An Aria in Venice: A Musical Interlude Novel (34 page)

“I’m coming again, too,” I cry out. A few
more thrusts, a couple more growls, and he collapses on top of me, shoving
himself deep inside me, his body vibrating and shuddering just as roughly as
mine. For the longest moment, we lay against each other, our gasps and the
sounds of the canal filling the room around us. Lifting to prop up on his
elbows, but without removing himself from inside of me, Luca says, “Don’t ever
leave me again. I know I can be an ass, but I can’t breathe without you.”

Sobs rack my body, which in turn, causes
my warrior to do the same thing. I move his head back down to my chest, kissing
his wet hair and running my hands over his trembling body. “I’ll never leave
you again. I promise.”

~Luca~

“What am I supposed to do with a
daughter? I play with women, not Barbie dolls.”

“I’ll help you take care of her. You have
a right to see your child.” We’re lying on our sides, facing each other.

“Maybe she’s better off without me.”

“Look at me. No, you need to really hear
me,” she begins, grasping my face and boring into my eyes with a fierceness in
her blue ones. “No daughter should ever be without her father. No son, either.
It’s truly the worst feeling ever.”

“And no man should be without the woman
he loves. Especially during a time like this.”

“That’s different.”

“Tell me how you feel, Adriana. I need
this, to hear your voice, to know what’s truly in your heart. I have to
understand how much you need me. Without you, I’ve lost my lifeline. And if I
can’t breathe, then I’ll die.”

“I ... I feel the same as you do,” she
says. Her face crumples as she bursts into tears. I accept her words for now,
even though I ache to hear more. I pull her into my arms and she lays her head
over on my shoulder. I can tell she’s lost in thoughts of her own father, as I
am in the memories of mine. We begin a kiss that doesn’t stop until neither one
of us can breathe.

“When we get back tomorrow, I’m going to
tell Mother and Alek that we’re an official couple,” she announces.

“We’ll face your family together.”

Somehow, I can see the first ray of
sunshine in days. That’s because the warmth I’m feeling shines from inside the
eyes of the woman I love.

~Nikolai~

In Mother Russia, we have a saying that
goes like this: May your hearts be light, and your purse be heavy. No one has
ever instructed us on what we should do if both of those things turn into
anchors slowly weighing us down until we find ourselves at the bottom of a
fairly large ocean.

One of my informants has confirmed Alek’s
suspicions that several members of a rival gang we left behind in Moscow have
been going around asking questions about the four of us. I tried to reach Alek
several times, but he doesn’t answer his phone. He is caught up in his affair
with Erin Angelo. He has left his orchestra hanging many times under my
direction. I could easily step in and take his place as Maestro. Oh what I
would give to experience a love like that. It does not have to last a lifetime,
a brief stolen moment in time would do.

As I lead my dancers through yet another
round of progressions, I sense her presence before I even turn around to see
her face. She has returned from Venice, my little Rishka has come back to me.

“Take ten,” I call out and rush toward
her.

I pull Adriana into my arms and right
away, I sense the change. I have not won her over the way I thought. No. I am
certain my Rishka has come to tell me good-bye. We stare each other down for
what seems like the longest moment of my life. “I love him, Nikolai. I’m
sorry.”

My heart dislodges and slams into my
ribcage. I am used to disappointment, so this should feel like a normality, but
it does not. This shit hurts like hell. No, worse than hell, a purgatory
created by my own hand, the one that sent my precious Rishka into the bed of
another man, something that I will keep living through every day. Clenching my
fists, I ground my temper, closing my eyes as the memory of Adriana running
through the field of purple blooms fades until only darkness is left inside my
eyelids ... inside me.

“Please say something,” she whispers.

I bury the last part of me that was
attempting to try and be human. A normal man. I open my eyes, saying good-bye
without uttering a word. “Not really much to say, Rish—Adriana. Neither
Katerina nor Alek will support this relationship. I am sure you already know
this.”

Swallowing hard, she tucks her bottom
lip, frowning as she crosses her arms and shifts on her feet, her gaze focused
on the floor. “I should hardly think Alek can say much. I’m practically his
human camera. And I can handle Mother.”

“I cannot lie. I am crushed. However, I
made a promise, and I am a man of my word. I will always be here for you.”

She throws her arms around me, our final
embrace. I savor her scent, inhaling it one last time before letting her go.
“Thank you.”

