Thick clouds covered the sky, shielding us from any sunlight. Some dark spots on the clouds indicated it would rain even slightly any time now and I patiently waited for the droplets of water to fall.
My office was on the second floor, a few rooms away from my bedroom. As much as I loved my old place in the north wing, this room brought me something that one couldn't - silence.
Don't get me wrong, I loved my job as the head of the Cosa Nostra but it was too much to handle. Maybe that was why I was hesitant to give Celeste the throne. Not because of stereotypes but because of how weak she was emotionally from all of the abuse. I didn't want the constant responsibility of her empire on her shoulders and thought of putting it off.
I'm glad I stopped her from Elijah's hand in marriage but look where I was at now.
My daughter died.
My entire heart shattered.
My world crumbled.
I sighed as the first drops of water touched the window. I haven't cried in a few weeks now but it was a matter of time before I'd break. Bottling up my feelings was the only way I knew how to deal with emotions. And certainly not a way that made others happy.
I remember the night like it was yesterday. I wasn't there to see it happen but when the news got out, time stopped. I actually thought I was dreaming or more so, having a damn nightmare. Giorgia's screams were the first thing that brought me back to the present time back then. I couldn't believe it to the point that I laughed and asked Martin, my right-hand man and second cousin if he was trying to fool me. He slapped me and tried to bring me back from the awful state of shock. My hands trembled, my mouth dried and my heart raced.
My heart raced, adrenalin starting to flow around my entire body, pushing me to kill Luca and Vlad. And I drove there. I tried to find any one of them. I spent hours upon hours looking for them but by the time I got back to the estate, Martin had informed me they had both fled Rome and gone back into hiding.
But above that, I never got to see her. None of us saw her body and it irks me to know she's still with them.
Well, one of them. And Vlad would've been the better option out of the two. I didn't want Luca around her closer than a radius of the fucking Universe. But someone did one job for me.
Just as I began to imagine the brutal ways of torture for Luca and his minions, my phone buzzed on the top of my dark, oak wood desk. I turned around in the chair and picked it up before bringing it closer to me and reading the notification.
Lorenzo: ACCENDI LE NOTIZIE DEL CAZZO! [turn on the fucking news!]
I quickly grabbed the TV remote out of my desk drawer and aimed it at the TV on the right-hand side of the office. The screen turned on and a breaking news segment flashed on it. My eyes widened.
"The late Bratva's don Vladislav Usoro's wife with son and daughter were brutally murdered yesterday evening." The image of a blurred body appeared. You couldn't even recognize the face from how drastically it was ruined. "The late don's son's body was desecrated: his face was beaten up, multiple bones were broken and his internal organs were cut out before being displayed on the table of the family's formal dining room table."
Even for me, the man who's killed so many people in my life that I couldn't even begin to imagine how high that number was, this was disgusting. I've heard many stories back in the day of how brutal some members of the mafia were but this? This was something out of the ordinary. This brutal killing hasn't appeared in ages and I have to begin wondering if this was the first step to overruling the mafia empires. Meaning, that the Rossi might be next.
"Valentina and Matilda Usoro were most likely poisoned since no bruising of any sort was found on their bodies. Local police warn the surrounding areas of a merciless killer on the loose."
The door opened, making me tear my eyes away from the screen. A sight smile curved on my lips at the sight of my wife. Her blond hair was neatly straightened and pushed back. She wore an elegant, loose, emerald-coloured dress with black heels.
I loved this woman with everything in me and I feared that I didn't show it much. I was too caught up with work most of the time but after Cel took my spot, I made it my responsibility to show Giorgia just how much she meant to me. Especially after I found out what my shit of a father did to her behind my back.
"L'ho appena visto. Io... non posso crederci, amore mio," [I just saw that, I... I can't believe it, my love] her voice was quiet as she spoke and closed the door behind her. I motioned her to come over to me. She did just that and sat down on my lap before my hand wrapped around her. I placed a kiss on her shoulder as her arms wrapped around my shoulders. "Questo assassino ha fatto quello che volevamo fare in pochi giorni. E in che misura." [This killer did what we wanted to do in a few days. And to what extent.]
"Io so. Spero solo che non siamo gli obiettivi," [I know. I just hope we're not the targets] I said as I caressed her arm.
