«Is the car wrecked?»
«I can't say for sure,» the nurse replied. «You should ask Valeria Igorevna when she comes in.»
«Who’s Valeria Igorevna?» he asked, glancing at her.
«The woman who brought you here.»
«Got it.»
He drifted back to sleep.
«Hi there,» a woman’s voice said softly.
Spartacus opened his eyes with effort and saw a pretty blonde woman with her hair pinned at the back. She looked to be around forty, with a fresh face, sea-colored eyes, and full lips. Slightly slim, but it suited her. She sat near the bed, offering him a guilty smile.
“How are you feeling?” she asked.
“Who are you?” he said instead.
«My name is Valeria. You can call me Lera,» she replied gently.
«Nice to meet you, but that doesn’t tell me much.»
«Spartacus… you got into an accident because… well, because of me…» She seemed to struggle for words.
And then it hit him.
«You’re the one who stepped onto the road in front of me that night?»
«Yes.»
He sighed and shut his eyes. What an idiot.
«I'm so sorry. I wasn’t in my right mind. I was drunk.»
«Fantastic,» he said bitterly. Thanks to this reckless woman, he’d probably lost every chance to fix things with Nadya.
«I’ll cover the cost of your car and whatever else. The doctors say you’ll be discharged in a few days,» she said cautiously.
«You can’t return what I probably lost because of you,» he muttered without looking at her.
«I’m sorry. Truly. I was in a terrible mental state. Honestly… I was trying to take my own life.»
«What?» He stared at her.
Valeria turned away, nervously brushing her hand through her hair.
«Yes. I know—it was stupid. Divorce, heartbreak… you know. But you… you chose to save me, risking your own life.»
He wanted to yell something sharp and cruel. Fury burned in him. He would never—never—understand people who threw their lives away without caring about the pain and chaos they’d leave behind. It was the lowest act imaginable. But instead, he just stared at her silently. Valeria stood and walked to the window, only a few steps from his bed. Her white coat, casually thrown over her shoulders, didn’t hide her slender figure beneath the fitted suit. She stood with her back to him, and silence settled in the room.
«I need a phone,» he said at last.
«That’s… the hard part,» she sighed and turned to face him with lowered eyes.