{SERGIO}
Ivanna is sparkling at dinner. Rarely have I seen her so animated, so happy, and I like seeing her like this. As we eat, she entertains us all with tales of growing up, as well as her adventures so far in Tyva—cleaned up, of course. Her sisters don't know about the kidnapping, and I wonder if she will ever tell them what happened.
"The gelato in Rome was the best I've ever had," she tells them.
"You certainly sampled enough of it," my son says with a grin, which causes Ivanna to pick up a roll and fake throw it at him.
Lucia playfully reprimands them both in Russian, which makes everyone laugh.
I stay quiet, observing. The dining room is lively and full, something I hadn't experienced in a long time. It is nice. If I had a big family like Maksim's, every dinner would resemble chaos such as this.
