Chapter 451: In Your Hands, The Petals Almost Bloomed

[FROLO]

Frolo was hell.

It was the only way to describe the city.

The public was seeing a mother was hoping to get her son back.

A senator had just been blackmailed and chose a different blackmailer.

No one knew what was going on in the minds of Sergei Moskowsky or even the Romanovs, other than the video that had been made.

The government had come out with its third statement of the day, denying that they had any involvement with Katya Romanov.

"Good evening. It has been brought to our attention the case of Mrs. Masha Romanova, and the claims that threaten to ruin the relationship the government of Frolo has with its citizens.

"With this statement, the government would wish to make things clear. The accusations against the government operations are false and are ill-founded. We should not use the grief of one mother to point fingers at entities that are not responsible.

"The government took no part in handling one Mr. Katya Romanov, an omega who has been associated with Mr. Sergei Moskowsksy. All our operations are transparent, as we have been with you from the very beginning.

"We are in no position to return something and someone we do not have. We are very sorry that the Romanovs are missing their child. But perhaps it would be better if they asked Mr. Moskwsksy.

"Seeing as he is in a better position to know who his enemies are and explain to the Romanovs if there is a chance the enemies took their son. That is all from the government. Thank you and have a fantastic evening, Frolo."

And that prompted the citizens to do their own research.

Within hours, there were videos of Katya being escorted out of Romanov Steel by the president’s chief of staff, something that debunked the falsehood the government was claiming.

And now the government was still trying to figure out how to say they fucked up without admitting it to the people, because an admission would lay out holes and ideals that no one was going to be ready for yet in the government.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, the city was brought back to the old case that had gotten the entire city at a standstill.

The Romanov Miscarriage case.

Katya Romanov.

But it wasn’t just the highlights; it was who was there this time.

Doctor Milena Belyaeva. The doctor whom Sergei had kidnapped from prison nearly a year ago. No one knew what had happened to the doctor. But today, they could see it clearly.

They could see what had happened to the doctor.

What was happening to the doctor.

The brutality of it all.

And fuck if this was the kind of cruelty even the devil had to sit down for.

"In our breaking news, we have gotten access to live footage of the former psychotherapist who handled Mr. Katya Romanov as her patient for over five years and was paid by the former Frolo General Hospital head nurse, Milan Popova.

"The city remembers her as one of the key doctors who was supposed to make life better for their patient and instead participated directly in the ruining of Katya Romanov’s life," Sierra began, as she played some of the court clips from the doctor Belyaeva investigation.

****

[FLASHBACK, A year ago]

"Doctor Milena Belyaeva," the court officer called the therapist. And when she was done taking the oath, the court officer stepped aside and let the prosecutor deal with her.

"State your name and profession," an exhausted Justice Orlov said.

"Doctor Milena Belyaeva, clinical psychologist and trauma specialist. Practiced for sixteen years so far."

"Proceed, prosecutor."

Prosecutor Rostova grabbed a thicker file from her table and walked toward the therapist, gently placing it on the podium as if she needed support for this cross-examination.

"Doctor Belyaeva, do you recognize this file?"

"Yes... It’s Chairman Romanov’s therapy file."

Yaroslav growled lowly again. And Katya stared at everyone as if to tell them that he had this under control again.

"How long was Chairman Romanov your patient?"

"Four years and eleven months."

"During those years, how frequently did you see him?"

"Weekly... Sometimes twice a week and on worse days, emergency sessions."

Oh, how Masha’s heart broke for her only child.

"Approximately how many sessions?"

"Three hundred and twelve sessions."

"Three hundred and twelve opportunities to help him?"

"...Yes."

Then the prosecutor opened the file, and everyone could swear the therapist froze in her spot.

"Your notes on session thirteen state: Patient believes his inability to carry a child makes him less of an omega... Did you write that?"

"Yes."

"Was it true? And did you tell him otherwise?"

"No."

"Session thirty-one says: Patient repeatedly apologizes for destroying his husband’s future. Did you write that?"

"Yes... It wasn’t true."

Yaroslav was losing his shit.

Oh, he was so close to snapping again.

And for the first time since he had started reacting to the court, Svet and Andre looked at the Beta like they would step up if he didn’t make it up there and strangle the shit out of that doctor.

"Did you correct him?"

"No."

"Session fifty-seven: Patient says Mr. Gamov deserves someone capable of giving him children." Did you know at the time that Chairman Romanov had never been infertile?"

"...Yes."

"Yet you allowed him to continue believing he had ruined his marriage."

"...Yes."

"Session one hundred and five: Patient wonders if love alone is enough when he cannot build a family. Did you write that?"

"...Yes."

"Doctor Belyaeva... what did you tell him?"

"That acceptance was part of healing."

"Acceptance of what?"

"...His infertility," her lips trembled.

"An infertility that never existed."

"...Yes."

Every question from the prosecutor that related to the notes was like a stab to Katya’s heart.

"How many times did Chairman Romanov ask you, ’Why can’t I carry my children?"

"...Twenty-three."

"What answer did you give him each time?"

"I told him sometimes life isn’t fair."

"Did you ever once tell him, ’This wasn’t your fault..."

"No... Because if he questioned the diagnosis, everything would’ve collapsed."

Yaroslav suddenly let out a broken, empty laugh, making everyone turn to him.

"He asked you... Twenty-three times?" and the therapist didn’t answer. Instead, she stayed with a bowed head, and when Yaroslav didn’t press, the prosecutor continued.

"Doctor Belyaeva, did Chairman Romanov ever blame himself for Mr. Gamov’s affair?"

"...Yes, repeatedly."

This time, it was Andre who growled, and Yaroslav keened and removed his hand from Katya’s like he knew the tables were about to be flipped real bad. The city may have had a reputation for suffering when they came at him.

But Svet and Andre didn’t give two shits about the fear of beating Yaroslav that had been spread across the city. They would beat him black and blue harder than he had strangled the surgeon earlier.

"Did you know that guilt influenced his decision to keep enduring the marriage silently?"

"...Yes."

"Did you ever tell him he deserved the truth?"

"...No."

"Did you ever encourage Mr. Romanov to seek a second medical opinion?"

"No, because we would’ve been exposed."

And of course, the courtroom erupted again, and the court marshal barely managed to keep order.

Justice Reginia removed her glasses and looked at the woman before her, disappointment written all over her face.

"Professor Sorokin lied to medical records, Doctor Hamid lied inside an operating theatre. And you... You lied inside the only room where your patient believed he was safe?" she asked.

The therapist began crying, but Justice Reginia didn’t give two shits about that.

"When he cried, blamed himself, and mourned children that he believed nature had taken from him, did you comfort him?"

Doctor Belyaeva didn’t answer.

So Reginia continued.

"Tell this court, doctor, which crime should we consider the cruelest? The lie that killed a child... children... or the lie that forced a parent to spend five years believing they deserved to lose that child?"

Again, the doctor didn’t answer, instead turned to crying like that would save her from all this.

Did she deserve it, though?

"This Court will stand in recess for fifteen minutes. The witnesses are to remain under judicial custody. We’ll resume with the remaining examination," the Chief Justice said as the last witness got off the stand.

"All rise," the court officer said as the judges rose from the bench.

And then the judges stepped out...

The court erupted, again.

This time, the court marshal didn’t have to ask them to be in order...

Thankfully.