Alessandro and Giovanni talked to Val in private and gave her instructions as she would be going to Chicago with the Morellis. Mariano kept a safe distance and waited at the lounge while Gael spoke to Gabriella.

His sister had been sniffling since she spoke to their father, and he gave her his handkerchief, then she wiped her cheeks with it. "Are you crying because you're regretting what you did?" he asked.

"Che?" What? Gabriella knitted her brows at him. "No. I mean, it sucks, but that's not why." She let out a sigh. "I just really miss all of you. I knew what I was getting into, but it doesn't change the fact that I'll be alone in a different place. I don't know anyone there besides him," she glanced at Mariano, "and we're not even friends, not really," she said.

"Does he… Is he nice to you?"

She swallowed. "He can be an asshole, but he's not purposely mean to me. I barely see him, actually. He's always going somewhere."

Gael had a lot of questions for her, most of them wanting to make sure that she wasn't being abused there, but before he could open his mouth, she'd already changed the conversation.

"Yesterday…" She hesitated, looking down at her feet while her eyes began to mist again. "How did it go?"

"The funeral was beautiful. He would've loved it if he was there. We played all the songs he loved at the Manor after the service. We closed the clubs for a few days." A distinct pang weighed down his chest as he whipped out his phone and showed his sister a few photos from yesterday. J was cremated, and Gael brought the urn back to his Brooklyn house. Mika was staying at Nonna's where a lot of people could watch over her as Gael was always out for work and could not watch her all the time.

He took a deep breath and steeled himself as he recalled what J told him during his last moments. "He said he loved you. Before he… Before he passed, he asked me if he could date you. Jino wanted to marry you, Gab. He asked for my permission." Gabriella lifted her gaze to meet his, and her lips trembled. "I gave him my blessing."

"I miss him." Her voice quivered. "Do you think he hates me now?"

Gael shook his head. "A person who loves you could never hate you. I'm sure he sees how brave you are."

She exhaled an exhausted sigh.

"Gab." He grabbed her shoulders and looked her in the eye as he told her, "Promise me you'll watch your back. Val will be coming with you, but she might not always be next to you. Don't let anyone ever lay a hand on you. Don't let them touch you without your permission. If you need to hurt someone to defend yourself, do not hesitate. And you call me, Dad, or Gio. Anytime. I mean it. I don't care if it's three in the morning. We'll come get you."

***

Brooklyn, New York

Alessandro called all the family members to a meeting at Nonna's house. It was the first sit-down in a long time where he had to break down the news. Gabriella's mother was crushed that she cried the whole time, though she sobbed quietly. Alessandro didn't reveal everything regarding the state at the Morellis' territory—not even to Gael and Giovanni. The Dons kept their conversation confidential. However, he assured them that Mariano promised that Gabriella's safety was a top priority.

After a long day, Gael went back home to his brownstone with Giovanni tagging along with him. The latter was bound to fly back to London in a couple of days. Even though the matter with the Morellis had been neutralized at the moment, Alessandro still ordered him to continue staying in London.

The two shared a drink while they waited for Val to check in with them. At ten in the evening, they finally got some messages.

[ V: Got settled in the haunted mansion. I swear, there are spiders in here and maybe the bogeyman under my bed. I'd love to call, but I don't know if there are bugs here. Should have brought more gears. ]

[ Gael: Haunted mansion? How's Gabby? ]

[ V: I'm doing great, thank you very much for asking about me. ???? Yes, the mansion creeps me out. It's mostly dark in here. Heavy furnitures. It's clean tho. But quite eerie. Reminds me of grandpa Sev's mansion a little. Gabby's… acting fine. I'll keep an eye on her. ]

Once upon a time, most of the De Lucas used to live in a huge mansion that had been around even before Gael's great grandfather built his empire in New York. A fire nearly engulfed the entire building a few years ago, and they were still rebuilding it.

[ Gael: Don't forget to send us the layout of the house. The blueprint, if possible. Is your room near Gabby's? ]

[ V: No. Mine's on the east, Gabby's on the west, and Mariano's on the North. ]

Gael and Giovanni looked at each other, noting the separate bedrooms of the married couple. They couldn't tell if this was a good thing or a bad thing, but they were certainly relieved that Gabby didn't have to share rooms with the man.

[ Gael: Keep us updated. Grazie, Val. Buona notte. ]

A faint lamp illuminated the living room, giving a warm glow to the space. Giovanni let out a long sigh as he sank deeper into an armchair. "You think it's really over? I find that quite hard to believe."

Gael swirled the ice inside his glass of whiskey, thinking about the unknown future. "I don't think it will ever be over. We just have to keep going."

***

Mayne City, Esmea

"Okay… What about… Rom and Juli," Nina slurred as she peered above the glass of Cape Codder—a cocktail mixture of vodka and cranberry made at the best kitchen bar tonight—Antonina's kitchen. Angela and Nina wanted to have a nightcap, and fortunately, they had all the ingredients in the fridge.

In the past hour, they had been brainstorming about the title of Angela's next book over a drink—well, Angela had a drink while Nina already had three, and she had increasingly become giggly.

Angela narrowed her eyes at her best friend, her voice full of sarcasm when she said, "That is such a creative title for a trope inspired by Romeo and Juliet."

Nina beamed. "I know, right? I'm such a genius! Maybe I should start something."

"Maybe you should stop drinking." Angela tried to snatch Nina's drink, but she hugged it protectively against her chest with a pout.

Letting out a sigh, Angela climbed down the stool and placed her glass in the sink, saying good night to Nina and kissing her cheek. "Don't stay up too late." Her eyelids grew heavy, and she was ready to turn in for the night but not before taking a quick shower.

For the past few days, Angela had been feeling uncreative and unproductive. Although she went out and did things, it didn't really satisfy her at the end of the day. She tried to put her focus on the new book that she had been dying to write, but even that wasn't doing anything. So earlier, she thought maybe if she decided on the title first, it might spark some ideas. Angela knew what to write. She knew what the whole story was about, even had a draft outline, but her page remained blank.

She was missing her muse.

And although she didn't want to admit it, she knew where to find it—it just wasn't as easy as taking it and keeping it with her.

It was nearly midnight when she finally lay in bed and covered herself with the blanket. Catching the moon glow passing through the slits of the curtain made her turn to her side and stare at the stars in the sky through the window. She missed Gael. Terribly. For days now. And she wondered if he even had the chance to take a breather, sleep, and eat. There was still no word from him the whole day. She decided that if she still didn't hear from him in the morning, she'd have to call again, someone, anyone. Angela just needed to know he was okay. It didn't matter now if she'd look clingy.

Her phone on the nightstand rattled, producing a familiar melody— "Alone With You" by Ashlee —and her eyes widened.

Angela's heart raced as she grabbed her phone to see if she wasn't only imagining it. But then there it was… An invitation sent by the only man who had access to this particular app and even chose the song as the notification with her a week ago.

The application only had one custom message on the screen in the form of an invitation that she had to answer "Yes" or "No".

[ I need you. ]

She was a little surprised that Gael's first contact in a while would be from the vibrator app synced to their phones. A thrill began to build at the base of her spine at the thought of him initiating a long-distance intimacy. This was certainly unexpected but not at all unwelcome.