“Alice, if you need anything,
please don’t hesitate to let me know,” I said as I gave her some tea. Her face
was bruised and she was moving stiffly.
“I just want to be alone,
Bella,” she said, her voice cold, angry.
“Okay,” I whispered. I left the
room, closing the door and leaning heavily against the wall. I could hear Esme
speaking to Demetri, Jimmy and Felix in the kitchen. It was after nine at night
and I hadn’t heard from Edward in several hours. With a sigh, I went
downstairs. “Do you guys want anything to eat? I need to do something.”
“Don’t worry, Miss Bella,”
Demetri said, his voice quiet and slightly accented. It sounded Russian.
“My fiancée is doing mobby
things and I’ve got Alice upstairs who is afraid of her own shadow,” I said.
“Something happened. Either I can perseverate on what happened or I can bake
something. Anyone want rum cake?”
“Bella, you are too funny,” Esme
snorted.
“I’m not kidding,” I smirked as
I went into our well-stocked pantry and pulled out what I needed. “Felix, in
the bar near you, there’s a bottle of Captain Morgan’s Extra Dark Rum. Can you
get that for me?”
“Sure, Miss Bella,” he said. He
handed me the bottle and I started working.
“I can also feed you guys
something, other than sweets,” I said. “I have left over vodka sauce. I raided
Nonni’s recipe book to make dinner last night.”
“With gnocchi?” Jimmy asked. I
nodded. “Well, if you boys don’t want any. I do.”
“Jimmy, your ass is going to be
the size of Wrigley Field,” I quipped, making him a plate. Felix and Demetri
also took some as well, along with some Italian sausage I’d baked. Esme made
some salad for them and as I was putting the cake into the oven, Edward and
Jasper came inside. “Is everything okay?”
Edward nodded tightly.
“Where’s Alice?” Jasper asked.
“Guest room, second door on your
left,” I answered. Jasper smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He shifted a
bag in his hand and he jogged up the stairs.
“Can I go home now?” Esme asked.
“I love spending time with my newest daughter, but …”
“Dad sent a text. You’re staying
here tonight. As are you guys,” Edward said, looking at Felix and Demetri.
“What about me?” Jimmy
questioned. “How am I supposed to get up the stairs?”
“We’ll spend time on the
couches, Uncle Jimmy. I’ll stay with you,” I answered. “It’s a lot more
comfortable than that shitty couch you have at your apartment. Dude, that thing
is so ugly.”
“Don’t be hating on my couch,
Isabella Marie,” he groused. He made a face as he rolled his way to the
bathroom. Edward followed at a discreet distance, but when Jimmy was safely
ensconced in the powder room, my fiancé walked back to the kitchen.
“Why can’t I go home?” Esme
asked.
“Dad, Emmett and Jake are taking
care of a cleanup job,” Edward explained.
“And what happened?” I pressed.
“I’ll tell both of you tomorrow.
I promise, but we have to stay on the DL with Jimmy in the house. I love the
guy, but he can’t know what happened or what we did,” Edward said, his voice
hard and cold, sounding very much like the mob boss he’d become in a few short
months.
“It’s bad?” Esme sighed.
“As bad as it can get,” Edward replied, scrubbing his face.
