◇ MYKAELA ◇ "Your team heard of the newest outbreak?" "We discussed it last week." Sweaty and panting somewhat, Lorenzio stared at me as he approached the dining table which I'd been using as my study desk. "Remember that five-hour meeting with Graham and the board?" I nodded. "Yeah." Graham, being Zione Bio's chief scientist, headed their team of medical and pharmaceutical researchers currently based here in New York. "The infected patients exhibit flu-like symptoms. The hospitalized ones, definitely." Standing to my right, Enzo squinted at the books splayed open on his dark solid marble dining table. "Graham and Dr. Chen went over the most recent anecdotal reports. The Board got curious enough when Graham emailed them about it." "Jeez. It's a strange one." I drew in a long breath as I updated the list of TBR medical journals on my tablet. "Seems highly transmissible," I muttered. Like some of my clinical professors, I'd been worrying about the most recent public health issue t
◆ MAXIMILIANO ◆ "Morning." "Busy day?" "Dinner tonight?" "Adreana." "Hey. You okay?" Sent With my coat draped over the armrest of my swivel chair, I scowled at the rows of messages just waiting for a response. A simple "yes" or "okay" would be enough. I planned to ask her out. Take her to dinner. Take her somewhere nice and private. That new restaurant beside our fourth biggest hotel served great food and had enough privacy. I could take Adreana there, so we could discuss the terms in that marital agreement I drafted. But that seemed unlikely now. Five and a half days... We hadn't spoken to each other since Monday night. She wouldn't even send a one-liner reply to my texts. It shouldn't be a big deal. She could just be too busy with her workload. Or too pissed. My ego only urged me to imagine the worst. Keeping me from going to her office. Keeping me from calling her again. From grasping at straws. Sitting behind my desk, I pocketed my phone and reassembled my gun. Piece by
◆ LORENZIO ◆ "So, to be clear, it's not just a BDSM thing?" Hurting people like that? Physically injuring another person and drinking their blood? If it was just some stupid kink, I'd rather not ask why she agreed to participate in such acts. I had an inkling Maximiliano eagerly talked her into it years ago. "No. No. It's not like that." Mykaela covered her eyes and shook her head, the grin on her lips forced. "It's really not about that." "Ah. I see," I muttered as I sat next to her, both of us hunched over on my couch. I had been keeping my reactions of pure shock and doubtful interjections to a minimum, just trying my best to listen and digest her every word, my sleep-deprived head struggling to comprehend it all. It didn't help that she'd go off on a tangent every ten seconds or so, too quick for my foggy brain to keep up. It wasn't an overdose of caffeine, though. Mykaela rarely used coffee as an energy drink. Or was this her idea of a sick joke? Quite an elaborate prank. I'd
◆ MAXIMILIANO ◆ "It's fine. I'll just go back to bed." "You want me to leave?" "No." Adreana made a face, the tone of her raspy voice somewhat alarmed. "Not really. But if you have somewhere to be, then go." Fighting off the almost painful boner she just gave me, I stood by the foot of the bed. The last thing I wanted to do was leave her in here, completely alone and overworked, while the murderous drug lord downstairs was seething with the urge to behead me. It was Leandro, and my loaded pistol couldn't wait to say hi to him face-to-face. "We can, erm, talk again tomorrow," Adreana murmured with her back to me. She wouldn't look me in the eye. As if our steamy encounter just minutes ago gave her nothing but embarrassment. "Or whenever you're not too busy. Just phone me." "Right." I stepped away from her, studying her mostly awkward movements as she tidied up the nightstand. "I'll be here. Or working OT in the office." "Want me to get you a new phone?" "No. But thanks. Just co
◆ MAXIMILIANO ◆ Lying bitch. Of course she knew him. She knew the Tomassinis and she lied. Fucking lied to my face. I'd rather not know the actual number of times she deceived me. Probably way more than twice. Must be part of her job. I wouldn't be surprised if she also lied to me about that night we met. "Nicolas was Leandro and Ignazio's guy in Rome. One of their most trusted washers." With Alessio standing beside me, Dominico casually explained some of the Sonnenbergs' involvement in his father's clandestine deals before Dominico walked out the glass doors with his bodyguards. The guy wouldn't bullshit me. Why would he? Lying about meeting Adreana and her ex wouldn't benefit him in any way. Apparently Dominico met her in Rome. Back when she was still living with Joachim. And she lived with the prick for a year or so. Because she thought they would get married eventually? Maybe. Either Leandro or Dominico's piece of shit father paid Adreana to spy on me. Or was it just Mamma o
◇ MYKAELA ◇Vampirars and secret vampire clans...Cousins marrying each other to keep the bloodline pure...Sex-for-blood deals...Drinking human blood for a chronic liver disease...Old money families practicing other strange traditions...Witch curses and blood pacts...I wanted to tell him the rest of it. All of it. Every single thing I learned about the Falcos. But it might backfire.Lorenzio had heard enough for one day. Everything I'd told him about Miles and his family... Surely it pushed the boundaries of his imagination. Against Enzo's will, for the most part.If I didn't pump the brakes yesterday by distracting him with the pregnancy test kits, he might've dropped me off at the nearest psychiatric facility. Perhaps he thought, Miles treated me like he owned me because of the scars he left on my body.Not the real story, though. I often chalked it up to my masochistic alter ego. But I could tell Enzo didn't really believe it was all consensual. And I didn't know what else to
◆ MAXIMILIANO ◆ This girl would be the death of me. One way or another. In my head I already pictured my early demise, and for sure the cause would have something to do with her. One look at her left me weak. Just ready to risk it all. One tiny glimpse of her vulnerability always fucking did me in. Shit. I'd probably regret this in the morning...except kissing and having my way with her again. I'd be lying if I told anyone I loved this sober and "healthy" version of me. None of this felt sober or healthy. Her glare just cut right through me. I bit on the inside of my cheek, just waiting for her to make a move. I wanted her to start undressing and prove to me that I overreacted. To prove that she wasn't a stone-cold liar paid to spy on my family. Adreana weakly shook her head. "You're delusional if you think I would just do everything you say." "Not delusion. Just trust issues." I glanced down at her cold fingers on my wrist. She jerked her fist out of my grip. I stayed put. T
◇ MYKAELA ◇"Everyone, please refrain from leaving your seats for the next 15 minutes. Cabin crew, light turbulence ahead." The pilot's muted announcement jolted me out of my nap. I glanced down at my watch. About five hours left. We'd be in Rome around midnight. As the pilot announced our current altitude and explained our new ETA, I sat up straight, rubbing the remnants of sleep out of my eyes. They stung a bit. I squinted at the lights. Dimmed with a yellowish tint. Like the last time Enzo and I used this private jet, the interior looked spacious and clean. Minimalist. It smelled of men's perfume, but not his scent. Mostly beige seats. And the same dark brown carpet. The cabin was still too cold for my liking. Hence my jacket, sweater, and thick socks. Before we got to the airport, I thought we'd be sitting in the front seats. Closer to the cockpit. But Enzo needed a nap. We chose the couch behind the partition. My thighs sandwiched the back of his neck pillow while his head re