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“Sure,” I agreed, looking through the cabinets to find mugs, then getting to work on that. “So, you’re a bodyguard?” I asked, turning back to find her leaning against the counter watching me.
“I’m a capo. Same as Elian,” she explained.
“Oh, wow. I didn’t think…”
“That women could be capos?” she finished for me. “They can’t in any of the other families. This one is progressive like that. I’m playing bodyguard because of the Bratva. Elian is protective over his baby sister. And she’s not very comfortable around men, so she’s stuck with me for the time being.”
“They seem busy, huh?” I asked, loading up the machine for another shot. “The Bratva,” I clarified.
“They’re making big moves, that’s for sure,” she agreed. “What happened to your face? That looks fresh.”
“Someone was in my apartment when I came home tonight,” I told her.
“And you called Elian,” she said, shaking her head. “Should I be planning on a spring wedding?” she asked.
“Wedding? No. No, it’s not like that. He’s just… being nice.”
“Sure, sure,” Cinna agreed, a strange smile tugging at her lips that I didn’t understand, and didn’t know her well enough to interpret.
I finished making her coffee and handed it over before asking if Islah wanted one too.
“Tea, please,” she said sweetly as Kevin climbed up on her lap, then onto her chest, nuzzling his face against hers.
“Ah, tea,” I said, looking around at the cabinets.
“He has it somewhere,” Cinna said. “He dotes on Islah, so anything she likes has to be in stock somewhere.”
Cinna was right about that. I found a kettle in the cabinet and tea in a cupboard, then got to work making cups for the both of us.
I was a coffee girl through and through, but I figured that tea would be a lot more soothing after the day I’d had.
Islah and I made small talk about Kevin until fifteen or so minutes later, I heard the rustle of bags in the hallway before the door pushed open.
“I got… oh,” he said, gaze landing on his sister, then Cinna, before they found me.
“You have company,” I declared, cradling my hot mug as he put down the box of litter and moved further into the apartment.
“Your sweet little sister wanted to come here to chew you out for sticking me on her watchdog duty,” Cinna explained. “We didn’t know you had a… guest.”
Again, there was something strange in Cinna’s tone and face as she said that, and the way Elian glared at her told me he heard and saw it too, but I felt out of the loop about it.
“Islah, you gotta work with me here,” he said as he brought the bag of food over to the counter and set it down. “It’s for your protection. And I’m sure Cinna isn’t getting in your way. The other option is for you to get out of Brooklyn for a while,” he said, seeming to know he was going to strike a nerve because his lips were twitching.
“It’s fine,” Islah said, jumping up, not even bothering to try to swipe the cat hair off of her shirt. “We should get going, though. Thanks for the tea, Elizabeth.”
“I feel another tour around a bookstore in my immediate future,” Cinna said, exhaling a bit, then downing the rest of her coffee. “Nice to meet you,” she said, then shot a strange smile at Elian before following Islah out.
“I can’t imagine your sister chewing you out.”
“She’s shy around strangers, but has no problem… asserting herself around family,” he told me, fishing plates out of the cabinets, and setting our meals on top of them.
The conversation over dinner was light, mostly involving talk about his family and Cinna. Who, apparently, was now involved with a fellow capo, and while everyone supported it, Elian admitted it still felt strange to see them together after so many years.
Then, after cleaning up, and setting up Kevin’s litter box, we both went to our separate rooms. Where I fell almost immediately asleep, lulled by the feeling of safety I hadn’t known in several nights.
Everything was fine.
Going to plan.