Page 6 of The Last Hope

I merely nodded and let him do as he pleased. He slipped my arm under his, and we walked toward the entrance, where his men held back the numerous journalists trying to question him and snap blinding photos.

I felt panic rising—all that noise, the chaos. I tried to quicken my pace, clutching my son, as Antonio almost dragged us along the ground, moving forward without a single glance at us.

We finally entered the lobby, leaving the chaos behind, only to find ourselves among the sharks who fixed their attention on us. For even though I had been locked away in a cage for years, I had lived among the most dangerous of sharks—those who spent their days boasting about their exploits and projects, believing I did not understand their words.

None of the people in this room knew me, but I knew most of them—I knew their strengths and weaknesses, their secrets… things that could destroy them, truths that could ignite wars between the great families of theCosaNostra.

Chapter three

Nikolai

I watched as my twins joined their cousins near the playground in the reception hall where the Rasili gala was taking place, while Mikhail went to sit beside Elif without even glancing around, his eyes fixed on his phone.

I glanced at my watch—8:00 PM, one hour late. I grimaced, hoping Grigori wouldn’t notice our tardiness, but a heavy hand on my shoulder crushed that hope instantly.

“Well, well… isn’t this my little brother—the one I told to be in the hotel lobby at exactly 7:00 PM? ” Grigori growled as he appeared in my field of vision.

I merely shrugged, grabbing a glass from one of the trays circulating through the room. My brother never took his eyes off me as I downed the drink in one go. Under his persistent gaze, I finally sighed and nodded toward Andrei.

“Andrei locked himself in the bathroom. He didn’t want to come out,” I murmured as I set the glass on an empty tray.

Grigori’s shoulders slumped as he glanced at our sons, who were seated around a table coloring. He shook his head gently and sighed.

“Maybe you should take him back to a shrink ? ” he suggested, still watching the children.

“I already did—just last week. She said they’re not progressing anymore, that he doesn’t say a word,” I replied.

“Maybe a vacation would do you good ? ”

“Maybe,” I said simply, fully aware that it wouldn’t help. Andrei’s situation wasn’t a whim. Even if his brothers showed itless, I knew they had all gone through the same thing. Since they discovered the truth a year ago, everything had changed between us.

Nervously, I scratched my jaw while scanning the hall, recognizing most of the guests still streaming in—making me growl. I hated crowds ; too many people meant too much risk, especially in our world. Having my children, my nephews, and my sister outside the safety of our estate set me on edge. My eyes quickly found Marcus near the entrance, David by the playground keeping watch over the kids, and Igor stationed outside. We had brought only a few men, since we were all present—and more than capable of defending ourselves.

“Rasili’s still not here ? ” I asked my brother as I scanned the room.

The Rasilis were one of the three major families that made up the Italian mafia, and Antonio Rasili was the son of Capo Fernandez Rasili. After years of war between the Italian and Russian mafias, an understanding had finally been reached sixteen years ago—thanks to my brother and Capo Marino.

“Not yet. He’s making us wait,” Grigori growled, loosening his tie.

I sighed and made my way to our table, collapsing between my sister-in-law and my son. I leaned over his shoulder to glance at his phone. I raised my eyebrows, trying to make sense of the article he was reading—something about AI. Suddenly, my phone vibrated in my pocket, dragging me out of my confused concentration. I groaned at the name flashing on the screen.

“She won’t stop until you answer, you know ?” my son muttered quietly beside me.

“I already know what she wants, and the answer is no,” I replied.

“She’s our grandmother. Of course she wants to see us.” I gave him a puzzled look, raising one brow.

“But that doesn’t mean we want to see her,” he quickly added, turning back to his phone.

Across the table, Elif shot us a glance over her glass, her dark eyes glowing with compassion—the same look that had helped me stay afloat when she first joined the family. She had married my brother seventeen years ago, shortly after our parents died, and helped us learn to live again. She had been a ray of light in my brother’s life—and not just his. Despite a rocky start (Grigori as emotionally rigid as a tree, me caught in a teenage crisis at sixteen, and Sacha and Roman still just kids), Elif had managed to take charge of our chaotic group at only nineteen, after an arranged marriage—and she never gave up on any of us.

She truly was the maternal heart of the family—the one we all turned to when we needed grounding. It was no surprise Grigori turned into a teddy bear around her. My brother really was a lucky man.

He sank beside her, took her hand, and interlaced their fingers before leaning in to whisper something that made her burst out laughing.

“She drives him crazy,” said Sacha as he sat down next to my son, “he doesn’t seem to mind,” I replied with a shrug.

“Better not, for all our sakes,” Sacha added gruffly.

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