The Prelude (12 page)

“That’s not true,” I answer.

“Because you don’t want it to be.”

“Okay, Mom. Thanks for the heads up. But no thanks at the same time. Subject change please.”

Adriana slumps a bit and then says, “Well, you’re coming to my show tomorrow night, right?”

“Are you kidding me? I’d have to murder Luca and Carla both if we missed that show.”

She throws her arms around me. “Thanks so much, Erin. You totally rock.”

I don’t ask what she means. But it’s nice to have someone around who reminds me of what it used to be like when I had a sister.

* * *

Adriana makes a gorgeous mermaid. And her talents as a ballerina rivals even the most accomplished dancers. I sit mesmerized by her portrayal of
Seraphine
, a choreographed version of a fantasy where a mermaid girl falls in love with a human boy. In the end, the girl winds up using her powers to save the boy’s life. The show comes complete with sparkly tutus, men dressed in colorful ballet outfits, and a light display that seduces the eyes.

Luca hasn’t taken his eyes off Adriana the entire time. Carla and her girlfriend, Trina, have been engrossed in conversation between each other most of the night. But even those two quiet down when Adriana’s performance begins. That leaves me sitting alone for the most part, while thinking of the depressing nature of
Seraphine’s
story of forbidden love. It’s almost as bad as
Romeo and Juliet’s
tragic ending, and this is so not what I need to be taking a part in tonight.

As the final note to the finale booms through the auditorium on the heel of an aggressive drum progression, Adriana makes a continual twirl that makes me feel dizzy just by watching her dance. The mermaid has saved her lover, but must now accept her exile. Adriana’s final move brings the emotion inside the finale to vivid life.

The curtain falls and Luca flies to his feet. “Brava! Brava! Perfetta e bellissima!” I stand, but give my boss a double take as he catches the attention of the people sitting around us. Even Carla and Trina turn their attention toward the stage.

Could it be possible that Luca and Adriana…? Oh hell no. I’ve been living with Reckless Me’s voice for too long. But still…hm.

I’m caught up in this thought when Luca suddenly grabs my hand, pulling me into the hallways that run along the outside of the main auditorium. We’ve managed to escape before the rush of people start heading toward the exits.

Traipsing down these hallways makes me think of Alek and the day I flashed my goody gumdrops at him. To this day, he has never said a word about the most embarrassing moment of my life. He’s a complete gentleman. Maybe it’s time to consider Petre’s advice. I need to find that line of the straight and boring I’m walking on and decide whether I’m brave enough to move along in life without sticking to it.

We stop in front of Adriana’s door and wait. I have no idea where Carla and Trina have run off to. She mumbled something about heading downtown to the Alcatraz, one of Milan’s wildest nightclubs, later tonight.

I think I hear Alek’s voice. He seems to be heading straight toward us. My heart hammers and several thoughts start to race through my head.

Alek steps around the corner. A redhead is hanging on his left arm, and they seem to be having a lively conversation. My thoughts go from giddy-girl bubbly to kick-ass vixen in less than a second.

“How lovely. It’s Rose Dewitt-whatever from
Titanic
,” I announce before I can stop myself.

“I think she’s very pretty,” Luca says.

“Be quiet, Luca,” I mutter out the side of my mouth. Alek and Rose head straight toward us. I can hear Righteous Me for the first time in days. She’s getting her I-told-you-so voice ready.

“Alek. What a surprise,” I say with as much polite sarcasm as I can create. Rose Dewitt-whatever looks me up and down. And I think I just saw her lips turn up.

“Likewise, Ms. Angelo. I do believe we have a knack for running into each other in this hallway.” He beams a knowing smile at me, and I throw mental daggers at him. Right. He’s probably ticked that I flat out turned down his proposal the other day. But his little innuendo calls for some comeback action.

“Allow me to introduce Lila Davis, the woman who’ll be singing during
Requiem’s
interlude. Lila is a soprano. She has performed at the most prestigious opera houses all over the world. These fine people are our designers, Luca Martuccio and the talented Ms. Erin Angelo.” I keep my gaze locked on his.

