Air Bound

18

AIRIANA was crying again. Maxim leaned on one hip with deceptive laziness and watched his woman while she sobbed. The five women around her hugged and kissed her repeatedly. He studied each one as a potential threat to his relationship with Airiana.

Lexi, the youngest, was too sweet for her own good. She showed signs of intense trauma, much like the children he’d sent to the farm. She was a pretty girl, with too-old eyes and delicate, soft features. Her hair was a deep auburn and would burn bright in the sun. She was definitely an earth element, and from what he understood, she ran the farm. He found just looking at her made him feel protective—the younger sister he’d never had. He had the feeling she would be on his side. There was far too much compassion in her than was good for her.

Blythe was the oldest and clearly the one the others turned to and listened to the most. She was tall and blond with shrewd eyes and a runner’s lean body. She had looked him over carefully when they’d arrived, and even now was sizing him up. She was a potential problem if she thought he might hurt Airiana in any way; otherwise, she would reserve judgment. Clearly she had gifts, but he couldn’t see them, he couldn’t feel the tie that bound elements together, yet there was something subtle there he couldn’t quite comprehend. She was a question mark to him.

Rikki was different and definitely would have a difficult time with him, but not necessarily because he was with Airiana. He knew from what his brother had told him that she was autistic and had a hard time adjusting to change, yet he watched her with the children and she seemed open to them. She was the water element, and a very strong one, according to Levi. She was fiercely independent, but very loyal to her sisters. She would come to accept him, he was certain, as long as he didn’t push the relationship on her. She would have to accept him in her own time.

Maxim had absolute confidence in every area with the exception of personal relationships. He had no real experience. He was a young boy when he’d been taken from his family, and his training had been drilled into him. He’d been a loner, and even now, in this circle of close-knit people, two of his own brothers, he felt like an outsider.

He kept his gaze fixed on Airiana. He knew her better than he did his brothers. She was the only person in the world he really knew—the only one who saw him. He willed her to look at him, make some acknowledgment that she was as aware of him as he was of her.

He couldn’t take his eyes off of her, afraid if he blinked, she’d vanish without a trace, like everything else worthwhile in his life had done. His palm itched, but he wasn’t going to use that connection between them, it wouldn’t be fair to her. She was holding on to her sister, the one with flaming red hair.

No doubt that was Lissa, the fire element. She was the one he would have to be careful around. She would defend her sisters with her last ounce of breath. She was fairly small, but in her case, he didn’t think for one moment it was a handicap. He could see she was especially close to Airiana and blamed herself for not being home when Airiana was kidnapped. She hadn’t yet asked for details—how he’d come to be involved—but she would soon.

Benito leaned against the other side of the door and crossed his arms over his chest, regarding the women as well. “She’s happy to be home,” he observed.

Maxim nodded. Benito had a houseful of sisters. He would know why women cried all the time. He made certain his expression was sheer stone. The boy saw far too much.

“What do you think, Benito? Have you and your sisters decided what you want to do?” He needed to take his mind off his insecurity and focus on something that mattered—like the four children. “You’ve been here long enough to get some kind of idea what it would be like. Is it too different from where you grew up?”

Benito shrugged, trying to look both nonchalant and tough at the same time. “The girls want to stay, so we stay.” His dark eyes bored into Maxim. “You’re staying, right?”

Maxim jerked his chin toward Airiana. “She’s home for me. So yes, I’m staying.” He bared his teeth at Benito. “That means I’m in charge.”

Benito made another casual shrug, and Maxim’s heart turned over. That shocked him—having a physical reaction to another human being other than Airiana. The boy was trying so hard to be grown up. He didn’t know the first thing about kids, but he could see Benito’s struggle. There was a man’s cold rage deep inside him and yet a boy’s much more sensitive emotions. The kid was struggling to hold back the tears and keep his head up.

“I can live with that,” Benito said. His voice sounded a little strangled, and he couldn’t keep the relief from showing on his face. “Too many women around here. They’re trying to make me see a counselor. A woman. I’m not talking to any woman.”

