Page 73 of Ice & Steel

My eyes were dry, but my throat was tight. I set the lamp in the window and we went to bed together. He fucked me slowly and we fell asleep, tangled so closely that I felt his heart thrum in my veins.

The next morning, he said goodbye to us on the beach. The older boys were sniffling, but sober. The twins didn’t understand what was happening, which was for the best. He kissed them all goodbye and took me in his arms, pulling me against his chest.

“Trust me, Liv,” he murmured.

“I do,” I said.

We stood on the shore and watched his boat disappear. Marco and Hugo left after a while, taking the twins with them to play in the house where it was cool. Quiet settled over the island like nothing had changed.

I stayed on the shore and let my eyes roam hungrily over the thin, pale line of the horizon.

PART THREE

Dawn

“The wheel is come full circle: I am here.”

Shakespeare, King Lear

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

LUCIEN

Beneath my feet, the gravel crunched as I moved up the path to the top of the hill. In the background, I could make out the heavy lapping sound of the water teasing at the shore. I dipped my head to watch my boots, keeping steady footing in the dark.

I crested the hill and took a beat to gather my surroundings. On the edge of the river, Viktor and Duran stood facing each other. Like cut-out shapes against the silvery moonlight. They both glanced up as I approached.

“Took you long enough,” Duran said.

I halted beside them, scanning my brother. It had been a long time since I’d seen him in person and a sense of relief moved through me at having him close. We’d never lived apart before this last year I’d spent on the island.

Viktor held out a cigarette and I shook my head. His pale stare caught the white of the moon as he put it between his thin mouth and struck a match.

“Strange bedfellows,” I said.

“You can say that again,” Duran said, shifting his weight to bounce once on his heels. He was agitated. “Alright. What’s the plan, Lucien?”

I took a moment, looking out over the water. Somewhere, miles and miles away, Olivia was in our bed. Eyes closed, lips parted, wound up in the linen sheets. My entire body ached to feel her against me, to bury my face in her hair and fill my lungs with her scent.

My eyes snapped back. If I was going to pull this off, I had to keep perfect focus. Like a bullet from a gun, aimed to kill.

“For the next two weeks, I will tail Mezzasalma,” I said. “We need to be able to predict his every move so we don’t fuck ourselves. I’ll need someone to help me with this. Who wants to take it?”

“I’ll do it,” Viktor said.

“Alright, I want to know everything,” I said. “Where he eats, where he fucks, where he sleeps. We need to be able to predict not just his movements, but the movements of his inner circle and soldiers.”

Viktor nodded, lids flicking down. He still looked healthy and agile, wherever he’d been living this past year and whatever he’d been doing had agreed with him. The only real sign of his age was his silver hair flecked with dark brown. He was just as up to the task as I was, despite being a decade older.

“Where are you staying?” Duran asked.

“I have a house rented on the cliffs, up the north side of the river,” said Viktor.

“I have a basement apartment in the city,” I said. “I need to be able to lay low during the day so Viktor, you’ll take the daytime shift and I’ll take the night for the first week.

They both nodded. I found my attention once more wandering back to the water. I swore that somewhere in the breeze coming off it was a sweet, familiar scent. Like cherry blossoms in the early spring, drenched in expensive champagne.

“Are you okay?” Duran asked, brows drawing together.