Chapter 4

9 years ago

It was hours later, the room was packed with a ward of testosterone, and they all shared something in common, The Stone name. Dexter was on his way back, having stopped at Gabriel's place for a bit. I wasn't sure why but he said something that bugged me.

Diamond was in the bath for the last 2 hours, and Michael insisted it was a normal thing. She preferred to think while she showered, and then thought some more while she relaxed in a tub of cold water. The penthouse consisted of 3 rooms, a lounge, a dining room, and a private staircase leading to the rooftop. The black and yellow décor was minimalist but classy. Diamond informed me Michael booked the room and had it redecorated in a space of 4 HOURS.

He had a thing about colors and textures, and she learned to take it with a pinch of salt and make her own. The two made quite a team and I appreciated them all being but I knew they were protecting me and also trying to get my mind off of everything. There was something about having this different crowd.

'How is it that find ourselves in the fucking Hyatt?"Dexter says walking in, his presence alone is like a big scene in a movie. I have known Dexter since he was a kid, and even though he is younger than me today I feel small in front of him. I don't have a tough bone in my body. My sister died, and I am trying to figure out who is the person to blame. Was it Lucca? I doubted it.

Killer is sitting on the end of the three-seated sofa. We were talking about what happened months ago when we last saw Lucca. I remember the day, it wasn't too long ago. I was training and Killer and Marco took me to a dodgy strip joint.

We pissed him off, more so when he thought he'd put one up on us and his men surrounded us with guns.

Killer came prepared that day and managed to gather his arsenal of bikers. Ex Military verse an Outfit of Italian half-breed or Mezzosangue, just like me didn't stand a chance. I left but I never knew what happened that day. But the lines were drawn and a part of me knew even then the war was brewing.

'When did a hotel room have you in chisel? Didn't you sleep in a dirt bin once in Mexico?" Killer says turning his entire body to face Dexter. What I did notice was were Michael tolerated Dexter and was civil with him to an extent I got the feeling he liked him, Killer was cold, harsh, almost as if he had no feeling at all besides a familiarity toward him.

'Desperate times. SO have you guys decided what the fuck we are going to do? We are sitting ducks and Kylie is out there."

'As a matter of fact yes. Aliyana is going to talk to the Misfits, and the Catelli's and get their take on the story. Killer is…"

'He is going to kill whoever took his sister, and Beggar."I end his sentence, giving Killer the order and the only reason he was still here. And like I predict he gets up and pulls his phone out of his pocket.

'Why would you do that?"Dexter questions.

'Because the Shadows protect our own, and Kylie is our own. There is a list of shipping companies and trucking companies he does his business. I can get Gabriel to find out their locations and send it through, he might sell them, but if he doesn't there are black spots on the maps where I heard Marco saying he took people too."It was something I was keeping to myself but I trusted Michael's words and I believed him as stupid as it sounded that I could trust them, after all, they wanted the same thing.

'No need, I already have them mapped out, Marcus Bray has already covered half of them in the last 6 hours I take it by morning they'll be done." Michael's confession has me raising my eyes. These men were seriously hooked up and extremely organized.

'What we do need is to find Sienna, any idea where she could be?" David asks as he gets up and walks to stand in front of the T.V.

'She's in San Francisco. Bought a ticket there 4 months ago." My answer is fast because I have been looking for her as well. At first, I thought if I found her then I could find Elise because she was the one I wanted. I wasn't certain whether I was going to kill her, strangle her or help her.

'I hate to break this lovely reunion, but you guys are all wasting time addressing the actual problem, the cause." Diamond walks in wearing blue and orange strip silk Pajamas with big round black glasses plastered on her face, she smells like mint and vanilla.

'Which is? Because I am pretty sure we addressed everything."

'David, David, David, if you want my vote I expect you to have a half a brain, how on earth are you going to run our country if you can't think bigger," She laughs and coughs, then stares at him putting her hand on her hip, 'Well, let me clarify myself there, what I was saying is think smaller."

'Mischa," Killer answers and his voice is low.

'Yup," She pops the world out of her mouth.

'We weren't there yet," Dexter says but there is a warning note to his tone.

'What is it, Dexter? First, you off to Gabriel now this?" Killer queries.

'Someone tried to grab the kid when she was with Camila at the park. Gabriel barely managed to get the kid in time, but Camilla was knocked out. I found it odd that Mischa was not at the Manor or Anya's house since the kid spent the majority of her time there. What I also found weird is who would have known that Camila was going to be there at 6 in the evening, it is a strange time for any kid to play in the park, but Marco allowed it only in the evenings when it was quiet with at least 5 guards. Today there were only 3 guards, and all were not even nearly strong enough to take on a proper gunfight. I don't get it. If Gabriel didn't go, there in time Mischa would be gone."

