Tsvetana Alеkhina "Palmist. Books 1,2,3"

– Who if it is not a secret.

– His fiancee. He was supposed to have a wedding in the summer. Vina listened to the conversation, and understood something in Russian. Where should I go?

– Come to my house. Igor dictated the address.

– I am driving a police car with flashing lights.

– We will figure it out. You can explain everything to the police. While they were talking, the car was halfway there and Rashid saw Arthur’s pursuit. At the howl of a police car, another car joined her. Arthur stopped the pursuit and Rashid continued on his way, but without flashing lights. Driving up to Igor’s house, Rashid was left alone, unaccompanied by the police. Vina was tied hand and foot in the backseat. Rashid’s thoughts were all with Amir. He still had a glimmer of hope that his son was alive. He was offended that Amir was left there completely alone. Where are all those whom he has been saving all this time. Sultana, her father, Igor, Lyosha, where are all his friends. Where is the guarantee that Arthur’s people did not come back and finish him off? His heart contracted and it seemed that he was having a heart attack. His left arm was numb, it was painful for him to breathe, consciousness began to turn off, and he barely got out of the car. Igor met him; he took him by the arm and sat him down on a bench near the entrance. – Where’s the girl. Rashid pointed with his hand.

– «She’s staying with me for the time being. He also took her over his shoulder and unceremoniously carried her into the apartment. Then he parked the police car and returned to Rashid. – Come on. And they went into the entrance.

– Tell me everything in order. Rashid told about what happened this morning. – Why didn’t he tell me? I would have thought of anything. Rashid saw Igor’s custody of his son, and regretted that he did not call him himself. – Stay here with this girl, and I will go to the scene of the accident.

– No. I will go myself. I will be needed there more. Amir has no documents with him. Our investigator has been killed, who will help us now?

– It is certainly very difficult.

– I do not even know if my son is alive. How do I explain the carjacking? Rashid’s thoughts were confused; he did not know what to say anymore.

– This is very bad. If my well-known friend has died, then even I will not be able to help you. He was very skillful in this case, and helped Amir. Now it remains only to pray that everything will be fine. Maybe it is even worth telling the truth. So as not to make it worse for yourself. Rashid stood undecided and walked quickly to the car.

– I went. The car drove away from the house; Igor stood at the entrance and felt the cold air burning his face. November came, and the first snowflakes were swirling in the air. Residents of Moscow were accustomed to such weather and rejoiced at the first snow. They did not feel the cold, unlike the people who came here from Asian countries. It was more difficult for them, and especially for Vina, who was now sitting in a closed room and dreaming of escape, as Sultana had once dreamed of it. Vina understood that her captivity was causing great harm to her lover, and she just dreamed of escaping and hiding in his arms. She was so disgusted that it happened to her. She considered herself so perfect, so close to him, that she did not even allow the thought that such a thing could happen to her. Vina knew that Arthur could keep the girls captive. But to be captured by herself, who would harm him, it humiliated her.

Igor returned to the apartment and entered the room where Vina was sitting and looked at him as an enemy. Igor came up to her and sat down next to her. – I will not touch you. I do not need you. Do you understand Russian? Vina nodded her head in agreement. But she didn’t understand Russian well. – We need a girl who is being held captive by Arthur. This girl is from a respected family, and she needs to be returned to the family. Do you understand me? Vina nodded her head. We will only get you back when Arthur gives her back to us. Vina sat quietly. She understood what was going on and tried not to resist. She also understood that Arthur was wrong to kidnap a young girl from the family, given that this girl was not of legal age. – I will untie your hands and feet, but you will sit still. Okay? Vina was silent all the time. She had not said a word in all that time. Igor took the ropes off her and left her alone in the room. He sighed heavily and closed the door. He was afraid that she would jump out of his second-floor window. And he left her at his own risk. Vina was not as risky and desperate as Sultana was, and continued to sit on the sofa and did not move.

