Chapter six
Nadia
It seemed to Nadia that she would forever be finding herself in cheap shitty strip clubs at every turn of her life, as if every single interaction with the underworld had to be shrouded in cigarette smoke, the stench of vodka and heavy bass lined music. She considered asking Leo if they could stop at one of the many dive bars they had passed on the way instead, forget this mythical Oracle who knew all and just grab a pint and a burger. Then the thought of Lorenzo in his thousand-dollar suit sitting in a dive bar drinking a pint and scrounging on a burger was so ridiculous, that she vetoed the idea altogether. Perhaps on a different day, under different circumstances.
Piero explained to her on the drive over that Sam Anderson was the current Oracle for New York from a long line of Oracles that, he claimed, dated back to the dawn of time. Lorenzo snorted but muttered, with the knowledge the Oracle kept, he wouldn't be surprised if that were true. Nadia was sceptical at best. It seemed like bullshit to her, that one person could hold so much knowledge on a world that no one knew about. A world that changed constantly.
But bullshit was her only shot at finding out some truths.
Walking through the crowded bar with Lorenzo at her side shouldered some of her discomforts. His ease settled her, the casual power he wore filling the room as another reminder that she wasn't in this alone anymore. The way people stopped to take a good look at Lorenzo sent an odd wave of pride through her. He was hers, that power was hers, he bowed for no one but her.
Silently, she promised herself to make him bow for her again later if they got through this in one piece. Memories of him on his knees before her in his room before they left sent heatwaves through her body. Nothing was hotter than seeing such a powerful man on his knees for her and only her.
Lorenzo shot her a look, almost as if he read her thoughts, eyeing her up and down in the jeans and leather jacket combo she had settled on for this meeting, drinking in her form in the dark approvingly, settling his hand on the small of her back as he lent into her side, lips brushing the shell of her ear. "If you keep looking at me like that, passerotta, the people in this club will be getting quite the show."
"Didn't take you for the exhibitionist type, Leo," she shot back with a smirk.
"Don't try me, darling," he mumbled against her skin, lightly nipping her ear before pulling away and walking on without another word.
That settled that then.
Piero, who had stayed two paces behind them, the weapons master acting bodyguard for the night, scoffed at their little display, folding his arms like a scolded child. Nadia turned to look at him, sticking out her tongue back at him in an equally childish manner.
"Despite how much I adore the pair of you," Piero announced through a heavy sigh, "I don't fancy meeting the Oracle for the first time with a raging hard-on. Imagine what that would do to my reputation."
Nadia howled a laugh, Lorenzo rolling his eyes but fighting back a smile at his brother's expense.
"I can't imagine it would work against you," Lorenzo rumbled back, "your reputation already paints you as the frivolous type. I imagine meeting the Oracle with a boner will only work in your favour at this point."
"Your boyfriend just called me a whore, Miss Regarzza."
"And you're yet to deny these accusations, Piero," she told him in a matter-of-fact tone that had Lorenzo chuckling deeply, winking at Piero with a cheeky grin.
"That's because it's all horribly true," he conceded, rolling his eyes as if it was the most obvious claim ever made, "but that doesn't mean he gets to use it against me."
"As you're boss," Lorenzo retorted, "it one hundred per cent does."
Piero scoffed in shock. "The audacity of this man."
Nadia smiled, looping her arm through Lorenzo's despite Piero's glare. "So this Oracle can just exist within your territory," She asked Lorenzo, changing the subject entirely as they worked their way deeper into the labyrinth of tables and grinding bodies and spilt beers. "And no one bats an eye?" It had struck her as odd that she had never heard about the oracle before, or the strip of neutral ground they lived in, but then when she remembered just how much her old mentor Victor kept from her, it didn't seem bizarre in the slightest. It did piss her off. But that was nothing knew where Victor was concerned.
"Technically this has always been the Oracle's territory," Lorenzo explained, walking them through a door marked private beside one of the bars, nodding to the bartender as they passed, handing her a hundred-dollar bill like it was simply loose change. Nadia held back a laugh at the girl's shocked face and shook her head, rolling her eyes at his casual display of wealth. Lorenzo shrugged, genuinely unbothered, continuing his explanation. "It's unfortunately an odd square of neutral ground that existed before my father took over and expanded into the area about fifty years ago. He made a deal with the Oracle which has been standing ever since."
