It’s well past midnight by the time I arrive back in the hills.
Most of my staff have gone to bed. Only security still stand guard at their posts. During ordinary times, I’d have stayed in the city until all of this was figured out, but my heart is heavy.
Through all of today’s action, I’ve come to an understanding, of sorts.
When Nolan met back up with us at Dad’s, he told us about the second set of suspicious tire tracks that the police had found leading away from the club. They suggest that another car had been at the scene of the crime. And, unlike its partner car, it escaped.
We moved a little money around and made sure that those officers who showed up wouldn’t let a formal investigation begin until we allowed it. Inside the club, a massacre had unfolded. Nearly all of Nolan’s girls were found dead or near death. None survived their trip to the hospital.
Much like the warehouse fire, this was a message. What exactly it’s saying is still unclear. Though, Nolan did mention that the club’s security office had been raided in the chaos.
Still, as far as we could tell, only a few tapes had been taken. Tapes with dates that held no meaning to us. Nothing of importance. All of our footage from the warehouse fire was still in our possession.
So, what the fuck do the Russians want?
He wants what you stole from him.
They say you have something of theirs.
But what?
I’ve been racking my brain since Vladimir first said those words. Then I was forced to rewind again when Ciro showed up and said the same thing.
It’s enough to drive me insane. But I’ve had enough of losing myself this week. Today was a breakthrough of sorts. My brothers proved themselves worthy of their desires. They wanted to be all in, and when the opportunity arose, they didn’t back down. We worked together to fight off that brutal assault, and it’s how we survived. And when I looked into their eyes afterwards, I knew that they wanted more. Just like me.
I’m not alone in this.
There’s no point hiding Nolan and Shane away anymore. If I fall, so do they. I may be king, but they are my empire.
And soon enough, Elisa will be part of my empire too.
It may be late when I walk in the front door of our castle in the Catskills, but just like this morning, there’s something I have to do.
My room is the first stop. The remaining half of Elisa’s clothes are still packed away in boxes at the foot of my bed. As are her books, which, upon examination, consist of far more medical journals than I was expecting. Maybe I was just expecting the pretty little princess to be playing make-believe with her dreams of helping the poor and working as a field nurse, but it looks like she was serious. It’s admirable, in a way.
With a turn of a key, I unlock the skywalk that leads from my room to hers. Above the inner garden, I haul the boxes to my princess.
She’s fast asleep when I come out on the other side. The top half of her window is still open, and pale moonlight cascades over the soft skin of her shoulders. Tonight, she’s wearing a nightgown. One of her own.
My steps are soft and quiet as I place the boxes against her closet. I’ll let her organize them. That’s what she likes, right?
When I’m done, I stare at her just a little more. My frozen heart stirs, but the walls around my past are as strong as ever. I block out every dreadful memory of my childhood. All the betrayal and tragedy and darkness. And I just look at Elisa. Sleeping Beauty.
I still haven’t given her that first kiss.
Will she ever let me?
The truth is, I want her to let me. I need her to want it. All of this other stuff, the nipple play, the fingerfucking, the spanking. It’s just a game. But this isn’t a game anymore.
This is my empire.
She’s part of that.
The breakthrough with my brothers has made me look at Elisa in a different light too. I’ve got to stop denying those I care about.
And fuck, despite my best intentions, I’m starting to care for her.
No more sticking to the plan. The plan isn’t fucking working. Whatever I feel, I feel.
And right now, I feel the time isn’t right.
I let her sleep. She’s like a whole different person with her eyes closed. More like the vision I had of her when Nolan showed me those photographs. Pure. Innocent. Empty.
I like it better when she’s awake.
It’s that spirit of hers that’s taking me hostage, and if I want to free myself, I’m going to have to stop denying myself too. That doesn’t mean mercy, but it does mean understanding.
Elisa is my prisoner, but also my future wife. We need to get on the same page. I’ll make her want me. And she’ll know that I want her. Then maybe, we can have something together that is separate of my quest for revenge. Something that doesn’t involve her bastard father. Something that will ease my racing mind and allow me to settle back into the prince who helped bring the Italian mob to its knees.
When I return to my room, I find it to be too big and empty and full of shadows. After I lock the door to the skywalk, I don’t stick around. A new day is rising, and along with it, a chance to take back what’s mine.
And that means everything.
