Epilogue Aria #2
“To family,” Nikolai says, raising his glass. “Blood and chosen.”
“To family,” we all echo.
I feel completely relaxed and safe, surrounded by people who’ve become friends despite the violence that brought us together. The men discuss summer vacation plans. Leo is talking about taking his family to Italy and Cillian mentions visiting Ireland to see his extended family.
“Aria’s never been to Greece,” Maksim says, his hand still holding mine. “I want to show her the islands. Maybe in the fall, after the baby is old enough to travel.”
“It’s beautiful there,” Cillian says as Emma gets up to check on the kids. “You’ll love it.”
I’m imagining it—our children playing on beaches while I’m eating some delicious Greek food—when Emma’s scream shatters everything.
She’s at the window, staring into the yard with horror on her face.
“Where’s Seraphina?” she breathes.
The words freeze my blood. The sounds of chairs screeching back envelope the room as everyone runs to the window, crowding around to look. The yard is visible in the dusk light and I can see Daniel standing near the swing set, holding Nora’s hand.
But Seraphina is nowhere to be seen.
“Seraphina!” Emma screams, already running for the door. “Seraphina, baby, where are you?”
Leo is immediately behind her, his phone already out. “Lock down the property. Now. No one in or out,” he orders.
Maksim is on his phone as well, coordinating with his security team. “I need every guard searching the grounds. Check every room, every closet, every possible hiding place. She’s two years old, dark curly hair, wearing a yellow dress. Find her. NOW.”
I grab Daniel as he comes running inside, Nora still clutching his hand. His face is pale, tears in his eyes.
“She was right there!” he’s saying, his voice breaking. “She was right there and I looked away for just a second to help Nora up the slide and when I turned back Seraphina was gone! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I was supposed to watch her!”
“It’s not your fault,” I tell him, pulling him into my arms even though my pregnant belly makes it awkward. “You didn’t do anything wrong, sweetheart.”
But he’s sobbing now, his whole body shaking. “I was supposed to watch her! Papa said I was responsible! And now she’s gone and it’s my fault!”
“Daniel, listen to me.” I cup his face in my hands, forcing him to look at me even though my heart is hammering. “This is not your fault. Do you understand?”
Valentina takes Nora from Daniel’s arms, her face bloodless. Cillian is on his phone, calling his own security, his face carved from stone. Guards are swarming through the house and grounds. I can hear them calling Seraphina’s name, searching everywhere.
Emma is in the yard, screaming for her daughter. Leo is trying to hold her together while also coordinating the search, his face a mask of controlled terror.
The search goes on for hours. They check every place large enough for a toddler to hide in. They expand the search to the neighboring properties.
Nothing.
Seraphina has vanished.
Finally, Maksim calls for the security footage. We gather in his office, crowding around the monitors as he pulls up the feeds from the outside cameras.
The footage shows Daniel playing with the girls. Nora stumbles and Daniel helps her to the slide. Seraphina runs toward the back wall of the property, chasing a butterfly or just burning off energy the way toddlers do.
Emma moans in terror.
Then three figures appear from behind the wall. A strangled scream is in my throat as I see the masked men climb over. One grabs Seraphina, his hand covering her mouth before she can scream. Another provides cover. The third appears to be recording or monitoring something.
They’re over the wall with Seraphina in less than thirty seconds. The little girl’s yellow dress is the last thing visible before they disappear.
Emma makes a sound like an animal dying and her knees bend. Leo catches her before she collapses, his own face gray with shock and fury.
“Who the fuck are they?” Cillian demands, his accent thickening with rage.
“I don’t know,” Maksim says, his voice hard as iron. “But we’re going to find out. And we’re going to get her back.”
Leo is already making calls to every contact he has.
His voice is cold, but I can see the terror underneath.
He keeps looking at Emma like he’s afraid she’ll shatter.
I hear him talk to someone named Connor and although I can’t hear what Connor says, I can hear his tone and I’ve never heard a man sound so angry and scared in all my life.
Emma is basically catatonic. Valentina and I sit with her, trying to offer comfort that feels hollow and useless.
What do you say to a mother whose child has been taken?
Hours pass with no word. The sun sets completely. Still nothing.
Daniel is inconsolable, blaming himself despite everything we’ve said. I try to reassure him, but my son doesn’t listen. Cillian is coordinating with Brennan family resources while Nikolai has every Bratva contact searching. Maksim is calling in every favor he’s ever accumulated.
But there’s nothing. No leads. No sightings. No demands.
Just silence.
Then, around midnight, several phones start to buzz. Leo, Maksim, Cillian, and Nikolai all look down and dive for them. Leo is faster.
He looks at the screen, and his face goes even paler than it already was.
“What is it?” Maksim demands.
Leo turns the phone so we can all see.
It’s a text message from an unknown number:
We have the child. This is just the beginning.