More awkward moments pass between us, the
silence of a woman who is like a lamb and the tiger in me, the one who still wants
to devour her even after all this, the man who will never be the same again.

Standing at the window beside the exit
door, I watch Adriana walk out to her car, her dark hair flowing in the wind,
the light green dress highlighting her curves. My phone vibrates in my pocket.
Pulling it out, I glance at the screen. The Burkenstein Corp.’s name fills my
BlackBerry’s small window. I hit the green button.

“You can tell Burkenstein I accept his
offer and the assignment that comes along with it.” Adriana’s Jaguar pulls off
from the sidewalk, taking the last salvageable part of my heart along with her.
“I am fully aware of the risk I will be taking. And I am ready.”

I end the call, turn away from the
window, and go to have a drink.
Do svidinaya, Rishka.

So long and good-bye.

~Adriana~

“You threatened Luca, Mother. Tried to
break us up. It didn’t work.”

Mikhail strolls out of the back room of
Mother’s house, a sleepy look on his chiseled, but perfect, face. His gaze
focuses on me at once and I do believe his eyes might pop out of the sockets.
“No worries, Mikhail. I’m into being scandalous, too. Mother has taught me
well.”

“You will not speak to my guests in such
a way,” she scolds, her fists clenched at her sides.

Scoffing, I guide my thoughts back toward
my goal, Simona’s letter, the one she gave me the night before she died.
Reaching into my purse, I pull out the letter that’s a mystery to me as well.
“This is for you, as though you truly deserve it.”

“What’s this? A letter laced in arsenic?”
she asks, her critical gaze studying Simona’s note. That question trips
something inside me and I force myself to stick to my resolve only because of
Simona’s wishes.

“It’s from Simona Martuccio,
Mother.”
My words snatch
whatever she’s about to say right out of her mouth. Taking the letter, she
hesitates before opening it. Then, she begins to read aloud.

Dear Signora Dostovsky,

My name is Simona Octavia Martuccio and
you do not know me. I wanted to take the time to thank you for the lovely
person you’ve bestowed on this world in Adriana. She has been like a gift to me
in more ways than you can understand. Her loyalty to the ones she loves is
profound, unconditional, a child who wears her heart on top of her head, I do
believe. By the time you read this letter, I will have taken flight, my soul
gone to rest inside the embrace of the Virgin Mary. Your daughter reminds me so
much of myself when I was her age. Young, naïve, talented ... neglected by my
mother.

She stops reading and gives me a strange
look, a softer one, allowing me a glimpse of the woman who used to sing
lullabies and tuck Alek and me into bed in what seems like a lifetime ago.
Finally, she purses her lips for a moment and continues, surprising me.

I told you at the beginning of this
letter that I do not know you, nor do you have any idea of who I am. There’s
one thing we both have in common, though, a bond we now share that will carry
me through the afterlife until I am once again safe inside the arms of my
Giuseppe. We are both mothers. Two women, who by the grace of Mary, have been
given children we would die to protect. And even though Adriana was not created
and expelled from inside my own womb, I love her as though I have known this
wonderful child my entire life. She has a gift, a unique ability to turn a
terrible situation into the best moment of someone’s life. And she has such
beautiful hair. Every girl should experience the touch of her mother’s loving
hand in her hair. I beg you, from one mother’s heart to another, do not turn
your back on such a jewel. For one day you may be dancing in the dark as I have
been, and you will need such a light as she possesses to frighten the ghosts as
they surround you.

The next morning, I find Mother and
Mikhail draped across each other, the smell of alcohol pouring off both of
them. I shake her, and shake her some more, with no luck in waking her up. I
call Alek and Erin because I’m terrified she might have alcohol poisoning.
After they arrive, Alek threatens Mikhail, but he and Erin do manage to get
Mother into bed.

She has tried to break up Alek and Erin
without any luck, and her threats to bankrupt Luca were useless in the end once
she understood I was going to stand my ground and go against any crappy thing
she had planned. This drinking binge is her way of accepting she no longer has
control over us the way she has been able to do in the past. Alek has found
true love. Nikolai got his endorsement.

And today I begin a life as the free me.