Nadia frowned up at him. "What kind of deal?" Lorenzo only shook his head once. Not here, it told her, another time, it promised.
There was no time for her to ponder it when they turned a corner and descended a set of stairs into the basement, closer and closer to the lair of the mythical beast with all the answers. Another set of doors awaited them, this time with a keypad and code that Lorenzo typed in all too casually, which opened to more thumping drums, a thicker smoke with a sweeter taste and a pink haze.
It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the lowlights and the thick haze but, once they did, the space transformed into one of the fanciest looking bar lounges Nadia had seen. At the back wall was a large pink couch with several people lounging on it, smoking, drinking, laughing, and soaking up each other in a way of pure decadence and excess.
Nadia took it all in a swift and calculated way, assessing all of the risks, entrances and exits, useable weapons within reach and potential threats, but she couldn't help the pang of jealously as she took in the bodies bunched together enjoying every moment of their lives in a way Nadia knew she would never be able to.
In the centre of it all, the assassin could only assume lay the Oracle, Sam. Lay with their eyes closed, hair loose and wild, a handsome man sprawled in their lap as they leaned against a beautiful woman, several others surrounding the three of them. All of them smiled and laughed together, sipping champagne and passing around a shisha pipe.
A hand, that Nadia couldn't figure out whom it belonged to, played with the dark curls around the Oracle's face, while another hand traced along their deep tan abs tucked under an open neon pink fur coat. Draped in people and fur and soaked in the club light, a lazy smile on their face, Sam Anderson looked every bit the mythical beast Lorenzo and Piero had described.
As if sensing the arrival of new guests, Sam opened a single eye that stopped Nadia dead. The clearest crystal blue she had ever seen, even in the dim light, greeted her, dancing with amusement as it scanned her little party approaching, the shimmer around their eyes only highlighting how crisp that blue was. The beauty mark on their cheek lifted with their lips as a smile emerged on their face.
"Little Emilia Gardena," they purred, straightening in one single fluid motion. "Well, I never."
It was an effort to fight against the stiffening of her spine, the distaste that grew in her mouth at her dead name. Instead, she shifted her weight, morphing into the woman she was expected to be in this space.
Like an answered prayer, the Oracle grinned wider. "You don't go by that name anymore though, do you, my sweet?" They asked, head tilting in a feline manner as they studied her. "No. I believe they know you as the Reaper now, don't they?"
With a raise of her eyebrow, Nadia seemed to shift again, the Reaper taking full form, finally understanding the game at hand. A performance, to see if she is worthy.
A sound of pure delight skittered to her, the grin on Sam's face beaming, clearly enamoured with her display. "But please," the Oracle said, at last, easing back into their spot, no less amused by her than he was fascinated. "No need to stand on ceremony here. We all know who you are, Miss Regarzza."
The frown fell on her face quickly seeming to amuse both Sam and Lorenzo who each watched her with wonder. Nadia nudged Lorenzo in the side, scowling up at his amused features as he smirked down at her.
"I see you bought with you some extra delights this evening," Sam said, eyes searching past Nadia's left shoulder to where Piero stood, eyeing him with intrigue and delight. Everything seemed to delight this famed keeper of knowledge. "And of course, Mr Bonanno."
Lorenzo let out a chuckle, one so at ease that Nadia was momentarily taken aback, watching him pull out a seat opposite the Oracle and their entourage and gesture at it for her to sit. Rolling her eyes at his act of chivalry, Nadia slung herself into the armchair no longer bothering to act civilised.
"Good to see you too, Sam," Lorenzo smirked, sitting comfortably on the arm of the chair beside Nadia, gesturing to one of the waiters at the bar and signalling for two drinks before he settled down. They knew him well if all he had to do was throw a gesture to the bartender to get a drink. The assassin wondered briefly if she would be able to train Giovani to do the same for her.
