Chapter 51
CURITIBA PARANá
Adria woke with the remnants of her recurring nightmare clinging to her thoughts—this time Jonathan was absent and only Alexey bled in the shadowy haze.
The dream swirled like a half-forgotten memory, something vital just out of reach.
She blinked into the empty room, her body aching from her time with Seth.
Adria stretched beneath the rumpled sheets before swinging her legs over to the side and wobbling toward the shower.
Steam mingled with the crisp morning air as hot water cascaded over her.
She recalled falling asleep wrapped in Seth and Kaydon’s arms, though she couldn’t remember if Bryson had returned later.
For once, she chose not to overthink it.
The four of them were together, imperfect but whole—and she owed them each the space to be themselves.
A genuine smile curved her lips as she finished rinsing.
It was the most normal she’d ever felt in her life.
Her mother was here, cooking her favorite meals, and just last night Adria had spent the evening nestled between Kaydon and Seth, watching a movie.
She let her mind drift to Seth before the film—his quiet struggle with pain, and how breathtakingly talented he was at letting go.
And how hot he was when he did.
Her grin widened, and she touched the side of her neck where he had marked her.
She dressed alone and made her way to breakfast. Choosing to take a different route today, Adria explored the halls of Xander’s compound. Door upon door marked her every turn. It was like an office building with no shortage of corner units and windows.
Adria walked alongside a large open porch, enjoying the view of the expansive jungle. Soon, a soft light in the next room slowed her approach. Standing at the door’s edge Adria saw several monitors and the back of Xander’s head.
He typed softly on the keyboard in front of him, and Adria saw several surveillance camera feeds flash onto his screens.
After another click, Adria found she was staring at herself lurking in the hallway.
“Adria, my dear, please come in.”
Embarrassed, she said, “I wasn’t trying to be nosey. I was just curious.”
Xander’s voice was kind. “It’s quite all right. I’m glad you stopped by. This is where I am a lot of the time when you and I are speaking.” He gestured to the dimly lit space.
It seemed odd for a man like Xander to spend his days in a room like this, especially given all the choices he had.
“Why?” Adria said, before realizing it might be rude to ask.
Xander chuckled. “It has everything I need. These servers and CPU towers are specially built. Over the years, I’ve amassed quite the collection of intel.”
“Mom said you run the Shadows of the Jungle gang,” Adria said.
Xander nodded. “One of my many ventures.”
“How long have you lived here?” Adria asked.
He thought about it, before saying, “Soph and I bought it eight years ago.”
Adria swallowed hard. She still was having a hard time understanding her mother’s reasons for lying to her.
“Your mother and I spoke regularly about you, and her decision to keep you in the dark,” Xander said, reading her discomfort.
“All the work I did to bring her back,” Adria said quietly.
Xander grabbed her hand, kissing her knuckles. “Besteira. Work that is bringing you closer to the Triune. Work that in the end will keep you and Sophia safe. None of that was wasted.”
Adria thought of all the turmoil and pain she had gone through when deciding what to do with Bryson, Kaydon, and Seth a few months prior. Xander had forced her to choose between her mother’s safety and the boys. Except in the end her mother’s safety was never in question.
She watched as Xander turned, typing on his computer. Several files were opened, and images of her throughout the years flashed on the screen.
“Once a year, Sophia sends me to check on you. Of course I shared every text message conversation, but every year she would need a little something more.”
Adria looked at the computer screen, cataloguing the years of her life in front of her.
“Please believe me, she wanted to be in your life,” Xander said.
A photo of her in gray sweatpants and oversized sunglasses lingered on the screen. Three years ago. She remembered the morning—the hand holding the coffee was Loretta’s. Loretta had talked her into trying Pilates for the first time, swearing it would help her unwind.
Loretta’s face wasn’t even in the frame, but Adria still felt the grief roll through her, sharp and familiar, like it always did when memories showed up in unexpected places.
“Well, she wasn’t,” Adria said, her voice a little shorter than she would have liked.
Xander motioned for her to sit in the chair next to him, and Adria did.
“Adria, you know the type of people the Nine are. You have been playing the game long enough to understand that there are always more moving parts then we can see. Your mother has been playing the game for even longer, and I am embarrassed to admit she is better at playing it than I will ever be. And as hard as it is, there comes a time where we have to decide who we are going to trust. And I chose your mother. I hope you two can repair what is broken between you and find peace in the past and hope for the future.”
