She doesn't wait for a reply as she turns on her heels, returning to the main area of the house.
I guess motherhood only made her more irascible.
The party is in full swing, music blasting in the house.
And as I look down at Sisi, her baffled expression mirroring my own, we both start laughing.
"We forgot to tell her happy birthday."
"I don't think she would have appreciated it in our current states," I add drily, opening the door to the bathroom and putting the clean clothes on a rack.
"For an assassin she's very sensitive when it comes to blood."
"She's always been like that. She prefers neat kills." I roll my eyes, because where's the fun in that.
"Her loss." Sisi shrugs, slowly unbuttoning her dress and shimming out of it.
"But do you know what this means?" I ask as my eyes become fixed on her sinful body. She knows what she's doing as she's seductively removing her underwear until her naked flesh is all on display.
And all mine.
In two steps I'm behind her, my front fitted to her back as I slowly move my fingers down her shoulders.
"We have time for a quickie," I whisper in her ear.
Her breath hitches, her pulse picking up as I continue to languidly caress her skin.
"Fuck," she mutters, the sound of her husky voice going straight to my cock. "I've been waiting for this all day," she says, quickly turning around to face me.
"Hell girl," I rasp when I feel her hand moving down my chest before she cups me through my pants. "I've been walking around with a raging hard-on ever since you pulled the knife from that man's throat," I breathe out, the image forming in my mind again, "the blood gushing out and bathing you in red... Hades in the ninth circle of hell but I would have fucked you right there on top of his corpse if the police hadn't showed up."
She purrs at my words, her nose leaning into me and breathing me in, her hands grabbing the hem of my shirt and pulling it over my head.
"And I would have loved that," she replies just as her lips close over my neck, sucking and licking her way up.
"Fuck," I curse out, too impatient to wait.
Grabbing her by the nape, I bring her forcefully into me, all the pent-up desire exploding in one kiss. I open my mouth on top of hers, devouring her very essence as I feel her curves mold to my body, my erection nestled against her stomach.
Her fingers go lower as she fumbles with my zipper, pulling my pants down and wrapping her hand around me.
"Sisi," I groan at the feel. "I need you now," I tell her, my hands going to her ass as I lift her up, impaling her on my cock in one swift thrust. She's already soaked, her pussy easily taking me inside, her tight heat wrapped around me and welcoming me home.
She moans deep in her throat, and I push her up against the wall, her back hitting the cold tiles as I start pumping in and out of her.
My hands splayed on her ribcage, her legs wrapped around my waist, I continue to viciously kiss her just as I aggressively thrust into her, letting her feel just how much she affects me—how much she owns me.
"I can't believe I lasted until now," I tell her in between harsh breaths.
"Me neither," she whimpers. "I kept clenching my thighs on the plane," she pauses on a moan, "hoping you'd notice and..." she cries out when I hit a spot deep inside her, "and take me. Fuck, Vlad, harder," she commands me and I can only obey.
Her eyes are half-closed, her rosy mouth parted as she mewls every time I advance and retreat.
"Oh, I noticed alright," I bring my mouth down her neck, my teeth nibbling at the sensitive skin, "but I knew once I started I couldn't have stopped until I had you on your knees and begging for mercy. We would have never made it here."
She knows this too. If I'd gotten even one hand under her dress, then it would have been game over.
"Even this is torture," I continue, sucking hard on her skin and leaving my mark. "Since it's just an appetizer."
"Tonight," she moans, "I need more," she prolongs the sound as her pussy clenches around me, her legs tightening around my body as she comes.
"Tonight," I repeat, my hand trailing up her body until I close my fingers over her neck, "I'll have time to destroy you."
Her eyes roll in the back of her head as she gives herself over to the pleasure, and that alone is enough to send me over the edge too, my cock swelling inside even more as I come deep in her pussy.
"It's a promise," she says as I lower her down.
My cum is running down the inside of her thigh, and I swipe it up with a finger, bringing it to her mouth. Her eyes on me, she opens up, sucking my finger in.
"I want you all marked, hell girl. I want everyone to see, smell and hear who you belong to," I whisper as I lean into her, leaving another love bite on her neck, just in case the first one wasn't visible enough.
"Yes," she breathes out, barely holding her balance as she teeters towards me.
"I wonder if our host would prefer cum instead of blood," I tenderly caress her face, "I'd have you draped in it..." my fingers brush her nipples and she gasps, her pupils so fucking dilated they engulf her irises. "Cum dripping from every inch of your skin..."
"Tonight," she says on that breathy tone of hers and I'm already hard again.
But we still have to emerge from the bathroom and mingle with the guests, so we quickly shower, after which I can't help myself from fucking her again, this time making sure my seed stays inside of her so that she feels me every time she takes a step.
"I didn't realize it takes you hours to shower," Bianca arches an eyebrow when we finally emerge from the bathroom.
"There was a lot of blood," Sisi shrugs, her expression so genuine you wouldn't think to contradict her.