Maxim frowned. “You’d rather talk to a man?”

Benito’s expression changed swiftly to outrage. “That’s never going to happen. I don’t need to talk to anyone about anything. My sisters can go.”

“Benito,” Maxim said softly, searching for the right thing to say, wishing he had more wisdom. “Your parents were murdered. They weren’t killed in a car accident. Ricco murdered them for the specific reason of acquiring you children. Your younger sister was murdered by a depraved madman.”

Benito ducked his head. “I know.”

“See all these women?” Maxim gestured around them at the women who had gone from crying to laughter. “Each of them had a loved one or loved ones murdered. My parents were murdered. That ties us all together in a weird way. We understand one another where other people don’t have a hope in hell of knowing what we’ve gone through.”

Benito ducked his head and scuffed the floor with the toe of his shoe. “Yeah. I got that.”

“Talking to someone helps with the grief and anger and the guilt. We all feel guilty for something we had no control over. Guilt is a strange thing, Benito, it eats you alive. So does misplaced shame.”

The boy’s head snapped up. His eyes blazed fire. “I’m not talking about anything ever with any man or woman.”

Maxim wanted to pull the boy into his arms and hold him tightly. Instead, he shrugged lightly. “It’s up to you what you talk about. But going to the counselor and talking about your parents is a smart idea.”

He needed Airiana more than ever. He was so out of his depth with this boy who looked at him with something close to hero worship. He was no hero and no one for a boy to admire. He cleared his throat and nodded at Judith. She was the spirit element and she was married to Stefan, his brother, although Stefan was now Thomas Vincent. “What’s she like?”

Judith seemed to be a happy person and her laughter could make everyone in the room want to laugh with her, but she kept sneaking glances at him and frowning. He didn’t like the feeling that she saw more than he wanted her to.

It wasn’t like he was a great prize to look at. He was rough, and it showed in the lines of his face and the ice cold of his blue eyes. There was no getting around the scars on his body or hands. He looked like what he was, and it was unrelenting. He didn’t have Stefan’s sophistication or Lev’s ability to charm.

“She’s all right. She let us all make a kaleidoscope.” There was a small thread of hidden excitement in the boy’s voice. “That was cool. She’s an artist and does a lot of paintings.” The thread grew stronger, although clearly Benito tried not to give away his interest.

“She’s a good artist,” Maxim agreed. “Her paintings are shown all over the world. I understand she restores art as well. I’ve always thought that was a really cool process. Did you know that about her?”

Benito nodded. Now his eyes had gone bright. “She took us through her studio and explained how it’s done to us. My sisters were annoying and she had to stop.”

Maxim shrugged again. “Fortunately she lives here on the farm, and from what Airiana tells me, everyone goes to each other’s homes when they want. I’m sure if you want to understand art restoration, she’ll talk to you without your sisters.”

Maxim looked over at Airiana. Her gaze jumped to his face and he found himself falling into her blue eyes. Yeah. He could live here and take care of the kids with her. The boy needed a firm hand or he’d turn out just like Maxim. He smiled at her.

They’ve had to call Jonas Harrington and inform him I’m back. He’ll be showing up soon and he’s a cop. Are you ready to meet them all?

That’s a silly question. There’s six of you and only one of me.

But you’re a badass.

The laughter in her voice warmed him. She had a way of tying them intimately together with just a few words. Where he had no clue what to say, she always seemed to find the right thing.

“I’m crazy about that woman,” he admitted to Benito. “There’s danger in separating yourself from everyone, not wanting anyone to see inside of you where you’re vulnerable. We know the world isn’t safe and perfect like the fairy tales. But if you let it eat away at you, when that one comes along, that woman you know is going to make your world for you, you won’t see her, because you’re too busy hiding. I almost missed my chance with her.”

“We’re going to live with you and Airiana, aren’t we?” Benito blurted hastily as the women crossed the room toward them. “All of us. Together in the same house.”

Maxim realized that was the burning question Benito had had on his mind all along, but hadn’t known how to work it casually into the conversation. He feared they would all be divided into the other women’s homes.