Rashid arrived at the scene. In his heart, he hoped to hear that his son was alive. That Amir is just wounded. But the lines of his life he saw told a different story. – Here it has come true, this prediction, he thought. It is probably better not to know what will happen tomorrow. Nothing can be changed anyway. You cannot run away from fate. Rashid got out of the car and walked slowly to the garage.

– Who are you?

– I am the father of the murdered man.

– There you go. The police pointed to two corpses that were covered with a canvas. They decided that he was a relative of one of the murdered police officers. Coming closer to the two lying bodies, Rashid realized that his son was not here, and held on as best he could. His appearance and inner state were opposite. Rashid turned and headed to the place where his son had been lying not long ago. But he was not allowed to this place.

– Where is he?

– Who? Who are you looking for?

– My son. He was here. Is he alive? The police officer looked closely at Rashid’s face, wondering at the similarity.

– He was taken away. By ambulance. Gunshot wound. There was a long pause between each sentence, and Rashid was very angry, but kept his outward calm. After hearing these speeches, he did not wait for the continuation, turned around, and wanted to leave. – Where are you going?

– To my son.

– We thought you were a relative of the victims. You need to explain where you got the police car. The police did not know that a woman was involved here, Rashid decided to keep it a secret. —We are going to have to question you.

Rashid took a neutral position and invented a story to save his son and arouse suspicion on Arthur. – My son inherited the gift from me. He knows how to predict the future, reading the fate of people in the footsteps of their feet. I sent him to study in Moscow and exactly a year later one person began to force him to work for him. This man wanted Amir to help him in his dirty deeds. My son told me everything. After the refusal, he began to receive threats. The threats became more frequent and I had to come to Moscow to personally solve this problem. After my arrival, I personally became convinced that this man is a murderer and a dealer in human goods. His feet spoke about it. If you do not believe me, you can make sure of it. I have a dental clinic in my homeland in the city of Pakse, and I am known and respected there. My son is a good student, and he is known and respected at the institute. This Arthur made an appointment for him at this place, and my son went. But I was against it. You see the parental instinct. I called a taxi and followed him. My son left me an approximate address, and left before me. When I got here, I dismissed the taxi and went down, there was already a police car parked here. Everything shook inside me, and I went along these garages to look for the right garage. The door opened and I saw Amir get out, then the police got out of the car. A shot rang out and my son fell. I ran up to him while the police were firing at him. And I heard the car doors slam, I needed to apprehend my son’s murderers, and I took your official transport and started the pursuit. I called the ambulance and the police. I could not stop them, so I came back. With these words, Rashid finished his story.

– OK. Leave your contact number. We will contact Swami. Rashid went to the hospital to see his son. He did not like the person who interrogated him, and he was not at ease.

CHAPTERВ 10

Amir was seriously wounded. He was in intensive care. Rashid was glad that his son was alive, but for how long. Will he get out of this coma, or not. And maybe Arthur’s people will get here. Rashid was pacing up and down the corridor. He was not at ease for his son’s life. And even more so for the life of the girl who was now with Arthur. He was even ashamed to return her to the family. But what to do. Alternatively, maybe the family no longer wants to tie the knot with their son after all that has happened. – My presence did not help, I could not save him. He thought. Pacing from side to side.

Arthur arrived at the Oriental Fairy Tale and the evil one went toВ his office, realizing that he had suffered aВ complete failure. Now his life depended entirely on these people. He could hide, cover his tracks, and he would have succeeded. But he was held byВ Guilt, he could not leave her. Arthur realized how dear she was toВ him, only then did he lose her. This fear that he might not see her again overshadowed his mind and Arthur went completely mad. His pride was trampled. Arthur sat inВ his chair like an angry beaten dog, and his main goal was Guilt. Having lost all interest inВ the life ofВ Sultana and her father, he no longer wanted toВ take revenge or pursue someone.

Arthur wanted a quiet and serene happiness with his woman. He dreamed of saving her, and flying with her to another country, where they would be happy. But all his dreams were quickly dispelled by the realization of what he had done. The attempt on Amir’s life was a grave mistake. Now he could not just call his father and agree to the condition offered to him. Arthur was at a dead end, and did not know what was waiting for him tomorrow. He did not know what actions Amir’s father would take, and he just had to wait.

