The house was warm and cozy, with logs quietly crackling in the stove, her favorite TV show playing, and a blizzard howling outside. Antonina, an elderly woman and a former local paramedic, settled comfortably in an old, worn chair, watched the film, and stroked the cat Vasily, curled up on her lap.
Suddenly, there was a desperate knocking on the window, then on the gate, and the dog Tosha barked himself hoarse before everything quieted down.
«Who could it be in such weather? Maybe I imagined it?» wondered the woman, and reluctantly, putting on her valenki and a fur coat, went to check and also to bring in some firewood.
Barely making it to the gate, as it had snowed quite a bit, she opened the door and froze, not believing her eyes. In the fierce cold, barely standing on her feet and leaning against the fence, was a young girl. She was in a nightgown, barefoot, and draped with a knitted shawl. Clearly, she was also pregnant, her belly visibly large.
Barely moving her lips, the girl whispered:
«Please! Don’t turn me away! Help me, they want to take my child away!» she muttered, as if delirious.
There was no time to think, Antonina quickly brought the young woman into the house, draping the fur coat over her.
«Good heavens! What is happening! Who would dare to throw a pregnant woman out into the cold!» Antonina lamented.
As a paramedic, she understood what such exposure to the cold could do to the girl in her condition, so she heated some water, began to warm her feet, then rubbed them with alcohol, wrapped her up, gave her hot tea with raspberry jam, and put her to bed. She said nothing and asked no questions. «Morning is wiser than the evening,» the retiree decided.
The girl fell asleep instantly, only managing to whisper, «Thank you.» All night there was commotion outside, people running around, shouting, cars circling.
Nastya woke up to the enchanting smell of frying bacon and eggs and fresh baked goods. She was terribly hungry, the baby inside her stirred restlessly. She carefully climbed out from under the blanket, next to the bed lay a carefully prepared flannel robe and warm slippers. Suddenly, she felt as good as in her distant childhood at her grandmother’s in the village, and she didn’t want to return to the harsh, cruel reality.
In the kitchen, the elderly woman bustled about, piling up steaming, golden pancakes.. Glancing at the girl, she cautiously said:
«Well, runaway, go wash up and sit down to eat, the little one must be hungry, right? Then you can tell me who you are and what happened to you, poor thing.»
After breakfasting with great pleasure, Nastya sighed and began her story:
«I’m an orphan myself, grew up in an orphanage. I don’t remember my parents, never saw them. Until I was five, my grandmother Varya raised me, loved me, pitied me, and then she died, and I ended up in the orphanage. After graduating, they gave me an apartment, and I was sent to a teacher’s college. At a disco, I met a very rich guy, all the girls were hanging on him, he couldn’t walk for them. But he, Sasha, noticed me and chose me from all. He’s ten years older, has his own cottage in the neighboring village, his father is some big shot. He courted me beautifully, gave me flowers and took me to the movies, and I couldn’t resist, I fell in love with him to death. All the girls envied me, I snagged such a fiancé! When he looks at me, the ground just falls away from beneath my feet…
We started living together, in that cottage. At first, everything was fine, but when I realized I was pregnant, he changed! Started to offend, insult! He often got drunk, came home at dawn. I cried, was distressed, asked him to think it over, but it was all in vain. Two weeks ago, he completely lost it, brought a girl home, and cavorted with her right in front of me. I’ve never been so hurt, I started packing my things, decided to leave Sasha. But it was not to be.
He went crazy, hit me and said: ‘Where do you think you’re going? You’re not going anywhere. You’ll give birth to my child, and then I’ll throw you out myself! You’ll never see your son! Understand?’
He locked me in a room and wouldn’t let me go anywhere. He ordered the housemaid to bring me food, that’s it. I cried all the time, begged, pleaded. And last night, the housemaid took pity on me, didn’t lock the door. So, in what I was wearing, I ran as fast as I could, and I don’t remember much after that, I just ran and ran, and finally reached your house… Thank you..» – and the girl sobbed.
«What a horror! Can this really happen? But what will you do now?» Antonina lamented.
«Honestly, I don’t know. Please don’t kick me out! Sasha will take the baby after the birth, and he’ll throw me out, I’m nobody, not even his wife, and also an orphan, with no one to stand up for me. I might as well end it all, I swear!» – and Nastya burst into tears.
«Stop, get those thoughts out of your head, what are you thinking! My son, Grigory, is a local police officer, he’ll be home from his shift soon. Tell him everything. Maybe he can help,» said Antonina.
Grisha was walking home from duty and reflecting on how unjust life is. He had recently separated from Irina, his wife. She didn’t like his job as a police officer, the pay was low, too much hassle, all hustle and bustle. His wife demanded that he quit and start a business, take her to fancy resorts. She nagged him mercilessly, so they divorced, and after that, his ex-wife found a wealthy guy and moved abroad with him, while he moved back to his mother’s ancestral home. He decided, to hell with women, they’re all so selfish these days!