"Whatever," B shrugs, her eyes suddenly narrowing behind us. "Diana, no! Not the knife," she yells before running towards her daughter.
"Happy Birthday, B," I call out from behind, wanting to ensure we don't forget the reason we're here.
She doesn't seem to hear, and while she oversees the children, we start mingling with the other guests.
We end up bumping into Allegra and Catalina, both currently very pregnant and in the middle of a discussion on child rearing.
"Did you guys plan on giving birth at the same time?" Sisi asks, leaning into me.
"No, but somehow it happened," Allegra chuckles. "At least they will have someone close in age to play with."
"I can't believe you're not going crazy with so many children."
"You get used to it," Lina says before scrunching her nose, "eventually."
"Any plans for you, Sisi?" Allegra asks suggestively, and I note the slight blush on Sisi's cheeks.
"At some point. We're still in the honeymoon phase," she winks, gazing up at me for confirmation.
"What Sisi wants, she gets," I reply, squeezing her hand.
We'd had lengthy discussions on the topic, and we'd both agreed that if we do have children, it's going to be later.
I'd told her that I'm ready to have one whenever she desires, but she'd replied that she wants to have more time to ourselves. Deep down, I think she's scared of having another miscarriage like last time, and I know it was one of the darkest periods in her life. If that's the case, then I can only be there for her and support her decision when the time comes.
Fuck knows, I love having her all to myself, all the time. But maybe a little Sisi running around the house wouldn't be so bad.
At some point.
"For now, he's enough," she says softly, raising on her tiptoes to give me a kiss.
"When you do, you'll have us to help. I'm sure we know all the tricks by now," Lina mentions, amused.
"Oh, especially when it comes to raising them," Allegra purses her lips, shaking her head. "They're all cute little monsters until they grow up. That's when the real nightmare begins."
"Tell me about it," Lina sighs, "Claudia is going through puberty and I don't think we've ever had worse disagreements than
now."
"Come on, Lina. She's a great kid."
"I think she's been learning from Venezia and her teenage rebellion. Now that's another issue Marcello and I have been dealing with," she sighs. "She's gotten it into her head that she wants to finish high school at a public school."
"Would it be so bad? She needs some sort of normality, Lina. You know she's never had any outside friends," Sisi comments.
"I don't know... That's what I'm afraid of. She's young and too naïve to let her go out in the world by herself."
"She needs to experience the world at some point. Think of this as easing her into it."
I can tell that Sisi's a little peeved about their reluctance with Venezia.
Since we'd redone the house in Brighton Beach, Venezia had become a permanent fixture, visiting almost weekly. She and Sisi had developed a very close bond and Sisi's been trying to convince Lina and Marcello to give her a little freedom for a while now. Even with no danger looming in the horizon, Marcello hadn't been too enthusiastic about sending his baby sister to a public school.
"Why don't you let her try it for a semester at least? Who knows, she might not like it. But at least let her experience it on her own," Sisi continues.
"We'll think about it," Lina replies, the most she's probably willing to acquiesce. "That's right, did you hear about Raf?" she quickly changes the topic.
My hand immediately tightens on Sisi's shoulder at his name, mostly because I'm still bitter that she almost married him.
"No," she frowns. "Did they find him? What happened?"
"He was spotted running with some cartel people. Marcello got an account about him but... He doesn't seem like the same Raf you knew, Sisi."
"What do you mean?"
"He's the right man of the boss. It's an obscure cartel, only recently appeared on the map."
"Fenix," I add grimly.
"You know about it?" Sisi turns to me.
"Not exactly. I know about its existence, but since it doesn't interfere with my business, I've never looked deeper into it," I shrug.
"But how could he have ended up with them? Why not come back and take his rightful place?"
Not long after Rafaelo's mysterious disappearance, Benedicto had suspiciously up and died, leaving Michele in control of everything within the famiglia.
"Michele put a price on his head. He can't step anywhere on the East Coast without every assassin in the area hunting for him," I answer grimly.
Sisi turns her sharp gaze towards me, and I know what she's thinking. Why did I never tell her about that?
But how could I when I go mad with jealousy just thinking about him? When I want to go on a killing spree when anyone mentions his name? He may be only her friend, but to me he is a reminder that I could have lost her.
And I can't stomach that thought.
The girls continue chatting while I stay stiffly by Sisi's side, trying to think of ways I can redeem myself with her.
And when she drags me in a darker corner of the house where the music isn't so loud, I know I only have a small window of time to plead my case.
"Before you say anything, hell girl. Yes, I knew about the bounty on his head, but I had no idea he's been sighted. That cartel is mostly active in New Mexico, so I had no reason to dig deeper."
"But why wouldn't you tell me? We share everything," she replies and I feel the slight disappointment in her voice.
"I don't like it when you talk about him," I admit in a low voice. "It takes everything in me not to go into a murderous rage when he's mentioned."
"Vlad," she sighs, "he's my friend. He's never been anything but my friend."
"I know. But I can't help it hell girl. The mere thought that you could have married him haunts me even now. I can't not be jealous, even when I know I shouldn't be."
