again, this time sincerely. "Your mom is a wonderful woman. Elena Andreevna, right? She's very worried. But unfortunately, she's looking in the wrong places. As is the police."
Berkut stood and approached the door.
"Rest, Sophia. Dinner will be soon. And then… we'll begin preparing you."
"For what?"
"For a new life," he turned at the doorway. "For the role you'll play in our little… collection."
The door closed. The lock clicked. The light remained on, and now Sophia could look around. A small room with concrete walls. A bed, table, chair. A small window near the ceiling, barred and covered with thick fabric—not even a hint of daylight penetrated through it. In the corner—a door, probably leading to a bathroom.
Sophia looked again at the green elephant in her hand. And only now did she notice. On the base of the figurine was an inscription, scratched with a thin sharp object: "Don't trust. Run. K."
Her heart beat faster. Who was K? And what were they warning about?
Outside, the rain was making noise. Somewhere in the corridor, muffled voices could be heard.
The steel door of the isolation cell closed behind Anna with a heavy clang. Viktor Rogov, also known as Viktor Mikhailovich Astakhov, sat at a metal table, his hands bound by handcuffs attached to the tabletop. When Anna entered, he raised his head and smiled slightly.
"I knew you would come," his voice sounded calm, almost relaxed. "Once you learned about Igor's escape, you'd want to talk to me."
"How do you know about his escape?" Anna sat opposite him, carefully studying the prisoner's face.
"We're connected, detective. Much more deeply than you can imagine," Viktor leaned forward. "Igor, me, others… we are all instruments in someone else's hands."
"Whose?"
"In the hands of someone who possesses the art of turning people into obedient puppets. The Doctor, as he calls himself," Viktor smirked. "But in reality, he's more of a sculptor. He breaks people into pieces and reassembles them however he wants."
Anna took out her notebook and made a note.
"Are you talking about a specific person?"
"About Doctor Berkut. Alexander Viktorovich. A psychiatrist, specialist in child psychology. And a master of reprogramming consciousness," Viktor said this almost with admiration. "He found Igor and me when we were teenagers. Troubled teenagers, as they called us then. And he made us… different."
"Is Sophia with him? Did he take her?"
Viktor nodded.
"She's special. He's been watching her for a long time. Through me, through Igor… We were his eyes. I was supposed to infiltrate her life through her mother. Become a family friend."
"Why? What does Berkut want?"
"He's a collector, detective," Viktor looked her straight in the eyes. "But not in the usual sense. He doesn't collect things. He collects personalities. Souls. And each such soul is marked with its own elephant."
"The elephants of different colors… do they mean something?"
"Everything means something," Viktor leaned back in his chair. "White ones are for those who have found eternal peace. Blue ones are for those who are still waiting their turn. Green ones are for those preparing for transformation. Red ones…"
He fell silent, turning away. Something flashed in his eyes—fear? regret?
"What do the red elephants signify?" Anna asked insistently.
"Red ones are for those who have already become part of the collection. Who have gone through the entire transformation process. Like me. Like Igor," he raised his eyes. "But soon there will be more of them. Many more."
"Where is Berkut keeping Sophia?"
Viktor shook his head.
"I don't know exactly. He never reveals all his cards. But he has several places for… processing. Special places where he conducts his experiments. One of them is the basement in his country house. Another is a former sanatorium somewhere in the forest. He called it his 'laboratory.'"
"Do you know the address?"
"No. They took me there blindfolded. But I remember that the journey took about two hours."
Anna made another note in her notebook, then looked up at Viktor.
"Why are you telling me this? Why now?"
Viktor smiled—a sad, almost human smile.
"Because something went wrong. Here," he tapped his temple with his finger. "His control isn't absolute. Sometimes… sometimes glimpses of my real self break through the programming. And in those moments, I hate what he's made me into."
"You said you went through this transformation… What did Berkut do to you?"
"First—drugs. Special injections that make the mind pliable, like clay. Then—sessions of suggestion. For hours, days. A voice in the darkness telling you who you are, who you should be. And gradually… you start to believe it. The old personality is erased, a new one is written over it. Like on magnetic tape."
"And this is irreversible?"
"Almost," Viktor smirked again. "But sometimes the tape wears out. There are… interferences."
Anna gathered her papers, preparing to leave.
"If you remember anything else—an address, names of Berkut's accomplices, other details—report it immediately."
Viktor nodded. When Anna was already at the door, he called out to her:
"Detective! Be careful. He's not just a criminal. He's… a creator of monsters."
Leaving the detention center, Anna immediately called Dorokhov.
"I need everything available on Doctor Alexander Viktorovich Berkut. And check all psychological centers and clinics in the city, especially those working with children and teenagers."
"Already on it," Dorokhov's voice sounded excited. "We have something interesting. A psychological center called 'New Life,' very prestigious. And guess who runs it?"
"Berkut," Anna was already getting into her car. "I'll be there in twenty minutes. Gather everything you can find: the center's history, list of employees, patients. And check if Sophia Velichko was ever their client."
"Already checking. But there's something else—a woman came to us. Says she has information on the case. Claims she knows Viktor Rogov and Igor Sokolov. Or rather, Igor Vasilyev, as he was previously called."
Anna froze with the ignition key in her hand.
"Who is she?"
"Klavdia Mikhailovna Petrova. A former music teacher from Tver. You need to hear this, Anna."
"I'll be there in fifteen minutes."
In the rearview mirror, the detention center flashed by—a gray building, behind whose walls she had left a man who was simultaneously a criminal and a victim. A monster and a puppet.
And somewhere in the city, in an unknown location, Doctor Alexander Berkut was preparing to turn Sophia Velichko into the same kind of puppet. And the time to save her was running out.
Chapter 8: Mosaic of Consciousness
The police headquarters greeted Anna with the muffled hum of voices and ringing phones. Dorokhov intercepted her in the corridor.
"Klavdia Mikhailovna is waiting for you in the third office. Meanwhile, I've prepared information on the 'New Life' center," he handed her a folder. "Everything we could find."
"I'll speak with the woman first," Anna nodded, taking the folder. "Then we'll look into the center together."
In the interrogation room sat a middle-aged woman with a tired face and wary eyes. When Anna entered, she stood up, nervously clutching a worn bag.
"Hello. I'm Klavdia Mikhailovna Petrova."
"Anna