Chapter 34 Adrian
ADRIAN
I'm lying in bed, one arm tucked behind my head, staring at the ceiling. Elena is beside me, naked under the sheets, her body warm against mine.
She's been quiet for the last few minutes, which isn't like her.
I turn my head to look at her.
"Hey," I say. "You okay?"
She shifts slightly, pulling the sheet up to her chest, and stares at the ceiling.
"Yeah," she says. "I'm fine. Just... thinking."
I grab another pillow and prop myself up and turn to her, studying her face.
"About what?"
She hesitates for a moment, biting her bottom lip.
"I've been feeling a bit off lately," she says. "Nothing major. Just different."
My chest tightens slightly.
"Different how?"
She shrugs.
"Tired. A little nauseous in the mornings. I don't know. It's probably nothing."
I reach over and take her hand, my thumb brushing over her knuckles.
"Do you think you're...?" I trail off, leaving the question hanging in the air.
Elena turns her head on the pillow to look at me, her dark eyes searching mine.
"I don't know," she says. "It's possible. We haven't exactly been careful."
I feel my heart rate pick up, and I try to keep my expression neutral.
"How would that make you feel?" she asks. "If I was?"
I stare at her for a moment, and then I smile.
"Like the happiest man alive," I say without hesitation.
Her eyebrows lift slightly.
"Really?"
"Really." I shift closer, moving a strand of hair out of her face and over her ear. "I love you, Leni. I want everything with you. A life. A future. Four or five kids running around this place."
Her eyes widen.
"Four or five?"
"Yeah. Why not? We're in our twenties. We're young. It's the perfect time."
She scoffs, turning her head back toward the ceiling.
"You know I'm turning twenty-five in three months."
"Oh God," I say in a playful, mocking voice. "Will you need a walker?"
She swats at me, and I catch her wrist, laughing as I pull her hand to my mouth and kiss her fingers.
"You're ridiculous," she says, but she's smiling.
I release her hand and glance at my watch.
"They'll be here in a few hours," I say.
Elena's smile fades, and she exhales slowly.
"I know."
I can hear the nerves in her voice, the uncertainty she's been carrying for days since I set this up.
"I still don't know what I'm going to say beyond what we talked about. It's not exactly easy to just walk into a room and say, Hey Mom, Dad, Sis, I never really died."
I push myself up, swinging my legs off the bed, and pull on my boxer briefs. I sit beside her on the edge of the mattress, leaning down to rub her cheek.
"It'll be weird at first, sure. But all of that will go out the window the second they see you. They have you back. That will be the only focus. Trust me. That's all I ever thought about."
She tilts her head, laying it against my hand.
"And you're sure it's really safe for them to be here?"
"Cornel Lupu went underground. No one has seen him in sixty days.
And the Russians settled the twenty-five-million-dollar bounty with someone else.
Maybe it was Lupu himself. Maybe it was a rival family.
We don't know yet. But the immediate threat is gone.
Plus, I have ten men escorting your family here.
They'll stay inside the estate the entire time. It's safe."
Elena processes the information then nods and gets up.
I watch her stand.
"Hey," I say, my eyes tracking down her naked body. "If you stay like that, you're going to make me want you again.”
She stops, glancing over her shoulder.
"Something tells me you're not kidding."
I smile.
She shakes her head as she walks toward the bathroom.
"I'm sore. I need a break," she smirks and turns on the water. "Time to get ready anyhow."
"Let me know if you change your mind," I say.
"Okay, mister four or five kids," she says. "Crazy."
I laugh, and then my phone buzzes on the side table.
I grab it, glancing at the screen.
Victor.
I swipe to answer.
"Hey."
"You ready for the big family dinner?" Victor says, his tone light.
I stand and glance into the bathroom and see Elena showering.
"Yeah, it's going to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, that's for sure."
There's a pause.
"Yep, but remember it's one many people wish they could have. How many people you know get to learn their daughter is alive almost two years later?"
"Yeah. Fucking won the lottery, brother."
"I agree, and I've got more good news. I think I've finally got a solid lead on Cornel Lupu's location."
My body goes rigid.
Every muscle in my back tightens, and the playful energy from moments ago evaporates completely.
"What?" I ask, my voice stern. "Where is he?"
"I'll know more by tomorrow," Victor says. "Just wanted to give you a heads-up. We're close."
I stare at the floor, my grip tightening on the phone.
"I'm going to kill him," I say quietly so Elena doesn't hear.
"I know," Victor replies. "We all are. We'll be in touch."
We hang up, and I set the phone back on the nightstand.
The darkness tries to crawl back in, the cold, familiar rage that's been simmering under my skin for two months.
But I push it away.
Not tonight.
Tonight is for Elena. For us, and her family.
I take a deep breath, roll my shoulders, and walk into the bathroom.
A few hours later, I'm standing in the dining room of the estate, dressed in a black suit and a white button-down shirt.
Elena stands beside me, wearing a soft gray dress that hugs her waist and falls just above her knees. Her hair is pulled back in a low bun, and she's twisting her hands together nervously.
I reach over and take her hand, squeezing gently.
"They're here," I say quietly.
She looks up at me, her eyes wide.
"I know."
"I'll be right back. Don't forget to breathe."
I release Elena's hand and walk out of the dining room and across the grand foyer. I grip the brass handle and pull the door open.
