Heirs of the Motherland (The Russians Book #4)

Judith Pella

Description

Eighteen years after his daughter's birth, Count Dmitri Remizov returns to Russia from exile to find his only child. But Mariana, who was raised as a peasant, is hesitant to take her place in Imperial Russia. Meanwhile, Sergei and Anna must decide whether to risk emerging from hiding. Will they find a way to reunite their families and claim their heritage?

Informations

• Publié par: Baker Publishing Group
• Date de parution: 13 octobre 2015
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781441229779
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
© 1993 by Judith Pella
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Ebook edition created 2015
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
ISBN 978-1-4412-2977-9
This book is a work of fiction. With the exception of historical personages, all characters are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to living persons, past or present, is coincidental.
Cover design by Melinda Schumacher
Judith Pella is represented by The Steve Laube Agency.
Dedication
To My Husband, Paul
“Love . . . always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” 1 Corinthians 13:7, 8 NIV
Thank you for believing I could do it, even when I wasn’t so sure; and for being there with wise counsel.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
A Cast of Characters
Prologue: The Golden Cockerel
1
2
Part I: Ascension
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Part II: The Exile
9
10
Part III: Katyk
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
Part IV: A World Away
18
19
20
21
22
Part V: Many Changes
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
Part VI: The Reporter and the Revolutionary
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
Part VII: Katrina’s Daughter
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
Part VIII: Back to St. Petersburg
55
56
57
58
59
Part IX: Honor Thy Father
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
Part X: Partings
67
68
69
70
71
72
About the Author
Books by Judith Pella
A Cast of Characters
(I N O RDER OF A PPEARANCE )
Count Cyril Vlasenko—Fedorcenko relative; Under-Minister of Interior (also called Ministry of Internal Affairs)
Sarah Remington—Fedorcenko housekeeper
Prince Viktor Mikhailovich Fedorcenko—head of Fedorcenko clan
Nicholas Alexandrovich Romanov II (Nicky)—tsar of Russia
Alexandra Fedorovna Romanov (Alix or Sunny)—tsaritsa of Russia
Anna Yevnovna Fedorcenko (Christinin)—wife of Sergei
Sergei Viktorovich Fedorcenko (Christinin)—husband of Anna
Captain Mikhail Igorovich Grigorov (Misha)—friend of Anna and Sergei
Paul Yevnovich Burenin (Pavlikov)—son of Yevno
Gennadii Nickolavich Andropov—father of Mathilde
Mathilde Gennadievna Burenin—wife of Paul
Vera—sibling of Anna and Paul
Ivan—husband of Vera
Tanya—sibling of Anna and Paul
Ilya—sibling of Anna and Paul
Marfa—wife of Ilya
Sophia Ilyanovna Burenin—wife of Yevno; mother of Anna and Paul
Yevno Pavlovich Burenin—husband of Sophia; father of Anna and Paul
Yuri Sergeiovich Fedorcenko (Christinin)—elder son of Anna and Sergei
Andrei Sergeiovich Fedorcenko (Christinin)—younger son of Anna and Sergei
Countess Mariana Dmitrievna Remizov—daughter of Katrina and Dmitri; adopted daughter of Anna and Sergei
Stephan Alexandrovich Kaminsky—friend of Mariana
Daniel Trent—American reporter; friend of Mariana
Archibald Trent—Daniel’s father; American industrialist
Count Dmitri Gregorovich Remizov—Mariana’s father
Count Karl Cyrilovich Vlasenko—son of Cyril
George Cranston—manager of the Register’s Russian office
Louis and Ludmila Durocq—boardinghouse landlords
Helen Westchester—boardinghouse resident
Emil Zorav—boardinghouse resident
Alla Gittelmacher—boardinghouse resident
Dr. Aleksei Petrovskij—boardinghouse resident
Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (Lenin)—revolutionary; friend of Paul
Countess Eugenia Pavlovna Remizov—Dmitri’s mother; Mariana’s grandmother
Peter—Viktor Fedorcenko’s valet
Jacob Woyinsky—Viktor’s accountant
Princess Marya Nicolaievna Gudosnikov—Fedorcenko family friend
Oleg Chavkin—friend from Katyk
Dmitri Sipiagin—Minister of the Interior
Raisa and Talia Sorokin—mother and daughter; friends of Anna and Sergei
Prologue: The Golden Cockerel
1
(1881–1894)
An old Russian fable tells of the mythical Tsar Dadone. In his warlike youth he was the terror of all the neighboring countries, invading the regions and making constant war upon them. But in his old age he grew weary of war, and his enemies, perceiving this change as weakness, took the opportunity to retaliate against Dadone. Thus his realm knew no peace and incurred heavy losses from all its enemies.
“How can this continue?” the tsar raged. “I am losing my empire, piece by piece!”
After many sleepless nights, he called for help from his friend, a eunuch who was a sage and wise counselor. The eunuch presented a gift to the tsar, a golden cockerel.
