Page 34 of Shield

“Finance an army,” I finish, the fire in my veins cooling to a steady, controlled burn. “And go to mother fucking war.”

16

Siena

Iwake up hungover as fuck. My mouth is dry, my head is pounding, and every inch of me aches. Groaning, I shift, cracking open one eye.

“Good morning, sunshine.” Olivia’s voice is far from sunshine-y. It’s flat and sad.

I pry open my other eye. She’s sitting in a chair across the living room, scrolling on her phone. My living room. So at least I made it home. “Last thing I remember is puking all over Matti’s shoes,” I say, voice hoarse. “What’d I miss?”

“Nothing you want to hear about,” Olivia says with a defeated expression.

“Try me,” I groan, fumbling for the bottle of water she hands me. My fingers barely work, but I manage to twist off the cap and take a long, greedy gulp.

She sighs, clearly reluctant, settling on the couch next to me as I sit up.

“It’s okay,” I assure her. “There’s nothing you can say that will upset me at this point. I think I’ve hit rock bottom in the humiliation department. Unless I stripped naked and tried toblow Matti while covered in vomit, I doubt you can hurt me.”

Olivia gives a humorless laugh. “Nothing like that. But other people were certainly a sloppy mess.”

“Oh, yeah?” I take another long drink, practically feeling my body rehydrating. Water dribbles down my chin and chest, and I wipe it off the tank top and leggings I’m wearing that I don’t remember putting on, snagging a finger on my chain and St. Michael pendant. My hair is slightly damp, so Olivia must have helped me shower.

“Yeah,” she grumbles, picking at the fabric of the couch. “I picked this out, by the way. Do you like it?”

I stop mid-sip, blinking. “You did what?”

“Yeah, a couple months ago, I think. Your house was destroyed. Every piece of furniture was broken, ripped apart. Matti asked me to find pieces that you had and replace them. That was not easy, if you’re wondering.”

I snort. She’s not wrong. My entire place was furnished with thrift store finds, roadside rescues, and freebies. “And who was it that destroyed the house? Matti, I’m assuming?”

She shrugs. “That I don’t know. But the bedroom set was impossible. I picked about six I liked, but Matti had final say and approval on everything.” She rolls her eyes. “And he demanded that there be two nightstands in your room even though you only had one before. So. Make of that what you will.”

Jesus. What else do I not know about this man? Murderer, interior designer, and apparently angling for a sleepover at some point. He’s an enigma.

“Really,” I say, my tone sarcastic. “He loved the dress, by the way. Did he pick that out, too?”

Olivia glances down at her hands in her lap, biting her lip. “I’m sorry, Siena. I didn’t know he was going to be there. He told me—emphaticallytold me—that he would not come.”

“It’s his building, though?” I ask, knowing the answer.

She nods. “He lives in the penthouse. But honestly, he’s been a mess for weeks, so when he said he wasn’t coming, I believed him. He basically stays in his penthouse. He’s not even really working, from what I can tell. Vin goes to see him sometimes and Eleanor tries to make him eat periodically, but that’s about it.”

“I’m sure Valentina stops by to take care of him.” The thought triggers my gag reflex, and I drink more water to wash away the image. “Or she’s locked in there with him.”

Olivia’s head snaps up. “No.” She hesitates. “Well, I don’t think so.”

“You don’t think so?” I arch a brow. Olivia has always been Matti’s biggest defender, especially when it comes to Valentina.

“Last night was… confusing.”

“Well, he beat the ass of some guy who touched her. That’s not confusing,” I say drily.

Olivia dismisses my assumptions with a wave. “He’d do that for anyone, even a woman he didn’t know. He just likes to fight.” She gets up and goes into the kitchen and pulls a bottle of water out of the fridge. Opening it, she leans her forearms on the counter and looks at me through the pass-through.

When she doesn’t continue, I sigh impatiently. “Olivia, I love you. But if you don’t fucking tell me what happened right now, I’ll take the graffiti dress Matti bought me and set it on fire in the middle of his lobby.”

“Literally my dress. I didn’t buy it for you, you freak, but fine.” She returns to her chair, crossing her arms. “Matti wascarrying you. He said he was taking you up to his penthouse to get cleaned up. Then Valentina stumbled her slut ass in and saw him and lost her shit.”

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