Yuri held her back slightly so that he could look into her eyes. "You are sure," he said flatly.
"I haven't been to the doctor yet, but I've missed two periods and I feel queasy all the time."
To her surprise, Yuri smiled. "Perhaps it is good thing. Will be good for Tonika to have brother or sister. Maybe will be boy this time." He touched Erica's cheek gently, and for a moment it seemed just like when they'd first gotten together. "I know things are very different from your home, Erica, but it is not so bad. We can have good life together here in my country. You will see."
He's right, Erica told herself. In spite of the fact that he deliberately misled me, he's still my husband and Toni's father. All couples have hard times. We'll come through this somehow. That night she held closely to Yuri for comfort, and for the next few days, he seemed to go out of his way to be especially considerate of her. Her mood improved greatly. I suppose I can get used to this life, after all, she told herself.
She wrote to Jed and Matt and told them of her pregnancy, and of her resolve to work things out with Yuri. She never heard back from them. She was disappointed but knew that they had good reason to be hurt and angry. After all, in their eyes, she'd chosen her marriage to Yuri over not only her friendship with them but her loyalty to her country.
Erica was harvesting wheat with Yuri when a sudden contraction made her drop her sickle and double over in pain.
"It is time?" Yuri asked.
She nodded, unable to speak.
"I will take you to hospital."
Erica shook her head. "The nearest hospital is a 45-minute drive from here, and this baby isn't going to wait that long. With the condition your Dad's truck is in, it would never make it that far, anyway. Just help me back into the house, please, Yuri. I really don't want this baby to be born in the middle of a wheat field."
Leaning heavily on her husband, Erica made it back into the house somehow. Her water broke on the way, drenching her clothing. Once inside, Yuri helped her to undress and get into bed, where she lay curled into a ball, groaning. The contractions seemed more painful and closer together than they had when she'd given birth to Toni. Silently she prayed for strength to bear the pain and for it to be over with soon.
"The baby's about to come right now!" she told Yuri when the uncontrollable urge to push hit her. Yuri helped her to get into position to give birth. She felt a burning sensation, and suddenly the baby was in Yuri's hands. "Another girl," he said glumly, not even trying to hide his disappointment.
"We can name her Sonya," Erica said consolingly. She watched as Yuri cut the baby's umbilical cord, cleaned her up, and wrapped her in a clean towel. She made a soft bleating sound like a lamb until Yuri handed her to Erica, who held her to her breast.
"Oh, Sonya, you're beautiful!" Erica said to her new daughter. Yuri looked on, smiling sardonically.
Dear Jed and Matt,
I know that you are both very angry at me, but I have no one else to turn to now. I'm genuinely sorry about all of this. No matter what's happened, I still care for you both very much and hope that you can both find it in your heart to forgive me.
Yuri's gone. It just happened one day. I found Lyudmila crying her heart out and asked her what was wrong. She said the KGB came and took Yuri away. They wanted to ask him some questions about the time he spent in Canada after the Soviet troops had been called home, they told her, but she's sure none of us will ever see him again. She thinks he's been either imprisoned or executed.
Oh, guys, I'm so scared. All alone in this big, cold, empty country with a three-year-old and a three-month-old. Never in my life have I ever felt more all alone than I do right now. I suppose it was a mistake to fall in love with Yuri. I should have known it would turn out like this. One thing I don't regret, though, is that I have my precious Toni and Sonya. They're the light of my life, and I couldn't keep on going without them.
Love,
Erica