Rashid returned to Igor and told him what had happened and what he had told the police. – Maybe you are right. The main thing is that Amir is alive. Therefore, everything will be fine.

– Maybe I should talk to this Arthur myself. The girl needs to be returned to her parents. It is my fault for what happened. There was no need to arrange this engagement.

– You never know what is best. If I knew, everything would be different. Rashid did not look at Igor with satisfaction.

– I saw that the fate of this girl is closely intertwined with my son. What could it mean? I decided to marry them. I know this family, I saw in it a good wife for my son, a good mother. I like her better than this Sultana does. Igor glanced at Rashid.

– To be honest, I do not like this Sultana either. She is causing a lot of trouble. Before her appearance, everything was smooth and calm. Everyone lived his or her own quiet and serene life. As soon as she appeared, some problems began.

– I will solve this problem. While my son is in a coma, I will send her and her father to her country, and everything will be forgotten. My son will return to school, the girl to the family, and everything will be as before. With these words, Rashid left for his apartment. He returned home in the early morning. Exactly a day has passed since these adventures. At home, a tired Lyosha met him.

– I am so tired of waiting for you. What is going on there? Where is Amir?

– Amir is in a coma. The girl is in captivity.

– What girl?

– Oh, you do not know. Amir’s fiancee. Arthur kidnapped her, in exchange for Sultana’s life.

– Wow. I have missed so much. But you can’t skip classes. I am leaving. With these words, the guy left the apartment. All this news and guests began to annoy him. Not getting enough sleep because of the guests, and it became more difficult for him to meet girls. He began to worry about his life. – It is all because of these girls. We were fine without them. Lyosha dreamed that all these dark-skinned guests would leave the apartment. He missed those carefree times when he and Amir lived a carefree student life.

Rashid came to his senses and wanted to rest at least a little, but after drinking coffee, he decided that he had no time to rest and dialed Arthur’s number. – We need to meet. After saying these words, he hung up the phone. Rashid behaved just like Arthur, unceremoniously. Arthur immediately called him back. He realized that it would be about his salvation, and decided to accept this chance for salvation. He drove up to the house; Rashid came out of the entrance and got into his car.

– I suggest you, for the last time, hush up this kidnapping case or it will be worse for you. If something happens to this girl, her parents will not leave you alone. The girl’s parents did not know that their daughter was in Russia, they were waiting for the result of the police search. Give me the girl, I will return yours to you, and I will not write statements about an attempt on my son’s life. Arthur was silent for a minute. Then he did not even agree. And they agreed to meet here late at night, when it would be dark.

In the evening, at the appointed time, Arthur’s car drove up to the entrance. Igor’s car was parked nearby. Rashid got out of the car and waited for Arthur’s actions. Arthur opened the door and Lilya got out of the car, at the sight of Rashid she perked up and wanted to run to him, but Arthur took her by the hand with his iron grip. Rashid saw all this, opened the door, and helped Vina out. Her hands were tied, she was lightly dressed, and she was trembling all over. – I will let her go after Lilya gets into our car. A neighbor from the window who loved to watch what was happening saw it all.

– Well, well. Then they steal guys, then they change girls. Like playing with toys. And hanging her cheeks on her hands, she continued to watch.

Arthur pushed Lilya, and she ran to Rashid. When she got into the car and the door slammed shut, Rashid let go of the Guilt, and she quickly walked to Arthur. Despite her fears, Arthur hugged her and hugged her to him. The wine was trembling all over like an autumn leaf. She was all icy with cold and fear, and was afraid of Arthur’s anger, but these fears were dispelled after his strong embrace. – I am not leaving you. Everyone got into his or her own car. After waiting for Arthur to leave, Rashid and Lilya said goodbye to Igor and went to their apartment. The neighbor, who was watching this picture, moved away from the windowsill. – Well, that is it for today. Now until tomorrow.