Adriana

Standing inside Black Butterfly and
staring out the window, I don’t think there’s ever been a time when I’ve been
so nervous. Luca has gone down to
Saint Ambroeus,
a bistro located at
the Corso Matteotti near Via Monteoapoleone, to pick up a couple of coffees,
the thick kind that has so many shots of espresso inside them that Luca has to
kiss me until I’m able to keep quiet. That’s the excuse he gives me for doing
so anyway. I’m sitting on the bench closest to the storefront window, the one
on the right side of the door, when Alek walks in.

“What are you doing here alone? I told
you not to be traveling around the city without Hagar, did I not?” he asks,
glancing behind him as though he expects someone to follow.

“Geez.
Did somebody forget to take a swig of his calm-down-drink before he left the
house?” I ask, smirking. He keeps silent and I have the feeling he already
knows where this conversation’s headed.

“Answer
my question, Adriana,” he urges.

“I’m
waiting on Luca to get back. He went down the street to get a cup of coffee, so
I can talk to you in private first,” I tell him, making sure to hold his gaze.
“We’re a couple now in case you didn’t know.”

“So
it’s true. Martuccio’s screwing my baby sister.” He shakes his head, a
disgusted look on his face. My heart flips. I expected something different to
happen with Alek.

“I
already have to deal with Mother’s scolding. I thought you’d be on my side.” I
cross my arms, the sting of disappointment slowly killing the hope I had for
winning my brother’s support. “Doesn’t matter what you or Mother think, anyway.
We care for each other. Even though you and Erin might be too stubborn to admit
to the love you share, it doesn’t mean the rest of us have to be miserable.”

“Ouch,
Adriana. Hold on to your bullets, all right? You have my support.” Grinning his
infamous big brother smile of mischief, he moves closer to my seat, his back
now turned to the entrance door. I’m doing my best to restrain a smile, trying
not to get my celebration shoes on just yet, but the silly thing just keeps on
spreading across my face. I try to divert my attention by playing with a swatch
of red fabric lying on the table beside me.

“Wait
a minute. You won’t actually castrate him or anything like that?” I ask.

Alek
winks. “Don’t know if I’d go that far just yet.”

That’s
it. Being calm time’s over. The joy I feel from having at least one of my
family member’s support in this dilemma spreads through me like a hot wire with
me being the dynamite that was lit by my brother’s last words. I attack him with
an embrace. For years, we never interacted this way. Being with Erin has
changed my brother—the stoic—in so many ways. I love this new part of his
personality. He pulls away from me, his eyebrows furrowing. Here comes the
but
.

“I
need to make one thing clear, though.”

My
grin fades. “What’s that?”

“If
he hurts you, I’ll kill him. No, even better, I’ll break his fingers, one at a
time,” he threatens, even though I know he’s teasing. Both Nikolai and Alek
would fight through a river of fire to protect me. I know this now.

“Excellent
idea, Scarlet Phoenix,” a male’s deeply accented voice says from behind my
brother. Alek whirls around and faces two men standing just inside the doorway.
The older one easily matches his height of 6’2”. Their black clothing blends in
with the darkening evening, and their faces look familiar.

Alek
folds his arms and stares them up and down. “Hello, boys. I see you could use a
new outfit or two. Why don’t you come back tomorrow when the shop is open?” he
suggests to the taller one, speaking in our native Russian tongue.

“Still
a smart ass, I see. Don’t remember me, do you?” The man takes out a knife,
flashing the golden blade. A look of recognition crosses Alek’s face. I squeak
like a mouse and move behind him.

“From
your expression, I can see that you remember this,” the man declares, smirking.
“We hear your old gang master is in town.”

“Well,
you heard wrong. I don’t have a master,” Alek corrects. I have no idea what
they’re talking about, but the word master makes me think of the man they
arrested a month or so ago. Blood rushes through my head and chest as I hang
onto Alek’s arm.

The
next few moments blur into one agonizingly long scene. I vaguely hear something
about money being owed, a lewd comment about Erin’s tight ass from one of the
henchmen, and demands to know where the master now lives.

“Alek,”
I say in a squeaky voice that doesn’t sound like my own. Suddenly, the thing I
feared most happens: Luca strolls through the entrance. He’s holding two
coffees in his hand as he glances around at all of us and checks out the knife
the tallest guy’s holding.

“What’s
all this?” Luca asks, his face a storm of emotion as his gaze briefly locks
with mine. Both men turn toward him, and my heart leaps straight up into my
throat. At once, Alek charges toward Knife Guy, who stands closest to the two
of us.

