Chapter Twenty-seven
We rise early the next morning, the weight of everything she told me last night hanging heavy in the air. It’s as if neither of us truly slept, our minds preoccupied with the looming uncertainties that lie ahead. I may not fully grasp the intricacies of Lucia’s Mafia family or the Senate, but I’ve gleaned enough to know danger is ahead.
This is so fucking outside anything I’ve had to deal with before that I feel like a fish out of water. Give me a stick and a pair of skates, and I can do no wrong. But family politics and… Mafia shit, and I have no clue what to do or say. It doesn’t matter though. Making sure my sweet bunny is safe is all that matters and to hell with everything else.
Lucia wastes no time, reaching out to Remus to arrange a meeting. Despite my apprehensions, I can’t deny the sense of relief that washes over me knowing that he’s on his way. Not that I particularly want to see him, because I don’t. It’s not that I trust him. But having him coming here means things are moving ahead, and that has to be better than standing still.
As we wait for Remus to arrive, Lucia moves about the apartment with a sense of urgency. First, she systematically got rid of the glass in the living room, refusing any help. Then she moved on to tossing items into a suitcase as if preparing for our imminent departure. The atmosphere is tense, our silence punctuated only by the occasional rustle of fabric or clatter of objects hitting the floor. Lucia’s actions speak volumes, her implicit expectation that we’ll soon be bound for Rome hanging heavy in the air.
When Lucia reaches for my third suit, I gently wrap my hand around her wrist. “Stop,” I say softly. “I don’t need any more suits.”
Tossing her hair over her shoulder, she rips her wrist away and places her hands on her hips. “How do you know? What if it’s an insult to the Senate to only have two suits?” She abruptly stops talking and walks into the bathroom. “Do you need a razor? What about any… what products do you use for your beard?”
Yeah, she’s definitely losing it. “Breathe, baby,” I say, coming up behind her. I slide my arms around her middle and rest my head on her shoulder. “No amount of clothes or grooming products are going to make a damn difference.”
“They might,” she argues stubbornly.
“Really?” I ask, finding her eyes in the mirror. “Or are you projecting?”
“I don’t know anymore,” she admits softly. “It’s just… I keep feeling like if I do this right, we might stand a better chance.”
As much as I want to assure her that everything will be okay, I don’t give her any empty platitudes or insult her by lying. If everything she’s told me is true, it might not be okay, and this could be our one and only trip together.
I’m saved by having to come up with anything to say when someone, probably Remus, rings the doorbell. “Showtime,” I murmur, kissing her cheek. Then I take her hand, and together we go to let her cousin into our home.
Remus stands outside the door, a self-satisfied smirk playing on his lips as he gazes at us. My sweet bunny greets him with a respectful bow and a smile, but I can’t muster anything more than a scowl for the man who isn’t protecting my wife as much as he fucking should.
“Don,” Lucia addresses him, her tone laced with respect.
“Remus,” I mutter through gritted teeth, my disdain barely concealed.
Remus seems unfazed by my obvious displeasure, his amusement evident as he saunters into the apartment uninvited. With a casual gesture, he dismisses the two hulking bodyguards flanking him, leaving them to wait outside as he strides confidently into our midst.
“I think this is the first time I’ve been summoned,” he grins. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
I clench my fists, hating his nonchalant behavior and careless words. “First off,” I growl, moving closer to him. “Show some fucking respect in our home.”
“Sy,” Lucia pleads, but I ignore her.
“Secondly, how fucking dare you treat Lucia like that? She’s your family and you’re not even protecting her. If you’re so powerful, why the hell aren’t you reining in Fabian?”
“Watch it,” Remus warns me, cocking his eyebrow. “We all have rules to follow and parts to play. Just because she’s told you what’s going on doesn’t mean you understand it.”
I throw my head back and laugh loudly. “I don’t need to understand it, you bastard. All I need to know is that you’re no better than her abusive ex husband.”
Remus takes a step toward me, but before he can act or speak, I slam my fist into his jaw. His head snaps to the side at the same time as Lucia lets out a scream. But instead of going to her cousin, she steps in front of me, holding up her hands.
“Don’t even think of retaliating, Remus,” she hisses. When I try to move around her, she shifts with me, keeping herself in front of me. “You had that coming and you’re in his house—”
“Our house,” I correct like that’s the important part.
To my surprise, Remus guffaws while rubbing his jaw. “You’ve got a mean right hook,” he laughs. “Glad to know you’re looking after Luce.”
Well, I can’t say I was expecting this to be his reaction. I expected him to fight back, maybe even to… I don’t know. Threaten my life or some bullshit like that.
“Now that we got that out of the way, can we talk like civilized people?” he asks, gesturing toward the sitting area like it’s his home and not ours.
“If we must,” I grumble.
At the same time, Lucia says, “Of course. Please sit down, Remus.”