I frown as the reality of everything that happened today hits me. This was a complete attack on all sides.

'Even if and that is a huge fucking if Lucca didn't try to kill you, someone who is working with him did. Which means the person who wants you dead is closer to what Lucca wants."

'Mischa," I complete.

'Yes, if we get Mischa, we bring the killer to us," David says.

'No, that is putting her life at risk and using her as bait."

'She is already the bait, at least with us she stands a chance of survival," Michael says.

'Wait, you guys realize you are talking about using a little kid to catch a killer, right? I am the crazy one, I make the made choice but that is insane."

'Don't you want to find Kylie? Or have you forgotten about her in all of this?" Dexter asks, and I look at him glaring at Diamond, but Diamond was right. There must be a better way.

'Must I do all the thinking? Michael? help me out." Diamond gestures.

'How about we keep low, Aliyana gets close to the kid but not enough to put her in danger, more like keeping a watchful eye. Maybe even suggest to Marco she is safer under the protection of the Shadows."

'Yes, and we wait the killer out, they will want you, they will show you a sign and, in the meantime, our involvement is not known by anyone else besides the people in this room. We will keep a close eye and when the time comes strike."

'You can always tell the truth of events but change the partners." David's words sound the air, and it was on this night I made the pacts with the stone brothers, Dakota Larken and Dexter Kent. Sometimes our only choice was to trust the judgments of the people we didn't know.

Killer left shortly after our conversation was done. David made the call to Marcus to let him know where we were and Dexter made one to Marco, who apparently couldn't be bothered by my safety or whereabouts, he was I quote, ‘Mourning the dead."

I am not sure why it bothered me, but it did, and it made me pace. Diamond took herself to the bedroom. Dexter eventually got to bed or so he said, and Michael and David spent time on their phones calling in favors trying to find Kylie and Amariya.

What I did not mention was even if they found them alive, they wouldn't be the same, The Outfit had a reputation for how they treated women, and Amariya was a second runner up but Kylie she was innocent in all of this.

I head up the stairs to the rooftop, the night is cold but as is the Seattle breeze, I can't ever imagine staying anywhere else but here. My family was raised, my parents married here and we were born here, it is a lot of roots to put down for a mafia's daughter, but for a queen, I think it is fitting.

Life was supposed to be difficult for me, I always knew that I was a Bratva's bloodline and a Mafia's one combined.

My parents started a war over a deal they agreed to and if that alone didn't cause a name my surname did. Being the consigliere's daughter was not a simple task, but my father was no ordinary consigliere. He always knew he was the father of a queen.

Today as I stand here, and hold myself, I must admit that I felt like no queen, I felt small and insignificant most times than not. MY SISTER DIED IN my house, my niece, was gone in a blink of an eye. Marco not knowing who killed his father will eventually blame me it was inevitable.

I WAS LONELY IN THIS WORLD, that in my darkest moments I trusted my shadows, the ones I NEVER KNEW, I left my life in their hands, and they were the ones guiding me. Am I strong enough for the task? Would they understand my weakness Or will they too try to outrun me? They did fine on their own all these years, maybe I was an inconvenience.

'A mind stuck in its own turmoil is only dangerous when you are faced with too many doubts."Marco's voice makes me jump and I spin around and see him looking haggard. His suit is dirty, his sleeves rolled up, jacket gone, blue shirt buttons undone. His hair looks like he has pulled at it for hours. HIS FACE IS A WRECK.

'How did you get here? I thought you'd be home with your family."

'That was the story, yes, but I had to talk to you. See you. After today I don't think I can get your screams out of my head even if I shut off my brain."

'You'd be dead then."

He takes a few steps closer, and it is like I am transported back to that first day years ago when the world was crushing me under its feet. When I was just an innocent girl, and he was a dark tainted soul.

'I remember it you know that night, on the top of Azure, dancing, the kiss," Marco utters with all of his confidence and I don't fault him as I stare at his dark shadow.

'Your brother's death, my betrayal, the lies and secrets that came with it."I complete his moment with the reality of my own.

'Yes, the hurt, and the love, some ending, some beginning." He is so close to me that again I was so entranced by his presence that I didn't even notice him move. How is it that even after everything including him belonging to someone else, I find myself in the same position in the same fate?

'And some stuck in between them both."

'Mezzosangue, how you are feeling now will not last forever Aliyana, there will come a time where you will breathe free again. Hard times teach you the path."

'What are you really doing here Marco? Because I am sure it wasn't to give me life advice."He makes to touch me, and I take a step back, somehow not trusting him, which is weird.

'A confession."

'You want to know if I killed your father?"

'Yes."

'Did I plan to do it? Yes, would I have done it yes, did I do it? No. Even if I did, I wouldn't confess."

