Chapter 97 — You'll Always Be My Little Princess

MYKAELA.

Before I could question him about the lawyer, one of Ilya's security staff entered the room and dropped a duffel bag on the floor. Right beside Enzo.

I clamped my mouth shut, my chest and stomach clenching.

The guard left the room without saying anything.

I glanced at Lorenzio. I could see his scowl deepen despite his mask.

Before I could unzip the small duffel, he crouched and swiftly inspected the contents.

My breath hitched. I gawked at the wads of hundred dollar bills staring back at me, the shock pinning my feet on the spotless floor.

Thin rubber bands bundled up the fresh bills. I'd never seen this much cash up-close, with my own eyes. If I had to guess, they probably amounted to at least a million bucks. Or more?

Enzo flung me a look of annoyance, then stepped away from the duffel bag. "What's this for?" He glared at Ilya.

I glanced at the piles of cash. A bitter taste settled in my tongue, my feet itching for the door.

Obviously the money belonged to the man who owned this luxury estate: the poker-faced mafia boss right in front of us.

What was this for? Was this his attempt at redemption? Drug money?

"You can't be serious," I wanted to say. Instead all I did was stare back at the man's pale and stubbled face. I couldn't move. Much less leave the room.

"In case you need it, dear," Ilya muttered, his voice still hoarse and weak. He slouched near the bed, his veiny hand slowly combing back his limp, graying hair touching his sharp jawline.

"Need it for what?" Enzo retorted, his tone vitriolic.

I squinted at Ilya and the duffel bag.

Was this him buying our forgiveness? For what his trigger-happy thugs did to Enzo and Cloe in Umbria?

"I... Why're you giving us money?" I pulled a face, hoping the wrinkles on my brows would be enough to convey the bewilderment pulsing within me. I would've removed my mask to show him my actual reaction, but I pushed the urge aside in case I caught the virus. I could be contagious now and asymptomatic.

If he got infected, he could die in a matter of days. I didn't have any savings left for a pricey settlement if ever his sons filed charges against me. They seemed the type to enjoy money...so used to having it that they probably never met anyone who didn't have any. Yet I couldn't deny the ties that bound us.

The room fell silent as I tried to lull and bottle up the emotions consuming my resolve to stay calm.

Confusion. Frustration. Regret. Disappointment and...

Maybe he was giving us money to shut us up about that ambush. Forever. Because he knew we all figured out he was the sole mastermind behind the horrendous crimes his trigger men committed that day.

"For school and living expenses," Ilya said calmly. "I know New York isn't cheap, dear."

Okay. So he knew about my money problems. What else did he know about my life in New York?

Niccolo must've told him about my student loans, as well as the bank loans and credit card debts my family and I had been trying to pay off since Daddy Jim got diagnosed with cancer.

But of course this was an offer I should reject. The anger bubbling up inside me and making my fist clench told me so. I bit back a swearword, took a deep breath, and tried to move my legs that felt stiff like my jaw. I studied the fragile, gray-haired man watching me closely with an unwavering gaze.

After all this time, this was all he learned about fatherhood? About being a parent?

Did he actually believe giving me all this money would be enough for me to think he deserved the role of a substitute father? After decades of him being nonexistent in my life because he was too busy ruining other people for his own personal gain?

How stupid and naïve did he think I was?

"All due respect, I don't need your money," I said, my voice a bit shaky. I gritted my teeth when he only stared. "Never asked for it. Never thought I'm entitled to any of it. I only came here to ask you not to hurt Lorenzio and his family. He's got nothing to do with his brother and uncle's crimes."

As if my words stung him, Ilya closed his eyes, sighed loudly, and tilted his chin down so he looked like he was bowing to us.

"I didn't agree to come here for money. I'm here to make sure he's gonna be safe no matter what." I glanced at Enzo, my cheeks and eyes heating up. "I'm marrying him. We're gonna have a baby." My voice faltered as I choked back a sob. Shedding a tear wasn't necessary. Besides, I doubted seeing me cry would change this criminal's mind about anything.

"Listen, dear. If we were in different circumstances, I would argue your point, but not this time. I don't have much left to spare." Ilya looked me in the eye. His raspy voice echoed through the room, his tone still calm but serious. "I'm dying. I need a new liver. If the transplant doesn't work, at least I would die happy knowing I was able to help you and your family, in some way."

"Because to you, money's the answer to everything." I scoffed and glanced at the duffel bag. "You really think this is enough of an apology?"

He clenched his jaw. Ilya pressed his pallid lips together until they formed a crooked line.

"In case you forgot, you never really wanted me. You abandoned us."