"Nadia," Lorenzo's deep voice drew her out of her plotting, "may I officially introduce you to Sam Anderson, the current head Oracle for New York."
"Sam..." she drawled, tasting the name like she would a fine wine, testing the Oracle for herself.
Sam chuckled dryly. "I know, rather an unexciting name for such a prestigious and highly fictitious job. My parents were rather uncreative, unfortunately. I, however, thrive in the art of things."
"Perhaps you should change your name then," Nadia muttered, gladly taking one of the whiskey glasses the waiter had brought over to her and Lorenzo, cautiously taking a sip.
"Ah, but you of all people know how much power a name holds," Sam explained, eyes still focused on Piero, winking at him so flirtatiously Nadia almost thought it ludicrous until she saw the smirk darkening Piero's features. Leo was correct about Piero's reputation it seemed. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company this evening?"
"We've been informed you may be able to assist us," Lorenzo told the Oracle, watching them take a long, languid puff off of the pipe.
They expelled a breath, the cloud of sweet-smelling smoke filling the air in smoke rings. "In your endeavours of finding a Miss Jade Francesca Osborne, I presume. Yes, I am aware of your recent loss of such precious gems."
Nadia shot up straight. "So you know where she is." She was past caring how desperate she looked. Even as Lorenzo's hand settled gently against her jean-clad thigh, rubbing gentle circles to settle her, Sams's gaze devoured the small action with their wicked grin twisting on their cheeks.
Sam tutted, shaking their curls as they did so and Nadia swore she had never felt her temper rise as fast as it did with that simple dismissal. "I never said that."
Sam was lucky this was neutral territory. So, so lucky Nadia promised Lorenzo she would be on her best behaviour.
"Then what do you know about our endeavours, as you put it?" She spat back, not bothering with niceties. Piero chuckled behind her and, if it wasn't for Lorenzo's hand still on her thigh, she would have gutted him like a fish then and there for that action alone.
Sam groaned, growing bored of their conversation. "You're asking the wrong questions," they whined, "What you should be asking is what I know about Miss Osborn."
Nadia's nostrils flared, growing bored of the games. "And what do you know?"
The Oracle seemed amused at her growing agitation. "Knowledge like that doesn't come cheap."
"We are willing to pay," came Lorenzo's gruff response.
Nadia looked at him, the clenching of his jaw, the way his Adams Apple bobbed as he swallowed. The shadows of the club lighting danced over his features making him so hauntingly beautiful, Nadia wondered for a second if whatever secret he was willing to spill for this information was worth it.
Sam's lips pursed, eyes trailing the three of them as they considered Lorenzo. "So eager," they drawled, taking another languid drag from the smoking pipe, blowing circles into the space between them. "You don't even know the price of what you're asking."
"Considering you're not giving us the information we asked for, you'll be lucky to get anything," Nadia threatened, taking another sip of her scotch.
The Oracle laughed, not light and jovial as it had been, but dark and haunting. "She doesn't know then." Their eyes tracked Lorenzo who stayed relaxed and unbothered, watching and waiting for his time to play. Piero stayed silent behind them too and Nadia couldn't help but find it mighty ironic how he couldn't shut up earlier and now she would do anything for a single clarifying word from his mouth.
"Please enlighten me as to what the fuck I don't know," Nadia hissed, practically sitting on her hands to stop herself from rubbing at the headache growing between her eyes.
"Mr Bonanno here has a deal with the Order," Sam told her, gesturing over to Lorenzo who took a deep swig of his drink, savouring the flavour. Nadia tried her best not to turn and look at him, wishing for his warm gaze over Sam's chilling look. "It's a deal that his father set in place with my parents, and it is a deal that will be passed on to his children, and his children's children, until the passing of time."
"Great," Nadia sassed, "his father was a scumbag. What's new?"
"He owes me whatever I ask of him. A loyal servant to the Oracle. Whatever I ask of him, he has to give to me, physical or otherwise. In return I let his little business take place around my home and don't tare him down from the inside. His empire is on the line with these questions, Miss Regarzza, so I'd be mindful of just who you're talking to."
"The Bonanno empire is on the line without these questions," Piero muttered behind them. Nadia bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from slamming her elbow into his ribs.
