The Don and His Russian Bride

VIII

I envied the birds. They had a freedom I would never see for myself. While Luciano confined me to the grounds of the mansion, the birds could fly at their leisure– coming and going as they pleased. I didn't dare let myself dream of what it would be like to be like them. Even if I magically sprouted wings, it wouldn't be enough for me to escape the fate of my marriage.

My walk came to a pause when I heard a clear and strong melody to my right. With my eyes closed, I focused on the quiet songs of the blue thrush perched on the nearby tree. His song carried me away to a time when I was a little girl in Russia, running barefoot through the grass beyond my school's playground in the spring. Those days of true freedom were long past. I could never see the mansion as anything but an opulent prison.

The sound of wings flapping brought me back to reality. The songs of the birds continued as a quiet murmur. But the blue flush flew away, taking the strength of its song with it. Under my breath, I whispered, "Please, take me with you."

I didn't move from my spot for several moments. My eyes traced the path of the flush until it flew beyond the mansion, out of my sight.

"Katerina."

I gasped and whirled around to face the speaker. The skies were clear and the only reason I could look up at him was he stood tall enough to block the sun. "What do you want?"

The person in front of me was the same man who showed me to my dressing room on my wedding day. I recognized him despite him trading a tuxedo for casual jeans and a v-neck tee. Not realizing I would ever run into him again, I had yet to learn his name.

His cheek jerked up quickly, scrunching his eye for just a second. Even so, he offered me a genuine smile. "Forgive me. I had not known you would startle so easily."

"Normally, I wouldn't. It only happens when I'm around people I don't trust."

As if wanting to study me from a different angle, he tilted his head to the side. "Katerina, nobody here intends to hurt you."

"I sincerely doubt that." I rolled my eyes for him to see before I turned away to return to my previous wandering. Instead of him seeing this as a signal to leave me alone, the man took it upon himself to walk with me.

"Just because you don't want to be here, doesn't mean you aren't safe. The truth is– everyone has received strict orders not to lay a hand on you."

I shrugged. "That's great, but can anyone make your boss stay away from me too?"

"I'm afraid not."

"You know my name, but I don't know yours. Who are you?"

"I'm Armando, Luc's consigliere." At the confused raise of my brow, Armando rushed to clarify. "The consigliere is basically the right hand of the don. I advise Luc on business strategies and often take care of dealings with members of the family on his behalf."

With the way he had taken charge at the wedding, I wasn't sure how I didn't see it earlier. Armando obtained more power than any of the other lackeys in the mansion. He was the first person capable of addressing Luciano by a nickname.

"Does that mean you can get Luciano to leave me alone?"

Armando chuckled. "Perhaps I can convince him to allow you more space. He may value my opinion, but he doesn't answer to anyone. Especially when it comes to his wife."

I scoffed. Of course Armando couldn't help me. He actually believed Luciano cared for me.

"I'm serious. I have your back, Katerina."

"Do you really expect me to believe you are my ally when you are still close to Luciano?"

Armando nodded his head in slow acceptance, his lip twitching as he did so. "That's a fair point. When Luc told me he wanted to marry a daughter of the Russian mafia, I had a feeling we would be in for a fight."

Nearer to the mansion, Carlotta stood with a picnic basket in her hand. When she set it down and began unfolding a blanket, I veered off my original track to meet her.

"At least one of you recognized that not every girl dreams of being kidnapped and married off to a stranger."

"In Sicily, there used to be arranged marriages all the time. Families practically had the only say in who the children married."

"And then modern society realized women aren't property that can simply be exchanged for a cow. Well, most people are aware of that," I shot back.

"Hey! Luciano never gave your father a cow."

He thought he was being funny. I moved forward without acknowledging he said anything at all. Instead, I greeted Carlotta. "Good afternoon. What's all this?"

"You looked like you were enjoying the fine weather so much, I wondered if you wouldn't mind having a picnic for lunch."

"That would be lovely. Thank you, Carlotta."

"There's enough for you to join her if you wish, Consigliere." She gave us each a nod before she made her way back inside.

I didn't hesitate to seat myself at the far corner of the blanket, next to the basket of food. The blanket was finer than I expected to be laid down for a picnic. Paisley print decorated the material, which was soft against my legs left mostly bare by shorts. While I began pulling out the sandwiches and fruit, Armando remained still in an awkward stance.

"May I join you?"

"Yes. But only because you asked politely. Don't expect to persuade me to fall in love with Luciano though," I warned.

"He's really not that bad, you know."

"Who? Luciano or the grim reaper?"

Armando had taken a sip of water, only to spit it out towards the grass when he snorted with laughter. "Now you're really being dramatic. If you knew him better, you would see that he's not the horrible person you think he is."

It became harder to sit as Armando tried to delve deeper into my issues with Luciano. Nibbling on some grapes, I lowered myself down until my back was flat against the blanket parallel to Armando.

"Part of me feels like he sent you here to say nice things about him to me."

Armando shook his head. "He didn't."

I turned my head so I could look directly into his dark brown eyes. "Answer this for me... If you were in my position, would you give him a chance right away?"

"Hell no. What he did was wrong. I would make him work for my trust."

His response had me springing back into an upright position, causing us to be face to face.

"Then why do you defend him so much?"

"Luc is my older cousin, but he's more like a brother to me. I'm sure you've noticed my twitching by now." I had, but I didn't say anything to confirm it. "When I was younger, the other cousins would tease me because I couldn't control it. In this lifestyle, we can't afford to have even the slightest sign of weakness. When Luc took his position as don, he took the target off my back by making my consigliere. He says he did it because he trusts me, but I know he saw what was happening to me at the hands of my own family members. Regardless of his reasons, I am forever grateful for him. He can be cruel and ruthless, but he protects the ones he cares about."

I let out a deep exhale, giving myself a moment to process Armando's information. Armando hadn't fully gained my trust, but he was sincere enough that I believed he was telling me the truth. Luciano had a heart. I couldn't deny that. But still didn't think he deserved to have mine.

"I understand where your allegiance to Luciano comes from. My situation with him is entirely different from yours though."

"This marriage may not be what you wanted, but please don't give up on him yet." He reached out to rest his hand on my arm. In his seriousness, his twitch disappeared entirely and his pleading brown eyes captured mine.

"Thank you for talking with me, Armando. If he wants me to see the good in him, he has to be the one to show me it. Until then, I can't promise you anything."

Armando nodded in understanding. His mouth set into a straight line as he removed his hand from my arm.

A sense that Armando and I weren't alone came over me. Turning my head, I caught Luciano's stare from behind a tall glass window. His gaze fixated on the space between the two of us. His jaw tensed before he backed away further into the mansion.