She called him " They met about 20 years ago when she was working in a hospital, and he was young, muscular and handsome one day he came to fix the roof..

Irina Abramova says she took the first step and followed him to the place where he used to smoke. They started talking and fell in love like she says " But a few weeks ago, this special bond that was between her and Oleg, as well as everything they built together, was destroyed by one brutal shot..

Irina Abramova told her story to the New York Times. Memories are still too fresh and painful. But at the same time, she still finds it hard to believe that everything really happened.. On March 5, Russian soldiers attacked her house. They threw a grenade through the window, which started a big fire.. She and Oleg were taken outside at gunpoint. Oleg was taken outside. They took off his shirt. They made him kneel. The next thing Irina remembers is that she ran up to Oleg, fell to the ground, grabbed his hand. And when she saw the blood at his ears, she felt the anger explode in her.

\! " She was dressed in a bathrobe and house slippers, her house was on fire behind her.. The woman held only one of her cats in her hands..

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\! come on! Let's! Shoot me and the cat! ' she shouted.

The Russian commander brought the machine gun to her chest three times.. To this day, Irina regrets that he never pulled the trigger..

“Maybe my destiny is to die tomorrow,” said the Ukrainian woman, admitting that she thought about suicide.

“Taking your own life is not easy. And so I will not be able to meet my husband in heaven,” she added..

The story of Irina Abramova is the story of Bucha. It's about heartbreak, bloodshed and, above all, loss.. The New York Times recalls that Bucha is a small town near Kyiv, where the largest Russian atrocities were discovered. Every day, new evidence suggests that the scale of terror and slaughter that took place in the city was greater than it seemed just yesterday.. Russians killed at least 400 civilians in March, officials said. A few weeks later, they found more bodies of innocent victims..

Human rights organizations and Ukrainian investigators, along with international war crimes experts, are trying to document every murder.. Last week, the Ukrainian government released the names and photos of 10 Russian soldiers involved in war crimes in Bucha.. Russian troops left the city just a few weeks ago, leaving ruins in their wake.. Work teams are trying to put back the poles that were knocked down by Russian armored vehicles, as well as repair the transformers that were blown up by Russian soldiers. Meanwhile, the people of Bucha are forced to survive in 19th-century conditions by drawing water from wells, using candles at night, and cooking over a campfire..

" The sinister spirit will remain here because so many people were killed thoughtlessly and for no reason,” said Irina Gres, who lives across the street from Abramova.

"

For Irina Abramova, life has become a lonely routine. She says she finds it hard to get through the day, and especially the night, without thoughts of revenge, suicide, or what she calls " She lost almost everything: her husband, her house, three of her four pets.. Family savings turned to ashes. She does not have a single piece of paper that would confirm her identity..

“I constantly ask for at least something that would confirm that I am me.. But the people in the city council say: \? ', says the woman.

Abramova lived all her life in Bucha. The village was considered one of the most attractive in Ukraine with forests and rural comfort.. And it's only 45 minutes to Kyiv. Now it's a ghost town. But the woman refuses to leave Bucha.

“Oleg is still here,” she says..

One of Irina's daily rituals is a trip to the cemetery past peeling birch trees.. She brings Oleg's favorite treats - Halls cherry candies, Maria cookies, toffee and chocolate. She lights a cigarette and puts it at the head of the grave. In the evening light the line of ash grows long.

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“Hi, my sun,” she once said when she stroked a photo of Oleg, which she put on the grave.

At 40, he was 8 years younger than Irina. And she allows herself a barely perceptible smile when she mentions this fact..

"

A few months after the meeting, Oleg and Irina began to live together. They merried. He took her last name, which is rather unusual, becoming Oleg Alexandrovich Abramov. He persuaded his wife to quit her job at the hospital, promising to provide for the family.. The couple had no children. But Irina says that they had an ideal family. He worked hard all week as a welder and often returned late when she was already in bed and watching TV.. On weekends, they roasted meat in the yard and sometimes went to the cinema at the Zhiraf shopping center in Irpen. A few weeks ago, this mall was bombed to smithereens..

"

Russian troops entered Bucha shortly after the start of the war. Strong Ukrainian resistance stopped their offensive. On February 27, the Armed Forces of Ukraine destroyed a long column of Russian armored vehicles on the street where Irina lives, destroying 20 armored vehicles and an unknown number of Russian soldiers. After that, Oleg became very nervous, - the woman recalls.. He felt that the Russians would come to take revenge. The man insisted that they had better not leave the house. And they spent many hours on the kitchen floor. As they lay on the floor, she felt him tremble..

“I asked him: are you afraid of death? And he said: “No, I’m afraid for you,” Irina recalled..

On the night of March 4, they heard large trucks passing by. The next morning, their house was blown up by a grenade.. Shooting started. The gate to their yard was knocked out. Four Russian paratroopers broke into them. Three of them were young. They were maybe 20 years old. The commander was already over 30. Irina says that it was the commander who ordered her and her husband to leave the house. She recalled a conversation with Russian soldiers in their house.

\? ' said the commander.

“There are no Nazis here,” Irina replied..

\? "

“They were never here,” she said..

“Give me the exact addresses,” the Russian insisted..

“We are simple people,” said Irina.

But the commander got even angrier.

" Our wives are waiting for us at home. And you started this war. You elected the Nazi government, he shouted.. Irina says that Russians for some reason love this word - " Has your husband ever taken up arms

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"

\? ' the commander asked..

“Welder,” Irina honestly admitted, but the Russian military began to walk back and forth in annoyance.

Her father, Vladimir Abramov, who lives next door, said he and Oleg were held at gunpoint in the yard. The young soldiers ordered Oleg to take off his jacket, sweater and shirt to check if he had military tattoos.. He didn't have them.. Oleg never served in the army. Then they took him out of the yard. His last words: \?

A minute has passed. The fire broke out. Black smoke poured out of the house. And nothing could be seen through it. The Russian Commander Came.

\? " The commander looked at the gate and said: " After these words, Irina ran out into the street..

" Nothing. Looked to the right. I see my husband on the ground. I see a lot of blood.

And part of his head is missing. Later I saw other dead people in different poses, ”recalled Irina.

She grabbed her husband's hand and shouted: \! Oleg?

“Russians sat on the curb, drank water from plastic bottles and just looked at me.. They didn't say anything or show any emotion.. They were like the audience in the theater,” said Irina.

Her father says it was then that she screamed "

\! Shoot me and the cat! ' the woman screamed..