Chapter 23 Presley
Presley
“You have farm animals!” Alex arrived in a flourish of blonde hair, sun kissed cheeks, and baked goods.
“I saw them.” I hesitated while welcoming the twins’ sister inside. I had no idea why there were highland cows in the pasture, but they felt like a trap.
Gio had to be behind the livestock appearing because Kingston would never do something so obvious in his attempts to get my forgiveness.
He still hadn’t told me himself that he’d restored the farmhouse or explained why Adrian’s body was currently wrapped protectively from being viewed or picked at by animals.
He hadn’t explained who had put the fire out or had dug the six-foot grave next to the scorched, burned earth.
I knew it was all him, and yet he refused to confess.
Alex set her baked goods on the kitchen counter while examining all the small details. “Well, they’re cute. So is this place.”
“What have you been up to?” I avoided confirming that this place or the animals were, in fact, cute. We went upstairs so Alex could snoop as much as she wanted. She was peeking in at her brother’s rooms, flipping on and off switches before venturing back toward the books where I was waiting.
“I’ve been bored. I think I wanted to come help you in Italy because it was supposed to give me purpose. Now that I’m home and you’re here…I just feel a little lost.”
“Maybe you should come spend your free time over here. We have the cows now, and well…there’s all sorts of things to keep up with.
” I wanted to have more enthusiasm for her, but I just couldn’t summon it.
My mind was frozen in place, continually seeing the flames burn against the night sky.
The smell of his flesh burning seemed stuck in my nostrils.
Alex moved so she was in front of me, gently holding my shoulders. “Don’t do that. You don’t have to worry about me. I just came to see you. I miss you.”
“I miss you too.”
“Then let’s just hang out, even if it’s in silence or even if you need to shoot something. I’m here for you, Pres.” Her long arms pulled me in close, and her scent settled in some painful place inside me that kept flaring with angry jabs. Alex was safe. Alex had never hurt me.
I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her back. The two of us sat there for untold minutes until we finally broke apart with tear-stained faces.
We ended up sitting near a backfield, picking flowers. It reminded me what we acted out that day in Italy when Adrian had—
“A flower crown, Pres.” Alex pulled me from my thoughts and handed me the foliage shaped in a beautiful circle.
Right as I leaned forward to take it, we both froze at the sudden appearance of someone in the field, watching us.
“Who is that?” Alex asked, leaning closer to me.
The man wearing a boxy white T-shirt and black cargo pants waved, and I realized who it was. “That’s Henry…”
“Oh yeah, he was there the day in Italy.” Alex kept her eyes on him, “Why is he out here, though?”
“No clue.” A warning shot off in the back of my mind, but I shut it down. Everything seemed to set me off, lately but there was no reason this guy appearing should feel any different. The twins had men everywhere. I was just making something out of nothing.
Later that evening, I ventured over to the manor to see my family.
Mom had texted and asked if I wanted to go over for dinner.
I had turned her down three times out of fear that Scotty might try and show up.
I had no idea if my father was still loyal to him or not, but after an entire childhood of him allowing me to be handed over to his uncle for training, I had to assume he was.
I didn’t mind if they came to the farmhouse, but the twins were around…
well at least one of them was, and that one liked to play house too intensely for my liking.
It was a struggle not to fall into the idea of Gio being with me in my dream house, but not in the way I had always imagined.
I would quickly remember that night where everything broke between us, and things would slide back into perspective for me.
I wanted to get to Markos, and I needed to find Scotty, but I had no idea where to even begin, which was another reason I had agreed to finally venture over for dinner.
I had hopes that my father might have some idea of where his uncle was hiding.
The back terrace doors had been replaced, but the keypad Scotty had once set up was gone, so I simply pushed down on the handle and walked inside.
The manor was dark, only lit up by the natural light from the windows.
The eerie feeling of the empty house seemed to chase me as I quickly made my way through the open dining hall and foyer, toward my family wing.
Once I was inside, I released a tiny pent-up breath of relief.
The kitchen smelled of my mother’s cooking. Tonight, she made a chicken pot pie from scratch, and my mouth watered as I took a seat. I eyed the empty fourth chair, usually occupied by my uncle, with a shrewd gaze and then stroked the handgun strapped under the table.
