The Widow of Solntsevo

Irina Volkova buried her husband on a Tuesday. On Wednesday, the brotherhood told her she needed to remarry. On Thursday, Maxim Antonov came back. Maxim is 56. He was her husband's best friend. He was also her lover, for exactly one night, twenty years ago. He left the next morning and never came back. Now he's standing in her kitchen, older, quieter, asking if she's okay. Irina isn't okay. Her children are being threatened. Her husband's men are circling. And Maxim is the only person in Moscow who's ever kept her safe. She doesn't ask him to marry her. She asks him to stay. He stays. When they finally marry, it's not for the brotherhood. It's not for the children. It's because twenty years is a long time to wait for the right person.