All pleased with myself, I went downstairs for breakfast.
Yay — it smells like pancakes.
Somebody could use some pancakes.
I rubbed my palms together.
Yeah, and some cellulite too — don’t overdo it. — Hades
Oh, get lost.
You’ll get fat and no one will want to fuck us.
Even if I’m fat, I’ll still be hot. Got it?
Whoa, whoa, whoa.
And we burst out laughing.
Wolves showed up at the window.
I smiled.
Hi, guys.
I was glad to see them, but they never come without a reason.
Deep breath.
3, 2, 1.
Miss.
I raised my hand.
Did Caleb come?
Sebastian nodded.
Mom? Logan sprang up.
It’s okay, sweetheart. I’ll have security with me.
But Logan got up too, dead set on protecting me.
I smiled.
My dear — only with headphones. I don’t want you to hear any of this.
Okay, Mom.
I kissed my son.
My dear boy.
I walked out, full of anger.
What do you want, you bastard?
Darling — Caleb caught himself. I realized Logan’s presence was making him uncomfortable.
I hugged my son.
Sweetheart, please leave us.
My son nodded reluctantly.
Caleb shifted from one foot to the other.
I turned around.
Coward.
Caleb lunged at me and grabbed my elbow.
What, bastard — you gonna hit me?
Go on, freak. Your daddy taught all of us that perfectly well. It’s not a problem, asshole. Go ahead. Hit me, you animal.
Darling, darling…
He dropped to his knees.
Please.
Tears started streaming down Caleb’s face.
I softened.
Damn.
Get up.
What happened?
I broke ties with my father.
Did you at least hit that bastard?
Caleb lowered his eyes.
You’re pathetic.
He beat your mother, you, your sister, your aunts — everyone.
All of them.
And you, you freak, you can’t even be a man and protect them.
I kicked him.
Go to hell, coward.
Darling, I’m begging you.
Caleb dropped to his knees again, covered his face with his hands, and started sobbing.
Oh God — and after all that, you’re the girl here? — Hades
I waved him off.
Shut up.
I looked at the horizon and patted Caleb on the back.
The world changed a long time ago.
The illusions have collapsed. Powerful, strong men cry.
And they cry like wolves howl —
from pain and resentment.
These men cry.
They cry hard.
But they do it sincerely.
The alpha image collapsed.
A man can earn enormous money.
I thought about Caleb’s circle.
Each of those bastards owns restaurants,
hotels,
insane money,
power —
but their minds are a mess.
These men barely understand what’s happening.
All they know how to do is follow orders.
That’s it, Nazokat.
One moment — and the world collapses.
There are strong men.
There are powerful men.
But that has nothing to do with money.
Or not always.
Damn. — Hades
That’s not even the word, my friend.
Not even close.
I hugged Caleb.
He pulled away and straightened up.
We went upstairs.
I put him to bed in the bedroom.
Caleb instantly pulled himself together and adjusted his suit.
I’ll handle it myself.
I kicked him in the back of the knee.
He dropped.
Listen to me carefully, you piece of shit.
Don’t you dare act like you’re in charge. I dragged you out of such shit — without me you would’ve died. So shut your mouth and do what I said.
Caleb lowered his eyes.
Whether you like it or not, we’re going to rebuild your inner child. And little children cry, you fucking freak — and they need care.
But I’m not little.
Shut up and lie down.
I don’t want to.
It doesn’t matter.
Your psyche is at its limit, you bastard.
You don’t understand anything about psychology or medicine.
And nobody here is asking for a yacht.
So shut up and do what I said.
He lay down reluctantly.
I went into the bathroom.
The door closed.
And I collapsed to the floor, crushed by pain
and loneliness.
I can’t believe I’m alone again.
And stronger than my man. Again.
And I started crying.
God…
That’s not true. — a soft voice.
I raised my head.
The shaman gently lifted my chin.
He’s strong. He’s just wounded. Give him a little time — he’ll lift the world again. Don’t forget what he’s achieved. He’s very strong.
I smiled.