“Just place this cockerel on the weathervane of your highest tower,” he advised. “He will be your protector. When there is a threat of war, he will sound an alarm. But if there is no danger to your country, he will remain still and quiet.”
“Oh, thank you, my true friend!” exclaimed the tsar. He rewarded the eunuch with bags of gold and promised him, “Because of what you have done, I will grant you your dearest wish.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty. I will give much consideration to your offer before acting upon it.”
The years passed and the cockerel served the tsar well, constantly foiling the attacks of his enemies until no one dared to provoke him again. Peace reigned in Dadone’s kingdom. The cockerel was silent. And Dadone took his leisure and spent his waning years at rest.
Then one day a loud “Cockadoodledoo!” rang through Dadone’s capital. Dadone raised an army, led by his eldest son, to ride in the direction the cockerel had pointed. Peace settled once more over the capital and Dadone assumed that the danger had passed.
Suddenly the cockerel crowed again. The tsar sent out yet another army, this one led by his second son. Again, days passed with no word from this second army, and the tsar and all the people wondered what could have become of them.
“Cockadoodledoo!” cried the golden cockerel a third time.
A third army was sent to the rescue, with the tsar himself in command. They traveled toward the east for many days, crossing a treacherous mountain pass. Finally, in the distance on the top of a grassy knoll, they saw a brightly colored pavilion. But as they made their way to the tent, they came upon the remains of the first two armies, surrounded by vultures picking at the bones of the brave soldiers. In the midst of this carnage the tsar found his two sons, both dead, each felled by the other’s sword.
“Oh, what a dark day this is!” wailed the tsar. “Both my sons are dead—what good is my own life!”
As he grieved, a young woman appeared from inside the pavilion. She was more beautiful than the richest treasure, lovelier than the glow of springtime. The sight of her made Dadone forget all about his dead sons and his grief. She introduced herself as the Princess Chamakhan and bid the tsar to enter her pavilion. He gave in to her wishes and spent a whole week reveling in her bewitching charms.
Finally he returned to the capital, taking the beautiful princess with him. At the gate he saw his friend the eunuch beckoning to him.
“Ah, my friend and counselor,” greeted the tsar. “Is there something you wish of me?”
“Your most exalted Excellency, I do indeed have a request to make. If you recall, many years ago you promised that for my services you would grant me a wish. I would now like to avail myself of that boon.”
“And what is your wish?” asked Dadone expansively.
“Give me the Princess Chamakhan!”
The tsar gaped in astonishment at this most unexpected request. “You must be crazy, man! That’s asking too much. You may have anything else, even to half my kingdom,” he shouted, “but you cannot expect me to give up my princess to you!”
“I want nothing else.”
The tsar began to rage with fury, and when the eunuch stood his ground, Dadone raised his scepter and swung it at his friend, striking him dead. Mounted on her white steed, the princess watched the confrontation, and seeing the eunuch struck down, she began to laugh.
The tsar rode on. As he entered the city gates, the sound of fluttering wings overtook him. The golden cockerel left his perch and landed on top of the tsar’s head. With a single lethal motion, the animal pecked Dadone’s skull and split it open so that he instantly bled to death. And with that the Princess Chamakhan disappeared. Many people wondered if she had ever really existed. Others swore, however, that the tinkling sounds of feminine laughter filled the air for many days afterward.
2
The ancient Russian tale warns against protection gone awry. The mythical Dadone lived in peace while the cockerel stood guard, sounding a loud “Cockadoodledoo!” to warn of the approach of enemies. The mighty tsar had a fine rest, depending more and more on the magical bird. And, in the end, inaction rather than incompetence led to his final demise.
Perhaps the story of Dadone rose up in the thoughts of the masses of Russians as they watched the grim funeral procession of their batiushka, their “Little Father,” who had been brutally murdered in the streets of their capital in March of 1881. Alexander II had been close, so very close, to initiating sweeping reform. But he had hesitated, reluctant to concede the ancient traditions of the tsardom.
Tsar Dadone was finally deceived not by armies but by the beautiful and mysterious Princess Chamakhan. So caught was he in the power of her evil mystique that he did not recognize that she had murdered his sons or perceive that the cockerel’s cries warned him of her. When the eunuch discerned her evil spell and demanded her as his payment, the tsar killed his faithful friend rather than give up the princess.
Similarly, the last tsars of Russia clung to the beguiling s