Lila scoffs and says, “Well, I won’t need any designers. I have my own team, thank you very much.” Luca and I exchange glances.

“So, what song will you be singing for Alek’s show?” I force my lips into a smile. She looks me up and down as though I’m a bug sitting on her shoe, which I could very well be. I think I’ll choose to be the stink bug.

“My Heart Will Go On,” she purrs and gives Alek a proud smile. Only Rose Dewitt’s twin would choose that song, and then stand there looking like it’s the coolest thing in the world. Alek cuts his eyes toward me. A silent challenge. Alright, buddy, you asked for this.

“How appropriately boring.
Requiem
is a group of songs about healing from ailments of the mind and being different. It’s about taking chances and feeling life build up inside you after such a long time of walking around like a zombie,” I say firmly. Lila scoffs and looks shocked.

Alek clears his throat and says, “Luca, if you’ll keep Lila entertained while I have a word with Ms. Angelo please.” He takes my hand, pulling me around the corner where we first collided a little over a week ago. “What’s wrong with you?”

“You embarrassed me,” I say, hugging my shoulders. “Why’d you have to go and mention ‘that’ day?”

“Is that it? I’m making you act this way because I embarrassed you? No one knows what happened besides us.” His accent has suddenly deepened and he’s standing with his hands on his hips. I don’t know why, but I’m feeling a bit intimidated.

“That overdone song plays on the radio at least a hundred times a day. Anyway, you asked me to be your singer,” I remind him.

“And you turned me down.”

“You didn’t give me time to think about it.”

He closes his eyes a short moment, inhaling deeply. “There’s more riding on the success of this production than you realize. I have a show to run, Erin, not a babysitting service.”

His words smack me harder than a hand could ever do. “I won’t hold you up then,” I whisper and start walking back toward Luca. Alek reaches for my hand, but I snatch it away.

“Erin, I’m sorry,” he calls out behind me.

I would’ve stopped. I wanted so much to go back to him. But my nose stings and my vision’s all blurry. I’m not used to feeling tears as often as I’ve been doing lately.

I don’t get this thing that’s taking over my head. I blame Reckless Me for slacking on the job. And I want to bitch-slap Righteous Me for being right all of the time when it comes to the men in my life. “Luca, take me home now, please?” I say, my voice trembling.

Adriana stands outside the door to her room now. She takes one look at my face just before she purses her lips and gives her brother a hard look that reminds me so much of their mother.

“Your performance was fantastic, Adriana,” I somehow manage to say. Luca and Adriana exchange glances one last time just before he and I head toward the exit. I simply ignore Lila standing there with the big smirk on her face.

I’m sure Adriana will want to find out what happened the next time I see her. For now, I just want to go home, back to a place where I don’t have to worry about the crappy things that happened tonight when I attempted to step out of my comfort zone. 

Alek

I walk through the door and hear his voice.

Right away, I storm into the living room. My brother, Dmitri, stands and greets me in the name he always used for me when we were younger. That was a lifetime ago. Before he and my father partnered up in all things illegal and almost got me killed in the process. I haven’t spoken to him in years, and now here he stands in my mother’s house.

“Sasha, my little brother. How I’ve missed you.” He glances around me. “Where’s your boyfriend, Nikolai? You mean to tell me he’s not trailing behind you tonight?”

“What are you doing here?” I ask, moving over to Mother. Glancing at me with red-rimmed eyes, she smiles. She has been crying, and doesn’t want me to know it. “Are you alright? Did he hurt you?” She shakes her head.

Dmitri sucks his teeth. He’s three years older than me. “Why would I hurt Katerina? She may not be my real mother, but she has always treated me with respect.”

“What the fuck are you doing here?” I ask through the venom boiling in my throat. “You’re not welcome in this house, or anyplace near my family.”

