For ten years Maxim had been haunted by the same nightmare: Valentina’s furious words— “I hate you. Stay away from me!”— echoed in his sleep and left him soaked in sweat. Their abrupt break-up still made no sense to him. One evening, after agreeing to meet Valentina’s outgoing friend Rita in a quiet restaurant, he had woken up at home with no memory of how he’d got there. Rita was beside him, and Valentina had vanished.

Maxim and Valentina had seemed perfect for each other. He first met her and Rita in a park when the two women were struggling to launch a rowboat. Rita flirted, but the shy Valentina caught Maxim’s heart. Soon he and “Valya” were planning marriage and even picking names—Maria and Victor—for future children. A gifted dressmaker, Valentina finished her own wedding gown two weeks before the ceremony.

Then came Rita’s call begging Maxim to meet in person. After that strange evening, Valentina’s neighbor reported that Valentina had packed a few things and fled town. Rita later admitted she had spiked Maxim’s coffee with sleeping pills so Valentina would find them in bed— all to sabotage the wedding because she secretly wanted Maxim for herself.

A decade later Maxim spotted a roadside stall selling handmade clothes—and recognized a coat stitched by Valentina. The teenage seller’s eyes and smile resembled Valentina’s so strongly that Maxim felt faint. He bought the entire rack of garments, then gently asked about the girl’s mother. The girl, Masha, explained that her mother, Valya, had died a year earlier after a long illness; her step-father Volodya now struggled with back problems and medical bills.

Masha invited Maxim home. Volodya, leaning on a crutch, immediately guessed Maxim’s identity: Valentina had spoken of her former fiancé. Volodya revealed that he had married Valentina only three years before, when she was already sick and worried about leaving Masha alone. He confessed that he himself could no longer work.

When Maxim asked who Masha’s biological father was, neither Masha nor Volodya knew. Maxim then produced a DNA test he’d recently taken— it proved he was Masha’s father. Overcome with emotion, he vowed to help both Masha and Volodya. He offered them housing, medical care, and a job in his own company if they would move to his city.

Standing at Valentina’s grave, Maxim wept and begged forgiveness for the pain she had suffered. Back at home, Masha hugged both men and exclaimed with delight that she now had two fathers.