Thank you.
And the shaman hugged me.
Come on, darling. Steady yourself.
I wiped my tears.
Inhale.
And a long, deep exhale.
I pulled my face tight —
like I control everything, like everything is fine.
I walked out.
Tomorrow you’re going to kindergarten.
What? I’m not going!
Shut up.
You and your mother are going to kindergarten, nice and obedient. Do you understand me? You’ll go as long as I say.
I took his phone away.
And don’t you dare touch your phone.
Now you’ll sleep and then you’ll go mold clay.
What?! I’m not doing any of that. Have you lost your mind?
Something inside me dropped.
Caleb is very powerful. His energy is strong. And I’m tired of handling it.
Standing against his strength is not easy.
And I have my own projects too.
I have to write.
I have to carry my readers through.
Personal therapy sessions.
All of it required enormous energy.
I’m tired.
Tired as a woman.
Tired as a therapist.
Tired as his beloved.
I’m tired.
And I burst into tears.
I looked at him.
Get out, you piece of shit.
He froze.
I’m serious, Caleb. You’re dumb as hell.
You’re an idiot.
You understood nothing.
You worthless bastard, you don’t have a single person in your life who can pull you out the way I do.
You’ll die without me.
And not only are you ungrateful —
you dare to defy me.
You don’t value what I do, you ungrateful asshole.
You don’t value it, you selfish bastard.
He stood up.
Darling —
Shut up.
I sat down, exhausted.
You’ve done nothing for me, you pathetic bastard.
I exhaled again.
Do you have any idea what it costs me to think about you, you ungrateful piece of shit?!
To care.
To write for you.
To comfort you.
To always be there.
And I started crying.
How much have I done for you, you piece of shit?!
And you, you pig, dare to tell me where to go and act like you’re the one in charge?
Always trying to prove you’ve got balls, you worthless bastard.
Stupid.
Stupid, stupid, you fucking bastard.
Did you ever stop to think what you gave me in return?
What did you give me?
What did you ever do for me?
You only take and take.
Everything for yourself, you selfish bastard.
Caleb started crying.
I stood up.
Piece of shit. Playing the victim again.
Again all the attention on you.
Again — poor you, it hurts, you’re so ashamed of yourself.
And I’ll go pick myself up again. Alone.
You stupid bastard.
All about you.
Logan walked into the room.
Mom.
Come in, sweetheart.
Mom, he fell — right here, Mom.
And he immediately clenched his fists.
What did you say to her?!
Caleb pulled himself together.
Both of them braced for a fight.
I started crying.
How can you be this stupid, Caleb? This stupid?
And Logan led me out of the bedroom.
14:15
Finally, Caleb’s mother was brought in.
She can barely think.
I nodded.
No wonder. She looks like she’d been kept in a basement for years.
Jess, you and Caleb are going into intensive therapy.
She’s still shaking.
I swore.
And got angry at myself.
Damn it. She’s a woman — she needs a man to recover.
Caleb? — Hades.
No. Not her son. She needs a man.
Are you blind? Look at her — she’s about to drop dead. — Hades
I rolled my eyes.
She’s not going to sleep with anyone. That’s not the point. The point is awakening. Her body has to remember that a man can be safe.
Ahhh.
Idiot.
Michael.
He turned around.
I widened my eyes at him.
Hug Jess.
He stared at me.
Do it. I said.
He jumped up instantly and hugged her.
I led them into the living room
and sat them down on the couch.
The situation was ridiculous.
Just plain idiotic.
They were sitting there like hostages.
Alright.
Got it.
Mike.
Yes, miss.
Drink.
I poured the whiskey.
Jess.
Drink.
And they all started drinking.
I could barely hold back my laughter.
But there was no other option.
These two won’t relax any other way.
Caleb can barely breathe — he’s barely holding himself together.
His mother is almost a vegetable.
I have to pull them all through this.

23:11
Thank God.
Everyone’s drunk.
Even Sebastian.
I laughed.
Sit still. I’m taking a picture.