'Why would you kill my father? What the fuck?" he whispers harshly as the night chills creep through my clothes, but I can see the leash on his calm façade slipping.

The question was simple, did I tell him or not? I guess if I were to gain trust, I would need to earn it.

'Did you know Ren well enough?" I ask him. 'Because I sure as shit didn't, he was a mystery most of the time, so open but closed, so free but hidden, I never knew anyone who would understand him, until a certain someone who was considered an enemy came into the picture."

'Why are we talking about this again?"

'Because Marco, Ren was gay. At first, I thought he wasn't, and I misread it but the more I thought about it the more I understood. It wasn't difficult to figure out who would want him dead if they found out. Your father was the only one who kept close tabs on all of you. So he was the only one who would have suspected something. And a gay guy in this world? The idea, concept just didn't gel with your father, so he had it sorted. And yes, you think I lie, but it wasn't a chore to get the information I needed from a reliable source especially when they were so close to home. However, you already knew that, didn't you?"

He nods his head and finally turns to face the open night sky and city lights.

'I had a hunch, Matteo didn't quite hide his thoughts very well, your father hired him to snuff him out to see if he'd talk but he didn't until your sister Guilia saw him talking to Sienna Bray, they had a heated argument about Matteo hiding who he is. She was offering him a way out. Why he didn't take it I am still not sure."

'So, you going to let Mero live?"

'No, because someone was behind that bullet that killed my brother. All the evidence is pointing to him, and it wasn't obvious at first, he was hiding around, sneaking with Sienna, making deals. He fucked my sister Elise and yes she was bad and screwed us all over but did he have any morale? Does he deserve to be in the famiglia?"

'Mero is my friend, and I will never stop protecting him."

'I know." He says that word, but it is sad. I wish I knew at this moment he would eventually go through with it and kill Mero. But I knew nothing besides a keen belief that he was innocent.

'Any leads on Kylie and Amariya?"

'No, but starting tomorrow we will search for them full force, no stopping until we find both of them. But I need to ask something."

'What is it?"

'The house Deno showed you, I need you to move in there. We can't keep you safe and look for the girls plus keep Mischa safe. We need to figure out how we are going to do it all."

'Shouldn't you talk to me about it? Ask for my help?"

He closes his eyes, 'Aliyana, someone in the Shadow's close circle tipped Lucca off, I don't know who to trust at the moment. I stationed 8 men to you, including Salvatore, Xander, and Gabriel. Your father is sending Matteo, but can we trust him? Mischa almost got caught today, Camila probably has a head concussion from whoever attacked her, and Lucca is going to let his men do fuck knows what to those girls. Every minute we wait and every day longer we take means more terror for them.

'When did he become so bad?"

Marco rubs his hand on his face and if it was a happier moment, I would've had the balls to tell him he smelled really bad.

'I don't know. Lucca was as close as a brother to me. Deno, Vincent, Lucca, and I went to the same schools and also shipped away. Our lives were going to be fucking fantastic, we came from strong blood, we were unstoppable until one day I turned eighteen, and I was visited by a gentleman by the name of Victor Stone, he wasn't much younger than my father, but when he sat me down that day and said he had to explain some things to me, I knew my life was going to be different.

As a DeMarco male, I had a choice, I serve my family or I serve my country. I chose the latter. Soon after my father was sending me to military school, and I was fighting in wars, life was just different until I got back home after my first tour. Deno, Vincent, and Lucca started their little club. Their life already planned out. Deno was going to be Capo, Lucca was going to become underboss, and Vincent the Consigliere.

They were so certain until my brother Deno received the same news. I guess there was no choice in whether he would choose another path because he didn't have a choice. Before we decided that we could swap Deno's place with Leonardo, we both accepted our path. Of course, choosing a direction also meant choosing the people you would take with you. Which didn't give us many options. I went back to war. Deno worked for my father and became underboss.

Lucca and Vincent decided they'll study, both believe it or not went to MIT. My father needed a Capo, and there were only three people good enough for it, 1 was your brother Filippo, 2 was Lucca, and the 3rd Vincent. The three didn't appreciate being put in such a position but my father forced it and before I knew it when I got back it was Vincent and Lucca competing for everything. Only my father knew he was never going to choose Vincent because he was a half-blood, which left Filippo and Lucca. But Filippo was also a shadow, nobody knew. SO, he turned my father down. Lucca became the only one suitable for the job, but as you know as luck might have it my brother Leonardo agreed to a blood oath and swapped places with Deno."

'Which meant Deno could be Capo?"

'Yes, and Lorenzo underboss, which my father wanted."

'So, Lucca got pissed off?"

