Chapter 153

Chapter 153
"Another party has suddenly shown interest in your date," she explained, looking a little worried. "A very... persuasive party. They're offering a much higher price, and they've hinted that it would be better for my other businesses if I gave them the date."

My jaw tightened. "Persuasive? Who is it?" My mind immediately went to the kinds of people Dimitri and I dealt with. People who used pressure and threats.
Mrs. Hayes looked down, fiddling with her hands. "They didn't give a name directly, just a lawyer's office. But the message was clear. They want the date, and they don't care that you booked it first."

This felt familiar. This felt like the kind of problem that was supposed to be gone. The kind of subtle, annoying pressure Dimitri had told me about. This felt like my father, Antonio, even from jail. He always used other people, other names, to do his dirty work.
I looked at Mila. Her face was calm, but I could see a hint of disappointment in her eyes. This garden was important to her.
My old self would have gotten angry, maybe even yelled. Or I would have just offered Mrs. Hayes triple the money. But that wasn't the new Carlo. Not anymore.

"Mrs. Hawthorn," I said, my voice steady, putting a hand on Mila's arm. "We appreciate your honesty. We understand that some people try to use their... influence. But we want this garden because it's beautiful, not because we can pay more. And we chose you because you seemed kind and fair."
She looked up, surprised.

"Can you give me the name of that lawyer's office?" I asked, keeping my voice firm. "I will handle this. This date is important to us. And we don't let people take what's ours just by making threats."

She hesitated, then wrote down a name and number on a small card. "Be careful, Carlo," she whispered. "These people... they feel like trouble."
"Don't worry, Mrs. Hawthorn," I said, a new kind of resolve in my voice. "I have a brother; we know how to handle trouble."
On the way home, Mila was quiet. "Do you think it's... your father?" she asked softly.

"Probably," I admitted, my hand tightening on the steering wheel. "Or someone connected to the past. People who don't like to see anyone happy if they're not." I didn't want to bring Antonio's name into her world yet. She didn't need to know that level of darkness.
"Can you fix it?" she asked, her voice a little small.

I looked at her, at her gentle face, so full of trust. "Yes," I said, a firm promise. "I will fix it. No one is going to take this away from us. This is our wedding. Our beginning. Nothing from the past is going to ruin it."

When I got home, I went straight to Dimitri's study. He was on a call, his voice low and serious. He ended it quickly when he saw me.
"Problems, Dimitri?" I said, handing him the card from Mrs. Hawthorn. "Someone's trying to take our wedding date at the garden. Using threats and pressure.
The only reason I’m not out there and their blood isn’t on my hands is because of Mila."

He took the card, his eyes narrowing as he read the name. "This is a new tactic," he murmured. "Antonio's reach is still wider than I thought." He looked up at me, his eyes cold. "He wants to bother you now too. To make everything I care about suffer."
"I don't care what he wants," I said, my voice steady. "I just want our wedding. Can you make this stop, Dimitri? Without making a big mess for Mrs. Hayes? Because if I do, then there probably won’t be a wedding."

Dimitri looked at me for a long moment, then a ghost of a smile touched his lips. "You handled this well, Carlo. You didn't lose your shit and go on a killing spree. Yes. I can make it stop. This date will be yours. And our father will learn that trying to hurt what matters to us, especially our happiness, is a mistake he will pay for dearly."

I nodded, feeling a powerful sense of relief. It was good to know Dimitri had my back. But more than that, it felt good that I had faced the problem myself first and not just lost my shit and went on a killing spree. My life with Mila, our wedding, felt more real than ever. It was a clear, bright path forward, and I wouldn't let any shadows from the past block our way. This was my fight now too, and I was ready for it.

Dimitri

The card Carlo handed me felt like a slap. A lawyer's office, unknown to me, is trying to take Carlo and Mila's wedding venue with threats and money. My father was not just being a nuisance anymore. He was directly attacking our family's happiness. This was personal.

I looked at Carlo. He was still worried, but there was a new firmness in his eyes, a different kind of strength I hadn't seen before. He wasn't losing it and reverting to his old self, which would have caused bloodshed. He was asking for help, but with a clear resolve. He was growing. And that made me even more determined to shut Antonio down.

"This lawyer's office," I said to Lena an hour later, the card for the garden venue on my desk. "Find out who they truly represent. Find every case they've ever handled that involved pressure or threats. Find out who they fear."
Lena nodded, her face grim. "Mr. Andreas, we also have new information on the jail situation. Antonio's calls are being arranged through a crooked guard. He's been paid well for a long time."

"Cut him off," I ordered, my voice cold. "And make sure he faces the full weight of the law for everything he's ever done. Make it public. A clear example. No one touches my family."
"Understood," Lena said. "The customs issues and the protest group are being handled too. The 'organizer' has already lost his city contracts. He understands the message."

"Good," I replied. "Now, this wedding venue. Find out who is making this opposing offer. Then make them regret it. Make it clear that this date belongs to Carlo Andreas, and any attempt to interfere will destroy their own business."

Lena left, and I picked up the card again. Antonio always played a long game. He liked to chip away, to make problems slowly. But this, targeting Carlo's wedding, was a new low. It wasn't about business or power games anymore. It was about pure spite. He knew how important this was to Carlo, how much it meant for him to finally find true happiness. And Antonio wanted to ruin it just because he couldn't have it himself.

I thought about my own wedding to Ava. The joy, the relief. The feeling of building something real and good. Antonio was trying to take that from Carlo to infect his new beginning with the bitterness of our past. I wouldn't allow it.