Chapter 461: Bare Your Heart To Me Regardless, Beloved

* Just one to break your hearts today, see y’all in a few hoursssss

[FROLO]

The government narratives were falling apart like dominoes.

So much so that by the end of the first week since Masha’s plea for her son and the seventh week since Katya’s kidnapping, the first lady and the president stood together for a press conference.

It was probably an attempt at managing the endless protests across the city; that much people knew. But there was still the hope that Masha could get back her child.

It was the only way to put an end to it all.

Sergei’s disappearance from the public eye wasn’t even a subject anymore. People could have initially asked why he was not looking for Katya, but after the torture video they had seen of Belyaeva, they had their answers.

They knew better than to poke someone who was trying his very best to be a good mate. It hurt in the kind of way that Frolo itself had yet to understand.

Perhaps that was why the press conference announcement for the grand palace made no change to the people of Frolo.

They didn’t care because they knew it would probably be another bout of bullshit from their rulers. Probably an attempt at making things easier because Frolo at the moment was the most inhabitable city for anyone.

"Hello, Frolo. As your leader, I understand I should have made a better choice with everything. We are here to tell you that we did, in fact, take Mr. Katya Romanov into custody.

"We tortured the Romanov omega with the intention of getting through to Sergei Moskowsky. But we underestimated how far the devil was willing to step back because his omega asked him to.

"As a result, we made a few mistakes along the way. We want to assure the public that we will hand over the Romanov omega to his parents and keep the peace of Frolo.

"We have all lived here for a long time, and it would be unfair to be the ones to burn it down. From the presidential office, we apologize," President Boris said before he left with his wife.

The city that was watching from their homes, in the public squares, read through the bullshit, and honestly none of them bought it. Because after the press conference, there were more protests across the city.

There was no telling whether this was for the sake of Sergei or Katya or the government, or whether Frolo was asking for mercy in the only way they could for Sergei Moskowsky.

Inside Katya Romanov’s penthouse, Katya Romanov and Sergei Moskowsky were playing League of Legends, thanks to Sergei’s desire to beat his son in the game.

It was something that had started like a joke, but now, Sergei was getting his ass whooped by the man who was supposed to be his instructor. And each time he lost, he was comforted by a kiss.

At some point Katya began getting suspicious of his boyfriend.

"Damn, I know you’re terrible at playing, but goodness, you really are being worse on purpose, aren’t you?" Katya asked, but his alpha was suddenly interested in the ceiling.

"My face is not on the ceiling, Vladimirrr," Katya reminded, letting out an exaggerated sigh as the barbarian tried to keep his composure.

And Katya, he leaned to kiss Sergei’s cheek, as if to bring him back to him.

Before his lips met Sergei’s cheek, the alpha conveniently turned, pressing their lips together. And a kiss that began harmlessly somehow turned into the alpha and the omega claiming each other over and again on the couch, down to the carpet.

"You’re a bad influence, Solnyshka," Sergei grumbled on the floor, while Katya rode him hard.

"Says the one terrible at games," Katya laughed, clenching hard on Sergei.

"I have been a mod—" Sergei tried to argue, but Katya... gods.

Katya rode him like a horse, like he’d been waiting to do this for the five weeks they’d been apart. And Sergei tried to match his pace desperately, only that his omega was back.

The feral, little feline who took whatever he wanted.

The beautiful boy who had all the right to Sergei and who knew just how to get the alpha to moan and groan, to let out that one sound that always had Katya whining for more.

"Alpha..." Katya whined tiredly, resting his head on Sergei’s chest.

"Lyubim," Sergei responded hoarsely, too spent.

They both were.

Yet somehow both of them had decided the bedroom was a little too far, and so they stayed on the floor of the gaming room, lying down on the carpet like two horny wolves.

Which they were.

They’d been at it for hours on end.

Every chance they got, you’d think they were making up for the five weeks apart. Neither of them was complaining, and it was scarier even now that they had both gotten each other again.

"I... I have something to tell you... but you must promise not to get mad," Katya said, not getting off of Sergei, even as they both slept sideways so they were facing each other, while their bodies stayed connected.