Lilya and Rashid went into the apartment. Of course, it was a studio apartment rented by Amir and Lesha. With the arrival of unexpected guests, they had to make room. Someone had to sleep on the floor and in the kitchen. Lyosha was still awake and met the guests. He did not expect to see a girl in this apartment at such a late hour. Especially almost a member of Amir’s family. The arrival of the girl at such a late hour put him in an awkward position. Rashid, noticing this, was shy himself, and apologizing added, «Nothing, we will leave you soon.

– So I do not mind your presence. Live as long as you want. I will sleep in the kitchen while you make yourself comfortable. Rashid called Lyosha to the kitchen.

– This girl was a prisoner. She could have been killed. Moreover, she is not of legal age. I am guilty before her. With these words, Rashid left the kitchen. Lyosha lay down in a folding chair and turned on the TV. – And Amir was right. She is pretty. Lyosha smiled and leaned back on the pillow. Rashid fussed in front of Lila, made her bed, brought her food to her room. «I’ll call your parents tomorrow and we’ll figure out how to get you home.» Lilya smiled and ate a sandwich.

Rashid’s morning was busy. He called the girl’s parents, and it was decided that they would pick her up themselves. Then a call was made to Ahmed, and he heard the long-awaited news that the war was over and they could return home together with the Sultan. Ahmed had been waiting for this particular call for so long; he could not stand it and joyfully called Sultana.

– Daughter, we are going home.

– How? What happened?

– I will explain everything to you later, when we meet. We need to do the paperwork, and we are flying home with you. Sultana was glad to hear this news. She dreamed about it. However, she had reason to be sad, she had not heard from Amir for a long time. They had not spoken in over a week. Sultana could not stand it and dialed him herself. In response, she heard that the subscriber was not available. This upset her, and the girl sat down on the sofa with her knees pressed to her stomach.

– What happened to you?

– Nothing. I am flying home. Sultana smiled through her sadness. She knew how to do it. She learned this when she started working for Arthur.

– Don’t lie to me. Is he your reason for being sad? There was silence in response. – Everything is clear. You do not have to go on. I will try to find out something.

– Don’t do anything. I am flying home. That is enough. My mission here is over.

– First, do the documents. Then you will see. Everything will work out, by itself. The time for the production of documents calmed the Sultan, and she perked up a little. Recently, Sultana dreamed of leaving this city, and now sadness has entered her heart. She could not explain it to herself, but she was sad at such a joyful hour. Sultan’s father stopped by to pick her up and make a temporary passport. During their stay in Moscow, it was their first meeting with their father.

Ahmed has not seen his daughter for more than a year. Except for the day, she was abducted in her hometown of Poipet. During this time, Sultana has changed a lot. She became more mature, more courageous, and stronger. This was no longer the same girl who had once left his house. At the sight of Sultana, Ahmed doubted for a moment that this was his daughter. – Is that you, Sultana? Sultana raised her lush eyelashes and was afraid to look into her father’s eyes, but she plucked up the courage and did it.

– It is I. Sultana sat in the back seat and looked in the mirror when she saw Igor’s eyes. Igor greeted her in a friendly way.

– So we met in peacetime. I am glad it is over. Sultana did not have the courage to ask in front of her father what had happened to Amir. She decided to rely on her eavesdropping skills and waited for the right moment to hear what she needed. They arrived; Igor accompanied them everywhere, like a faithful servant. He assisted them right up to the departure, and they had exactly two weeks left before departure. On this day, no one talked about anything and Sultana was left with nothing.