"But why just Vlad and Elijah? The killed must not have had some kind of grudge with the women to kill them as gruesome as they did with Vlad and his son." I nodded before my lips touched her cheek, giving me that shy smile I've grown to love over the years. I placed another kiss on the corner of her lip before kissing her. Her hand slowly slid up to my hair before she gently tugged my dark strands, making me groan. "You know how to change the subject," I smirked before catching her lips with mine.
"Ti amo," she smiled before pecking my lips.
"I love you more," I fought back an eye roll. "Yes, I do. And don't you dare roll your pretty eyes, young man," I chuckled as I moved my hand down to her hips.
"Young man?"
"You want me to call you out, old man?" I smiled before I leaned back in the chair. She sighed as the light in her face began to fade. "Do you know anything new?" I shook my head no.
Every day she asked me this in hopes of hearing something other than seeing me shake my head. Hell, even I wanted that.
"None on her." She looked down at her lap. I pulled her to my chest and tightly held her with my arms around her. "But I have some from across the ocean. Liam got shot and died for two minutes." My wife's head jerked upwards while her eyes looked right at me.
And fuck my life do they look exactly like my daughters.
"He's alive. And Alex is too but they both got severely injured."
"Dio mio," she said before dropping her head back on my shoulder.
"And what's worse is the fact that Liam killed Silas Adalwen. Maybe not worse but it was because he called Cel a bitch." When I heard that, I didn't know whether I should've thanked him or flown there myself to talk some sense into Silas. Both options were of similar purpose.
"God, I wish I could hug that boy. I don't think I've seen someone that in love."
"Hey, don't rule me out," she chuckled as I placed a kiss on her head. "But I agree. He's a good guy."
"Better than good."
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"You're telling me the family is out?" I asked as I sat up carefully. The pain was slightly less agonizing from the number of drugs the nurse gave me per my request. I had to do something instead of lay in bed all day for the next week. Alex stood right in front of the balcony doors, his face stitched, his arm bandaged. He limped to my room but told me I had to know and hear it from him.
Audrey has been an amazing help to him with business but you couldn't force Alex to do anything. The moment he woke up the next day, he stormed out of his room and limped up to his office.
I haven't heard from anyone since my parents left my room before I fell asleep last night. It's been two days since the meeting had happened and only now I can say that I'm realizing what had happened.
Not that I regret it but my anger finally decayed to a steady five out of ten. Perfectly balanced for my needs.
"Yeah. And the strangest part is that Valentina and Matilda were poisoned. No torture." The mystery killer had a goal which didn't involve the two women. They wanted to torture the two men. The don and the heir. For what? I have many theories but only they know why.
"Any signs they were spotted?" He shook his head. "Any signs of Rico?" I knew he ran away and hurt Alex in the process. He shook his head again.
"Silas is in the dungeons." I nodded. "He's breathing but not conscious." Didn't do a good enough job then.
"And any on her?" He sighed and I already knew what he'd do.
"Yeah," I stilled. My eyes blinked a few times before I thought about it again.
Her... Her body was found? For fuck's sake.
"Alex?" He flinched and looked at me.
"A girl appeared in Moscow a few days ago. And a good friend of mine from a bakery told me she looked very similar." My eyes widened.
"Man, I was asking about her body," he nodded before averting his eyes to the glass doors.
"And I'm telling you. He'll send me the pictures of the cameras inside but for some reason, she stood out." I let out a laugh. Alex looked at me like some screws decided to fall out of my head.
"My girl?" A nod from him. "There's no way," I looked around the room. "She's dead." Alex frowned and then his eyes widened as if he just discovered my will to live.
"Oh, fuck. I meant Valentina. I just, she's related to her and I just... fuck, sorry, man, this whole situation is messing with my head." Disappointment filled me.
You, stupid dumbass. She's dead. Why would you think she wasn't?
As if that wasn't enough, before the meeting with Silas and after Alex left my room after telling me about the meeting, I went back to the closet. The nail wasn't there.
But it might have been just the fact I might have stepped on it and thrown it somewhere away.
Except, I looked everywhere.
It wasn't there.
Shit.
"It's fine. When are the photos coming in?"
"As quick as tomorrow I hope. He's a busy guy, you know. And if it is her, we know what to look for." I didn't even think of looking for her because I was so focused on my girl. It slipped out.
"Okay. Inform me when you find out anything." He nodded before crossing his arms over his chest. Sighing, I tilted my head back. "This is shit."
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