"I don’t think I have a bone in me to be mad at anyone right now. My Solnyshka is back home; life is finally worth living again. Lay it on me, lyubim," Sergei said, and Katya let out a soft laugh at that.

He traced his alpha’s cheek with his finger, watching the alpha as if he wanted to commit the man’s face to memory.

"I missed you so much, I thought..." Katya said, talking about his experience in the dungeon for the first time since he’d returned home.

Sergei hadn’t tried to push him into saying anything. Sure, Katya had talked to his family and their friends about it, but Sergei had been sleeping at the time.

"I... I thought we’d... I’d never see you again," Katya said, and Sergei’s eyes opened.

"We?" Sergei asked.

"Yeah... we. I thought we’d never be together again," Katya said, but Sergei didn’t believe him.

Not because he didn’t know that they missed each other and all that shit. But he couldn’t help but think that there was more to what Katya was saying.

That Katya wanted to say something else.

But he listened still.

Stayed composed.

Because this was a moment he’d missed so much.

Gods, he loved Katya Romanov with everything.

"No one will ever take you away from me again," Sergei promised, especially now that Katya had told him to do whatever was needed as long as Sergei came back to him.

Katya understood the art of war. He was a Romanov, and while violence was something that he didn’t see daily, he was taught to expect it at any point over the years he was growing up anyway.

So he knew this was not going to be easy.

"I know... My strong alpha will always come for me," Katya said with pride, and Sergei chuckled, leaning in to kiss Katya again.

When they pulled back, Katya kissed his nose gently, domestic, as if this was now the kind of normal that they would be having daily. Home was back, and finally he was worth everything.

"There is nothing to be mad about there, Solnyshka. Why did you think I’d be mad?" Sergei said and Katya stiffened for a moment, his hand pausing just above Sergei’s cheek again.

"You’re bald," Katya snorted, deflecting.

"Little wolf..."

"I... I think... don’t be mad. Promise me," Katya said, and Sergei raised a brow.

"Sol—"

"Please, alpha. Promise me."

"Alright, little wolf. I promise. I won’t be mad."

"Great. I... I lost our b... the doctor said it was the side effect of the torture and the drugs. I didn’t know. I... if I knew, I wouldn’t have... I just..." Katya rambled, pulling his hand away from Sergei’s cheek, determined to pull away from Sergei too.

But Sergei’s grip on his waist was firm and gentle.

Stiff as hell, the alpha stared like he was not sure he had heard things right.

"Solnyshka..."

"Three weeks..."

"What?" Sergei breathed, pained.

"You promised you wouldn’t be mad," Katya said, lips trembling.

But Sergei...

Oh, Sergei.

"It wasn’t your fault," Sergei said in earnest, pulling Katya close.

"I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner. I’m really sorry you had to deal with that on your own. I love you," Sergei said, peppering kisses on Katya’s face, as the omega held back his tears.

"If I knew..."

"You didn’t, and it doesn’t make you a bad person. Certainly doesn’t make me love you any less... but Solnyshka... I can’t forgive them," Sergei said earnestly.

And Katya...

The omega let himself cry for the first time since he’d found out three and a half weeks ago.

While Sergei finally understood why his calm, always composed omega emptied a magazine into that soldier who’d shot Sergei.

He must have been so scared of losing Sergei too.

Fuck.

Katya had been alone.

Again.

He’d dealt with another miscarriage alone while Sergei was fading. The first time it had happened, Sergei had been chained up.

This time, Sergei...

Oh, but the alpha couldn’t even begin to understand the pain Katya must have felt.

That Katya was feeling this time too.

Reaching for his phone, Sergei made a call to the farm.

"Burn the group at The Farm and send Boris and his wife a detailed process. Tell them it’s a gift from me. You have four hours."

When he set the phone down, Katya was still crying. And Sergei held him close, because even he knew there was nothing he could possibly do to undo the damage they had done to his Solnyshka. There was nothing he could say that would make it okay.

"I’m not mad at you, my beautiful. It was never your fault," he reassured, not letting go.

Across the city, Latif stared at the footage of Sergei from the football hall the night Kaya was first captured.

"Oh, Sergei definitely knows about Project B.U.R.A.N."