Caleb next to me.
Drunk as hell.
Darling, I love you, I love you.
He reached for me — he was seeing double.
I was dying of laughter.
I pushed his face away with my palm.
You stink.
Get off me.
Jonathan walked into the living room.
What’s going on here?
I waved my hand.
Don’t mind it.
Jonathan’s from New York. He’s used to this.
I pretended to be angry.
Oh really, mister?
So the important ass is now so grown-up he doesn’t even laugh anymore?
Are you above us now, sir? Are we commoners to you?
Jonathan raised an eyebrow without even lifting his head from his phone.
Caleb got angry.
Hey — don’t mess with my woman.
I laughed.
Don’t mind him.
Hey!
Caleb tried to stand up and fell almost immediately.
God, what an idiot.
My stomach hurt from laughing.
But I liked Caleb like this.
It felt like this was the real him.
Not the version molded by his tyrant father.
Here he was the boy he was born as.
Jealous.
Capable of loving.
And someone who wouldn’t survive being betrayed again.
He trusted me. He trusted his mother.
He trusted himself.
He looks at the world as if begging it not to stab him in the back.
My heart tightened, and I kissed him.
The gentlest kiss.
Everything will be okay.
I’m here.
Your mom is here too.
The tyrant is gone.
He will never hurt you again.
Not you.
Not your mother.
You did it.
You protected her.
Caleb hugged me and broke down again.
I waved at Jonathan irritably, signaling him to leave.
He stared at me, like — great, now I’m the bad guy too?
I smiled.
“Silly Jonathan,” I said in a Peppa Pig voice.
I have my own methods.
Not exactly scientific.
But they work.
They work.
W o r k.
And that’s that.
Alright.
Caleb, sweetheart, it’s time —
Ahhh — I fell trying to lift him.
And his mother burst out laughing.
From the depth of her soul and heart.
She doubled over laughing.
Tears were streaming down her face.
She couldn’t stop.
My vision blurred.
The spirits pulled me into the past.
I saw Caleb’s mother.
She’s young — twenty-three, maybe twenty-four.
Caleb is holding onto a little push toy.
He’s learning to walk.
He’s so cute.
So chubby.
He’s trying to take his first steps.
His mother says:
Come on, Caleb, sweetheart, come on, you can do it.
Caleb tries again.
And again.
And finally he takes two steps.
And then — he falls.
Caleb’s mother laughs.
Not cruelly.
But from tenderness — this little chubby boy landed right on his head.
She finds it so funny. She’s happy.
She’s laughing with that deep, maternal laughter.
The same kind of laughter she’s laughing right now.
I looked at Caleb.
He’s crying.
He hugged his mother.
They all understood.
They felt it — how it had been back then.
They remembered.
And I started crying.
Mother and son together again.
Again.
God.
After so many years.
I gave them time, and then I pulled Caleb away.
Come on, sweetheart, it’s time.
Caleb reluctantly let go of his mother.
I signaled security to help him upstairs to the bedroom.
I wiped my forehead — there was still a ton of work to do.
But it was a happy kind of exhaustion.
What could be better than family?
Nothing.

Day Four
6:15
I was already on my first shot of the day.
Miss, are you coming down with something?
Looks like it, my friend.
Sebastian lifted the napkin slightly.
Is that it, miss?
He raised an eyebrow.
I nodded.
Alright. Let’s treat it.
On the tray — a shot of vodka with a pepper floating in it.
Come on, Nazokat.
Emergency treatment.
We’ll rest later, baby.
And I threw back the vodka.
Jesus Christ.
That’s vile.
Pickles?
Miss.
Perfect.
I took a bite.
And laughed.
What can I say? People born in Russia don’t go down from a little illness.
Patriotism? — Hades stopped filing his nails and grimaced.
I spat.
Don’t talk nonsense.
I exhaled sharply. Quickly. Give me the second shot.
Careful, woman, that’ll knock you out.
I don’t know, my friend.
We haven’t hit it like this in a long time.
He pretended to think.
Not since this giant problem landed on us.