Entering the house, Grisha habitually shouted:
«Hello, Mom!» and went to the kitchen, drawn by the delicious aroma, he was terribly hungry.
«Son, meet our guest, Nastasya. She’s had some trouble. Could you listen to her, maybe we can figure out together how to help?» asked Antonina.
«Was it you they were looking for all night?» asked the young man.
The girl went deathly pale. She looked like a frightened doe, her large, tear-filled blue eyes framed by thick lashes, luxurious long wheat-colored hair, haphazardly gathered in a ponytail, and a comically protruding sharp belly. She was so sweet and vulnerable that something turned over inside Grisha.
«Don’t turn me in, please!» the girl whispered.
Learning what happened, Grisha was shocked! What a scumbag! How could someone do that? And most importantly, how to help poor Nastya. He didn’t know yet, but he was sure he wouldn’t abandon her in trouble, his conscience wouldn’t allow it. When Grisha looked at Nastya, some previously unknown warmth spread inside him and a silly, goofy smile wouldn’t leave his face.
«Don’t cry, Nastasya, no one is going to hand you over to that monster. Where are your belongings and documents?»
«They’re all at Sasha’s cottage, he took my passport so I couldn’t escape, and the keys to my apartment are there too. But I won’t go there. I’m scared!» – large tears, like beads, fell from the girl’s eyes.
Grisha thought for a moment, remained silent, then said:
«Let’s do this. You stay with us for now. I’ll go to the city, buy you some clothes and everything you need. Then I’ll use my contacts to find out who this Sasha of yours is, try to get your things back. Deal?»
«It’s very dangerous! It’s all my fault! Sorry for involving you!» the girl cried.
«Don’t be down! After all, it’s my job to help citizens!» Grisha firmly replied.
Through his colleagues, the young man made inquiries, and found out that Alexander Malyavin was indeed a wealthy scion, the son of a well-known local businessman. But his businessman father conducted his affairs not entirely honestly; the police had long had designs on him, but always lacked proof to nab him. Rumors had it that his business was built on drugs. Grisha first decided to try to speak to Sasha heart-to-heart, appeal to his conscience, although he subconsciously felt it would not lead to anything good.
Arriving at the cottage, Grigory knocked. A slick, well-fed young man came out and asked carelessly:
«Who are you and what do you want?»
«Not you, but ‘you’. I am your district officer, Grigory, I would like to have a word with you.»
«Well, make it quick, I have guests!» the young man continued to be rude.
«I am aware that you unlawfully detained Anastasia Kozhevnikova, took her documents, belongings. Return them. The girl is frightened and does not want to return to you!» Grisha stated sternly.
The scion got angry, clenched his fists, and yelled:
«That wretched little wench! Tough as nails! I thought she’d freeze out there. Decided to complain, did she? I don’t need her, had my fun and that’s it. But I will take the baby from her anyway! And that’s final! What can that pauper offer him? And who asked her to get pregnant? Fool!»
«That’s illegal! You have no right to take the child from its mother without her consent!» Grisha burst out at such audacity.
«I don’t care, my old man has the whole town in his pocket! So she won’t get anything! Only in exchange for the son! Pass that on!» and Sasha slammed the door in the officer’s face.
Grigory was outraged by the scion’s rude behavior, and decided to act through his father, since talking to the son had led nowhere. The young man spent a month gathering compromising evidence on the business, found a lot of interesting stuff! He thought long and hard, weighed everything, and decided to take a risk. He went directly to the businessman’s office, pushing past the outraged secretary. Without hiding anything, he laid out the whole truth about his son, adding at the end:
«And keep in mind, I have serious compromising material on you. If your son doesn’t stop harassing Anastasia and leave her alone, I will use it. You won’t like it one bit,» and handed him copies of the documents.
Grisha expected the man to start being rude and threatening, just like his son, but he was wrong. The man quickly glanced through the documents and slumped back in his chair, thoughtfully clasping his head with his hands, and said:
«I hear you. I will take measures! I don’t need extra problems! And honestly, I’m fed up with my son and his antics. All the girl’s belongings and documents will be delivered to the address of her registration. I will order it. If it turns out that the child is my grandson, I will help. I apologize once again!»
The officer was stunned by what he heard and could only mutter:
«Thank you for understanding!» – and he left the office.
Grisha ran home, excited to share the good news with the girl. Entering the house, he saw a touching scene: his mother was teaching Nastya how to make pies. She diligently tried, sealing the edges. The tip of her nose was covered in flour. Her hair had escaped from under her scarf and stuck out funnily. Again, a whole ocean of tenderness welled up inside the young man.
«Well, Nastasya, rejoice! You are free. Tomorrow you can move back to your own home. Don’t be afraid. I’ve sorted everything out.» – Grisha said.
The girl dropped the pie, screamed, and clumsily threw herself to hug her savior.
«Thank you, Grisha, I’ll be grateful to you all my life! I thought I wouldn’t make it!» – she babbled.