This morning, the circumstances were such that Rashid did not leave the apartment for a long time, having been a temporary interpreter for Ahmed, and Lyosha and Lilya were left alone. No one was prepared for such circumstances. Lilya went into the kitchen and saw Lyosha sitting in an armchair. He quickly got up and bombarded her with questions, what did she want? Lilya did not understand Russian well, but she was able to understand what was being said. Smiling, she went into the room. Lyosha remained sitting in his chair, and not wanting her to leave, he decided to bring her coffee. He is used to communicating with easily accessible girls. They were mostly friends from the cafe. But there was a whole goddess sitting in front of him, which he could not touch, he did not know what to talk about with her, and it was also impossible to talk to her. Lyosha just lived with her under the same roof, and admired her beauty, if you can say so through the glass. He just lost his mind, and this guy couldn’t just breathe calmly anymore. He brought her a cup of coffee into the room, and after standing for a while in silence, he went to his place of residence. Now the kitchen has become his permanent habitat. Lyosha decided so himself, and it was so convenient for him to sleep here, eat, watch TV, and even sometimes Lilya came into the kitchen, and he had a chance to look at her. He did it stealthily so that no one would notice his liking for this girl. Lyosha was so confused; everything he did seemed so funny and clumsy. Lilya was laughing like a child. She was a child. Now the day of her parents’ arrival was coming.

Rashid was often away on business. He kept his word and did not declare Arthur, the new investigator asked to name the make and number of the car. But Rashid gave only the color and brand, he did not call the number, referring to the fact that he did not remember it. He did not see who was sitting in the car either and it all got hushed up. The police were more preoccupied with killing police officers than wounding Arthur, and they did not bother Rashid anymore and waited for Amir to recover. The new investigator was not so interested in the case of Arthur’s capture, and conducted this case passively. Arthur was lucky that the previous investigator kept many details secret so as not to harm the Sultan, and these details were taken with him to the grave. Everything was in Arthur’s favor, Rashid and Lily’s parents did not testify against him, Ahmed withdrew his statement. Arthur got away with it again. Amir remained in a coma and this was the main cause of concern for Rashid and Arthur. Rashid was worried about his son’s life; he was more concerned about the threat posed by Arthur than his condition. Arthur prayed that this palmist would not survive. He took out evil on Jamal.

– It was necessary to finish him off to the end, or not to start at all. Why did you even start this whole shootout? I did not give you that right. Why did you open fire?

– Master, I am sorry. I just swore that I would avenge my friend. She killed him. He was bringing her food, and she killed him with a frying pan. If I had known sooner, I could have saved him.

Maybe you are right. Then it was necessary toВ kill toВ the end. Now IВ am inВ his hands. When this palmist wakes up, he will tell the cops everything.

– «Just say the word and I’ll kill him.»

– It will have to be done when I leave Russia. It would be a medical error. That is when I will finish what I started. And you will fly with me. I need you. I have no one left but you and my girl. The poor thing was so scared. He spoke these words with such warmth, it looked so ridiculous from the outside, and his appearance did not correspond to these words. Arthur decided to hide. He could only hide in Indonesia, only there everything went smoothly for him, and there he was completely safe. Arthur loved to fly there and spend time there. Moreover, his muse was originally from Indonesia and Arthur decided to give her a gift. He had decided to marry Vina, but he had not told her about it yet.

Guilt, after experiencing fear, was afraid toВ stay alone inВ the apartment. She still could not believe that she could be stolen. Arthur did not talk toВ her much on this topic, he tried not toВ put pressure on her psyche and be as courteous toВ her as possible. Arthur understood that he was toВ blame for everything that happened.

– We will fly to your homeland soon. You and me. Arthur took her hand. Vina was so happy. She had not expected to hear those words.

– Is it true?

– Yes. It is true. It is time for you and me to change the situation. Rest. You probably miss your relatives.

– I cannot believe it. Vina’s face lit up. She squeezed Arthur’s hand tightly. Arthur squeezed her hand even tighter.

Sultana was also preparing for the flight home, but inВ her soul, she was not as radiant as Vina. Her soul was dark and overcast and she could not open up toВ anyone. Only Amir himself could help her grief, and only voluntarily. But he was inВ aВ coma, and did not know what was going on inВ the soul ofВ his beloved. Sultana was packing her things toВ move inВ with her father.

– Maybe you will stay with me again. I do not want to let you go.

– I would love to, but that is it, it is time to say goodbye. My stay in this city is ending.

– Let’s take a walk around Moscow at night today. Our city was decorated for the New Year. It’s so beautiful outside.

