoned me the next morning, apologizing profusely for what he had done the previous night and telling me he shouldn’t have left. He clearly regretted it, and my heart went out to him. I wanted to thank him for the expensive hamper and flowers that were delivered at my doorstep that morning, but I could not.
“Come on, moye solntse. Let’s talk, okay? I’ll come to your apartment now,” he said in a beseeching tone that I wanted to give in.
“No! Don’t come over, all right?” I stopped him, trying to keep my voice and hands from shaking. My heart though wanted to get out of my rib cage any second now.
I had no clue who the man was, standing in front of me with his gun pointed in my head. I did not even know how he got into my apartment without me noticing it until he was already in. I should’ve screamed, but I suddenly froze. My brain was still processing why there was a man with a gun inside my apartment.
That was when Maksimillian called me. I reluctantly answered his call, since the big man with a covered face motioned for me to answer. But with it, a silent warning was relayed.
Why did he let me answer it? Maybe he knew I would not risk my life. Did he know I was pregnant? I hoped not. Or perhaps, he just thought it would be better for that someone to hear my voice, for now.
“But why not? Isn’t it enough time that I left you all alone?” Maksimillian pursued. “You have no idea how I’m feeling right now, Zenovia.”
‘I know, Maks, but I’m sorry!’
After that, I hung up, and the man instructed me to drop my phone, which I did. Otherwise, he could have shot me, as I believed.
I began to cry, quivering from fear that I might die in that very moment with my unborn baby. I was so afraid that I wouldn’t be able to see my baby’s face. Or Maksimillian’s before I’d die. I regretted why I shooed him away after making love with him. I knew my emotions were all over the place. I should’ve blamed my pregnancy for it, but I didn’t want to. Maybe it was out of my fear that I couldn’t handle Maksimillian loving me. The fear of his love that might fade away with time was still there, like a persistent evil that was still shadowing me.
“W-what do you want?” I asked the man in a stutter, as he guided me to sit in the living room.
He gave me a white envelop. It was a letter. My shaking hands opened it, and my eyes blurred as I read the words that were printed crisply.
A loud knock on the door disturbed my thoughts. It also made my heart jump. Who could have rapped on my door at mid-afternoon?
Holding my big round belly, I stepped back, holding the back of the long sofa. My heart pumped fast and strong. My breathing began to hitch. I calculated if I could go around the back, as I glanced at the door with fright.
“Zenovia! Open this damn door! I know you’re in there!”
My heart leapt when I heard that familiar voice. “M-Maks?” I whispered, clutching tighter on to the back of the old long sofa where I was now seated. “I-it’s you, right? This is not a dream, is it?”
I screamed when someone kicked the door real hard. Out of fear, my vision darkened. I couldn’t see who approached me after breaking the door.
“Oh, Doamne! Please… please save my baby…”
***
Maksimillian
I kicked the door open, and I cursed when Zenovia shrieked. Her unfocused eyes were on me, and she murmured, “Oh, Doamne! Please… please save my baby…”
Oh, God. What happened to her?
I could see she was wearing a floral maternity dress. Her big belly was round, clearly suggesting her pregnancy and was ready to give birth anytime soon. My heart swelled at the sight of her. I had been looking for her all over Romania, but I couldn’t find her. Turned out, she was hiding in Moldova all this time, a place where none of her family and friend had even guessed or thought about.
I caught her before she fell sideways to the floor. My heart jumpstarted, afraid that she would get hurt if she had fallen. I roared for my bodyguard, Sacha, to get us to the nearest hospital while carrying her in my arms.
‘Chert poberi! Why did she faint?’
As soon as we were in the car, with her head on my lap, my bodyguard drove like a maniac. Another car followed us. These days, I didn’t go anywhere without more security, as I almost died before reaching Zenovia’s apartment almost seven months ago. A bullet pierced through my shoulder, almost got me in the heart. I was just lucky.
The shooter was apprehended, but he killed himself while he was being questioned. So, the police could not get more out of him. He did not spill anything in the first place, which was truly frustrating.
I was in the hospital for many days. I tried to contact Zenovia, but I couldn’t reach her. I had her searched everywhere. There was no indication that she left the country, unless she used a fake identity, which she probably did given the circumstances. I even talked to every member of her family, as well as Antonia. But none of them had any idea where she was. They just knew she was fine.
Now that I’d found her, I wouldn’t let her go.
Right after my driver slash bodyguard stopped in front of the hospital, I almost jumped right out and carried Zenovia towards the interior of the edifice. I shouted for medical attention. I had no idea why my beloved fainted.
“Ea este insarcinata (She’s pregnant)!” I said in Romanian, as if her state was not that obvious. Moldovans spoke the same language as Romanians, with some slight differences from what I’d learned. “Va rog să ai grijă de ea (Please take care of her)!” I beseeched the medical personnel.
One led me out of the ER to give them more space and to let them do whatever it was necessary. I paced outside the ER, peering at the glass door now and then.
My heart jumped again when I saw Zenovia move and try to get up. However, a nurse stopped her.
I rushed inside and shoved the people to get to her, and I embraced her carefully. “Oh, thank God you’re safe, my love!” I cried with relief.