33. -32-
Dorian
Checking my phone for the fourth time in the last two minutes, my fingers itched to write another text to my unresponsive wife. You’d think she’d be happy I started the conversation for once. Instead, she left me hanging.
Locking the screen, my eyes were hypnotized by the device for another long moment before my mom’s hand on my forearm interrupted me.
“You’re quiet, sweetheart,” she said in a hushed voice.
Zyon and Malin were engrossed in some deal with the new company that should start working on Zyon’s entertainment complex soon, so they didn’t pay attention to us.
“I have nothing to add to the conversation.” I nodded toward Zyon’s frowning face as he showed Malin the numbers. “I’m out.”
“Do you want to be out?” she asked, her almost black eyes scanning my face with love only a mother could express with one look.
“Yes,” I confirmed, a tiny smile forming on my lips. “I’m happy I don’t have to schedule meetings, arrange takeouts, and live on pins and needles waiting for the king to call.”
My grin widened when she grimaced as if she tasted something spoiled.
She was never a fan of Malin and me working under our brother.
According to her, we were equal in every way, but it didn’t work in the mafia world.
There could only be one boss. Our dad taught us that ages ago, and we respected it.
“I don’t like it.” She scowled on the other side of the table, her eyes narrowing when Zyon chuckled at something Malin pointed out.
“It’s okay, Mom.” I winked at her. “I can join them whenever I want. Zyon just assigned my responsibilities to someone else, so I wouldn’t be bothered at work with calls and messages. But I’m still in charge of Valeria’s birthday party.”
“You?” Mom cast me a quizzical look. “Zyon doesn’t know how to call a catering company?”
“It’s my area of expertise,” I claimed proudly, briefly checking the message from Melody about Aryna’s scans. They came back perfectly clean. “You know my parties are unforgettable.”
“Yeah, the last one was literally destructive,” she deadpanned, pouring herself water. “I would gladly pass that experience.”
“One misstep and everyone forgets my achievements and sacrifices for this family.” I sighed theatrically, raising my glass with juice.
I was on call tonight. If there was an emergency, I had to go to the hospital, so alcohol was off-limits.
But hell, I would welcome some expensive scotch to burn the image of ma vilaine from my brain.
Mom rolled her eyes at me, attempting to comment on my statement, but Valeria’s sudden appearance at the doorway interrupted her. A smile lifted my lips, yet it quickly faded when I noticed how pale she was. My brows furrowed as I checked her from head to toe.
She wore Zyon’s oversized black hoodie and simple black leggings.
Against the dark fabric, her skin looked almost translucent, and the shadows beneath her eyes stood out even more.
She smiled politely, pushing her hair behind her ears, and approached an empty seat, but wavered, and only Zyon’s quick reaction prevented her from falling.
I was on my feet in a millisecond, hurrying to her side. The doctor was prepared to tend to her immediately.
“I’m okay, Dorian,” she said weakly, a deep exhale slipping past her lips.
“Zyon took me for dinner yesterday, and the salmon almost killed me.” She peeked at my brother, who looked like he was ready to extinguish the entire species for daring to hurt his wife.
“I’m actually much better than a few hours ago. ”
“Hard to believe,” Malin mumbled, scowling at her over his glass of whiskey. Zyon flashed him a murderous glare before crouching at her side and taking her hand.
“The doctor said it’s food poisoning,” he explained to our worried mother and me, ignoring Malin’s mumbling about the hospital.
“Why didn’t you call me, Zyon?” I rumbled, observing her from all angles. She was bloated, and drops of sweat beaded on her temples. “She could be dehydrated. Has she vomited? And why isn’t she in bed?”
“I’m right here, Doc.” She touched my hand, her cold skin forcing my attention to her.
“So?” I lifted a brow, expecting answers while checking her pulse on her right wrist.
“I came to say hi.” She shrugged, smiling softly. “And I’m okay, really. Zyon already freaked out. Please, don’t follow his example.”
My eyes narrowed, and I was about to protest that fish poisoning could be really dangerous, but Mom decided to take her side.
“Let’s get you to bed, Valeria.” She took her hand and helped her stand up. “You’ll rest, and if you don’t feel better by tomorrow morning, Zyon will drive you to the hospital, right?”
Valeria quickly nodded, using the opportunity to escape my fussing. I glared at Zyon, who just shook his head in resignation, glancing at their backs.
“Where is Zara, by the way?” Mom asked on their way out, nonchalantly ignoring three sets of dark eyes piercing their skulls.
“Sleepover at her friend’s house,” Valeria replied, walking slowly through the open space into the living room.
“That’s lovely,” Mom exclaimed, shooting us a deadly glare before they disappeared around the corner.
“What was that look about?” I inquired because I was obviously the only one who didn’t know what it meant.
“His Highness is too overprotective,” Malin replied instead of Zyon, shrugging when I cast him a confused glance. “Not my words. Valeria told Mom that it’s suffocating.”
“What?” I drifted my gaze between them, seeing capitulation written all over Zyon’s face. “After everything that happened with Chester?”
“Clearly, Valeria isn’t the only one who is traumatized,” Zyon said, throwing himself in his chair at the head of the long dining table.
Malin circled the liquid in his glass mindlessly, killing the plant in the corner with his glare, and I’d never felt more left out of whatever the fuck was happening here.
It couldn’t just be an argument about the food poisoning.
“What’s going on?” I asked, plopping into the chair on Zyon’s right. His dark eyes zoomed in on me, but he stayed quiet.
“You wanted out, Dorian,” Malin reminded me in a firm voice, folding his forearms on the table. “You can’t be in whenever you want to and then ignore us when it doesn’t suit your work. You chose your investors over us.”
