Epilogue
FIVE YEARS LATER, SHANGHAI, CHINA,
"WHAT DID YOU SAY IT WAS, bug?" I look down at Luca as he places his magnifying glass over the piece of jade we'd just acquired.
"Emperor's jade. It's part of a mortuary mask."
"Mortuary mask?" My little tigress asks, entering the room with a huge box in her hands.
"Let me help you," I immediately reach out to get the box out of her hands.
"Where did you learn those complicated words, kiddo?" She asks, ruffling his hair as she leans in to look at the gemstone.
"I read about it last night," Luca sighs, already knowing what's coming.
"Last night, as in when you were supposed to be sleeping?" She arches an eyebrow at him, but he just shrugs, continuing his examination of the piece of jade.
One thing Luca's inherited from his mother is his thirst for knowledge. The boy's been reading everything he can get his hands on, sometimes even things way above his grade level.
I wink at Allegra, motioning her to the side.
Propping open the box, I do a quick inventory of our weapons. The exchange is supposed to be peaceful, but we've learned never to underestimate the situation.
Although Allegra and I had agreed we'd continue our lives in the mob, I'd slowly retreated from the public scene of New York, letting Nero, my trusted right hand, to handle everything State-side. Instead, we've started spending more time in Europe, moving permanently to my palazzo in Gozo.
Allegra had been quick to dive into the world of art trafficking, and she enjoys spending her time researching artifacts and potential buyers. While we do most of the trading behind the scenes, sometime we like to personally get involved in an exchange — like now.
Because I'd assessed this mission as low risk, we'd also taken Luca with us.
He might be just shy of ten, but he's our little Indiana Jones in the making, his passion for antiques rivaling his mother's.
"We should leave Luca at the hotel," my little tigress leans in to whisper to me.
"Do you think he'll let us?" I ask drily. He needs to be present where the action is, one way or another. If we don't take him with us, we might find him in the trunk of the car. "You know he has his ways," I continue in a low voice.
Allegra's checking the guns for ammo, looking now and then at Luca.
"I know, but what if this gets dangerous?" She sighs, putting the pistol down and resting her head on my shoulder.
"So far we've had only good experiences, but we're in a foreign country — one we have never traded in before. I just don't want any surprises."
"I know, little tigress, I know. But it's better if we take him with us on our terms, rather than wake up with him there, in the middle of the action." Which I don't doubt would happen.
For all his quiet demeanor, Luca is very shrewd, and his ability to read a room is unparalleled. Even now, though he looks entranced by the jade, I'm sure he's assessing our body language, suspecting what we're plotting something.
"Give him a gun," I tell her and her eyes widen in shock.
"Enzo!" She exclaims, incensed but still whispering.
"He knows how to shoot. Give him one, just in case, and then we can be more at peace."
She purses her lips, narrowing her eyes at me, but she eventually agrees.
Allegra can be quite the mother hen, but she's also aware of what Luca's future entails, so she's tried not to coddle him too much. Still mindful of his safety, she always tries to push him beyond his limits. Certainly beyond what any other normal parent would allow. But she'd been the first to point out that it's better to urge him to try things in a controlled environment, rather than have him do everything by himself and potentially get hurt because we're not there to supervise.
And I can't help but be enthralled by her. She never fails to amaze me with her strength and fortitude. I'll probably be eternally grateful to DeVille for trying to kill me, because if that hadn't happened I would have never met my little tigress.
I lay a kiss on her forehead, and we both gear up for the exchange.
"I can't wait to get back to my girls," she releases a sad sigh as she puts on her bulletproof vest.
Diotima, our eldest, is four now, while Nerissa, the youngest, is only two. Both are currently with maman Margot and Lia. They've been our go to babysitters in times like this, and I don't think I could ever trust my baby girls with anyone else.
"Me too, little tigress. Me too," I reply, buttoning her shirt and quickly kissing her lips. I'd do a whole lot more, since seeing her with a gun strapped to her thigh is only making me uncomfortably hard. It would be so easy to bend her over and slide inside her...
"Mind out of the gutter, sir," she giggles at me, pointing at my already tented pants.
"You know I can't help it," I complain, pouting at her so she'd at least give me a kiss to last me until tonight.
She does take pity on me and she raises herself on her tiptoes to fit her mouth to mine.
"We need to hurry." Luca casually walks past us to pick up a smaller gun.
"If you say so son," I clear my throat, willing my erection to disappear.
The exchange is indeed rather peaceful, and the Han dynasty piece of jade gets us a pretty penny.
It's only later when we're back at the hotel that I take my son aside to have a small talk.
"This money is yours, Luca," I say, showing him the account I'd opened in his name. "You won't be able to access it just yet, but you've done most of the research work for this sale so it's only fair you get the biggest cut."
I explain to him how the money will be there until he's of age, and every job he contributes to will yield him more money.
He nods thoughtfully.
"Thank you, papa," he replies, giving a me a hug before retiring to his room.
When I also go to my room, I'm met with my little tigress spread out on the bed and grinning at me.
"Have I ever told you that you're a great father? No, not great, the best," she wraps her arms around my neck as I join her in bed.
"Is that so?" I ask, arms wrapped around her middle and bringing her into me.
"It's important for him to recognize the value of money, and that he has to work for it first. So yes, you're the best father," she takes my lips for a kiss.
"Should we..." I trail off, my hand on her stomach," have another one?"
She tilts her head to the side, studying me.
"Not now," she whispers, her hand caressing my cheek, "maybe when Luca and the girls are older."
"Your wish is my command. Always."
ONE YEAR LATER, GOZO, MALTA
CLOSING MY EYES, I breathe in the morning breeze and the smell of the sea.