"You silly beast," she shakes her head, a small smile playing at her lips as she punches me playfully. "You know you're the only one for me," she murmurs softly.
"I do. I do." I whisper against her hair as I hug her to me. "But that doesn't mean I'll stop being jealous. Ever."
Not when I know what a prize she is and what a lucky bastard I am for her to even look in my direction.
"Well..." she trails off, "you're lucky sometimes I like it when you're jealous," she continues as she trails her finger over my chest, "when you revert to a caveman state and have your wicked way with me."
"Fuck, Sisi," I grab her hand, my breathing ragged as I struggle for an ounce of self-control. "You're driving me crazy."
"Not now," she retorts saucily. "Tonight."
"Tonight," I repeat bleakly, already counting down the seconds.
THE END (FOR NOW)
Afterword
Thank you so much for reading until the end! This book was the hardest to write due to some events that happened in my personal life, but I'm happy it's finally out in the world.
If you enjoyed this story, please consider leaving a rating or review on any retail platform. It would boost the algorithm for the book and get more people to discover it (and it would help me a lot <3).
If you want to discuss the book, head over to the spoiler room HERE!
As you can tell, Vlad and Sisi's story is far from finished, and they will continue to play significant roles in upcoming books in the universe (and who knows, they might get a sequel in the future too).
Want more of Vlad and Sisi? Check the Pinterest board for Morally Ambiguous HERE!
Rafaelo and Michele's story will be told in the Arte De La Guerra Duet, and the first book, Guerra Incompiuta, will focus on Raf and his journey to hell and back.
A few other characters mentioned in this book will eventually get their own stories. To find out which ones, subscribe to my newsletter HERE!
You can also catch up with the latest news on my Instagram and on my Website.
Check out the other books in the Morally Questionable Series:
MY NAME IS PINK (FREE)
MORALLY CORRUPT
MORALLY BLASPHEMOUS
MORALLY DECADENT
Postface
Having come thus far, you're probably wondering about Vanya and the nature of her presence throughout the book. There is no set answer for this. Vlad certainly believes she was only a figment of his imagination, but he's also a resolute skeptic. In fact, his willingness to resort to the non-orthodox practices to find a cure for his episodes shows how committed he was to Sisi, even going against his staunch convictions to find a way to be together. But was Vanya just a mental crutch for him, or was she more?
You tell me. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Head over to the spoiler room and share your ideas! Click HERE!
Another point I'd like to address is the science used throughout the book. Vlad and Vanya are said to have a mutation in the amygdala that results in a form of autism that influences emotions–both expressed and perceived. There is some evidence to a link between abnormal amygdala functions and forms of autism, but the research is in incipient stages. I took some creative license in having it be prevalent in twins, as well as causing muted emotions.
The amygdala itself deals with fear and fear-based stimuli, but can influence other areas of behavior including emotional responses. If you're familiar with psychopathy, then you may be aware that biologically, their amygdala is differently structured. However, as Miles pointed out, psychopaths are too unpredictable and hard to control so they would not be useful to his experiments. As such, I've tweaked the science a little to suit the experiment.
In Vlad's case, his fear and remorse are almost non-existent, and his emotional range is quite limited. He's only able to read emotional cues because he's taught himself how to recognize them over time. But even so, throughout the book he has a hard time understanding some social situations. His jokester persona is minutely crafted not only to come across as affable to people but also to hide his social deficiencies.
For Miles' tests and experiments, I was inspired by a number of real-life events, of note being Me
ngele's twin experiments, Unit 731 during World War II, human experimentation in the Soviet Union, the Pitesti Prison experiment and the Stanford Prison Experiment.
Unit 731 was heavily focused on research on how the body reacted in different scenarios–amputations, live dissections, or to infectious diseases.
The other three focused more on the behavioral aspect, with both the experiments in the Soviet Union (think gulags) and the Pitesti Prison experiment dealing with reeducation and the concept of self and slowly erasing it.
The Stanford Prison Experiment is probably the most relevant in what happened to Vlad. From being Miles' victim, he slowly became his assistant–the abused became the abuser. As he gained Miles' approval he was also given authority over the other prisoners and he started enforcing the same standards as Miles, even going as far as conducting his own experiments on other children.
Another point of contention might be Vlad's journey to the Amazon basin and his partaking of the Ayahuasca. It wasn't my intention to suggest that 'alternative remedies' cured Vlad's episodes–because at the end of the day they did not. Instead, I wanted to highlight his willingness to embrace pseudo-science as his willingness to go against himself in order to be with Sisi. As to what happened on his Ayahuasca journey, I'll let you decide how to interpret his visions.
One last note, when Vlad tells Sisi in Russian "mne nuzhna tolka ti odna," the words are meant to evoke a song very dear to me, Dimash Kudaibergen—Sinful Passion.
Thank you for reading so far and I hope this short explanation has been of use.
Playlist
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Morally Ambiguous: A Dark Mafia Romance (Morally Questionable Book 4) Page 78