"No. That's not true."

"You chose to leave us. For 25 years, I didn't even know you existed. You lied to Mom about everything before she even had me. You harassed her. Threatened her."

"No." He sighed out loud, shaking his head as if I were the one not making any sense. "I never tried to hurt your mother."

"Don't lie to my face. I already know everything."

"I care about you. I wanted the best for you and your mother. Offered her a new life. Here. With me. I wanted to help her. I didn't want to leave you. I tried convincing her. Over and over. But she always said no." Ilya looked away, the restrained frustration in his voice quite convincing. "She threatened to call the police and hide you from me. She called Jim. They left Florida with you and your sister without telling me."

"What?" I choked out, my chest aching, the implications of his words barely sinking in. I could feel Enzo's hand on my back, but the rest of me felt numb.

It might be the exhaustion. The stress. The constant pressure and anxiety. Months of sleep deprivation.

I wanted to blame the years of betrayal. The elaborate lies. My family's choice to keep all those secrets from me. The abandonment issues. Other unresolved psychological traumas he didn't even know he caused...

At this point I could easily list ten more culprits. Including the reasons why we're here in this estate. But the sensible part of me knew it was pointless to accuse him of abandoning us.

Taking another deep breath, I turned away from him and clasped Enzo's sleeve. The tears kept coming, no matter my efforts to seem unaffected.

"I'm sorry I was not there for you. But know that I did not want to leave you."

"Stop lying!"

"I don't have to lie." Ilya didn't stop staring and faintly shook his head. "I did not just abandon you. I kept trying to find you. Ask Niccolo. He will say the same."

Wow. Did he actually think I wouldn't find out about the leverage he used to blackmail Niccolo into doing anything he wanted him to do?

"You're saying Mom lied? All these years?" I scoffed and held back a sob, my intakes of breath annoyingly loud, my nose already leaking snot. "You're calling her a liar?"

"No. But I understand why she felt she had to, and I don't blame her for thinking Jim would be a better father."

"Because he was my dad! He'll always be my dad!" I let out a trembling breath and buried my face in Enzo's chest. My legs were already shaking, my hands clammy. My face almost felt numb.

Consoling me in his arms, Enzo murmured reassurances to my ear and used his handkerchief to dry my tears.

Darn it. I wished we could just leave and forget this day ever happened, but, this had to end now. I didn't come this far just to chicken out now.

With a defeated sigh and tentative steps, I drew myself out of Enzo's hug, urging myself to face and say goodbye to the man I never wanted in my life.

If he really needed me to talk to his lawyer, then fine. I'd sign every dotted line he wanted me to sign. I just wanted to get it over with so Enzo and I could leave this place now. In one piece and unscathed, I hoped.

Ilya stood closer to us now. His strong features softened when a flicker of sadness crossed his pale green eyes. The same color as mine.

My chest ached at the fact. I swiped at the tears on my cheeks. My breath caught when he took a couple of steps closer until he stood right in front of me.

Without any hesitation, he pulled me in for a hug. A real embrace. His lean arms wrapped around my back, his beige shirt getting wrinkled against my cotton dress. He faintly smelled of peppermint and sea breeze.

I cried. And cried. I couldn't stop. I felt like my lungs would burst any second now. I kept my eyes squeezed shut, the feel of his warm and feeble body almost surreal.

It was not the first time he held me like this. But the gesture felt more sincere and profound this time. As if he'd been meaning to hug me from the moment he heard we were on our way here.

"Sorry." I sniffled. "I-I didn't mean to yell."

"I know."

"Please, Papa. I almost lost him. I-I don't know what I would..." I held back another sob. "I just don't want him to get hurt again."

"Shh... It's okay, dear." Ilya stroked the back of my head.

"I can't lose him."

"You won't. You don't have anything to worry about. You're going to be fine. I promise."

I tried my best to choke back the sobs, but it only worsened the tightness and pain in my chest. The tears kept flowing, blurring my vision, and despite what my brain screamed at me, I couldn't stop my arms. I hugged him back. "Thank you."

"No matter what happens tomorrow, know that I'm very proud of you, my princess," he murmured before kissing my cheek lightly. Then he let go of me and pulled away, smiling weakly at me and Enzo. "Congratulations on your engagement. I hope your brothers and I are invited to your wedding."

I sniveled and rubbed the dampness from my eyes, gauging the close-lipped smile on his wrinkly face. It looked genuine enough. My stomach flipped when he held out his hand for Lorenzio to shake.

Enzo glanced at me, then stepped forward and reluctantly shook Ilya's hand.

"Take good care of her. My daughter loves you more than you know."