I sit down in the chair, pulling my sweet bunny with me so she’s perched on my lap. When she tries to argue she can sit by herself, I just shrug. “But I like you right here,” I say playfully, holding her in place.
Plus, if she’s sitting on me I’m less likely to attack Remus again, and since I’m not sure a second punch would go unpunished, this is for the best.
“So,” Remus says, looking around. “Judging by your call and by the suitcase waiting by the door, can I assume you’re ready to stand in front of the Senate?”
“Yes.” My sweet bunny wrings her hands together nervously. “How quickly can we leave?”
Remus pulls his phone out of his pocket and looks at it for a brief moment. Then he frowns. “Now. We should leave right fucking now.”
“Why?” I bark. “What’s happening?”
“Fabian has requested use of my jet. He wants to return to Rome,” Remus says thoughtfully.
“That makes no sense, unless…” Lucia trails off. Then she jumps out of my lap, and I quickly stand with her, sensing she’s about to say something bad. “He’s going to return and claim I’ve done something.”
“Like what?” I ask, hating that I don’t know enough about her world to figure it out for myself.
Instead of answering me, Lucia retrieves her phone and holds it up to her ear. When I open my mouth to repeat the question, she shakes her head, telling me not to speak.
“Jo,” she rushes out. “Look, I’m sorry to call you like this. I know you’re probably going to tell me you can’t tell me, but I have to ask anyway.”
Not able to hear Jo’s answer, I move to Lucia’s side. Taking the phone out of her hand, I press the speaker.
“What do you need, Lucia?” Jo asks, sounding worried.
“Do you know for how long Fabian and Tom discussed the terms of Fabian becoming a sponsor for the Sabertooths?”
Jo sighs. “For a year or so. But Tom wouldn’t bend on a few things that Fabian was adamant about.”
“So what changed?”
“What’s this about, Lucia?”
Unable to stay quiet, I say, “Fabian is blackmailing Lucia.”
“Sawyer?”
“Yeah, hi Jo, it’s me. Look, I know we have no right to ask you anything. But we think Fabian is trying to ruin the Sabertooths from the inside.”
Jo swears under her breath. “I knew something was off about him.” There’s a pause where all we can hear is her heels click-clacking against the floor. “I can’t tell you much. Only that the second he found out the two of you were dating, he asked Tom how he could be sure it would last and not damage the reputation of the team.”
I look over at Remus just as he looks up from his phone. He indicates with his hand to keep Jo talking. At least that’s what I think he means. Giving him a nod of confirmation, I say, “Go on, Jo.”
“Tom showed Fabian the contract you two signed, and that’s when Fabian agreed to Tom’s terms and retracted his own. All he asked for was a copy of the deal for his own records.”
Lucia takes a shuddering breath. “And do you know if Tom gave him that?”
“He did,” Jo confirms. “I’m sorry, Lucia, but I can’t really say more than that.”
Even though Jo can’t see her, my sweet bunny nods. “Thank you, Jo. And I’m sorry, I know I have no right to ask.”
Looking over at Remus again, he gives me a thumbs up and points at something on his phone. Reaching him, I angle the device so I can look down at it. It takes me a second to understand what I’m seeing.
“Motherfucker,” I growl when it clicks into place.
It’s Fabian moving through the Saint Paul International Airport. He’s clearly in a rush, and every now and then he looks around like he’s expecting to be followed. Considering what I now know about my bunny’s family, I can’t really blame him for that.
“Shouldn’t we go?” I whisper to Remus. “Catch him or something?”
Shaking his head, Remus explains. “He’s already in the air. There’s no stopping him.”
Fuck. Fuck. Fuuuuck.
Remus locks his phone and puts it back in his pocket, then he walks over to the door and opens it. Although I hear him saying something to the bodyguards, I can’t make out the words. So I refocus my attention back on my wife and the call she’s still on.
Jo lowers her voice. “There’s something up with that guy, isn’t there? I’ve caught him asking around about you, and now you call and Sawyer says Fabian’s blackmailing you… do you really think he’s trying to ruin the Sabertooths?”
“Hopefully it’s nothing,” I interject. Since we can’t risk Jo alerting Tom, I do my best to sound like it isn’t a big deal. “Thanks Jo.”
“Oh, the meeting tomorrow? Yep, I have that under control. Talk to you later.” Jo ends the call, and I know it’s because someone else is around. Or at least I assume that’s the reason for her subject change.
“He knows,” my sweet bunny breathes. “He’s going to use it against me. It’s proof, and I… we have nothing to dispute it.”
“Hey,” I rasp. Placing my hands on her hips I pull her flush against me. “We’ll come up with something. Since he’s already on a flight—”
I’m interrupted by Remus. “We have to go. Now. The Senate has summoned all of us, and we have twelve hours to appear in front of them.”
“Even you?” Lucia gasps, fear making her eyes wide.
“Even me,” Remus growls angrily.