His soft eyes stared into her, the glow of his computer the only light in the room.
Adria wanted to forgive her mother for leaving.
Bryson, Seth, and Kaydon were showing her a new way of living, and she wanted that fresh start to include Sophia.
That, and having her mother back in her life, was like reading the beginning of a story she had long since forgotten.
Maybe Xander was right. Her life was complicated enough; maybe trusting and moving forward was the best option.
“How did you two meet?” Adria asked, genuinely curious.
Xander’s eyes lit up.
“It was after a summit in Rome. I’d been called in to assist Sean on one of his tithes. Ivan was there, his bride on his arm. I think you were two or three. Back at home with the nanny, I’m sure.”
Adria tried to picture her mother in Rome.
“Ivan had to go on a business meeting and left Sofia in the hotel bar, where I sat nursing a drink that I didn’t even like.”
He paused, eyes gazing into the distance like he was trying to place pieces of the memory.
“I believe she offered to buy me the next drink. Bet me I’d like it better,” Xander laughed. “I agreed, of course. Who would say no to an offer like that.”
Adria said, “And did you like it?”
Xander said, “I don’t remember. All I remember is the two of us talking until almost three in the morning.”
Adria left Xander’s office feeling lighter and hungrier. Moving throughout the house, she was surprised that she hadn’t run into one of the boys. A few hallway turns later, she spotted Eric.
He was sitting on another one of the estate’s expansive porches, sipping on some coffee.
“Where is everyone?”
He looked up at her, his face full of indecision.
“Eric?” she said again, voice stern.
He sighed. “Look, don’t be mad, but they went into town.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “What?”
“Bryson, Kaydon, Seth, and your mother got this idea that they would be the best to handle Rolland.”
Adria held his gaze. “And no one wanted to mention this idea to me?”
Eric shrugged. “I knew if I told you, you would go. I wasn’t willing to put you in danger.”
“And them?” she asked, body tensing, because she already knew his answer.
“I tried to convince them otherwise, but they aren’t my responsibility.”
Fury boiled under her skin, and rage flared in her vision. All the good feelings she had cultivated in, Xander’s office evaporated like hot steam.
With pointed steps, she made her way into Eric’s space.
He was bigger, and by far stronger than her, but he had the good sense to lean back at her advance.
“They are mine,” she said through gritted teeth, curling her hands at her sides, forcing them to stay there.
“Do you understand what that means?” she said, voice dangerously low.
Eric searched her face. “I—”
But he was at a loss for words. The anger radiating off her clearly surprised him.
Adria tried to calm herself before she continued, “Eric, I am only going to say this once, but I expect you to remember it. What is mine is to be protected as me. AM. I. UNDERSTOOD?”
He froze under her glare. Maybe waiting to see if she would change her mind.
After a long moment, he said, “I understand.”
Before he could say anything else, Adria turned on her heels and stormed through the house.
There was one other person she needed to take her anger out on.
Her mother was in one of the kitchens when Adria found her.
“Why was Bryson asked to leave the compound?” Adria asked.
Her mother barely registered her appearance in the room. Instead, she continued to open and close cupboard doors.
“Mother,” Adria prompted.
“Yes, dear,” she said.
“Bryson, why did he leave?”
Her mother opened and closed another cabinet. “You already know why he left, or you wouldn’t be seeking me out. Members of the Nine take what they want. They don’t ask for it.”
When the next cupboard door opened, Adria’s hand reached out, holding it, preventing her mother from closing it.
“Looking for something?” Adria asked.
Sophia pulled at the door, and the two stared at each other in a silent stalemate. Eventually, her mother let the door loose from her grip and said, “Yes, as a matter of fact. I’m missing my ring.”
At Adria’s crazed look, she amended, “It is an old family heirloom, and I wanted you to have it.”
Adria shook her head. “Why would you allow my submissives to leave without telling me?”
Sophia stopped rummaging and gave Adria a stern look.
“Those are boys, not submissives, and they are anything but yours, dear. One of them is the Winters heir. A family that right now is actively working to take you down.”
Her mother put a hand on her hip. “Adria, I didn’t raise you to be this careless.”
Adria’s mouth fell open. “You didn’t raise me at all.”