– To be honest, I am afraid to go outside. I have been locked up for more than a year and I have forgotten what freedom is.

– Well, it is time to remember. Do not be afraid. It is time to start living. Life is a holiday. Do not be afraid. Your father’s house has not been guarded for three days, so everything is fine. So let us go. Sultana could not believe that it was over, and reluctantly agreed.

– Come on.

Moscow at night was burning with bright lights. The city was completely decorated and ready for the New Year. Sultana was not accustomed toВ this climate, cold, snow, and such celebrations as the New Year inВ Moscow. She admired this evening beauty and quickly got tired ofВ the flow ofВ people and bright shop windows. They sat down on aВ bench.

– Well, you see. Nothing happened. You are not being followed anymore.

– Thank you for reminding me! Otherwise, I relaxed. The interlocutor laughed.

– Will you come to us again? Sultana’s mood changed abruptly.

– No. She replied dryly.

– It is just that you got here in such conditions that you have many unpleasant memories. Many tourists love Moscow, and not only tourists.

– No. I just want to go home and that is it. With these words, Sultana got up from the bench and looked at the sky. The sky was covered with white clouds.

– It is for the snow. Did you even like the snow? Sultana took the snowflake in her hands. – Make a wish. And it will definitely come true. And Rose sang a song about a snowflake. Sultana held a snowflake in her fist and did not want to open her palm. After listening to the song, she opened her palm and blew on the melted snowflake.

– How great! It started snowing. It was light. White thin snowflakes swirled in the air and fell on Sultana’s beautiful, long hair. Rosa also had long hair, but not as long as Sultana’s did. Snowflakes looked beautiful on black. And the girls looked at their beauty on their hair. Sultana did not want to return to the apartment, or even to her father. She wanted to walk until morning. This snowfall lifted her spirits and Rosa, noticing this, decided to arrange a holiday for her. They skipped all night and returned home in the morning. This night was the last night that Sultana spent in the company of Rosa. In the morning, it was time to say goodbye and Sultana almost burst into tears.

– Well, do not cry, girl. We will see you again. Sultana understood that this was the end. The end of her stay in Moscow and of course her acquaintance with Amir. She hid this pain deep, where no one has access, and a mask of happiness was put on her face. Sultana smiled as best she could, the girl knew how to do it, because she once did it for the audience. The three of them had breakfast, Sultana, Ahmed and Rosa. Rosa’s husband always left early and arrived late. But sometimes he could spend the whole day at home in the middle of the week. Sultana did not dare to ask what he was doing, but this family was quite rich. – I hope our acquaintance does not end there. And will we see you again?

– Of course. My daughter was lucky. Allah sends her good friends. Here in our capital Phnom Penh, she met her family, and we became friends. Now we have friends in Moscow.

– So we are glad to have guests. But do not forget that we are fellow countrymen and we will see each other often. We are from the same city.

– That is even better. Sultana will have more fun. Yes, daughter?

– Yes, Dad. Breakfast ended and it was time to say goodbye. – Aunt Rosa, do not cry, I will be in Moscow for another week. Now you come to us, otherwise I am there alone, in this house.

– I will definitely come. Ahmed and Sultana left the entrance and got into a taxi. Rosa explained where to go, and the car drove away from the entrance.

As they drove up toВ the house, they saw aВ car waiting for them. The investigator, the one who interrogated Rashid, was waiting for them. Ahmed and Sultana did not know Russian and they had toВ wait for Rashid. He wanted toВ ask aВ few questions about the Sultana case. Rashid arrived quickly and after aВ cursory examination ofВ the Sultan, he noticed toВ himself that this girl was actually aВ sultansha.

– I have some problems with Arthur’s case, and this girl is present in his case, I found something. Of course, it was not easy. The fact is that we are looking for another human trafficker, and he is directly related to you and Arthur.

– To me? What does he have to do with me?

– As we found out, he wanted to sell you to him. Then you disappeared, it is not known where. You should have crossed paths, he was waiting for you. What do you know about it?