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From Russia With Love

Chapter Nineteen - Proshchaniye

It seemed like only an hour or two later that light knocking came at the door, waking them both from a deep sleep. The sun was just starting to peek over the tops of the trees in the distance visible from the window, and the ocean glistened with the first rays through the gaps in the branches that obscured the view of the water from the window in this room.

“Rise and shine” he murmured, nudging her shoulder with his hand. She rolled over and groaned, pulling the pillow over her head.

“I’m exhausted” she moaned, words muffled through the material. He pulled the pillow from her grasp and threw it to the floor, ruffling her hair playfully.

“You can sleep on the plane”

“Is it eight hours or ten to Washington? I tuned out at the end of the Sargent’s pitch last night”

He laughed loudly, surprising her in the quiet of the room “Ten? You wish, kid! Try thirteen hours”

She left his room shortly afterwards and snuck back down the hallway to her own abandoned room. The expansive windows filled the room with sunshine and flaunted an even more impressive vista of the bay in daylight. She noticed a pile of fabric on the foot of her turned back duvet that she was sure hadn’t been there last night and she blushed as she realized the housekeeper must have left them for her this morning to change into. She wondered if she’d known she’d spent the night in Gerard’s room.

She changed into the bottoms and examined herself in a large ornamental full length mirror that leant against the opposite wall. She’d never worn jeans in her life and the feeling of the tight denim encapsulating her legs was an odd sensation. She tugged the white long sleeved shirt that had accompanied the jeans over her head and looked herself once over, satisfied she looked decent before wandering up the hallway to the large bathroom where she knew there was a tooth and hair brush waiting for her.

As she brushed her teeth and pulled the soft bristles of the brush through her fluffy, clean hair she reflected on the fact that today was her very last in Russia. How had this come to be? The place where she had grown up, the place that she was now supposed to rule, was no longer safe for her. It was a dark thought. She knew she would safe in America, but it could be a long time before she was able to call Russia home again.

She mourned for her parents and siblings, longing to see them again and nursing the aching pain in her heart as she acknowledged in the same train of thought that she would never see them again. The Sargent who had greeted her after she arrived at the base last night had been sympathetic and caring under his stern exterior and had a way of making her feel comforted as he explained in hushed tones that her family had been retrieved from their home in the hillsides and were to be laid to rest respectfully when some of the conflict had died down. He expressed his deepest condolences and ensured her that the American military would work together with the Russian forces to bring the country back under official jurisdiction as quickly as possible. She was grateful for the Americans and confident in their abilities to regain control.

It occurred to her that in the face of hardship, their two nations had bonded together as a united front, as her Mother had always said, and that was the light in the darkness that had fallen over Russia.



Dominika sat next to Gerard in the waiting area of the base’s air hangar, dressed in her jeans with a little black suitcase at her feet containing the only possessions she had now. They were alone in the room except for two soldiers dressed identically to Gerard who guarded the doorway, large weapons slung over their chests. The wall they faced overlooked the wide expanse of the grey tarmac which was entirely on show through the plate glass windows that overtook it. The surface of the asphalt wobbled with waves of heat from the sun beating down on it overhead.

“This isn’t your first time on a plane is it?” Gerard asked, smirking. She waved her hand indifferently.

“Of course not. I’ve been all over Europe, just never to the States. You came to us” she grinned. He could tell she was nervous and he was pretty sure it didn’t have anything to do with the flight.

“It’ll be okay, kid, we’ll take care of everything over here. Just look after yourself”

She shook her head.

“I don’t think it works like that when you’re supposed to be responsible for a whole country, Gerard. I’ll be worried the entire time”

He patted her hand for a moment and suddenly laced his fingers through hers. He glanced behind his shoulder for a moment, making sure the guard’s backs were turned and leaned forward, placing a single kiss on the edge of her jaw. The hairs on her neck stood on end as his lips brushed her ear, his warm breath on her skin.

“Trust me”

“I do. Just look after yourself too”

“I promise”

He held her gaze, searching her eyes. She looked scared and lost instead of the calm composure she normally exuded, except when something made her angry and it hurt to see her look so pained.