I narrowed my eyes.
No, no, we all love Caleb here. Truly.
But that bastard is a walking problem.
I shrugged. What can I say?
It’s true.
Caleb is a walking problem.
But that guy is dear to my heart.
I blushed.
Very dear.
Mine started squealing.
Ooooh. Love, love.
I brushed them off.
Shut up.
Alright, Ruzik, pull yourself together. It’s time to lift up the ones who hold the world together.
I put on a mini skirt.
Then grimaced.
Not today.
What? We’re amazing in a mini.
I sighed. Caleb is in child mode — and then he flips straight into psycho mode. He’s unstable. I need to stay close without triggering him sexually.
If I bend over in a mini —
he’ll get to work immediately.
Exactly.
Mine sighed and took another shot of vodka.
Because of Caleb, I’m back on a diet.
I can’t believe a diamond like me has to suffer without a man’s hands.
Disasteeeeer.
A long, dramatic sigh.
We bumped fists.
And I went to get dressed.
A pencil skirt and a blouse with ruffles.
Are you sure? What if we have to lift them?
The guys will do the lifting.
I flicked a glance toward security.
Heels.
A little perfume.
Alright. Let’s go.

Dining room.
Guys.
Caleb’s mother is there — next to Michael.
My eyebrows shot up.
Oh wow.
Those two are already flirting.
No way.
I turned around and pretended I needed something from Sebastian.
Miss.
Cover me.
Yes, miss.
He pretended to be saying something important.
Meanwhile I wiped away a tear.
God, I’m so happy.
Caleb’s mother is glowing.
I trust Mike one hundred percent.
He’s genuinely good.
Yeah, and broke. — Hades.
I stared at him.
Seriously? Nate personally manages his finances. That guy is more than fine.
Whoa, whoa, alright, woman — we’re a little tense today, huh?
Get lost.
I shoved him against the wall.
Deep breath.
Caleb is on the floor, molding clay.
I smiled.
And adjusted my skirt.
Damn.
Everything inside me tightened.
Damn.
I can’t go at him head-on.
He’s in child mode. If he senses how badly I want him — therapy is over.
I’ll wound him.
His body will read it as violence.
His brain will label me a pedophile.
Damn.
I carefully stepped back
before he could see me.
…
Aeris.
Miss.
Caleb stays under cameras. You’ll do everything I say.
She nodded.
Miss, why aren’t you leading him personally?
I looked at the camera.
You’ve seen him… Caleb is so damn gorgeous — even at home, in a suit and a white shirt, with those strong arms…
Oh God, I’ve missed those arms…
Kill me.
I cleared my throat.
Anyway. I can’t.
She licked her lips.
I snapped and pinned her to the wall.
Listen to me carefully.
Pull yourself together — brain.
I caught myself.
Damn.
Ahem.
Aeris, please. It’s very hard for me that Caleb will be without me. Please.
Deep breath.
Please.
Don’t.
Ooooh, mommy’s gone cuckoo! - Hades

I barked, “Get the hell away.”

She instantly straightened up.
Miss, I wasn’t even thinking—
I looked at her lips again.
There’s a small cut there.
For fuck’s sake.
Idiot. — Hades and Mushu were pointing at me and openly laughing.
“Hey, listen to me, I’m the sheriff here,” Hades mocked, deliberately twisting my voice.
I grimaced and kicked him.
Get lost, idiot.
Whoa, whoa, as you say, Sheriff — just don’t shoot.
As you say.
And they raised their hands in surrender.
Then doubled over laughing again.
Bastards.

Bedroom 4.
I’m standing by the cameras.
Caleb, obediently, molds whatever I tell him to out of clay.
The spirits are standing around him — his grandmother, his mother.
Her spirit is here.
They’re all proud of him.
The shaman looks straight into the camera.
It’s time.
I send security in.
They start hitting Caleb.
He’s terrified.
Don’t move. Stay still — brain.
I suppressed the reflex.
My soul is tearing its way out.
Everything inside me is screaming in horror.
