Page 62 of Tristano

“Jesus,” Killian murmurs softly as he shakes his head.

“Those poor children.” Greer shakes her head.

“You appear to be holding up well though. Maybe a little too well.” Bastiano narrows his eyes.

“Bash,” Tris warns, getting a glare in return.

“It’s okay,” I tell him before turning back to him. “Was I scared out of my mind? Yes, but this wasn’t my first time being taken against my will. I think between that and my police training, I’ve been able to process it better.”

“Serena, don’t,” Tristano says as he grabs my knee.

I turn toward him and shake my head. “It’s fine.” Taking a deep breath, I turn back toward everyone. “This time was a cakewalk in comparison, considering I wasn’t raped.”

The men flinch at my words, but I keep going.

“Yeah, my nerves are frayed and I’m having problems sleeping but I’m still breathing. I can pick up the pieces and put myself back together again. So yeah, you might think I’m holding up when really I’m just faking it until I am. I’m going to start seeing a therapist again, but until we stop these people, I can’t even think about it. All I know is we need to take care of this and make this city and the surrounding cities safe again.”

I watch as respect crosses his face before turning away. “All I want to do is find these bastards and take them down. I don’t want anyone else to go through what I or those other women did.”

“And who knows how bad it would have gotten had you made it to your final destination,” Greer says softly.

I nod. “Exactly.”

I try not to shift in my seat as Bastiano stares me down.

“Alright. I’m initiating her into the family,” Bastiano says, turning toward me. “For this only. At the end of the day, you’re still a cop and I don’t trust you. Trust is earned, not given, do you understand?”

“Yes.”

He nods. “You can call me Bash. You’re going to be part of our inner sanctum, which means we are trusting you. If at the end of this, you’ve proven yourself to me and are still interested, we can reevaluate. With that being said, Tristano vouches for you and has sworn his life to you. Do you understand what that means?”

I turn and look at Tris, but he’s not meeting my gaze. I look back to Bash.

“No, sir.”

“It means he is claiming you as his woman. This will afford you protections. Add in my stamp of approval, and no one from our family will touch you. Others might not respect it though. You were still a cop at one point. They won’t trust that you aren’t still undercover doing an op. You understand?”

“I’m not. I swear. Honestly, I’m not sure I could be a cop with the way things are right now. Knowing that I would have to sit around and let girls be taken? I can’t do it. I won’t be part of a force like that.”

He nods in understanding. “What do you say, Killian? You trust her?”

Killian stares at me a moment before nodding. “I’ll vouch for her. You think they will accept it though?”

“I assume Callum will follow your lead. Harukai has always been a loose cannon. The real question is Nikolai. He doesn’t trust easily. I don’t think he will like her being a cop.”

“Former cop,” I murmur.

“Let’s find out.” Greer smiles.

* * *

Serena is freaking out,but I don’t have time to console her. I press the button that pulls the television screen down into the room. Then I enter the mile-long code, giving it access to the secure channel I set up specifically for this meeting. Only three other people have access.

Their faces pop up one by one.

I hear Serena gasp a little, her hand now digging into my leg. I take it though. I’d take anything for her.

“Thank you, gentlemen, for joining us. We have some updates to provide. First, meet Serena. She’s newly inducted into my family. Before we go any further, I need you to know that we have accepted her in and will be having her assist in this endeavor. She is uniquely qualified in two ways. One, she used to be an undercover cop that worked the beat where some of the girls were taken.”

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