Vitally put his hand up, like he was trying to calm me down. “You won’t need to. He’ll come to the city if I agree to meet him there. He still owes me a very large debt. He’ll come to the city if it means paying that back.”
I felt Sephie’s hand timidly in mine. “I can travel. I’ll be okay. We can go there if we have to,” she said, quietly.
Before I could answer, Vitaliy said emphatically, “no. He’s right. No one is putting you in danger. Sal clearly has it out for you. And that was before he lost his son and his brother. Even though it was Trino that killed them, he’ll likely find a way to blame it on you just to have another reason to come after you.”
“Da mmit. Scolded,” she said, under her breath.
“No one is going anywhere right away anyway. It takes time to collect information. He’ll need a few days, at the very least,” Vitaliy said, taking a softer tone with her. He looked at me. “What are your plans with Trino? He’s going to stay in the city for now, no?”
“For now, yes. His entire security team is compromised. We need to get him a new team before he can go back to Colombia. The Mexicans are after him, as well. It’s just as big of a mess down there as it is in the city,” I said.
“His security is compromised because of sladkaya?”
“Totally accountable,” Sephie said, raising one hand.
Vitaliy scoffed. They were never loyal to him in the first place, then.”
I laughed, which made him look at me. “She said the very same thing to Trino when we found out.”
“Smart girl,” he said, winking at her.
“I think it’s time we go back to the city. It’ll take time to get a new security team for Trino. He has very loyal dealers, but I’m not sure they’re adequate enough for the security he needs. Viktor can help him with it, but they need to be in the city for that to happen. I also feel safer with Sephie at my building.” I said. “You’re always welcome. We have room for you and your guys at the building, although it won’t be as warm as it is here right. now.”
Vitally looked lost in thought for a few moments. “I haven’t been to the city in years. Maybe it’s time I paid a visit.”
“Aleksei will be happy. He can go to that restaurant he’s been missing.” Sephie said.
Vitaliy laughed. “It’s not the food he misses at that restaurant, sladkaya. It’s the waitress. She’s likely not working there any longer.”
“That dog,” Sephie said quietly, shaking her head and laughing quietly.
Sephie
We had made plans to return to the city the following morning. Vitaliy had agreed to come back with us, but he was going to come up a couple days behind us. He said he needed to take care of a few things in Panama before leaving.
I had quietly snuck off to the bedroom to take my contacts out for a few minutes. I told Adrik where I was going and what I was doing, so he wouldn’t worry about me. I knew he was going to worry about me anyway. I didn’t want to interrupt his conversation, but my eyes were itching so bad that I couldn’t take it. I needed some relief for at least a few minutes. Contacts were highly overrated.
I sat down on the end of the bed, rubbing my eyes, finally getting some relief. I felt a slight breeze, so I opened my eyes. I didn’t remember a door or window being open. When I looked up, there was a woman standing in front of me. At first, I was startled, but she looked familiar somehow. She smiled sweetly at me, then asked, “you can see me?”
I nodded my head, wondering why she would ask that question as I could see her standing plain as day in front of me. She caught on to my confusion. “You’re the only one who’s been able to see me. Or hear me. You really are special,” she said.
I gasped. “You’re Vitaliy’s wife. Adrik’s mother. You’re Lena. How can I see you right now?” Her smile widened. She took a step closer to me and I saw her eyes. The same eyes that I adored on her son. “This has never happened before,” I said, completely taken aback.
“I wanted to thank you,” she said. “I keep an eye on Vitaliy, but I don’t always stay with him. I have other responsibilities. That’s how I met your father. He told me I could make this happen.”
“He always talks to me in my dreams. Never when I’m awake. Except that one time when he swooped in, but even then, I didn’t see him. Did he show you his swooping?” I asked, grinning at her.
She laughed. “You’re very much like him.” She walked closer to me, sitting on the bed beside me. I felt the bed dip as she sat down, like she was completely real. I could see that Adrik got her smile, along with her eyes. The softness in his face came from her as well. He favored his father, but she made his father’s harsh good looks softer.
“He has your eyes,” I said as I was taking in the details of her face.
“I think that was the hardest thing for his father to get over. He used to say he could get lost in my eyes. Seeing the same eyes on his son just reminded him of his loss.” “He’s still very much in love with you,” I said.
She laughed quietly. “And I’m still very much in love with him. The love we have is much the same as the Jove you have for my son. It’s not an average relationship. It’s…” she paused like she was trying to find the words.
“Eternal,” I said.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.