The door to his room popped open. Irena stormed out, her expression mimicked Ella’s, except for the blaze igniting her eyes. She halted, her face relaxed before creases formed between her eyes. She then took a slow step toward him. Fresh tears glistened in her pale-blue eyes, giving them an appearance of two flickering ice crystals. Her hand pressed against her mouth blocked a muffled shriek.
Dario’s chest squeezed. He took a step closer and reached out to her. He halted, fighting the urge to pull her into his embrace. One more second and she’d admit Ella was his child. Come on, babe, you can do it.
Ella appeared at the top of the stairs, her bare feet soundless on the lush carpet. “Please, Mom. It was hard to call Dad by his name. I never called him Dario. He was always Dad. My daddy.”
Irena lowered her hand and cast her daughter smile then turned to him. “Ella’s the best thing in my life. I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have her. I’m so proud of her. She is the reason I made it in that hell of a life my parents cooked up for me.”
“Babe,” Dario said, pulling Irena to him, “every parent would be proud of such a child. I’m proud of you for raising her on your own. Let her call me Dad.”
Nodding, Irena swiped her knuckles under her eyes, wiping off tears. After a few broken up sniffles,
her voice steadied as she continued. “I wanted to call you the minute I found out I was pregnant. And I dialed your number, but then I put the phone down before the first ring. Fred would know I called you, the number would show up on the bill. Besides, you were somewhere on the seas. How would I get the news to you?” She faced the window and stared at the twinkling city lights spread out beneath his penthouse. Her back straightened and she drew in a loud breath. “You’d jump overboard and swim across the ocean to get to me.” Her tone changed to somber one. She tilted her head and locked her gaze with him. “I couldn’t have you drop everything and abandon your family. They needed you too. It’d only been a couple of months since our parting, but I’m sure your mom came to depend on the bit of money you sent her.”
“You know me, babe.” Dario tightened his hold on her and extended one arm to Ella who waited at the top of the stairs.
Ella flew to him, wrapped her arms around his torso and buried her face in his chest. “Daddy.”
He huffed at the impact, embracing his girls and pulling them into a tight hug. He kissed Ella’s hair. His family was here and his love increased tenfold. “It’s okay, baby girl. I wish I was there for you from the day one, but we have lots of time to make up.”
A heavy load dropped from his chest. If he’d received the news fourteen years ago that he was about to become a dad, nothing would have stood in his way to be with Irena, but rash actions wouldn’t have accomplished anything, only cause more hardships. His impulses and anger had derailed him so many times in the past, but with some hard discipline, he got them under control. His mother would’ve understood, though the money he’d sent her every month meant the world to her and Dad. As Dario’s pay grew, he was able to carve out a bigger portion for his parents. Still, it wasn’t enough to buy their health back. Mom’s cancer progressed and poorly treated sepsis ate at the stump of Dad’s amputated leg. It had taken Dario years to pull his life together after the loss of Irena and later his parents, but now she was here with his child. A new surge of energy swept through him.
“Oh, Dario.” Irena sniffed, burying her face in his chest. “I wrote so many letters, explaining my predicament, but I couldn’t bring myself to mail them. Besides, Fred had me watched and threatened if I was to leave, Ella would suffer. As years passed, all I wanted was to work and save money so once Fred released me from my obligation, I would come back to you and take care of you and your family. Only he never had any intentions to let me go. Things are different now, and I fear we may not have each other for long.”
A heavy stone sank his stomach. He would not allow Fred to take his daughter and his Irena. No matter how many cronies the snake had in his employ. “Don’t talk nonsense, babe. We’ll have each other for as long as we live.”
“I think Mom means we may not live long if Fred…” Ella tightened her lips and her brow furrowed.
“You are not going to lose me. No one’s going to hurt us.” He hoped that many he’d done favors had not forgotten their promises. But he could be asking for too much. He hadn’t risked his life when he made a few phone calls to his connections for their goodwill.
“He’s well protected.” Irena rubbed his shoulder, her fingers dug deep into his muscles. A bit of his tension released with her pressure.
“How many of his thugs could he bring along with him? If he thinks he can come to my town and get away with his bull…” He bit his tongue before he finished swearing in front of Ella. “I mean his cra…” Damn, man, not in front of the kid. “His crime, he’ll find out things are not going to work his way. He can’t bribe everyone.”
“He always travels on the company’s jet, so he has any number of his thugs around him at all times. The rest he will get here. He knows people are struggling to survive. Low employment and small salaries, it wouldn’t be hard to bribe a few more.” Irena gave a lopsided smile at the sight of Ella’s tight hold around his torso.
“That may be, but,” Dario raised his index finger, “there are those who cannot be bought. I have friends in low places, as well as high.”
