Page 135 of Merciless Queen

Unfortunately for Vanessa,I know where she lives.

Unfortunately for me, my wife guessed what my next steps would be and positioned a small force of soldiers at the edge of her property.

I park the rental car on the side of the road and slip out from the front seat, hands loose by my sides so they see I’m not armed. Though, if they wanted to check, they’d find a gun tucked into my jeans.

In one pocket, I have the diamond ring I bought her. Nero called me suicidal. I claimed to be making a point. She didn’t kill me, so it’s a start.

None of the men lift a weapon toward me, which makes me wonder what Vanessa’s exact orders were. The centremost soldier steps forward. “Boss figured you’d come here. Return to your own country before we toss you out.”

I keep a few paces between us, lingering where the grass meets the gravel. “I’m only here to talk.”

“Leave, Mancini.”

“Not until she hears me out.” Again. But this guy doesn’t need to know it’d be a second attempt.

I don’t know at what point yesterday I decided to make the trip. In the middle of dealing with Serafina’s safety, my mind continued slipping toward a woman with a cruel smile and an even crueller demeanour. Thedetermination to reveal what’s beneath her rigid façade struck me.

Every word I said to her in the bar was the truth, although she believes it’s a lie and I wish it was. I don’t know what it means, or what I want it to, I just knowsomethinghas to give. To change. To accept that at night, I dream of her, and during the day, I picture what she’s doing. That I wake up hard thinking about her, and go to sleep recalling the night I held her.

For days, I’ve convinced myself it’s only my desire to control Ursin’s legacy, but every hour passing, the fact slips further into fiction. That it’s less about revenge, and more about…well,her. That the union forcing us together is slowly transitioning into a formality giving me reason to continue talking to her.

The soldier frowns before tipping his head toward the walkie talkie strapped to his shoulder, his warning gaze keeping me in my spot. This can’t be this easy…No way my meager begging worked.

The soldier announces, “You’re in luck. Someone’s on their way.”

Someone. Not Vanessa. It’s a start.

Waiting involves a tense silence with the line of seven glowering at me as though breathing the same air will somehow taint them. Finally, another person approaches, and he’s someone I should have expected. Not her cousin, but the other Elite member, Lev Petrov.

He scowls at me with an expression nearly identical to the men around him, almost like it’s a skill taught within the Bratva’s training. “She’s not here.”

Since he hasn’t shot me yet, I allow myself to hope that one of her most trusted will give me the answer I seek, the same way his sister took one look at me standing on the bar’s front step, shook her head with a small grin, and led me inside, simply stating,“She’ll kill me for this, but at this point, you two need to figure your shit out so I’ll accept the risk.”

Like his sister, Lev gestures farther down the road. “Cemetery. Keep driving for another ten minutes. It’ll be on your right. Check the left far back corner. That’s where her father’s grave is.”

Not that I want to stick around for any longer and risk Vanessa taking off for somewhere else, but the urge to know has me blurting, “Why are you helping me?”

Lev shrugs. “I shouldn’t. For everything you’ve done, I should give the order to have you shot and end the drama your organization brings.” He glances down the road, a look of conflict. “The fact you’re still alive says a lot about her feelings. Whatever’s going on between you two is something, even if she’s fighting it. If I were you, Mancini, I wouldn’t fuck up the only chance you got.”

He turns and walks away, the line of men continuing to stare at me as I quickly climb back into the rental car and follow Lev’s directions.

My visitsto cemeteries are limited to a lone trip each year on the anniversary of Padre’s death. They’re never lengthy, heartfelt trips, but a time where I update him on all things Cosa Nostra. It’s like having him to consult with, while also never being judged by my choices.

When reaching the expanse of green land decorated with greying stones in varying shades, I head for the back left corner, as per Lev’s instructions, until spotting the sole figure. The only living soul among an estate for the fallen.

Her dark hair blows with the light breeze. It’s the only part of her moving, as though she’s trying to become still enough to blend with the dead.

If she hears me approaching, she doesn’t turn, keeping her gaze on the two stones in front of her. Both are marble, one slightly more weather-worn. The female name on the older one catches my attention, presumably her mother’s.

I stop beside her and still she continues her stare down with Ursin’s stone. Seeing the physical absence of the man who did so much to my family should thrill me, but the pain etched on Vanessa’s face makes it harder to.

“You’re still here.” Her dead voice matches those around her.

“We’re not done.”

Vanessa tugs her windblown hair over her shoulder to use as a barrier. “You thought now was the best time to finish?”

“There’s never a good time with you.”

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