Matvey barely smiled.
— Oh, you most certainly do. Are you going to take away an elderly woman’s livelihood based on gossip, or are you afraid that someone from above is coming?
The inspectors fell silent. Zinaida Petrovna felt tears in her eyes. Not from sadness, but from exhaustion. Years of paying with fear. And now, finally, someone was saying it out loud.
And then a car was heard braking. Not like a Lamborghini, but like an official vehicle. A man with a visible ID got out, followed by two others.
— Good day, — he said. — Regional prosecutor’s office. Who is in charge here?
The street froze. In the background, Rogov took a step back. And Zinaida Petrovna realized that the final push had been made. Either the system would crush them again, or it would finally be exposed for all to see.
The man from the regional prosecutor’s office walked straight to the stall. His ID was visible. He didn’t rush and he didn’t smile. He walked with that official tone that was finally on the right side.
— Who requested intervention? — he asked.
Matvey raised his hand.
— We did. And we have evidence of extortion and fabricated inspections.
The woman in the municipal vest shifted awkwardly. The man with the folder swallowed. The police officer glanced at his colleagues as if asking what he had gotten himself into. Zinaida Petrovna was trembling but remained on her feet. Her knees were burning. Her heart was beating fast. Years of endurance to not lose her corner. And today, on this very corner, everything was about to come out.
The prosecutor’s officer looked at the inspectors.
— IDs, — he ordered.
They took them out. Their hands no longer looked confident. The prosecutor’s officer looked at the stall, the crowd, Zinaida Petrovna.
— Do you authorize us to check the payments that have been collected from you for the permit all these years? — he asked.
Zinaida Petrovna opened her mouth, and for the first time, the full truth came out without the fear of looking foolish.
— Yes, — she said. — I paid because if I didn’t, they would shut me down. Rogov always told me that.
The whispers on the street turned into a wave. “Rogov! Rogov is taking from Petrovna!” In the background, Rogov tried to smile, but the smile no longer formed.
— Lies! — he said, raising his voice. — I was just helping the woman with her affairs.
Gleb stepped forward and showed his phone to the prosecutor’s officer. A message, dates, amounts, a voice message where a veiled threat could be clearly heard: “If you don’t pay, they’ll come tomorrow.”
The prosecutor’s officer didn’t even change his expression.
— That’s extortion, — he said dryly.
The municipal police officer swallowed. The man with the folder looked down.
And then what Zinaida Petrovna had feared from the beginning happened. Rogov, seeing everything crumble, tried to twist his way out by blaming her. He took a step forward and pointed at the stall dramatically.
— Hey, hey! — he shouted. — You want to investigate? Investigate the story with the children too, because this woman has always been involved in strange business. She even kept three missing boys with her.
Zinaida Petrovna felt the blow like a public slap. The street froze. The prosecutor’s officer looked at him without emotion.
— What children?
Zinaida Petrovna swallowed. Her hands were shaking.
Matvey spoke for her.
— Us! — he said.
Silence. Gleb and Denis stood on either side, as if supporting the very air.
— Investigator! — Matvey continued. — Many years ago, when we were children, we were taken into protective custody from this very spot.
He pointed at Rogov:
— And he started it all.
Zinaida Petrovna felt her chest open up. The word “us” was a miracle spoken aloud. The people around looked at the three men with new eyes. Them. They were those children.
The prosecutor’s officer frowned.
— Seriously? Can you prove it?
Gleb took the chain from under his shirt. He held it up. The small metal pendant. Three stars. Then Matvey took out his. Then Denis. Three identical symbols.
Zinaida Petrovna felt tears welling up without asking. Matvey looked at Zinaida Petrovna, and his voice finally trembled.
— You fed us when no one else would, — he said. — You gave us a roof, you protected us. You were the closest thing we had to a family.
Zinaida Petrovna pressed her hand to her chest.
— I… I just… — she tried to say, and then she broke. Not with screams—but with the quiet weeping of a person who had held it in for years. — I looked for you, — she whispered. — I looked for a long time. No one would tell me anything. They told me I wasn’t a relative, and I was left with your absence.
Denis lowered his head with restrained fury.
— They separated us for a while, — he admitted. — But we found each other. And since then, we made a promise to come back for you.
The street was no longer whispering. The street was listening. Rogov, seeing everything fall apart, tried to twist the story.
— Fairy tales, — he said, — anyone can make that up.
The prosecutor’s officer raised his hand…
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