Code name: Athena [18+]

Code name: Hush

•Arabella DiStefano•

It's been a week since Allegra left in the middle of the night like a sneaky little rat; she's still my best friend but she did run away like a rat and left a fucking note with an 'explanation'.

She might be sneaky but she ain't stupid; she took a whole security body with herself and they know who the boss is because they called me the morning after she left to tell me where they were going: Aruba.

Mariano hasn't stopped crying although he tries to be strong for the twins because they have noticed mommy isn't around so I try to be with them more than I used to.

"Hey," I said softly as I walked into Mariano's room on the third floor "aren't you gonna come down for dinner?" I closed the door behind me and approached an exhausted Mariano lying but barely fitting on a pale pink loveseat where Allegra did her homework all the time if she wasn't at Apollo's office.

He shook his head slowly as his eyes were locked on the glass of water in front of him "I'm not hungry."

I sat on the floor on my heels at the height of his head and caressed his cheek gently "Mariano, you have to eat something, at least some soup; I haven't seen you take a bite in two days."

"I eat ice cream after midnight, once the girls are asleep because they might need me at this time although they should be dead asleep," he checked the camera he has in the babies' room on his phone "two perfect little angels..." he whispered longingly.

"Minerva and Stefano won't be back until tomorrow morning due to a storm, the triplets are on their way from the Hamptons so Apollo, Angela and me can have dinner here with you. How does that sound?" A tear slipped out of his right eye and down his nose.

He nodded as his lower lip quivered "That would be nice," his voice broke.

I stood up and helped him sit up gently "After this I'll prepare you a warm bath and Apollo can read to you like last night, alright?"

Mariano nodded slowly and then gazed up at me "I don't know what I would do without you," he sobbed quietly before hugging my waist.

"You're like my brother Mariano," I combed his hair with my fingers "I'm with you till' the end of the line."

I used my phone to text Apollo and tell him he should come upstairs with Angela. The staff set up the round breakfast table in Mariano's bedroom and then came back with the food.

Once we were all seated Angela was the one to start the conversation "I'm thinking about getting a red corvette," she cleared her throat and gazed at Mariano "would you like to come with me tomorrow?"

Mariano shook his head softly "I can't, I have a meeting with a potential school for the girls and after that I have to—"

"Hey," my husband interrupted "we can reschedule that meeting or send your assistant; I want you to get better before going back to work."

"I'm not going to get better, I'm just going to get better at hiding it and to do so I have to act like nothing is wrong," what he said broke my heart because that's exactly what I used to do when I lived with my dad.

"Then come with me. I have some errands to run with Napoleon and Viktor is busy doing something else for me," I said gently.