Stefania is standing beside her parents, holding a bottle of wine wrapped in a ribbon. She's wearing a blue dress, her hair shorter than I remember, and she looks more serious than I recall, too.
Elena's father, Andrei, is in a dark suit, his hands clasped in front of him, his expression somber. Her mother, Ioana, is wearing a black cardigan and a floral dress, her face pale.
They all look like they did the day of the funeral, and I guess being here reminds them of that.
"Thank you all for coming," I say, my voice low.
Andrei nods.
"Thank you for the invitation. It's... good to see you," Ioana says.
"Yes," Stefania says with a fake smile.
"You said it was important," Andrei says. "Is everything alright?"
"Yes, yes, fine," I say and gesture toward the dining room.
"Please, come with me."
They follow me down the hallway, their footsteps slow and hesitant.
I glance at Stefania, and she's staring at the floor, gripping the wine bottle tightly.
We reach the dining room, and I step aside, letting them enter first.
"Please, right in here," I say.
Stefania walks in, her eyes scanning the room, and then she sees Elena.
She freezes.
The wine bottle slips from her hands.
It shatters loudly across the hardwood floor, red wine pooling like blood around the broken glass.
Stefania slaps both hands over her mouth, her eyes going wide, her entire body trembling.
"Oh my God," she says, her voice muffled behind her hands.
Andrei steps forward. "Stefania, what happ—" His gaze locks onto Leni.
"Elena?" he says, his voice broken and trembling.
Elena's eyes fill with tears.
“Hi Tati,” she says looking straight at her father.
For a moment, no one moves, and then Andrei's face crumples, and he rushes forward, pulling Elena into his arms.
She collapses against him, sobbing, and he holds her tightly, his shoulders shaking.
Ioana stumbles forward into the room. "My baby," she says. "My God, my baby girl." She runs to Elena and wraps her arms around both of them, crying.
Stefania looks like a deer in headlights, and she looks at me, and I nod.
"It's really her," I say and smile.
Finally, she moves fast, almost tripping over the leg of a chair before throwing herself into her sister's embrace.
I stand in the doorway, my chest tight, watching them. It's crying, hugging, and broken words.
As I stare at them, I realize that this is one of the most amazing things I've ever witnessed, and I can't help but feel proud.
Not for me, but for Leni.
Because Elena survived.
She survived hell, and she came back to them.
"What happened?" Ioana finally asks, pulling back slightly to cup Elena's face. "We thought you were dead. They told us you were dead. The police showed us—"
"I know," Elena says through tears. "I know what they told you. But I wasn't. I—"
She glances at me, and I step forward, nodding.
"It's a long story. We thought it best that maybe once everyone's nerves calm down, we can share it with you."
"I don't care about any story. You're here. My daughter has returned. Thank God that's enough for me," Andrei says.
"He saved me, Daddy," Elena says. "Tracked me down two months ago and brought me home."
"Oh my God, I can't believe it. Why didn't you tell us sooner?" Andrei asks, turning to me.
"Because it wasn't safe," I say. "The people involved were still out there. We had to make sure she was protected before we brought you here."
Stefania wipes her eyes, staring at Elena.
"You've been alive this whole time?" she says.
Elena nods, tears streaming down her face.
"I'm so sorry," she says. "I'm so, so sorry."
"Don't apologize," Andrei says firmly. "You're here. That's all that matters."
He pulls her into another embrace, and the family surrounds her again, holding her tightly.
I excuse myself and have one of my staff clean up the wine.
After about 30 or 45 minutes, the initial shock burns off, replaced by frantic, overlapping questions, laughter, tears, and a thousand touches to prove she is real. We move to the table, but nobody touches the food.
I sit beside Elena, watching the color return to her face. Watching the light fully return to her eyes.
I know she was happy with me, but this, this is family, and they were so close. We all were, and I knew for her to be back 100%, this had to happen.
There's a break in their conversation, and I lean over.
"You okay?" I ask.
She nods slowly.
"Yeah. I just... I can't believe they're really here."
"They are," I say. "And they're not going anywhere."
She smiles and leans in and kisses me.
I push my chair back and stand, drawing the table's attention.
"I'm very glad to see you all together again. It's been at the top of our list since I was reunited with her myself," I say and put a hand on Elena's shoulder. "Also at the top of that list was something I spoke to Andrei about almost two years ago."
He leans back in his chair, thinking.
"Elena," I say. "You've been my best friend since we were seven years old. You are the only peace I have ever known, and..." I pause, and I reach into my pocket and pull out the ring.
It's the same ring I picked out before my life went to hell, the one I was planning to give her before she was taken.
Elena's breath catches, her eyes widening as she stares at the ring in my hand.
I drop to one knee, and Stefania and Ioana let out a happy squeak.
"I should have done this a long time ago," I tell her, looking into her dark eyes. "And I promise to spend the rest of my life making up for lost time. So, Elena. My angel. Will you marry me?"
"Yes," she says without hesitation. "Yes. Yes, one thousand times yes."
The room erupts in cheers as I slide the ring onto her finger. I stand and pull her into my arms, holding her tightly, and she buries her face against my chest.
"I love you," she says, her voice muffled.
"I love you too," I say. "More than anything."
She pulls back, and I wipe her tears away with my thumbs.
And then I kiss her.
Soft and slow and full of everything I've been holding back during the time she was gone.
When we pull apart, she's smiling.
And among her family's cheers, I truly feel, for the first time, the darkness is finally behind us.
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