After we had come out of our initial shock, my sister Ekaterina told us it was time to leave for home, with a blank look on her face, and we decided to get out of that manor as soon as we could but we were stopped by the tall woman that, minutes ago, had been sitting in one of the front seats of the room while the testament was being read. She stood between us and the door that would lead us to the front hall of the large manor, of which the few people that had been there a couple minutes ago, were exiting and leaving in their automobiles and carriages. The woman was wearing an expensive looking black dress adorned with little sewn black chiffon flowers and lace around the cleavage. Her black gloves came all the way up to a little past her elbow and her jewellery shone in the chandelier's lights. She had a large veiled black hat tilted to one side and the veil covered her face almost completely. Her face reminded me very much of the General, but her features were not as hard, a fact for which I had assumed she had been the General's sister.

"You must be Ivan Braginski"

She said to me. My sisters, whom were standing at each side of me, looked up at me and the woman continued to look right into my eyes, her head tilted up. I was confused, but decided to answer nonetheless.

"Y-Yes I am, ma'am"

"Miss, actually"

She corrected me subtly, putting one slender and gloved finger in the air slightly. I nodded my head in apology and before I could open my mouth to verbalize it, she continued speaking.

"It appears that there had been some sort of "unfinished business" between you and my brother prior to his death. Do you mind if we speak in my brother's study in private"

I didn't know what this woman wanted to talk to me about and I didn't think the General and I had any "unfinished business" as she had said, but then thought back to my part of the inheritance and realised that perhaps she was right. I looked at my sisters.

"But, my sisters..."

"I can arrange for my carriage to take her to your home and come back, don't worry about that"

She dismissed it before motioning for me to go upstairs, to the second floor, where I very well knew the General's private study was. I kissed them both goodbye as I followed the woman upstairs, receiving a few puzzled looks from the servants and some of the guests that were leaving. I was mesmerized by the way the woman's small black bag swung from side to side as she climbed the marble stairs. She had been in the house several times because she knew where exactly the private study was, and I blindly followed her.

She opened the double doors and let her graceful fingers touch gently the surface of the large desk for a moment, looking down fondly at it, before quickly taking a seat in the General's former high-back chair. I closed the doors behind me and suddenly felt like I was in front of the General, walking timidly towards his strong embrace to give him my body to do as he pleased. I shook my head, trying to literally shake that thought away, and sat down in front of the woman, fidgeting with my gloves the same way I had done in my first day in the manor, sitting in front of the General.

"You are as beautiful as my brother described you, Ivan"

She said, making me look up in surprise. Did the General confide in her so much that he told her about me and my beauty? Obviously he confided in his sister enough to let her know of my existence and talk to her about our "unfinished business", but I had never heard the General speak about her. In fact, I hadn't known he had an almost identical sister before that night.

"W-Well, thank you, miss"

"You don't have to thank me for simply stating a fact"

She had a warm smile, but with her hard features, it seemed condescending. She opened her purse and took out an envelope after a brief second of staring right into my eyes, making me feel a little uncomfortable, as I had the first day I was face to face with General Winter. Everything about that woman reminded me of the General and I sometimes felt like crying. She slid the envelope to me and I looked at it like if it was something from other planet. I then looked up at her, who was looking back at me expectantly.

"My brother told me everything; we had been pretty close ever since our parents passed away when we were very young. I know the exact nature of your relationship. I won't judge you... now, in this moment of grief for me, I don't know what your feelings for my brother were, but I was sure about his'. The night before he died, he wrote this letter for you and was feeling terribly sorry for... what he did to you. He told me to give it to you if something happened to him"

She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. I took the letter into my hands.

"Read it, please"

I opened the envelope and took out the letter; it was short, more like a note than a letter, but it was the last thing I had been given to by the General

To my dear Ivan:

I am writing to you this evening with the intention of earning your forgiveness, even though I know that a letter won't make the difference for what I have done to you that fateful day, for which I blame myself and myself only, as it was my blind jealousy that led me to commit that horrible act. I am not expecting you to forgive what I did, or what I am about to do. I don't want you to blame yourself, but as I see that you don't have for me the same feelings I have for you and have them for someone else, I see no other exit. What I am about to do is the coward's way, but as I said, I see no other option if I have to choose between loosing you or dying.

I love you, Ivan, and I have ever since I saw you dancing at the sea innocently. My feelings for you are as pure as the snow that falls in the winter, as pure as your beauty.

I hope you live happily with Sadiq and that he gives you the love I couldn't give to you as I would have wished. Something else, watch out, my dear Vanya, this world is dangerous to people like you and your relationships will always be looked down upon, but you must not let others break you, you are special and everything that surrounds you is special. Please, don't let anyone take away the beauty you have in your soul.

Yours truthfully and with all my love,

"General Winter"

I felt my eyes water and a pang of guilt throughout my body. I looked up and saw that the General's sister was staring at me intently, with her head tilted to one side and resting on her finger, her right elbow on the armrest, reminding me a little of the General, who used to put both his elbows on the armrests of his chair, especially when he was watching me dance.

The General had been in love with me all that time and he had even committed suicide for me! I couldn't come out of my shock, for the hundredth time of the day.

"I... don't know... what to say..."

My voice was broken, just like my heart was and how the General's heart had been when he found out about my affair with Sadiq. When I thought back of Sadiq and how crushed the General appeared to have been, even though he had masked it with anger that day, I began to cry.

When I had finally calmed down, the General's sister slid a handkerchief to me and I blew my nose as silently as I could. She told me I could keep it and I laughed a little. I decided not to tell his sister the truth about the General's death for fear of hurting her, or maybe to protect myself, I don't know. I never knew.

That felt like the gloomiest day of my life up until that moment, that is.

I walked down the stairs, followed by the General's sister who called for her carriage and I refused her invitation to go along with her. I couldn't stand being in the same room with her, because she reminded me so much of the late General I could barely contain my tears. I had decided to walk home, even though it was pretty chilly outside, but suddenly I felt a strong hand grabbing my upper arm and pulling me flush against a firm chest. I squeaked in surprise.

"Ivan, I don't want you to go before speaking to me"

I turned around and came face to face with Sadiq, who let go of my arm and I stepped back a little. I couldn't look at him and not feel that pang of guilt throughout my body when I thought of the General and how he had literally killed himself for my love. But I also couldn't ignore the way my heart felt whenever I was close to Sadiq.

"Sadiq..."

"I have to go back to Istanbul as soon as I can. I want you to come with me"

I thought for a moment about my sisters and how they would be economically secure with what the General had left me in his testament, how I wanted to get away from the cold I so much hated and the way I felt when I was with Sadiq. The General had killed himself so I could be freely with him and I couldn't disappoint him in death as I had in life.

"I will"

Sadiq looked ecstatic and hugged me, leaning up to whisper in my ear.

"We will leave tomorrow night"

I wasn't too sure about leaving so soon. I wanted to get some things done before I departed to Turkey to probably never coming back.

Hello, my dear readers, I have kind of a writer's block so I don't know how to continue from here so I would appreciate if you would review and tell me if you want any specific pairings you want (know that Russia will always be uke, so think well) except with America and Canada, you can also suggest 2Ps if you want, so pretty please, help an in-periled writer continue his story *Puppy eyes* Thank you!