“If that’s what you want. But Benito, once you’ve decided, there’s no going back. Airiana and I will be your parents. What we say goes.”

Benito tried to hide his relief. “I can live with that.”

“So can I, but we’ll have a lot of women to take care of. I believe in being prepared for anything. I’ll want you to learn.”

Benito stood straight, his chest out. “I want to learn. No one is ever touching my sisters again.”

Airiana came to him, holding out her hand. She smiled at Benito. “Have you picked your rooms yet?”

Maxim closed his fingers around hers and pulled her beneath his shoulder. Her sisters were right behind her, surrounding them. Levi and Thomas grinned at him, knowing how uncomfortable he was in the spotlight. He was introduced to each woman, and he’d assessed the situation correctly. Lissa was going to be the holdout. She was polite about it, but she was extremely reserved.

Still, he felt power in the air. It was unmistakable. Surrounded by them all, with Judith and Blythe close to bolster the other elements, he felt the ripples in the air, as if it were impossible to contain so much energy. He glanced at his brothers. These women were a force to be reckoned with when they were together.

Thomas nodded, and Maxim relaxed just a little more. It wouldn’t just be the three Prakenskii brothers protecting the farm and everyone on it, these women could protect themselves if need be. It was only a matter of getting them into that mind-set. He knew having the children there would help. Women had a tendency to protect children when they might not protect themselves.

“Thank you for bringing Airiana back to us,” Blythe said. “I don’t know how we can ever repay you.”

Maxim tightened his fingers around Airiana’s. “I rescued her at sea, on board a ship. That makes her mine. The same with the children. Isn’t that right, Rikki?” he asked, drawing in the water element. “That’s payment enough, finding a family.”

The sisters turned to Rikki. She nodded her head slowly. “He’s right.” A slow smile lit her face. “That’s how I got Levi. The sea’s been good to us, hasn’t it?”

Maxim nodded, feeling very lucky that he’d had the chance to include Rikki. She was more open than ever to including him in their family. Before the women could ask any other questions, Lucia came in, holding tightly to her sisters’ hands. Nicia gave a soft cry when she spotted Maxim and raced to him, startling him. The child flung herself at him, wrapping both arms around his leg. Lucia and Siena stood uncertainly just a few feet away.

Airiana beckoned them into the circle. She wrapped her arm around Lucia. “Have you seen our house yet? Did anyone show you?”

Blythe cleared her throat. “Um. I should have said something. We let them choose where they wanted to stay, and they decided it was better to be in the house that would be their permanent home. Lissa’s been staying there with them.”

Lissa flashed her first smile. It was directed at Lucia, not Maxim, but still, he took it as a good sign. “And you know what a stellar housekeeper I am.”

“Oh, dear,” Airiana said. “Is the house still standing?”

Lucia gave her a reassuring smile. “I kept up with everything, although Benito helped me with the laundry . . .”

“I did not,” Benito denied. He actually looked embarrassed. “I don’t do women’s work.”

Blythe choked back a laugh. Judith covered her mouth. Rikki looked confused. Lexi did laugh openly. Lissa just shrugged. “I try not to either, Benito. I’m with you on that.”

“Don’t encourage him,” Airiana reprimanded. “Laundry is anyone’s work, not gender specific.”

“Still,” Lissa said. “No one wants to do it, so if you can get away with saying a specific gender has to do it, more power to you. Personally, I think it’s man’s work myself.”

Benito snorted his derision, loud and clear, glaring at his sister at the same time.

“I meant,” Lucia clarified, “that Benito helped me figure out the English directions and how to use the machine.”

Benito looked mollified. He crossed his arms over his chest and regarded his sister with a little less outrage.

“I’ve had to do my own laundry for years,” Maxim said. “When you’re in my line of work, you don’t send it out or trust anyone else to do it.” He hoped that would give Benito food for thought.

“Lissa is a really good cook,” Lucia defended.