“I chose wealthy fuckers to support my work because you refused,” I ground out, holding his glare. This topic hung between us since the day I decided to open the hospital. Zyon backed my decision, but Malin was like a ticking time bomb whenever the matter came up.
“We had our reasons,” Malin ground out.
“Reasons you refused to elaborate,” I spat. “I had to go with those who wanted to help me help others.”
“Okay, that’s enough. Both of you,” Zyon interrupted, rubbing his tired eyes. “We’ve had this discussion. The decision’s been made.”
“You decided,” Malin said, and my brows shot up in surprise. He never, and I mean never, opposed Zyon.
“And I stand by it,” Zyon snapped in his typical bossy voice. “You have the same options. If you want out, I won’t stop you.”
My mouth fell agape, my eyes jumping from one angry face to another. This was so fucking wrong it felt like a punch to the gut.
“What the fuck?” I yelled, pushing back the unsettling sensation that nested in my chest. For the first time in my life, I didn’t know what kind of game we were playing, and it was the worst feeling ever. “Since when do you two argue?”
“Since Malin prioritizes locating a 5-year-old boy before finding your kidnappers,” Zyon retorted, abruptly standing up. The chair was moved so forcefully that it fell backward.
“I’m working on both cases,” Malin said firmly, but the tic in his jaw suggested he was anything but calm.
“Yeah, that’s why we don’t have the kidnappers. The boy is still missing, and I don’t have a report about Nina Valentino on my desk, right?” Zyon’s eyes flashed lightning at Malin. “Family is always first. Then do your side jobs.”
“I know what comes first better than you, brother,” Malin hushed icily, sounding like a demonic creature crawling from the grave. All the hair on my neck rose on end, and my body shifted into fight mode. If Malin snapped, it would be mayhem.
“Do you?” Zyon took a menacing step closer, and Malin rose slowly. In a millisecond, I was on my feet, running to them.
“Okay, okay, calm down, you two.” I stood between them, holding them at arm’s length. “We didn’t survive more than forty years by fighting each other.”
My words were met with silence so heavy it felt like the room was holding its breath.
My gaze jumped from one emotionless face to another, my brain stuck because it didn’t have enough information to solve their argument.
The demand I’d made to keep me out of the business was kicking me in the ass.
And to top it all off, my phone just buzzed on the other side of the table, my heart making a pathetic little jump in hope that ma vilaine finally decided to acknowledge me.
“Can we calm down?” I asked in a firm voice, silently praying that our mom showed up. “I need updates, boys,” I continued when they didn’t respond, letting my arms fall to my sides. “I have no idea what this testosterone fight means.”
“It means nothing,” Zyon ground out, yet his eyes still threw daggers at Malin, who shifted into his usual detached mode. “Our brother just needs to set his priorities straight.”
I raised a brow, knowing Malin's priorities always lay with the family. It was burned into his bones, carved into his grim heart. Doubting him felt almost insulting, especially after everything he'd done for all of us.
Without a comment, word, or at least an inhale, Malin turned on his heels and left. He didn’t slam doors, kick the furniture, or yell at Zyon’s bodyguards to clear his path. He just left, as if nothing had happened, which was much more terrifying than if he threw a fit.
“Was that really necessary?” I raised my voice, anger bleeding into my words. “You know how he is about the kids.”
“I need him to do his job first, then he can hunt whatever ghost he decides is worthy of his time.” Zyon lifted his chair and sat on it, running a hand through his hair.
“Do you have any idea how many disappearances occur in one day? He can’t solve all of them!
I need him to find your abductors first. And that fucking report about Nina Valentino should’ve been on my desk this morning! ”
“I’m sure you know how to put a name into the search bar, Zyon,” I pointed out, pouring him a generous amount of whiskey before dropping into the chair beside him. “Why is she important anyway? I thought your heart belonged to your wife.”
I winked at him when he shot me a glare that screamed, “Don’t fucking start, or I’ll strangle you.” I chuckled into my juice as I waited for an explanation.
“Valeria believes that the Valentino-Carlile arranged union is a coerced act,” he exhaled, turning the dessert spoon between his fingers mindlessly.
“She also said that she knows an abuser when she sees one and claims that Sonny and his father, Sebastian, show aggressive behavior towards Nina and Arianna when they think no one sees them.”
“How did she notice?” I asked, frowning at Zyon, who gulped the entire glass of whiskey in one go.
“She lived with an abuser.” He squeezed the empty glass as if he wanted to smash it with his bare hand. “She knows the signs.”
My stomach clenched. Every time someone reminded me of what Valeria went through with her ex-husband, I wanted to break something. If we just weren’t so fucking blind…
“What are you planning to do?” I leaned over the table to grab my phone, noticing texts from Melody. My wife still hadn’t bothered to message me.
“I don’t have a plan,” Zyon replied. He looked worn out, like the weight of the entire world was on his shoulders.
“But I won’t risk another woman going through the same experience as Valeria when I can prevent it.
” He looked me directly in the eye, the resoluteness in his voice palpable.
“If Malin finds something that confirms Valeria’s words, there won’t be any arrangement with Carlile and Valentino. ”
“Look at you. Growing a conscience, Your Highness?” I teased, but the smile froze on my lips when his face contorted with sadness.
“I held Valeria in my arms for three months while she cried, screamed, and kicked in her sleep,” he whispered, his gaze resting on the bouquet of black dahlias decorating the table, though he clearly didn’t see them.
“Ninety-seven days. That’s how long it took before she slept through the night.
” His dark eyes found mine, the faint shine of moisture in them catching me off guard.
“No one deserves that. Valentino or not, that woman will not suffer because of my plans.”