Then Antonina intervened:
«How can she move tomorrow? I’ve gotten used to her, we get along, and it’s nice to have a living soul in the house! How can she, a poor orphan, alone with a child and without a job, manage? No one to help her…» – the retiree lamented sadly.
«I actually wanted to talk about this. Nastya, maybe we should try to find your relatives? Maybe you have brothers or sisters?» – Grisha suggested.
«I’ve dreamed of that all my childhood, but I don’t know where to start?» – the girl was dumbfounded.
Grisha and Nastya actively began searching, found an old nanny from the orphanage, learned the address and surname of the girl’s grandmother, and slowly unraveled the whole skein.
What they discovered shocked everyone! Antonina, her son, and Nastya sat at the table and sobbed together. Antonina lamented:
«I felt a kinship with you right away. I looked at you and wondered, where could I have seen you before? Now I realize! You look a lot like my own sister. I’ll find the photograph!» – and the woman began to sift through old, yellowed photos.
«Look, her eyes, and hair. Oh, Valya! Always the troublesome one! From childhood, she was unruly, didn’t want to study, partied all the time. Yes, she got pregnant once. But she returned from the maternity hospital alone, said the baby died during birth. But in reality, she left the child at a distant relative’s doorstep, an old granny, and ran away… God punished her, apparently, she didn’t live long, was hit by a car drunk two years later!
«So fate itself brought you, Nastenka, to your kin! Forgive me, girl, I knew nothing about you!» – the retiree stroked Nastya’s hand.
And Grisha lowered his head and quietly said:
«So, we are cousins? Well then…» – and he quietly stepped out into the yard.
He literally slid down against the fence, fell to his knees, pounded the ground with his fists, sobbed, and thought:
«Why? For what? I’ve fallen in love with Nastya with all my heart! How can I pull her out of there now?»
It seemed to the young man that some evil fate was pursuing him, and there was no end to it.
Life slowly went on, Nastya gave birth to a healthy boy, Semyon, and moved to her own apartment. On weekends, they visited their aunt. Antonina joyfully took care of the baby, sang lullabies.
But Grisha seemed to be a different person. He lost weight, barely ate, became withdrawn and sullen, and started drinking often. He was afraid to even look at Nastya. He couldn’t help himself – everything inside was torn, it burned him, he wanted to embrace, press, and kiss the girl. He just couldn’t stop loving her, and that was that! And Nastya immediately blushed, lowered her eyes… She understood, it was wrong, they couldn’t love each other, but the heart wouldn’t listen, it ached and yearned for the young man.
Antonina watched, understood everything, her heart bled. At night, she fervently prayed:
«Lord, give me the strength to tell the whole truth! I can’t keep it a secret any longer! I’m breaking the children’s fates!» – and she cried silently.
She had kept a terrible secret for many years, not a living soul knew about it, and now… How to tell? What would happen? The woman agonized, wavered, but finally decided, she could no longer watch Grishenka suffer, completely worn out!
During Nastya’s next visit, Antonina put Semyon to sleep on the porch, and told Grisha and Nastya to go into the house. She rummaged through a drawer, pulled out a box, and began her story:
«Grishenka, my dear son. I thought I’d never tell you, thought I’d take my secret to the grave. But it seems it’s not to be! I can’t stand to watch you suffer like two doves with clipped wings! My children, love each other! You are not relatives!» – and the woman softly cried.
Grisha frowned:
«Mom, what are you saying? How is that possible?» – he muttered incredulously.
«My husband, Ivan, died early, I’ve been a widow since I was thirty. I couldn’t love anyone else. I worked in a maternity ward all my life. Once a frail girl gave birth to a baby and abandoned it right away, didn’t even look at it, didn’t take it in her arms. She climbed out through the window at night and disappeared.
But the moment I took you in my arms, I felt it, my own son! I never parted with you. The head of the department helped sort everything out with the documents, and I adopted you. Forgive me, dear, for keeping silent! I was terribly afraid that you would find out someday and reject me! I’m still scared» – and the retiree sobbed again.
Grisha was stunned, surprised, and happy at the same time! He couldn’t believe his ears. Could it be that God had shown mercy, and he and Nastya could be happy together? He fell to his knees, hugged his mother, and whispered:
«What are you talking about, Mommy! Thank you for telling me! I’m not upset, you’re the dearest to me! You dedicated your whole life to me!»
Nastya was stunned and couldn’t utter a sound! Could such things really happen? If someone had told her, she would never have believed it!
Grisha, coming to his senses, approached the girl:
«Nastyusha. I fell in love with you the first second I saw you! When I found out we couldn’t be together, my life stopped! But now, tell me, will you marry me? I will be a faithful husband, I will raise Semyon as my own! I will never reproach you!» – the young man looked at his bride with hope and anxiety.
Nastya blushed and quietly said:
«I agree» – she couldn’t have dreamed of a better husband. The horrors of her past life were far behind, and ahead, everything would be fine, Nastya knew it for sure!
