Sienna I followed Nadia and realized that I was actually starving. God, the last time I ate something was while I told Serena and Bamba all the sordid details of my tryst with Christian, and that was probably more than 24 hours ago. “The men will be out for a while; would you like something to eat or drink at least?” She asks me when we enter the kitchen, and I nod. “I wouldn’t mind a glass of wine, but I’m not too sure about eating with ribs broken on both sides. I can barely breathe as it is,” I say, leveling my breathing. Nadia chuckles. “I’m pretty sure the both of us laughing while drunk would be hurting your ribs a lot more than a little food. We’ll have both; plus, the alcohol would numb the pain, eventually.” She says. Stifling a laugh, I nod, and she leads me over to the kitchen island while removing a plate from the warmer. “Where are Serena and the children?” I ask, trying to strain my ears but hearing nothing in this vast house. “Everyone else is in bed and has eate
Sienna “You two spoke? That’s good news, at least!” Serena says when I tell her what happened. I’ve been out for another 12 hours or so, so I’ve missed out on a lot yet again. We’ve all had breakfast, and now we’re walking around the property with two of Araman’s men tagging us - so much fun. “I suppose so; I mean, I didn’t know her before and judged her harshly. The least I could do was give her the benefit of the doubt, especially since she was the first to extend an olive branch.” I say, pulling my coat against my body. Serena sees this reaction and stops. “Perhaps we should go inside, hmmm? The cold cannot be good for those ribs, and you need to rest.” She says, then calls the children back to go inside. They listen and run over but obviously with a lot of pouting involved. We watch as they run ahead, then Serena turns to me. “Where do we go from here, Sienna? What part do we play in all of this? We’re here in a stranger’s home while our men are across the sea; what plan do
Sienna I stumble towards the bedroom and sit down gingerly on the bed while holding my pounding head in my hands. How the hell am I going to speak to them after this? Christian has news, possible news that could help us, and now I have to think over my words carefully. Damnit, I need something for this headache. I haven’t had one this bad since I lived in Chicago, and back then, Mama always fed me with morphine and told me to forget. My mind goes back to Arman’s words of him wanting me as his queen, but I cannot recall what the hell he means by that. I’ve never met him before in my life, so what exactly does he mean by this? I know I’ve had lapses in my memory after a car crash when I was 16 years old, but surely I would have remembered him if he had played such a vital role in my life before? Ugh, I shouldn’t dwell on this too much; it’s not important right now. When Serena returns with the children, I speak to her about what Christian said to me. We sit on the bed opposite on
Christian Twelve years ago I swore that I would never set foot in New York again, and now I’ve just broken my own vow. Sienna is here, and she needs me. My Queen admitted that she needed my help; this is the only reason I would ever go against something I vowed not to do. Just looking over the shitty skyline brings back memories I would much rather like to forget. Memories of her. I shake my head and lean back in my seat; we should be arriving in the next few minutes or so. To say that I am not hurt by everything would be a bald-faced lie. Knowing that Dante Dragonetti is still alive will tear Sienna from my arms. Yes, I am well aware of how selfish that sounds; however, I do not care. I’ve waited long enough, and now that she’s mine, I have no intention of letting her slip through my fingers. “Échoume ftásei, afentikó,” my pilot tells me we’ve arrived, and I strap in for the descent as another pounding headache has me in its grips. I frown when I see Serena coming to meet me
Christian Serena leads me inside, and I immediately spot her raven curls as she sits in the living room. Her head whips towards the sound of our footfalls, and when she sees me, her eyes widen. My eyes do not register anyone else in the room, just Daniella, who looks as if her world is crumbling down. “Christian!” she wails, and, like a bullet, she shoots toward me. I lean down and open my arms to scoop her up, listening to her little sobs as I hold her close. “Mamma, she left… she….” “Shhhh, Principessa, it’s okay. I’m here,” I say as I stroke her hair. “She will be back soon, don’t worry.” I look over at Serena, and she nods, leading me to the bedroom they all supposedly share. All I can do now is wait and comfort Sienna’s precious child; as I have said before, I have no clout in the States anymore. We walk towards the bed, and I sit down with her on my lap, removing a handkerchief from my pocket and handing it to her. She wipes her tears and looks up at me with eyes the same
Sienna I blink, trying to take in my surroundings, but I cannot seem to focus my eyesight. Everything hurts; right on top of the broken ribs and bruises, I can now add this concussion to my list of pain. Fuck, what happened? Why am I tied to a chair, and where am I? The last thing I remember was calling Christian and telling him to come to New York and turning to walk back inside the mansion… “Awake, Principessa?” Those two words alone, and my soul feels like it has left my body. Seated in a chair opposite me is Dante with a Beretta in one hand and a knife in another. I look up and peer into his eyes, noting the coldness there. This man hasn’t looked at me with such disgust since our wedding night, and now it seems the old il Drago has returned. “How are you still alive after all this time?” I croak out, my throat dry and fighting against every inch of my body screaming out in pain. This question seems to confuse him, and he leans forward, not breaking eye contact. “Why do you
Christian It just gets better and better - not only was my Sienna taken from under Kuznetsov’s nose, but a traitor is still lurking on the grounds. They’ve found remnants of the camera footage being tampered with within the timeframe someone had planted the bombs and Sienna’s kidnapping. The tampered parts showed Contessa on the opposite side of the building when someone took Sienna. In other words, Contessa is most certainly not working alone, and she is not the only family traitor. I can’t just sit here and do nothing; I need to keep myself busy or do some digging of my own. Serena was confident that Dante had taken Sienna, and this might be the case after all with what I have found out. But if Dante is the one who took her, then she’s in a lot more danger than we thought. She might be dead for all we know. Sighing, I pull out my cell phone to make a few calls to certain connections long thought dead. I can’t call my aunt for help right now since she’s in deep with Allessio and
Sienna As I come to again, I hear incoherent mumbling behind me. My head feels worse than before, and a bout of nausea sweeps over my body. This concussion is getting worse; one more hit to the head like that and it will cause permanent damage. I need to move; I need to get out of here and get back to my family. Allessio doesn’t know Dante has me here, so he must not want me dead yet. So why the hell did Dante bring me here of all places? I groan and open my eyes, trying to focus on my legs at least. My entire body is screaming out in pain, and tying my hands behind my back while I have broken ribs is causing my breathing to get ragged. “Dante… please… I can’t… I can’t breathe….” I choke out against the pain while trying to get the attention of my psycho, dead husband, but I continue to hear his mumbling and pacing. I don’t think I’m going to survive this; if anything, I think he is close to losing it. “DANTE!” “Shut the fuck up!” He exclaims, shooting at my feet again. “Your fu