Thirty Six

Damian

I stand in the doorway with my beautiful wife at my side, trying not to stab these cunts in front of me. Seriously, the fact that they believe if I were to remarry—which I wouldn't; I'd die without Sofia—that I'd choose Luna is laughable, but trying to convince me that my wife fucked my brother and best friend is hilarious. Sofia's face when she heard them was a picture; she looked like she was about to vomit her breakfast. Now, Sofia is tucked under arm, where she belongs, while her aunt and cousin look like they've seen a ghost.

"S-Sofia, you’re alive," Emilia mutters, gasping, and I have to try hard not to roll my eyes. My wife doesn't. I snort and cover it with a cough. She looks at me, narrowing her eyes, and I give her my best innocent smile, making her shake her head. Then she looks at the two women, who are supposed to be family.

Luna is the first one to snap out of her stupor. "You left your fucking husband for three years, and then came crawling back?" she sneers. "I don't fucking think so; we were just planning our wedding."

I go to grab her, but Sofia's hold around my waist tightens. My wife's not stupid. Emilia has wisely kept her mouth shut; she's looking at me, scared shitless. My cold eyes stare hard at her, making her flinch. She starts to wring her hands together, knowing she has fucked up.

"You two are planning a wedding? Really?" my wife asks sweetly, causing me to look at her. Oh shit, her eyes hold amusement and rebellion. Is it too late to slam the door?

"Yes, we are. We've been waiting for the right time to announce it. We belong together. For years, I've had to watch him fake missing you to keep up pretenses."

This fucking bitch is delusional and crazy.

Sofia chuckles, and I tense, keeping one hand on my gun in the back of my jeans. I don't want my wife getting sticky fingers and trigger-happy, because it seems as though she can shoot like a pro. I might’ve let her do it, if Mila wasn’t inside.

"I take it this means I must divorce him, correct?" Sofia remarks.

I look at her again. What the fuck? Is she crazy? Even Emilia looks confused; Luna doesn't seem to understand our confusion, though.

"Yes, that would be the right thing to do!" Luna bleats.

Seriously?

"So, you're okay with being a stepmother, then?" Sofia asks sweetly.

Ah, here we go. This time, I do not hide my chuckle.

Emilia and Luna look at her, confused.

"You know, for our daughter?" Sofia states, pointing between her and myself, and my body shakes with silent laughter.

"You don't have a daughter, Sofia, and if you did, it couldn't be Damian's. You've been gone three years, you can't go making these things up just because you were unfaithful to your husband and now want him back. Clearly, you ran out of money and to fuck!"

Yep, Emilia is dead. She's stupid enough to open her mouth, and she should face the consequences.

I go to grab my gun when, all of a sudden, we hear, "Mamma, papa," and Mila bounces in front of us, lifting her arms for me to pick her up, which I do instantly. Sofia's eyes soften at us, causing me to smile, while both women in front of us gasp.

Sofia looks back at them. "Zia Emilia, Luna, this is our daughter Mila Maria Volkov. She is two years old, and the light of my life,” my wife states, and both women stand there looking between me and Mila, clearly noticing she's my twin, especially with those bright blue eyes. Sofia continues, "She's also the reason why I left, not because my husband cheated on me, but because I refused to allow anyone to try and use her like I was used. We even have legal documents in place so that cannot happen."

She then looks at Mila and says, "Why don't you show your favorite uncles and auntie your new room upstairs, malyshka? They love having tea parties with you."

Fuck, I love that she calls her baby girl in Russian. Mila nods, grinning wide.

Once I learned of Mila, I had a room made up for her. She knows all about it and has seen the pictures. I'm pissed that I won't be the one to show her.

Mila kisses my cheek, wiggles to get down, and then runs back into the house, shouting, "Dyadya, Tetya." All three go with her without complaint, and I shake my head; she already has them wrapped around her little finger, especially Phoebe.

Sofia looks back at her so-called family.

"You’re hypocrites."

Emilia gasps, but my wife is not done. "You come here to try and convince my husband that I'm unfaithful, knowing full well it was the other way around. You came here not only to badmouth me but also my brother-in-law and friend. You stand here trying to act like you’re this big deal when, really, you're at the bottom. The only reason you have the clothes and the material things you do is because my father gives you an allowance. You're a spoilt old hag who thinks you can exploit my husband, knowing my father is fed up with paying for you because you're a lazy bitch." Emilia looks red in the face, about to say something until my wife speaks again, but this time, she looks at Luna.

"And you, you're the biggest whore in the county. You drugged my father and got him to fuck Candice from behind while he watched her eat your nasty, loose cunt."

Emilia gasps and looks at her daughter in horror, and I chuckle. My wife isn't done.

"You're the one who gave Candice chlamydia. I read the medical files Noah gave me. You rubbed your diseased cunt all over her all while you encouraged my drugged-out father to watch. Candice then gave it to my father and husband. I nearly lost my daughter because of you, you fucking piece of shit," she sneers, and Luna lunges to grab my wife.

Just as I'm about to stop her, Sofia blocks her arms, grabs her head, and knees her in the face. She screams as blood squirts from her nose. Sofia grabs her hair and gets in her face, all while Emilia watches on in shock.

"You're a filthy piece of shit who doesn't deserve to breathe the same air as my daughter. Go near my husband again, and I'll show you how well-acquainted I've become with handling guns and knives. You're a disgrace to the famiglia." She shoves her back, and Luna starts to cry as she falls onto the floor and looks at me, hoping I'll save her.

What an idiot!

Stefano enters the doorway, and both women tense, not realizing he was here. Four of his men come up behind both women and grab hold of them. They struggle, trying to get out of the men's grip, but it's no use.

"You're both cut off; all your nice clothes, cars, and jewelry will all be sold or donated. You are no longer under my protection, and the only reason I'm not putting a bullet in your head is that this is a better punishment for your betrayal. But don't mistake my kindness for weakness. Step foot in my territory again, and I will slice your throats open."

They cry and plead, but he ignores them, looks at his men, and says, "Drop them off at a hostel away from our territory. Ensure they only have ID; take all money and cards." The men nod and drag them away as they scream.

I shake my head and pull Sofia close, but she gets out of my grip, and I panic that she's changed her mind. She looks back at me and sees the look on my face.

She gets on her tiptoes and places a gentle kiss on my lips, then whispers, "New start," causing the tension to leave my body. She walks over to her father and hugs him tight.

I hear her whisper, "I'm sorry, padre."

He holds her tight and nods. After the things he learned from Sofia, he knew this was coming, he was just waiting for proof. When they release each other, she holds her hand out to me, and I take it. We head back inside to enjoy the rest of our breakfast, then a day at the Pier Fun Fair as a family.

I have never been this happy; I finally feel alive again.