He frowns, 'Not exactly, Lucca left and decided he'd take over the Outfit, tame them, create a proper family, something his father wasn't able to do. And for a while he did, and everyone was happy until Katrina came into their lives. She was a beauty, true to heart. Katrina had her heart set on Lucca, and the two dated, but Katrina's family was not very wealthy, they struggled and had one daughter, her father needed her to marry for power. As you know is the way of our world, and he chose Vincent because he was rich, and it guaranteed the family power. In the beginning, she refused, Vincent also, but over time the two got close and it got complicated.

She played one for one, and they became enemies, Vincent and Lucca started fighting, Vincent turned to drinking, and became harder, Lucca just started growing the Outfit allowing whoever TO join under his rule. He moved to New Orleans and took Katrina with him, but Katrina wasn't happy, and her father worried, so the family approached us, and her brother, Salvatore joined us for a price, we get his sister."

'Moretti?" I question surprised by this.

'Yes, and we agreed, not so much for her family but Vincent. So we went to New Orleans, fetched her, and handed her to Vincent, for almost a year they were happy, they married secretly, and she seemed to like her new life. But something was happening around our family, lost shipments, missing cash. Vincent kept filling it up from his pocket, but when I got back from Afghanistan and looked into our books it was wrong, and Vincent has always been richer than most of us. So, I got him on board and with just a bit of digging we found out it was Katrina, she was an informant for the cops and the Mexican Cartel. Vincent got angry and handed her over to Lucca, not knowing she did the same thing to him, it was the reason she was unhappy because he knew.

Vincent found out that Lucca was going to send her with the next trafficking shipment, so he tried to intervene, he saw her, but as he grabbed her Lucca shot him. He watched her get pushed into the crate, and a few weeks later Lucca sent a picture of her naked body, in a pool of blood. She was dead, beaten, raped, gone. Vincent hated himself and turned to alcohol it took him years to finally sort himself out."

'Where does Amariya fit in with all of this?"

'Lucca met Amariya on the streets. Her father Stephano DeMarco fell in love with my father's sister, Sofia Anita Catelli, everyone knew her as Neeta. She was vibrant and free, a loving woman. They got married in secret as is the tradition of the Capo Dei Capi, a small union. He was lucky when Anita fell pregnant with twin boys, the boys were 4 when Anita fell pregnant again. Men came into her house, raped her, and killed her boys. Demarco promised her vengeance, but she didn't want it. So she faked her death and left. She was 6 months pregnant with Amariya."

'But why didn't she get work or something? Surely anything is better than living on the streets?"

'Not quite, Anita was a drug addict with bipolar. When she met Demarco she got clean but after the boys were born she just felt that it was the way to cope with the bipolar, she was what you would call a functional junky, but after the rape, it all turned to shit, she took what she could sell from the house and left. Not sure how she managed to raise Amariya all those years, but Demarco put it in his head Anita was dead. This is why when Amariya went to him for help he pulled a gun on her. It was a shock, she looked bizarrely like his sister, my mother, it was almost scary. When he went back to look for Amariya and apologize she was gone until years later she showed up in my life."

'Did Lucca know Amariya was Stephano's daughter?"

'No, she was a beggar on the streets, young and beautiful, she was tough and everything opposite to Katrina. As you can fathom, she fell in love with him fast, he was like a lifeline to her fucked up life a way out. He proposed to her and the two got married, but on the day of their wedding he saw her ID card, he was shocked and had so much hatred over the years for our families, he took it out on her. I am not sure what all he did, but I know he left her to his men, whether he knew she was pregnant with his kids I am not sure."

'Kids?"

'Amariya had twins, the boy died, and Mischa now belongs to me."

'And your dad? How did you become a Demarco?"

'My dad fell in love with Demarco's sister, but my grandfather refused the marriage. So my mother made a choice and lived in secret as a sinner. Demarco kept her safe and she bore 3 kids. 2 of us were bastards. My parents eventually got married, by the time my sister came my grandfather was dead and my father had taken over as Capo. Nicole moved in, at just 19. She was my mother's cousin.

My father and her had a small affair, but she backed off, and it wasn't long after did my mother get killed by a burglar. Nicole raised us after and married my father and good thing she did because for all her bullshit, she was blood, and we were able to get Leonardo to join the shadows and Deno to become Capo."

'Does your father love her?"

'Yes, of course, they have been together for a long time Aliyana, love grows, sometimes it blossoms other times it transforms. Nicole is a good woman, and she never made us feel like we were beneath them, she took us as her own and made sure no one questioned our birthright. I don't think we could have asked for any more."

'If only my stepmother could share some of her expertise."

'Your stepmother tried, you were just too small to remember."

Marco left shortly after telling me his story, and although there was nothing romantic about our moment merely an understanding, I felt like it brought us closer. And although his goal was slightly different from my own and he still wanted my friend to die, I went to bed knowing that eventually, time would heal.