Sam chuckled again at Piero's comment, eyeing up the weapons master with an unquenchable hunger that couldn't quite be determined whether it was sexual or otherwise.
Nadia ground her teeth together as she mulled over the Oracle's statement. "Then why should we trust you?"
Sam's eyes lit up. "At last she gets it," they hummed in delight. "You shouldn't." He shrugged. "But that doesn't stop you from needing answers. And I am more than willing to give you what you need. I will still take what I am owed in return."
"What is it you will want?" Lorenzo asked calmly, so comfortable with the Oracle's manipulation.
Again, the Oracle's attention was drawn to the weapons master. "I'm sure we can come up to an agreement."
Nadia understood then exactly why Piero had been brought along. Why Lorenzo was so comfortable to have his weapons master in the wild; he was a bargaining chip. One, Nadia realised a little late to the party, who was very willing to play with the devilish look on his face. The Oracle was the one person Nadia thought might stand a chance against Piero.
Lorenzo knew exactly what he was doing when he walked into the room, exactly how to play the Oracle at their own game. A game of wit and daring that Nadia had been wildly unprepared for. But she got it then, she understood every warning and every hesitation Lorenzo had given her, why he wouldn't let her do this by herself.
"If you answer our questions," Lorenzo nodded, "we can make arrangements. As for my father's agreement, that remains. However, I'll encourage you to remember you only get what you want from us for one week a month and, if I'm not mistaken, the rat infestation you had recently was dealt with, was it not?"
Sam considered this for a long moment, watching Lorenzo steadily, unfazed on the outside, but Nadia could see the storm brewing in those crystal blue eyes.
"Okay," they conceded, a sardonic smile finally twisting up their lips. "I'll bite."
———
Once upon a time, there was a King. He sat on a throne and he was loved by his people. He may not have been the best of men, but he cared for his people without constraint. Yet, one of his own wasn't content. His closest kin, a friend he considered a brother plotted against him, a Knave who had sat beside the King for years as the empire grew.
The Knave knew very little about how to rule or what it took to control an empire but that didn't stop him from wanting more than the life he was given; he wanted the king's life. So much so that when the king met the love of his life, replacing the Knaves council with her own, it was the last straw, and thus he went about plotting the King's demise. An easy job, the Knave foolishly thought, he would win the favour of the King's men and when the time came he would simply remove the King from his throne and rule.
That was until the King was gifted by the Gods with a child. A daughter blessed by moonlight.
With an heir on the way to his right to the throne, the Knave had to plot anew to win his spot at the head of the kingdom.
With the King none the wiser to his plotting, the Knave took the Queen and claimed her as his own, cursing her with another child. But this child was no curse to the Queen, or the King once he found out, she was a blessing that the King welcomed with open arms, to protect not only his image but his love too. This daughter was another blessed by the Gods. A daughter blessed by sunlight.
The King, blinded by his past faith in the Knave, did little more than cast the Knave out of his court, unable to kill the man who was once his brother, no matter what he had done to his Queen. Besides, the King had his daughters to think of and their futures to map out. He began to raise both daughters in the court, they were both blessed by the gods and, more importantly, blessed to him by the woman he loved more than his entire empire.
The Knave, a deliriously bitter man, driven mad by his own need for power, horrified by the King's acceptance of the bastard child and furious at his exile, slaughtered the Queen and blamed the King for his insolence, his weakness in being unable to kill the Knave the reason it happened. The King knew then, that it was only a matter of time before the Knave went a step too far so started to plot his revenge, a plan that would take years to fulfil, but one that he prayed would ensure the strength of his empire for years to come from his demise.
His daughters were to become his legacy, so he called in every favour owed to him and the plan was in place. One daughter, his eldest, the daughter of moonlight, was set to be raised to fill her spot on his throne. A marriage prospect had been set, her training paid for and ready. It wasn't what he had hoped for her, he wanted to be there for her as she learnt about the business and perhaps even how to run it but he had to ensure her safety first and foremost.
