Mama regards me carefully and sighs. “Denial may seem convenient in the moment, Isaak. But in the long run, it causes more damage than is necessary. Trust me—I wish sometimes I hadn’t lived such a lie.”
I narrow my eyes at her. “If that’s what you wanted, then you shouldn’t have turned a blind eye while Otets killed his own brother.”
Her eyes go wide with hurt. She rises to her feet.
“You think I knew Vitaly was going to kill Yakov?”
“Of course not. Of course not!”
The very insinuation seems to cause her grave insult. I take note of that as I watch her fingers twitch involuntarily. She takes a breath after a moment.
“Don’t assume, Isaak. You don’t know the whole story.”
“Your father’s,” she says immediately. Then she sags forward. “And partly… mine.”
“I’m glad you can recognize tha