Stop. This is your job. — Brain.
I take a deep breath
and clasp my hands behind my back.
A silent command to my body.
Pull yourself together.
The tears dry. I’m back in formation.
James — the security guard. Big. Built almost exactly like Caleb’s father.
He hits Caleb.
Caleb tries to pull himself together. He doesn’t understand what’s happening.
I hold it together.
But the tears still run on their own.
I speak into the microphone, telling them exactly what to do and how.
James beats Caleb,
calls him worthless, calls him nothing, a pathetic piece of shit.
I’m crying.
Enough.
James leaves.
Aeris is gone too. She left the moment security came in.
There’s a bed in the bedroom.
I’m horrified.
This is Caleb’s child part.
This is exactly how his father used to beat him.
God knows for what — he would just burst in and take it out on him.
Bastard.
I rip the earpiece out
and start crying.
How am I supposed to endure this?
Caleb curls up on the bed, hugging his favorite toy.
But it gets worse.
Pull yourself together. — Brain.
Breathe, Nazokat. Breathe.
You have to. Let’s finish this. We need to close the session.
I take a deep breath.
The camera switches.
Behind the door, James throws a mannequin.
In the background, a recording plays.
His mother’s voice — recreated by AI.
She’s crying, begging for mercy.
Caleb’s father is beating her.
The boy is frozen in terror.
Caleb.
Crying.
He’s paralyzed. He doesn’t know what to do.
He’s crying.
Damn, my heart is breaking.
I see him as a little boy.
The child is shaking in fear.
He loves his mom. Why is his dad so cruel?
His mother is so kind, so good.
The boy wants to protect her — but how? His father would kill him.
Wait. — Brain.
I nod.
I jerk forward.
Stop. Let him. — Brain.
Caleb throws the teddy bear against the wall
and rushes into the next bedroom.
He’s going to kill his father.
He’s going to kill him.
Good. I’m steady now.
Maximum focus.
Caleb storms into the bedroom in a rage
and hits James.
James hits him back.
Fall.
Get up.
Spit.
Call him a worthless little bastard.
Tell him he’ll never achieve anything in life — that he’s nothing.
Tell him you’ll strangle him. Or stab him.
Call his mother a whore.
Say you’ll kill her too.
More.
Press him harder.
Fall.
Good.
I exhale and rip the earpiece out.
Caleb, furious, starts kicking doors open one after another.
He’s looking for me.
I step out on my own.
Security immediately closes ranks.
You bitch, what the hell are you doing?!
You fucking bitch, get over here!
I sigh.
Why are we always the ones getting insulted? — Hades.
I shrug.
It’s part of the job, boys.
Alright. Three, two — go.
James comes back, bruised and angry.
Come here, you piece of shit!
I shout:
Caleb, you’re an asshole. A bastard.
We have to create a mental shift in him — disorientation and aggression from both sides. We need to create serious cognitive dissonance in Caleb’s mind.
If it goes out of control, I’ll inject a sedative or knock him out with a blow to the temple.
If everything goes right, he’ll regulate on his own.
Caleb starts beating James.
I nod. Good choice.
First the physical threat — then me.
Caleb overpowers James, but I notice he’s slowing down.
He’s about to burn out.
James.
He immediately strikes Caleb in the throat, then with a blow to the temple.
I exhale.
Caleb collapses.
I tilt my head.
Everyone leaves.
I’m in the hallway next to Caleb.
Come on, sweetheart. Time to level out.
The therapy is brutal, but there’s no other way.
I turn on the recording I prepared in advance.
It’s his mother’s voice — laughing, saying the things he might remember from childhood.
There’s background noise — soft rustling — like she’s cooking something sweet for him.
Pancakes, maybe.
She’s ruffling his hair.
“My clever boy.”
“Who’s my little sweet tooth?”
There’s a clip of her cheering for him at a football game.
“Come on, Caaaaleeb! Go!”
Where she comforts him because Caleb is afraid to recite his poem in kindergarten.