“So, how are you settling in, honey?” my mother asked, bringing over a pitcher of lemonade.
I removed my hand and tried to relax. He wasn’t here. I was safe. “Fine.”
Dad smiled warmly at me before glancing at my mom. That was their signature look when she had asked him to be nice about a specific subject. “How is it with the twins being there?”
Ah, yes, the twins. I was surprised when he was kind to Kingston that day, during my move-in. He’d paid him a compliment, which was huge considering he wanted to kill him at one point.
“Good. They come and go.” I took a bite of my dinner, hoping to move past that subject because I knew for a fact that the twins’ mother had once spilled the beans about the three of us dating, and so my parents likely assumed what we were all doing over there.
Mom took her seat and sipped her drink. “How are you doing, though? Are you sleeping?”
This past week, I had tried, but even being curled up in Gio’s arms, I was too aware of not being in Kingston’s. The last time I remembered sleeping through the night was when both brothers slept with me.
“Yes.”
Mom’s gaze slid to Dad’s, and the two of them were silent for a moment before Dad cleared his throat.
“I think Scotty might have been working with Markos.”
My fork clattered to the plate. A barrage of anger and feelings of betrayal invaded my chest, making it burn and ache.
“Working how?”
Dad’s eyes were so full of anger and sadness that it made my own begin to water.
“Honey, I’m not sure exactly, but after you told me about the hit on Lucian Adesso and how Scotty had framed me…
I’ve been going back, trying to find a reason for him to have done that.
I discovered that Markos slowly bought out all the contacts Scotty would have had.
I think Scotty was asked to kill Lucian by Markos. ”
That didn’t make any sense; Lucian was Markos’ best friend. “Why would he do that?”
Mom was the one to speak up this time. “Markos was a sick man, honey…I mean the way he dealt with his jealousy over Juan and Taylor. Lucian could have done the smallest thing to upset him, and Markos would have all the power to end him. Think about it, he never did find a bride who gave him heirs. Yet, he inherited three the moment Lucian died.”
That was true, and by ensuring they witnessed it, he guaranteed their desire for revenge.
“Which is why Scotty would have left your calling card…” I said to my dad, working through the possibility, “So that it all led back to getting revenge on you.”
One thing didn’t seem to make sense, though. “Why not leave the calling card for Juan if he hated him that much?”
Dad shook his head while cutting into his meal. “I might be the reason Markos could never have heirs. When he demanded your mother’s hand in marriage all those years ago, I nearly castrated him.”
Oh. “I thought Scotty was joking about that.”
He shook his head. “No, I nearly made it so he could never…” Dad cleared his throat before adjusting in his seat. “Let’s just say I guaranteed he’d never have kids or be able to procreate. He would have been very motivated to get revenge.”
I took another bite, considering everything and linking all the tiny connections.
“Why wouldn’t Scotty just defy him, though? Even if he did do the hit and framed you, why not go against him now and protect us? Why did he go along with the alliance and marriage? Why send me to Italy and put me at risk?”
Mom took another sip before she replied, “My guess is he made Markos swear that you’d never be harmed.”
That would make sense as I had never been harmed physically in any way. Renzo and Benni had never harmed me, and even through everything, Markos hadn’t either.
“If that’s true, then what was his end game… Adrian said the plan was to kill off my family and then either keep me for himself or sell me off. There’s no way Scotty would have been okay with that.”
“That’s true, but the fact that he hasn’t told me any of this makes it clear cut for me,” Dad said calmly while glancing at Mom. “He’s a threat and after what he did to you…our ties with him are officially severed.”
A shard of ice seemed to seep in through my chest cavity as I sat there and processed those words.
I knew my mother would kill Scotty on sight, no questions asked, but my dad loved Scotty.
He was the only father he ever knew; he had trained him and shaped him.
He always seemed to have some reason behind what he was doing.
Even now, I could sense all the various ways Scotty could be twisting this alliance to fit his own agenda.
I wasn’t sure what he was doing, but he’d gone too far. My life was not a poker chip to be gambled. My heart was not merely an organ to be pushed in training. Scotty had risked my life and had effectively ended Adrian’s.