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“Mirabella.” I stomp closer, placing a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugs me off while keeping her gaze etched on Alexius’.
“Up until now, all of you have controlled this entire situation. Refused to include me. Kept me hostage in this house. But that stops today.”
My twin brother sighs, and I know he’s at the end of his rope with her. “We have rules. We have a code. We can’t let him live, especially if this baby turns out to be his.”
“And I’m pretty sure that somewhere in your goddamn rule book, it says that you will not harm the father or mother of a family member’s child. Not without that family member’s permission. And while we can’t be sure whose baby I’m carrying, I’m that person.” She leans closer, her green eyes gleaming. “And I’m telling you now…you will not hurt him, Alexius.” She looks at all of us. “None of you will.”
As she speaks, I silently marvel at the strength my wife possesses. How, after everything she’s been through, she can still confront the darkness of her past head-on and use it to challenge others. Her confidence is fucking exquisite, and my heart swells with pride.
“That fucker needs to die, Mirabella,” Isaia says as if Nunzio’s death is some biblical prophecy.
“And he will,” she responds with a venomous tenor in her voice.
Caelian rubs his eyes with his palms. “I’m so confused.”
“Nunzio will die,” Mira continues. “But none of you assholes will get to kill him.”
A deafening silence drapes over the room, and the moment serves to highlight the exquisite resilience and strength my wife wears like a motherfucking crown.
Her gaze settles on mine. “You won’t kill him…because I will.”
ChapterEleven
MIRA
The garden is starkly beautiful but in an unsettling way. The sun’s golden rays penetrate the flower beds with a sinister yellow hue, and the chirping birds sound like mocking laughter as if they know what monsters hell is about to unleash. Even the rustling of leaves carries ominous whispers in the breeze, an eerie sense of dread as if something dark lurks beneath the beauty.
I couldn’t sleep last night, and neither could Nicoli, although he pretended to. But I knew he wasn’t. There was no steady rhythm to his breathing, stilted and erratic, tension rolling off his body like a wave of heat. It was the longest goddamn night, and I was secretly thankful when dawn started to creep up on the horizon. The night felt like it would never end. And this morning at the breakfast table, the atmosphere was suffocating. Every breath felt like a struggle with an uncomfortable silence that thickened the air. There was no banter between the brothers, no jokes or cussing. It was just…silence. I was the cause of it. I could see it in the way everyone would sneak glances my way, their expressions relaying their discomfort. Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore, so I just got up and walked out. And now here I am, outside on the porch, trying desperately to catch my breath and find some solace in this abyss of darkness that has become my life.
“Here you are.” Nicoli walks out on the deck. “The pharmacy just delivered this.”
I glance at the paper bag. “Pre-natals?”
He nods, and I arch a brow at him in silent question, and he lightly shakes his head.
My throat tightens as I force out the word, “Thanks,” my eyes glued to him. His face is a battlefield of emotions, courage and despair waging an epic war. I can’t imagine how hard this has to be for him, and I wish so much that this wasn’t something I had to expect of him.
I wrap my fingers firmly around his, silently pleading for some kind of hope. His azure gaze pierces me to the core, and for a moment, his face softens. It’s a small consolation, but it’s something.
“Promise me this won’t take away everything we have,” I say softly.
He grips my hand tightly, a promise sealed within the warmth of his skin. His thumb brushes soothingly on the back of my hand. “We’ll make it through this, I swear.”
Tears well up in my eyes, and I can hardly breathe as I stand there, our fingers intertwined. The emotions that course through me are like a hurricane, pushing me over the edge until I think I can’t take it anymore.
As if he could feel the storm in me, he pulls me close and wraps his arms tightly around me, and all I can do is bury my face against his chest, clenching my jaw to stop myself from sobbing. His cologne lingers in my nose as I cling to him, desperately willing myself to find a shred of hope that all this will be worth it in the end.
“It’s gonna be okay, Hummingbird,” he whispers, breathing lightly against my hair, rubbing circles on my back. “All this is going to end soon.”
“It has to,” I murmur. “I can’t take it that they look at me differently now.”
“Who?”
“Your brothers. My brother.”
Nicoli leans back, brushing strands of hair from my face, tucking it behind my ear. “They’re concerned.”
“I know they are.”