Even Benito nodded his head. Lissa smiled at them, but turned to Maxim, her eyes wide and innocent. “Just what kind of work are you in?” she asked. “And why were you wandering around on that horrible ship?”

“Lissa,” Airiana hissed at her, directing the thread of sound through the air directly at her sister. “Not in front of the children.”

Maxim was proud of Airiana’s ability to use a stream of air to deliver sound. It was a difficult trick to master, yet he wouldn’t have known she spoke to her sister except that he was in her mind about to ask her how honest she wanted him to be. They hadn’t discussed their story at all. He had the feeling Airiana would insist on being very straightforward with her sisters—and that wouldn’t win him any friends.

He realized he was still afraid of losing her—afraid somehow they would persuade her that he was no good for her.

“What’s important here,” Airiana said, “is to understand the ongoing threat to all of us. A man, we believe his name is Evan Shackler-Gratsos—who was the brother of the Greek shipping magnate Stavros Gratsos, who died out at sea just off Sea Haven recently—thinks I can help him create a weapon that he can use to blackmail every country with. He’s going to keep coming after me. Maxim felt that it was safer for all of you—and me—to be here on the farm. He thought with all of us and Thomas and Levi, we had a better chance together than apart.”

“That name keeps popping up here in Sea Haven,” Blythe said.

Airiana nodded. “He isn’t going to stop. Maxim and I can leave if all of you would feel safer.”

Benito and Lucia shook their heads, looking as if they might burst into tears. Nicia clung tighter to Maxim’s leg. The youngest child, Siena, put her thumb in her mouth.

“We don’t want to go,” Airiana said, assured them. “But we want all of you safe.”

“How would that keep anyone safe?” Levi asked. “If he doesn’t find you here, all he has to do is snatch one of your sisters and you’d come out of hiding to exchange yourself for them.”

“You can’t leave,” Lexi said. “I mean it, Airiana. You can’t go. I vote no, you have to stay here.” She would have sounded firmer if her eyes hadn’t welled with tears and her chin hadn’t quivered.

“Absolutely not,” Lissa said. “I’m with Levi on this. We can protect you here now that we know he’s coming back. And your Maxim will be very handy to have around,” she conceded. She studied his face and then her gaze suddenly flicked to Levi and then Thomas.

Maxim saw her catch her breath and then her face paled. She pressed a hand to her stomach as if she might suddenly feel sick. She just recognized me, that I’m a Prakenskii. Why would that upset her?

Why do you think? She’s not stupid. Four of seven brothers have settled here. Remember, Ilya is here as well, Airiana pointed out. We were actually talking about how we didn’t want any other brothers to show up because that meant one of us could fall.

You mean fall madly in love? His voice purred deliberately with satisfaction.

She sent him a look from under her long sweep of lashes. Madly is a good word.

“Thomas and I want you to stay,” Judith said, looking at her husband for confirmation.

“Of course you have to stay,” Thomas said.

Rikki bit down on her lip and rocked back and forth. Levi casually put his arm around her shoulders. “I want you to stay. I think we’re better together than apart,” Rikki said.

Blythe nodded her head. “I say you stay.”

Airiana looked at the children. “You have a say in this as well. We’re a family. All of us. We came together because we are stronger together. We empower one another. But all of us have a vote.”

Nicia tightened her arms around Maxim’s leg so he knew if he took a step, her little legs would come off the ground. She wasn’t about to let go. “Stay.” That was the only word she said.

Maxim reached down and picked her up, holding her in his arms. She’d lost her twin sister and her parents, and already at her young age she’d been through an ordeal beyond most people’s comprehension. The child buried her face in his neck and he was lost. If he could have, he would have gone back to the ship and killed Prince Saeed all over again. This time it would have been a hell of a lot slower.

“It’s going to be all right,” he murmured to her. “I’m here now.”

Benito put his hands on his hips. “We all want you to stay here. If we’re going to be a real family, then we need to be together.”

“I agree,” Lucia said. “And so does Siena.”

Siena looked from Maxim to Airiana and nodded her head vigorously.

