CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
TESSA
Toxicity is everywhere. But as I stand in La Lune Noire—the hub of the dark underworld—I’ve never been more aware of how polluted life is. It’s not a backroom deal or disgruntled guest or even some bastard headed to Magie Noire with someone other than his wife that has my attention.
My view is none other than my overdramatic family with Axel and Ryker.
It’s late, just after midnight. Their arrival has not been seamless. Maddox and I are in the security room, gaping at the monitors. He’s anxious, watching me observe the spectacle. I wish he’d go back to the dance competition. He’s missed so much of it, and it’s his favorite.
My mother is in hysterics. My father is coddling her.
Eden is ranting. Her husband, John, is stoic.
Their kids must be sleeping in the room.
Violet is folding in on herself, and Derek is rubbing her back.
I’m not sure where my grandmother is. Aside from Axel and Ryker, there are four security guards lining the walls.
My family hasn’t even made it into their suite, or they’re in the hall so they don’t disturb my niece and nephew.
“I need to go down there.”
Maddox flicks his butterfly knife around, glaring at the screen. “No.”
“You are welcome to stay here, but I have to at least acknowledge that I know they’re here. Axel alerted us for a reason.”
“He was being respectful to you.” His stony eyes snap to mine. “They will not be.”
Deciding the best atmosphere for this argument is en route to my family’s room, I strut away. And he storms after me.
In one of those swing-dancing sweeps he does, he scoops me up, but continues on the correct path, so I decide not to fight him.
“I don’t want to hate them,” he finally admits.
It’s one of those defining sentences that unveils the bigger picture of who a person is. I’m important enough to him that he doesn’t want to nurse animosity toward the people I care about. Something I could never say about my relatives.
I kiss his cheek, melt against him, and force him to put me down as we approach the hallway. When we arrive, it’s evident he’s not wrong. My mother won’t look at me.
And Eden hisses, “Engaged?”
It’s so snakelike that I’m not even sure if most humans could have discerned the word. I guess my father mentioned that Maddox and I were together and marriage had been discussed. This isn’t quite the home-cooked engagement brunch that Violet and Derek got, but this will certainly be memorable.
I could correct her and tell her we aren’t engaged, but my maturity is often lacking when it comes to Eden, so I settle on, “That’s right. Satan’s bride has arrived. Hell is hotter, but I do appreciate the attempt at the warm welcome.”
Maddox muffles a laugh and palms my head with a silent commendation as I focus on my father and Violet and my grandmother breezing around the corner.
But it’s my mother muttering, “Taking us all down with you,” that draws my attention.
My grandmother surveys the scene, grimaces, and raises a palm to Maddox and me with a commiserating smile. “Sorry, dear. I got held up, having a lovely conversation with the silver fox in the lobby.”
Then she ushers my mother into the room as if she were schooling a toddler. Eden and John trail behind them.
Axel’s lips twitch. I’m guessing he’s amused that she was able to accomplish what he couldn’t.
“Bernard wins everyone over,” Maddox asserts. “Gangster.”
And Ryker cracks a smile, flashing his dimple. “True for the dog and the man.”
My father strides toward me for a hug. He tells me he loves me and misses me and wants to have lunch with me tomorrow, but then he steps aside to speak with Maddox. I seize the opportunity to pull Violet away. Or try to.
Derek clings to her side, which I internally applaud.
“Can I have a minute with her?” I plead with a velvety tone.
He hedges and shakes his head. “She’s been really upset, Tessa.”
Sixty intense seconds pass, but finally, Violet waves him off. “It’s okay, babe. Just give us a sec.”
After Derek joins my father, Maddox, Axel, and Ryker, I tug Violet away and whisper, “Did you find any money that night?”
“What?” she asks.
The confusion on her face is an answer in itself, but still, I press.
“The guy. That night.” I glance at Derek and my father briefly to be sure they aren’t in earshot, and I notice Maddox and his brothers subtly scrutinizing us. I angle my head so they can’t read my lips or see hers. “When he showed up, did he have money with him?”
She throws her arms out in exasperation. “Well, he wasn’t trying to pay me for my body, if that’s what you’re getting at. He was more of a steal-at-knifepoint kind of guy.”
“That’s not what I meant,” I sigh because on top of everything she already endured, I don’t want her to know a Mafia was involved.
Her head whips around the hallway, and her breathing grows shallow as she soaks in the men talking. “Are we here because of what happened that night?”
This probably wasn’t the ideal time to inquire about the missing money, but my brain has been stuck on it ever since Maddox mentioned it. I just want to be certain there isn’t anything that would lead these guys to her.
When I don’t respond immediately, she gasps, covering her mouth. “Oh my God, Tessa. What the hell is going on?”
“I don’t know. Maybe it doesn’t have anything to do with it.” I shrug one shoulder, aiming to appear nonchalant. “There was a guy who lost some money that same night. A lot of money. And he’s upset. I just thought maybe it was connected.”
Her forehead wrinkles, her hand pressing against her sternum. “How would it be connected?”
Outside of Mafia involvement, it probably wouldn’t be. She’s not aware of how organized crime weaves unlikely incidents because they have their hands in everything. She lives in a far simpler world, and I don’t want to taint that.
Still, something stirs in my gut.
“It wouldn’t be.” I wrap my arms around her, hoping to soothe any fears I just inadvertently planted. “You know my overactive imagination. Everything is fine.”
A loud roar erupts from the men, so we both spin toward them.
Maddox’s grin lights up his face. “It’s time, baby girl.”