The second daughter, his daughter of sunlight, was set to be raised to become the second hand to her sister, guiding and aiding her in the challenges they would face once it was time for them to take their places back on the throne. A journey he wished he didn't have to thrust upon them at such a young age but one he knew their mother would want for them. The pain they would endure, he prayed, would only make them stronger.
The Knave, unaware of the King's plotting, made plans to kill the King in his hour of weakness. Slowly, and little by little, the Knave won over those from the King's court, setting his men against him and enjoying every second of destruction he left in his wake until one day it all fell perfectly in place. The men fought amongst themselves,
Knowing there was nothing he could do to save himself, the King chose to save his daughters, setting his plan in motion quicker than he wanted. He hid the daughter of moonlight with a trusted family who had recently lost a daughter of their own, knowing they would raise her with all the love he would have shown her before the time came when it was safe for her to begin her training. The daughter of Sun, however, he wasn't quick enough to save. As they were leaving to join their new family, the Knave, at last, caught on to the King's plan and stopped the daughter of sunlight from escaping with her sister, using his blood tie to her to end all agreements in place for her future set by the King. But there was nothing the Knave could do to stop the daughter of moonlight from escaping despite his best efforts.
With the King dead, the Knave took the throne and used all of his newfound power to hunt down the missing heir.
The Knave cared little for the child left behind, too blinded by his desperation to find the other child— the true heir to the throne— and stop her from coming to take what was rightfully hers. In doing so, he ended up being reckless, and his child was lost as his new kingdom grew to another king, one smaller than him that he considered so insignificant it wouldn't matter what the child became.
What the Knave didn't realise, however, was that the two children were now perfectly positioned to fulfil the King's wishes and take the traitor down in the process. Beautiful destruction and glorious rebirth. The rise of the moon to end them all. The rise of the sun changed the world.
In the dying thoughts of the King, he hoped that one day the daughters of the moon and sun would find each other again and rid the court of evil. And the Knave, through his arrogance, had set them up perfectly to do so.
———
"So Ivan isn't the real leader of the Russians?" Nadia asked, pursing her lips as she muddled her way through all of the information she had just received.
"Not by blood, no," Sam confirmed, a coy smile on their lips enjoying watching Nadia try to puzzle out what he had told her.
"We didn't come here for pointless stories," Lorenzo sighed, resting his hand on his lips as he leaned back slightly. Nadia wasn't sure if it was obvious to anyone else but she saw the restlessness in him the tiny tremor of his hand as it pressed against his lips.
Nadia turned her attention back to the oracle. "What has this got to do with Jade?" She decided to ask, playing dumb to see what more she could find out. Perhaps even who the true heir to the Russian empire was.
Sam gave her a levelling look, one that told her he wouldn't fall for her attempts to draw more from him. "What doesn't it have to do with her is the better question."
There was a long pause where Sam took a deep gulp from a wine glass that had been handed up to them, drinking it like a person dying of thirst. When the cup was pulled away from Sam's lips, a few drops of the wine dripped down their chin, so rich in colour and vibrant in the light, contrasting the haunting eyes that never left her, Nadia swore Sam looked more demon than human at that moment. "I know that Ivan Mikalov has been looking for something for some time now. I also know he thinks he has found it."
"Jade," Nadia huffed, growing bored of only getting answers she knew.
"Maybe," Sam shrugged, "Maybe not."
"Then who is the other—"
"My dear," the oracle cut her off swiftly, "that is not something I can answer. For even the heir herself doesn't know the truth of her heritage."
"But you know who she is?"
Sam's eyes flickered to Lorenzo before coming back to her. "My stories come at a price you know."
"You're playing a dangerous game here, Anderson," Lorenzo warned with deadly calm precision.
Sam laughed. "Oh, I'm not the only one, am I?" The dark look seemed to grow on Sam's features
"Lorenzo," Nadia warned, wanting an explanation. "What are they on about?"
"Things that shouldn't be spoken about here," he responded gruffly. Nadia focused on the profile of his face, the way his jaw clenched, eyes blazing.
"Leo," she tried again to catch his attention.
Slowly, Lorenzo turned to look at her, eyes following behind his head.