“Then we’re going to need to lock this place down,” Maxim said. “It has to be a fortress. All of you are going to have to sacrifice some freedom in order for everyone to be safe.”

“I want to get into my house and have a cup of tea before Jonas gets here,” Airiana said. “And we need to visit with the children and make certain they have everything.”

“We also need to know what’s on all the paperwork,” Maxim said. “This Jonas, will he be asking about the children?”

“It’s possible,” Levi said. “He’s a good friend of Ilya’s. He’s as cooperative as he can be under the circumstances. He may not believe the paperwork, but if it’s in order, he won’t question it. We’ve worked up a good story for the kids.”

“I helped,” Lucia said proudly.

“She did,” Thomas said. “I’ll let her tell you all about it. Get your cup of tea and settle in, because Jonas said he’ll be here soon. His wife was in labor and he’s waiting until the baby is born before he comes, but he is coming.”

“Hannah’s in labor?” Blythe said. “Libby must be back. Hannah would have sent for her.” She glanced uneasily at the others. “That means they’ll all be coming back. Ilya and Joley won’t be far behind Libby.”

Maxim raised his eyebrow at Airiana.

The Drakes. Elle Drake was undercover looking for the head of the human trafficking ring, and Levi was undercover for Russia as well. She was taken prisoner, and from what I understand, it was horrible. Levi couldn’t save her, and everyone is afraid Elle’s husband will not be very accepting about him being in town. He’s friends with Jonas and Ilya. Airiana filled him in on their worst fears quickly. We don’t want to have to move, but the Drakes are very powerful here.

Because they were using telepathic conversation rather than speaking aloud, Maxim felt her genuine fear. He bit back his first response. She knew the family she spoke of—he didn’t—but he knew undercover work and the choices—none of them good—that often came with that work. If Elle Drake had been undercover she knew the risks, and she would understand Levi not breaking cover.

We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Right now, we have to take care of these children, give them a sense of safety even when we know it isn’t safe.

Airiana nodded. “I can’t wait to get a real cup of tea. I’ll see you all tomorrow morning. I’m home and safe. Thank you, Thomas and Levi, for coming to get us and for getting the children for us.”

“No problem.” Levi sent Maxim a look, one that said they’d be meeting when the women were in bed. He was back to sneaking off in the night.

Airiana’s house was larger than he expected. From the outside, it didn’t seem as if it would be so spacious. It was two stories, with her bedroom and bathroom on the upper story. That was fine when one was single or married with no children, but putting Benito downstairs without supervision was just asking for trouble.

The boy had an eye for security. There was no doubt about that. He’d insisted his sisters take the two back bedrooms and he’d taken the front one. Maxim knew the boy’s mind. They looked at one another and Maxim nodded his head in silent approval. The kid was looking out for what remained of his family. Maxim would have been doing the same thing.

“We’ll work on the house security,” Maxim said aloud, acting as if he was talking to no one in particular, but he was reassuring Benito. Benito was terrified of losing the ones he loved, and Maxim knew that feeling all too well.

Airiana went through the rooms to make certain the children had what they needed. Blythe and Judith had supplied them with the essentials. “I’ll have to take you shopping, to get clothes and comforters and blinds you want in your room.”

Nicia and Siena shared a room and Lucia had her own. Clearly both little girls had been sleeping in Lucia’s room with her. Maxim suspected that Benito had lain across the doorway in the hall after they went to bed at night. It was something he would have done at that age.

His heart went out to the boy. Already, little Nicia and Benito had a hold on him so strong he didn’t think he could easily break it. He hadn’t considered that he might love the children as well as Airiana. He thought he was only capable of loving one person. His woman. Now, he had an entire family, and they were going to take his life over. One didn’t ever walk out on kids who had suffered such trauma.

They settled in the large sitting room while Airiana put on the teakettle. Nicia and Siena took the chair next to him, while Lucia and Benito sat across from him.

“How is it you can speak English so well?” Maxim asked Lucia.

“Our grandmother on our mother’s side was from the United States, so Mama wanted us to know both Italian and English. We grew up speaking both languages,” she answered.

