EPILOGUE
ENZO
I kicked the front door closed and pressed my back against it, ripping off my sunglasses and taking a minute to breathe. Just fucking breathe. Luckily, no one was around to see the way my eyes skittered wildly around the great room. My heart slammed in my chest, and for a minute I thought it was gonna bust right out of my fucking rib cage. Or I was gonna pass out. One of the two. Or both.
What in the fuck had Luca been thinking.
Jesus Christ. If Tristan had been in that garage when he pulled that shit, he would've fucking lost it. And I don't know that we would've been able to bring him back. At least not easily.
And Veda…
What the fuck was he trying to do to her? She was a strong woman, but she hadn't grown up around this shit like Luca did. Like Tristan and I did.
The room began to swim, and a drop of sweat trickled down the side of my face. I flexed my hands, spreading my fingers, then closing them again, feeling the tendons stretch. Closing my eyes, I concentrated on my breaths. In, out. In, out. Slow and steady. I felt my lungs expand and my heartbeat slow, little by little, until it was beating normally again and the pain in the center of my chest faded away.
"Enzo? You alright?"
I opened my eyes and met Tristan's concerned stare. "I'm good," I told him. "Everything is good." Then I put my sunglasses back on before he could see the remnants of panic in my eyes. "I think Luca and Veda are working things out."
"He finished off Mario?"
"Yes. He'll no longer be an issue."
Tristan nodded. "Good. It was pure luck I found him alone last night. There's no way Luigi will be able to pin his disappearance on Luca."
I fell into step beside him as we headed into the kitchen to get some coffee. Thank god for Lisa. She always had some ready for us. "We're still gonna have to watch our backs, though. Just in case."
"So same as always, then."
"Yes. Same as always." I touched his shoulder, but only briefly. Not because I didn't feel affection for my lifelong friend, but because he had a difficult time accepting it.
One Week Later
I frowned as Luca joined me at the pool for a late summer swim instead of our usual workout. "What is that?"
Luca glanced down at the bright red "V" carved into his bared chest and smiled. "Penance for my sins. And proof of my loyalty," he answered.
He met my stare proudly, without shame. I just laughed a little and shook my head. And to think, of the three of us, Luca was the one who was the least fucked up.
I'd first noticed the wound when we were sparring together in the gym. Then, for about a week afterward, it remained fresh, sometimes bleeding through his T-shirt because he refused to cover it. I'd thought maybe he'd received it when he'd gotten into it with Mario, so I hadn't asked about it. But now I could clearly see what it was.
And it explained the way Veda often looked at him now with a mixture of horror and possession every time I was with her and Luca walked into the room.
Once, I saw them together in the hall outside of his room. Her hand was lifted, like she wanted to touch his chest, but she stopped before she could, her pretty features twisting into something I couldn't quite read. But before she could lower it again, Luca grabbed her hand and pressed it against the center of his chest, right over the place where the two lines connected; I could see now. It had to have hurt like a bitch, but he'd only smiled and leaned over to gently kiss her mouth.
Not wanting to invade their privacy, I turned away.
The first few nights after Veda took out Mario, I heard her wake up screaming once or twice a night while I kept watch in the house. I was glad her parents had used the plane tickets she'd gotten them and were no longer here. It would've been awful for them to hear that shit. But if she still had nightmares after that, I didn't hear her. And for that, I was grateful. The screaming brought back memories I'd just as soon forget.
Three Months Later
I stood at the open window in Luca's office and took a deep breath. We were in that time of year where Texas was having a hard time letting go of the heat of summer, even though it was almost the holidays, but today the temperature had only gotten up into the sixties. And now that the sun was about to go down, if you took the time to notice, you'd taste the slightest bite of winter in the air and feel the chill linger in your lungs.
Veda was walking the path toward the lake below me, her blond hair blowing in the breeze as she looked out over the water. She was adapting to her life as the girlfriend of a mafia underboss like she'd been born in our world. Luca had brought in a shrink for her to talk to, and if she was still haunted by everything that had happened since she'd met him, I didn't see any signs of it. Except, maybe once in a while, when I'd catch her staring off into space when she thought no one was watching her. But she was even going back to school part-time, taking college courses at the local university with me or Tristan as her constant bodyguard, although Luca went with her when he could. Just the required core courses for now while she decided what she wanted to do with her life.
I'd never seen Luca so content. I was really happy for him. For both of them.
"Enzo, would you close the window, please?"
Looking over my shoulder, I saw Luca come in with Tristan behind him. I closed and locked the window as Luca sat down behind his desk and Tristan took the bag of money he was holding over to the secret panel in the wall that contained the safe. "Everything go okay?" I asked. They'd done the pickup without me, as they'd done ever since the incident with Mario because Luca refused to leave Veda in the house without protection and he'd told me I was the only one he trusted to keep her safe besides Tristan, who he needed with him. Apparently, the fucking army of men outside the house wasn't enough for him.
"Yeah, it went fine," Luca told me. "Even my father was more mellow than usual. It makes me fucking nervous." As though he could sense her there, he suddenly turned and looked out the window. "How's my vita been while I was gone?"
I joined him, sitting in one of the chairs on the other side of the desk.
"Good. She's been doing homework and just stepped out to get some air. I've had eyes on her the entire time."
He hesitated for a moment, and I knew he wanted to call her back into the house.
"Let her get some air, Luca. She'll be okay for a few minutes."
After another few seconds, he turned back around, but spun his chair to the side so he could keep an eye on her while we talked. "The annual fundraiser is coming up," he said as Tristan sat down beside me. "The family needs to make an appearance, and I'd like you both there with me."
"Of course," Tristan told him. "As long as I don't need to bring anyone."
The corners of Luca's mouth turned up just slightly. "It's not a requirement. You can come solo."
"Perfect."
Speaking of which. "Do you need me for anything else tonight?" I asked Luca.
He shook his head. "Not until later. You should get some sleep."
"Yeah." I stood up. "Do you want me to call Veda in before I go?"
But Luca's attention was already back outside with her. "No. I've got her. I'll see you later tonight."
Slapping palms with Tristan, I took my leave, checking the time on my cell phone. I had a date to keep myself.
And she didn't take kindly to me being late.