“Princess? The plane is ready for you now” interrupted a male voice. They turned simultaneously and pulled their hands apart, Gerard automatically stiffening in his seat. The Sargent stood in the doorway, wearing his formal uniform complete with hat.

He entered a code on a pad next to the door the tarmac and held it open expectantly. Dominika and Gerard rose to their feet and followed him through the door outside. The wind blew strongly through the large open space and Dominika’s hair whipped around behind her.

The special service plane sat idly at the base of a long runway that led out to the ocean, massive turbines whirring on either side of the fuselage. Gerard stayed by her side as they approached the base of a pressed metal staircase that led up to the cabin doors. The Sargent had to remove his hat so it wouldn’t be blown off his head in the wind generated by the engines.

“There’s two soldiers aboard to escort you back to the States” he said, raising his voice to be heard over the noise of the turbines.

“Thank you for everything, I am eternally grateful for the service of yourself and your men in protecting our beloved country. We are in debt to you” she said, bowing her head in respect.

“You can be confident in us, Princess, order will be restored in due course”

He shook her hand and nodded to Gerard briefly before leaving them to say their goodbyes alone. Dominika felt hot tears prick her eyes before he was even out of earshot. She blinked furiously, angry with herself for getting emotional. Gerard moved her chin upwards gently with his finger to see her eyes.

“Don’t cry, Domi, you’ll be back before you know it” he said, caressing her face softly with the back of his fingers.

She hugged him tightly, wishing he could come with her.

“I hope so. I’ll miss you”

“I’ll miss you too, kid”

She pulled away suddenly and kissed him with everything she had. Trying to put all the words she wanted to say but didn’t have time to into her actions. He sensed the desperation in her kiss and held her close to his body, his fingers twined in her loose hair. He bumped his forehead with hers gently and kissed the tip of her nose.

“Be good” he said “I’ll see you soon”

And with that he was gone, walking away from her down the tarmac back to the hangar. She watched him go as she climbed the stairs to the cabin, willing herself not to cry.

The inside of the plane was small but luxurious, clad in creamy leather with six large cushy seats in rows of two with an aisle up the center. She guessed the rest of the plane must have been used as a cargo hold, as the interior cabin seemed much smaller than the scale of the plane. The front row was occupied by two young soldiers in uniform with shaved heads. A woman dressed in formal military dress approached her from the hold near the cockpit, smiling warmly.

“Princess Dominika, welcome aboard. We’re so pleased to be escorting you to the United States today. Sit wherever you like” she said, gesturing to the empty seats.

She decided to sit in the back, returning the nod of acknowledgement from the pair of soldiers as she passed them. Taking her place in the window seat, she wondered where they’d stowed her bag. She buckled the scratchy seatbelt over her lap and leaned her head against the window, watching the tops of the woods in the distance thrash in the wind.
The door to the cabin was closed and sealed, and the engines either side of them picked up pace as the plane turned towards the ocean and began to taxi down the lengthy runway.

She gripped the seat till her knuckles were white, always having despised the loud metallic engine noises that accompanied a take-off or landing. They pulled away from the land and were airborne, flying across the blue water in seconds. Overwhelming sadness filled her as she realized these could be the last moments she would see her homeland for a very long time.

As the green of the land faded from sight a single tear spilled over, ran down her face and dropped onto her white hand in her lap.


Notes

My brother proof-read some chapters for me and asked me how to pronounce Dominika's name, so I thought I'd post it for you guys too in case you were wondering! Its like "Dominique-a"

Thanks for all the love <3 You guys are the best!

Is anyone as sad to leave Russia as I am? Its been super fun to write and I feel like I've been living in the Russian hillsides for about a month now whilst I've been writing this!

Comments

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Jackie Jackie
12/15/17

Thank you for the update!! It was a surprise & wonderful!

I’m so sorry to read about your husband. What a difficult & heartbreaking thing to go through. Thinking of you.

Jackie

Jackie Jackie
12/14/17

I love this story!! It’s so good!

Has it Really been two years since an update?

Jackie Jackie
11/30/17

I literally screamed when I saw this update.

AccidentalMurder AccidentalMurder
11/25/15

You've got quite a few loyal readers that will stick w this story no matter how long the break is.