“Alek!”
I cry out. Luca starts cursing with the temper of the Roman inside him, and he
tosses the coffee in one of the cups straight into the face of Knife Guy’s
partner. The other baddie’s now wearing my favorite glazed donut flavored
coffee on his face. However, these guys come from tough stock … just like Alek
and Nikolai. The partner cries out before charging toward Luca. He goes
straight for Luca’s face, throwing a misguided punch that Luca easily avoids.
In return, Luca throws a punch at his face, hitting his target, and right away,
I can tell that Giovanni isn’t the only gifted fighter in the family. Luca
fights almost as well as Alek does.

Somewhere
in all this mess, I snap out of my trance and remember I have a cell phone.
Ducking behind a counter, I move my trembling fingers across the keys, praying
that the authorities come as quickly as I’ve heard they do in this part of
Milan. I get instant results. I’ve barely hit the release button when I hear
the sirens in the distance.

I
peek around the corner of the countertop, my heart slamming against my ribcage.
Two of the men who mean more to me in this world than any amount of money,
fame, or anything like that are fighting for their lives. My father might as
well be dead to me. My older brother has been warned against speaking to me by
both of my bodyguards—Alek and Nikolai. And I just lost Simona. I cannot lose
Luca and my brother, too. The thought winds me, makes me feel numb. Life cannot
be that cruel.

Across
the room, Luca and the partner have each other in a double headlock, and if he
wasn’t already a successful designer, I might suggest he pursue a career in the
MMA. My man’s holding his ground, fighting for the woman he loves; just like he
told me he’d always do. The sirens get louder. The police are almost here.

“Come
on, jackass! Let’s go!” Knife Guy says to his partner. The shorter guy shoves
backward, breaking out of Luca’s grip, and the two men storm out of the front
door.

“Run
you crazy bastards! Come back here again and I’ll rearrange another part of
your face!” Luca shouts at the doorway.

For
a long moment, the only sounds filling the air around us are sirens and the
breathing of two adrenaline pumped men standing in the middle of the floor,
staring at each other, some kind of silent conversation happening between them,
a man to man thing I don’t understand. Finally, Luca’s gaze drifts my way. I
spring to my feet and rush over to where he stands, embracing him, inhaling his
scent and thanking whatever celestial deity might be watching over us right
now.

“It’s
all right, little Maia. I’m fine. Just fine.” Pulling back without moving his
arms from around my waist, he says, “Teaches them to mess around with my shop.”
I laugh because that’s all my mind and heart can process that makes any sense
right now. I plant kisses all over his face, easing up only when I see him
staring at something on the floor. I turn toward whatever it is. The golden
knife.

“It’s
covered in blood,” Luca says. For the hundredth time in the last four weeks,
dread slams into my chest. Easing out of Luca’s arms, I turn my attention to
Alek. His face has gone white and he’s holding his side.

“Alek,
are you okay?” I ask. This is too much. Life is too much. The same deity I just
thanked must be pissed at me for not showing my gratitude the right way or
something because I know without a doubt that Alek’s blood is on the knife.
First, his eyes go blank, his skin turns even paler, and his knees buckle.
Luca’s beside him before I can even process the screams sounding around us. My
screams. “Alek!” He doesn’t respond. Instead, he continues slumping over in
Luca’s arms until he’s stretched out on the floor. I could now lose my
beautiful brother, too. “Help him, Luca! Please.”

“I
will. Don’t worry, baby. It’ll be all right,” Luca promises as he gently places
Alek’s head on the floor and begins applying pressure to his wound. I’m still
screaming, my heart breaking. I stoop down beside Luca and my brother. He looks
so innocent; so young and beautiful. A stifled moan escapes my lips. Luca
releases one hand and turns my face toward his.

“Listen
to me! Don’t go losing your shit now. You are the strongest person I’ve ever
known besides my mother.” Massaging my cheeks, he says, “We’ll get through
this, Adriana. I promise. Now calm down. Be strong for your brother. I am your
rock. Si? Together, you and I are strong enough for us both.” He nods and I do,
too.

How
did I get lucky enough to find this man?

To
fall in love with this man.

“All
right. I’ll try to be strong,” I whisper. What I don’t say is that with you by
my side, I know I can make it through anything.