“Papa sent us to a private school,” Benito added. “We were required to know Italian, of course, but also English, French and German.”

Airiana had come back into the room silently and taken a chair on the other side of Siena and Nicia.

Their parents had to be wealthy. They’re too well educated. Look at them, Airiana. Aloud he had to ask. “Do you have family alive? Aunts? Uncles? Your grandparents?”

Lucia shook her head. “Not anymore. There were no aunts or uncles on either side, and we never knew my papa’s parents. They died a couple of years after I was born. Mama’s mother passed away last year. I never knew my grandfather.”

Maxim wasn’t surprised. The children would have wanted to go to a relative once they’d been rescued. They’d made it clear on the ship that they had nowhere to go, but he had to be certain.

“You do know that if we change your identity in order to keep you in this country with us, you probably won’t be able to claim the inheritance from your parents. If we take you back, the chances of us getting you are slim to none,” Maxim said. “That’s a reality, and one I can’t get around. I can look into it if you want me to, but we’ll be running a risk that we’ll be found out. Right now, everyone thinks you died aboard that ship.”

“Like Sofia,” Nicia said, and began to cry. She ran across the room to fling herself into Lucia’s lap.

Siena began to cry as well, but Lucia’s lap was already occupied. Airiana picked her up and cuddled the little girl. She rocked her back and forth gently.

“I’m sorry about Sofia,” Maxim said. “I know it’s hard, Nicia. She’s where no one can hurt her now.”

“I want to be with her,” Nicia said.

Maxim’s heart beat overtime. What the hell does that mean? What am I supposed to say? Surely she isn’t talking about suicide.

She’s a little girl who lost her parents and her twin sister, Maxim. It’s natural for her to want them back, to want to be with them.

At least he could breathe again. He wasn’t going to be great at parenting. He’d rather shoot someone when he heard Nicia cry than try to figure out the right words of comfort. Shooting was easy. Talking, not so much.

“Of course you do,” Airiana said. “I miss my mother every day. I want to be with her too. But we’re going to be a family, and we’ll love and support one another. Maybe we can help each other not miss the ones we’ve lost so very much.”

“We don’t want the money,” Benito said, glaring at his sisters as if they might contradict him. “We’re going to stay here where it’s safe.”

“Will you really let us stay here?” Lucia asked. She looked as if she was bracing herself for bad news as she rocked her sister soothingly. She looked to Airiana for the answer, not Maxim, which he found telling. She knew Airiana belonged on the farm, that this was her house and the others on the farm were her sisters. Airiana had the power to make them all leave.

“We want you to stay with us,” Airiana said. “I was kidnapped and taken aboard that ship too. I think we’re all in this together. If Maxim hadn’t rescued me, I’d be in as much trouble as all of you. My sisters might not have told you, but we’re not sisters by blood. We weren’t born into the same family, but we chose one another. We choose to be sisters. We call ourselves sisters of the heart.”

“I’m not saying that girly stuff,” Benito declared. “I’m not being a brother of the heart or anything like that.”

“Benito.” Maxim just said the kid’s name. He used his low tone, the one that said he wasn’t messing around. “Don’t be disrespectful to Airiana. I wouldn’t like it and neither should you. She’s ours. Just as your sisters are. We take care of our own, and we respect our women.”

Airiana stirred as though she might say something but stopped when he sent her a quick reprimanding glance. He’s too much like me, honey. This is necessary. He needs to respect you from the beginning because I do. He has to learn what he values. We’re already close to losing him.

She didn’t question him and he was grateful. He continued to pin Benito with his gaze, leaning forward to make certain the boy understood. “I’ll be teaching you things that can kill, Benito. I have to know you’ll have the right values and discipline to know when and where to use the knowledge I give you. You have to make up your mind either to be a good man or a bad one. No one else can do that for you. Your family is sacred. The women have the right to your respect. They are not less than you and they will never be. Do you understand what I’m trying to tell you, because this is your first very important lesson when it comes to living your life. Not only was Airiana telling all of you something important, she was also sharing a particular painful experience.”