"Hey, you'll catch a cold," Enzo comes from behind, wrapping a blanket around my shoulders.
"Sometime I wish we'd never leave here," I say just as his arms come around me, holding me to him.
"Me too, little tigress, but we need the world just as much as it needs us," I feel his breath against my skin and a shiver goes down my back. He's never failed to make me feel like this, no matter how many years pass.
"Can you believe it's our fifteenth wedding anniversary?" He asks, looking into the horizon.
"Who would have thought we'd be here today?" I muse out loud.
Certainly not me, given the rocky start of our marriage, or the subsequent problems we encountered. But we pushed through, and against all odds, we managed to build a life for ourselves.
"Mamma," I turn to see Diotima followed by Nerissa as they race towards us. Luca is slowly trailing behind them, his gaze on the book in his hands.
"Come here," I stoop down to pick up Diotima in my arms while Enzo takes Nerissa.
"How come you two are up so early?" I raise an eyebrow at them.
"Rissa was bored," Diotima points to her sister.
"Not me!" She's quick to defend herself. "Dio wanted to go out," our youngest pouts, looking so innocent but so, so cunning.
> I turn to Enzo and I can see he's struggling not to smile.
According to our girls, it's always the other who instigates everything. We've had enough experience with their antics to realize it's usually by common agreement. They just like to tease each other to see who is more likely to get in trouble.
"We should head to breakfast now that you're all up," I take a step forward, Enzo following with Rissa.
Luca lags behind, a small frown of consternation on his features.
"Luca?" I stop to ask, realizing he's not coming.
"I got it now," he says, blinking twice.
"What is it, dear?"
"Diotima. I know where you got the name," he says, lifting his book up so we can see the title.
I look at Enzo and for the first time I note the presence of a faint blush on his cheeks.
"That's right, son," he replies, his eyes seeking mine.
"Why?" Luca asks, his curiosity innocent, when the answer is anything but.
"Enzo, why don't you take the girls inside and I'll have a small chat with Luca," I gently urge him, depositing Diotima in his arms.
"Good luck," he gives me a quick kiss before leaving, relieved he's not the one doing the explanation.
Placing my hand on Luca's back, I try to find the best words to describe the situation, especially since this isn't a text for someone his age.
"In here," I point to his book, "Diotima is the last one to speak, and her idea of love is that it's all encompassing."
He nods, watching me attentively.
"That's how your papa and I feel about each other. And your sister is the result of that love, so as homage, we named her after Diotima."
He regards at me thoughtfully, digesting the information.
"Do you love papa a lot?" He suddenly asks, and a smile spreads on my face.
"A lot is an understatement." I tell him. "Your papa is my second half."
Luca purses his lips, narrowing his eyes at me before slowly nodding.
"I see," he replies, tilting his head to the side. "I want that too... a second half."
Fighting tears of happiness, I bring him to my chest for a hug, already so very proud of him.
"You'll find yours too, dear. Just keep your eyes open. Sometimes it happens when you least expect it."
I never imagined I'd be here today when I said I do in front of that priest, fifteen years ago. But for all the heartache, abuse and loss I've endured, I also received the biggest gift of all — love. Between Enzo and the kids, I'm simply spoiled for love.
If once I'd been the wretchedest girl on earth, now I'm simply the most fortunate.
THE END
Afterword
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The next book in the series is Morally Ambiguous, featuring Vlad Kuznetsov.
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Morally Ambiguous Preview
DRUMMING MY FINGERS ON the surface of the table I feel myself slipping even further. Past, present, and future are all jumbled together in my head to the point that sometimes, I can barely get a grasp on reality.
A killing machine.
It wouldn't be too far to refer to me as such. My conscience is the only thing that separates me from that designation.
Not for long.
At this rate, I might lose it before the year's out.
Sparing a glance at the pendulum on my desk, I try to focus on the symmetry of the sound, seeking an equilibrium.
Tik Tok... Tik Tok... Tik Tok...
Not for the first time, I'm confronted with the fact I'm no longer mollified by the sound, even the peaceful beep of a metal ball hitting the other isn't enough to stop the bloodlust.
Not anymore.
"Maxim," I call out the name of my guard, already feeling my throat clogging up.
"Da," he quickly responds.
"Evacuate the first level," I command him, immediately hanging up.
Fuck!
Getting up to my feet, I struggle between a state of being and not being, voices crowding my brain, screeches deafening my ears.
I close my eyes, counting to ten as I battle for control over my own body.
Pulling open one of the drawers, I take out a vial and a syringe, quickly working the solution inside and the needle in my skin.
Almost beat up, I fall to the ground, my eyes groggy, my sight foggy.
With my other hand I search for my phone, dialing Bianca. When she answers, I don't even let her speak as I ask her.
"Remember your promise?" I force the words out, aiming to sound as normal as possible.
"Yup, why?" She asks nonchalantly.
"I have a job for you," I grit my teeth as I pull more serum into the syringe, the normal dosage not working this time.
"Sure," she says immediately. Killing is in her veins and she will never waver. That much I trust.
"I want it to be a surprise. The rest is up to you. The deadline is by the end of the year."
No matter how good of a shot or how competent of an assassin B is, she'd never be able to take me at my normal capacity.
The element of surprise will work to her advantage, ensuring her kill is a success.
"Fine, who is the target?" She asks, already bored.
"Me," I say, quickly hanging up and disposing of the phone.
All animals have an instinct of self-preservation – me notwithstanding. If she can trump that, squash that primal instinct of survival, then I'll finally be dead.
Finally at peace.
Throwing my head back, I wait for the drug to take effect.
Who knows, Vanya, we might meet sooner after all.
Morally Decadent (Morally Questionable Book 3) Page 41