He’s afraid his father will find out that he sometimes stumbles, that he might not say it perfectly.
She supports him. She hugs him.
“You can do it, Caleb. You’re such a smart boy.”
Where they walk home together and he tells her about his dinosaur.
The dinosaur roars.
“Rrrrraaa!”
Caleb is just a little boy, trying to scare his mom.
And his mom screams,
“Oh no, how scary! Ooooh, I’m scared! I’m scared!”
“Ooooh, I’m scared!”
And Caleb is thrilled that he managed to scare such a big, grown-up mom.
Like in the park, when a little animal jumped at her and she flinched — then smiled.
And Caleb froze in horror.
And his mom hugged him.
“Don’t be afraid, sweetheart. I’m right here.”
“Easy, Caleb. It’s okay.”
“Don’t be upset, my love.”
And she kisses his hair.
And the recording keeps looping and looping.
I hold him on my lap.
While he sleeps, his subconscious is in shock — it begins searching.
And the recording embeds itself into the new Caleb.
His mind blurs the lines between realities
and rebuilds a new picture of the world for little Caleb.
The inner child settles down and simply falls asleep
while the adult Caleb deals with adult things.

23:17
Come on.
I storm into Caleb’s room like a madwoman.
What the hell did you do, you piece of shit?
He wakes up, confused.
“Sweetheart—”
Bastard.
I slap him across the face.
You piece of shit, you promised me.
And yet—
Bastard.
I’m crying.
Caleb doesn’t understand.
“Sweetheart, what? I don’t understand—”
Of course. Of course.
Idiot.
I hit him again.
Caleb starts shaking.
Security is on standby.
The moment his old pattern takes over, he’ll try to hit me.
What is going on?!
Caleb, you’re such an idiot. I trusted you and you—
What the hell are you talking about?!
Just a little more. Come on, Nazokat.
You bastard. You’re nothing. You’re weak.
Caleb snaps.
He lunges at me.
I scream.
Security bursts in instantly.
On your knees!
They force him down onto his knees.
Caleb is furious.
I stand there.
A blow to the temple.
Caleb blacks out.
What was that for? — Hades.
I press my fingers to the bridge of my nose.
Damn, I’m so tired.
I go down to the dining room and ask for tea.
Hades won’t let it go.
I sigh.
I hate explaining the obvious.
It exhausts me.
It had to be done. Drop it.
But whyyyy?
God.
Because in his sleep, his subconscious will rewrite the scene the way it needs to — but that takes time.
And because of how intense the therapy was, Caleb is slightly disoriented.
I use that. I deepen the disorientation so his identity can shift.
Not rewrite it — erase his father’s programming. Everything that was planted in him.
I see. — Hades looks stunned.
I roll my eyes.
Don’t pretend this is complicated.
Enough. Drop it.
I keep popping cherry tomatoes into my mouth and stare out the huge dining room window.
Not even a second later, the wolves arrive.
I curse.
Guys, I need a break, for God’s sake.
I’m exhausted.

A week passes.
Caleb’s mother spends all her time with Michael.
I’m happy.
Good.
Let her stabilize.
There was a dangerous moment, to be honest — her trauma runs so deep she could have truly lost it, stood up, stabbed Michael, and then gone after Caleb’s father.
It happens.
Sometimes.
But she’s in the healthiest environment possible.
Everyone here treats her gently.
So we’ll hope she levels out.
Caleb is stabilizing very, very fast too.
Honestly, I was shocked at how well his psyche is handling it.
The strain is inhuman.
The therapy is brutally intense.
He’s a strong boy. — Hades.
I nod.
That’s an understatement, my friend.
An understatement.
I feel a little lighter.
Alright. Not everything at once.
It’s time to let him go back to work.
Let him reclaim his roar.
Exactly.
We bump fists.
“And what about us?” — Hades.
I sigh.
“What about us?” — Hades.
Guess we’re sealing everything shut. I have no idea when we’re ever having sex again.
Mine all groan in protest.
I collapse onto the bed, like I’m dying of exhaustion.