Benito nodded his head slowly. “I’m sorry, Airiana. I didn’t mean to be disrespectful.” He held his chin up and looked her in the eye. “Please tell us what you were about to say.”

Airiana bit her lip and took a breath. He’s wonderful. Truly wonderful after all he’s been through. He’s trying to be a man, and clearly he trusts you when he doesn’t trust anyone else.

Benito had suffered horribly in that cabin, all the while knowing Galati would kill him after all that had been done to him. He also knew his sisters would be sharing the same fate. Maxim had come along like a hero in a movie and rescued him. It didn’t surprise him that Benito looked to him when his world had crashed down. Nicia, the same thing, but he was surprised by Lucia and Siena’s reaction to him. He would have thought they’d be more suspicious. He figured Benito had talked him up.

“As I was saying, everyone on this farm has a connection. Each of us has had a family member or members violently murdered. Some have had experiences similar to yours and can understand what you’re going through. We help each other when the nightmares come and the memories are too close. We’ve formed our own family, every bit as tight as one that has a blood connection,” Airiana explained.

The teakettle whistled shrilly and she stood. “Lucia, we’ll form our family and learn to be rely on and trust one another. We’ll hit a few snags, but we’ll work it out. My sisters and I bought this place together, and we learned to talk things over right away. We don’t let things fester. We have regular family meetings. Some things, like martial arts and learning to shoot a gun, will be mandatory.”

She made a face at them over her shoulder as she made her way into the kitchen. “Not everyone embraces the lessons, but we all agreed we needed to learn to protect ourselves. You will too. In matters of safety, we defer to the experts. That will be Maxim, Levi and Thomas or Lissa. Lucia, you’re in your teens, that won’t always be easy to do, because at some point you’ll have school friends and want to do normal teen things and they’ll squash some of your activities, but you have to understand that safety for everyone is important.”

I know that was difficult for you to say. He couldn’t help the laughter in his voice. Now that they had children, Airiana was much more conscious of their security.

Ha, ha, ha. I was talking about them. I’m trying to get Benito and Lucia to really think about things before they make a rash decision to stay in the United States with strangers when maybe there is someone in Italy they would be more comfortable with. I don’t want them to go because I think they need us, but it really has to be their decision.

She was giving the children a choice. He was all about choices. He believed in choices, but damn it all, they were kids. What did they know? They could screw up their entire lives with the wrong choice. Don’t drive them off by being so negative. It won’t be that bad. It’s not like I’m going to lock them up.

“We’re staying,” Benito reiterated in his firmest voice. “Right, Lucia?”

Lucia ducked her head, but Maxim caught the glitter of tears. When had he become such a wuss? The child was killing him, just like Airiana. She’d been so brave and tried to take care of her brother and sisters. She had to be scared to death. He remembered that feeling all too well when he’d been taken from his parents and brothers by force.

“Lucia,” he said softly, and waited for her to look at him. When she raised her large, dark eyes to his, he nodded his head solemnly. “I give you my word, I won’t go anywhere. Airiana and I will give all four of you a home and a family. We’ll make this farm safe and fun and a place where you can grow up. We can’t change what happened to you and your brother and sisters. We can’t bring back your parents or little Sofia, but in time, we’ll be a real family and we’ll love one another.”

Airiana came into the doorway, nodding her head, leaning her hip against the doorjamb. “You can always depend on us. I give you my word as well. I know you have no reason to trust us, but that’s the best we can do to reassure you. You either feel the truth or you don’t.”

Lucia nodded. “I want to stay. I feel safe here. I know what you said about the danger, but I still feel safe. I just want to go to sleep for a while and not be terrified.”

Maxim stood up and went to her. He dropped his hand on top of the girl’s head. “I’m home now. No one is going to get past Benito or me.”

“They killed Papa,” she pointed out.

“Your papa was a good man. I’m mean, honey. I hunt men like the ones who killed your papa. They won’t get past me.”

Is it a good thing to tell them that?

It’s the truth, baby, whether you like it or not, that’s who I am.