"Bambino," she muttered, the look on her face deadly despite the smile on her face.
He closed his eyes at the look on her face, drawing it to his own and resting his forehead against hers. The world became nothing but Nadia and Lorenzo for a brief, perfectly sweet moment.
"Now this is new," Sam cooed, and the brief bliss ended. "the heartless Lorenzo has a heart after all. I knew you had a soft spot for danger, Lorenzo, I just didn't realise that would manifest itself into a woman. Much lest the most revered Devil of all time."
Nadia's eyes widened, realising that maybe she fucked up by showing him affection, that she could have just given him a weakness where there hadn't been one before. Her panic swiftly subsided when she saw the gentle smirk on Lorenzo's face. The cocky bastard wanted this to happen and wanted her to worry about him to prove a point.
"Dickhead," she muttered lowly for only him to hear, watching the smirk split into a heart-stopping grin.
"Si, passerotta," he murmured back, pressing his lips sweetly against hers for the briefest moment. "and entirely your problem."
"And she loves you too," Sam sighed happily, fascinated yet again by their interactions, every small move felt like it was under a microscope. "Not just a match of convenience."
Nadia couldn't help but snort at that. "Trust me, there was nothing convenient about this match."
"Quite the opposite," Lorenzo rumbled in amused agreement, "She threatened to cut my balls off when we first met."
"And I would have been successful if I had just dislocated my thumb." Nadia grinned.
"I'm not so sure I'm thankful that you didn't," Piero rumbled beside them causing the pair to chuckle at his discomfort.
Her eyes drifted back to Sam to find them Cheshire Cat grinning at the three of them but the question on her face wasn't ignored.
"I truly can't tell you where to find her," they admitted through a sigh, "only that she alive and with her dreadful father once more, but you're a clever girl, Nadia, you'll figure it out."
The small assassin felt the heavy gaze of Lorenzo at the side of her face but tuned him out to focus on the Oracle before her. "If you can't tell us about Jade, then why was I sent to you?" There was no disguising the confusion in her tone, the furrow of her brow as she tried to figure out what was going on.
"We know of your stunt with the institute," the oracle answered instead, "an impressive feat I must admit," they said, leaning back into the arms of those around them.
"I didn't come here for your flattery," Nadia huffed back, shaking her head.
"But it's nice to receive nonetheless, is it not?" Sam winked, laughing when Nadia's eyes narrowed. "We know of the corruption within those walls as well." Nadia's breath caught in her throat, watching something dance behind their haunting eyes. "Some old friends of yours have been busy. Not all of the Devils have come out to play yet."
"What do you mean," she asked in a breathless whisper.
"Keep your enemies close, Nadia."
Everything froze. The small assassin had stood and was aiming her weapon at the oracle before she even had time to process her thoughts. Both Lorenzo and Piero jumped to action immediately as she did, watching as no one else seemed to even flinch.
"Who the fuck are you," she hissed, blood boiling beneath the surface, threatening to destroy her from the inside out.
"A friend," Sam countered, flexing their pinkie in a manner that was all too familiar, in a way that no one should know but one person, but there they were the fourth person to taunt her with the words and actions that carved a hole in her chest.
Sam saw the recognition flicker across her face, the way she relaxed her grip on the weapon in her hand.
"You have our respect, Mr Bonanno, but we cannot help you in getting Jade back. To do so would be to break our state of neutrality," they stated calmly as if they hadn't just shattered Nadia's world.
"We understand," Lorenzo answered gruffly, turning to place a hand against Nadia's shoulders, gently guiding her away from the Oracle, away from the room of truths hidden in mystery.
Nadia stopped just as they reached the door once more, turning back to face sam and their entourage. "Did they ever find each other again?" She found herself asking softly. "The daughters of the moon and sun?"
Sam said nothing but smiled knowingly.
~
The thick plottens...
Thoughts and feeling on this one?!
I know I've been MIA for a little while, and I probably will be MIA for a little while longer after this chapter as I'm literally in the middle of getting a degree and have like three weeks left of madness before I have my summer to work and write as much as I want.
My love to you all for sticking with me on this one.
As always, stay safe
Big love,
AB x