“I don’t want to bring anyone in harm’s way.” Irena shook her head slowly. “They can be found dead someplace and no one would be able to prove any foul play.”
“What foul play?” At Ante’s booming voice, all three of them turned to the stairs. He stood in the middle, cradling Jasmin in his arms while she sucked on her thumb and her eyelids drooped, sure sign she was beyond tired. Still, she propped her head up, her known way to fight off sleep. “What’s everyone babbling about here? And does anyone feel like filling me in on all this?”
“You were asleep on the couch.” Dario leaned against the railing, his stomach knotting. His brother heard only the last bit of the conversation. He would overreact when he found out the rest.
Irena’s face mellowed, and she pulled away from him. “Jasmin looks pooched. Let me put her to bed.”
“Yep, missy skipped her nap. Apparently, she was too excited to spend the evening with her daddy.” Ante climbed a few remaining steps and stopped in front of Ella. “She wants her big cousin to tuck her in. Would you mind? The couch inside Dario’s study is big enough for the two of you to stretch. I often crash in there.” He passed Ella the princess bag with Jasmin’s things. “Her pajamas and toothbrush are in here.”
“Ante slept there every time he was in a dog house, which was often.” Dario patted his brother’s back. Until today, he was the only family he got, and their teasing helped him keep the sanity over the years.
“Thank you, Uncle. I’ll get her ready.” She took Jasmin in her arms.
Jasmin popped her thumb out of her mouth. “Why is my daddy sleeping in a dog house?”
“I don’t know. Something grownups say.” Ella cinched Jasmin higher up her hip.
Ante leaned to give Jasmin a goodnight kiss. “Sweet dreams.”
Ella carried Jasmin inside the bedroom but didn’t fully close the door. It would take her some time to feel at home. Heck, he could barely wrap his mind around the whole thing. He had a teenage daughter and still wasn’t married. This last bit didn’t sit right, something he’d have to remedy and fast. The ring he’d bought years ago was still locked inside the safe, tucked in its blue velvet box. Irena would love the band with the
three pale-blue aquamarine stones, the color of her eyes. He just had to present it to her at the right moment. A thought occurred. She had left that snob but did not mention whether she divorced him. Must’ve at least filed for separation, she referred to her nuptial as her obligation.
A loud clap of Ante’s hands snapped Dario from his reverie. His brother pointed at the couch. “How about we sit and talk? I like to know what we are facing. Do I need to send Martina and Jasmin someplace safe, away from here?”
Dario wrapped one arm around Irena’s shoulder and followed his brother down the stairs. Ante joined them on the couch, plopping a beer on the glass coffee table and opened the other one in his hand.
“You said no one followed you to or from Martina’s house.” Dario eyed the brown bottle in front of him. His mouth watered, but he opted for the glass of now warm and flat mineral water left there by Irena. Beer could impair him and, given the circumstances, he needed his head clear.
Ante took a long swig from the bottle and smacked his lips. “As far as I can tell, no one did. These men, what are they capable of? Would they kill if Fred ordered them?”
“They are paid well to do what he wants. There’d been suspicious deaths in the past, though no foul play was proven. Witnesses develop sudden memory loss, they couldn’t be certain of what they saw. No one would testify and cases were dropped.” Irena tucked one leg under her. “The fact Ella and I are still alive means he wants us that way. I think he enjoys this chase.” She shrugged. “He thinks he will win, and odds are in his favor.”
“Were in his favor.” Dario squeezed her shoulders. “His mistake was following you here. We tolerated him when he hung out with us, not even his cousin who had to drag him along liked him. She said the guy was a nutcase.” Now Dario could see why Fred’s cousin had seemed afraid. He’d have a hard time believing her when she confided how she caught Fred fondling her younger brother. She was twelve-years-old then and she didn’t know what to do, but pull the pants up over her brother’s hips and stop him from crying. Fred was sixteen and bigger than her. He scared her, threatening her if she told of the incident to anyone. Consensual sex between adult males was not a crime, but forcing a minor into the act was.
Irena closed her eyes. Her chest heaved with her loud exhale. “No one is safe in his presence. He was caught in the sexual act with a teenage son of his father’s business partner. Shortly after the boy was sent to religious school and his parents suddenly retired, the father handed his shares in the company to Fred’s dad. I suspect they were silenced. Fred continues his relationship with, Father Diego. Through the years, Father grew close to me and he revealed that priesthood wasn’t his choice.” She twirled a lock of her short hair around her finger. A sure sign talking about this made her nervous. “Poor guy is confused about his sexuality. He doesn’t think he is a gay, but cannot break free from Fred. He has some strong feelings for him. Fred was his first partner even if he coerced him into sex.”
Ante’s arm holding beer froze halfway to his mouth. “So sending this Diego hombre into priesthood didn’t change a thing. Fred was on him like a flea on a dog.”