“Is that a way to address your blood, Sasha? We haven’t seen each other in years. I’m hurt.” He makes a sad face, but I know the gesture isn’t real. “I came to see my step-mother. Wanted to tell her how much Father misses her. He’d like to see you again too, if you don’t mind.”

He takes a step toward Mother, but I move in front of her, blocking his path. “Easy, brother. This isn’t about you, at all,” he warns.

“Dmitri was just on his way out the door,” Mother attempts to say in a controlled voice. “Isn’t that right?”

My brother’s face turns stony. This is the man I’m used to seeing, the one who left me to die after I suffered through a vicious gang attack in downtown Moscow a few years back.

Hagar steps into the room. He’s the only one of Father’s servants who remained loyal to Mother after they parted ways. “My purpose wasn’t to cause you pain. Father, your husband, wanted to make sure you were safe. The rumors back home are flying. They are saying a couple of our enemies may have settled here,” Dmitri says and glances back at Hagar. “Ah yes, Hagar, Father’s faithless assistant and the man who started a great deal of all this.”

Every muscle in Hagar’s body tenses. He’s not a small man in any way. In his youthful days, he was a member of the Russian Special Forces. It was those skills that he used to help Mother, Adriana, and me escape from my father’s world of tyranny. I’m fairly certain there’s some truth in Dmitri’s words.

“I'll be happy to assist you with finding the door,” Hagar offers, his steady gaze never leaving Dmitri’s face.

My brother smiles and turns back to Mother. “Father will be in touch soon, now that he knows your new address.”

“There is no reason our father should be contacting anyone in this house,” I say, stepping over to where Dmitri stands. “Stay away. Consider yourself warned.”

“Are you threatening me, little brother?” he asks. Both of us stand at a generous 6’2” tall with my older brother being the broader one. He has light brown hair and dark blue eyes like Father’s and Adriana.

“No. I’m only telling you what’ll happen if Sergey does anything to hurt Mother.”

“All that anger penned up inside you isn’t a good thing, Sasha. I am here to help, not fight. Come home with me. Leave this life of pansies and plastic bodies behind. We could use your skills and make our mark. Come back home to Mother Russia,” Dmitri suggests, his voice filled with misguided passion, as he punches a fist into his palm.

“Thanks to you and Sergey, I’ve already made enough impressions to last a lifetime. “Goodbye, Dmitri.”

He nods toward Mother one last time, turns, and walks out of the door, with Hagar trailing close behind him. His cooperation comes too easily. Dmitri doesn’t like to lose. I have no doubt I’ll see him again. The anger rising inside me begins to fade, and the tension eases out of my muscles.

Behind me, Mother lets out a shaky gasp. I rush over to her side, supporting her as she sits on the couch. “Drink. I need one, Alek.” At first, I hesitate. Clenching my fists, I head over to the bar and pour some schnapps into a shot glass, filling it to the halfway point.

“I can barely even see the liquid in this glass,” she scolds as I hand the glass to her.

“That’s more than enough, Mother.”

She scoffs and then gulps the alcohol in a single shot. “This is the very thing I was afraid would happen. We need to strengthen our empire here in this city. Provide our own resources to survive without relying on your father.”

“Adriana and I are doing well,” I say, taking a seat beside her. “You don’t need Father’s blood money. And you definitely don’t need me to keep dating…” I can’t speak the words.

“Just say it, darling. I can’t continue to whore out my son to the daughters of Russia’s wealthiest families.”

“That sounds extreme, Mother. I’m a big boy. I make my own decisions.”

She places a hand on my cheek. My mother is one of the toughest women I know. She has come a long way since the time she met Father in Austin, Texas. To see her upset and crying this way rips through the most delicate parts of my soul.

“How will I continue to pay for the costs of covering everything for your careers? Eventually, I may have to go back to him.” Her voice cracks and she palms her mouth for a short moment. “I might not be the greatest mother. And I know I can be a handful. Hell, my mother was the same way. But I have done all I can to keep both you and your sister safe, and away from Sergey’s illegal band of rebels.”