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River covered her mouth with her palm as she sobbed into it, her eyes not leaving her family as her mother rushed towards her, embracing her in her arms, filled with warmth and love.

River knew that she missed them all but she hadn't realized that she had missed them so so very badly.

"Hey my baby girl!" Susan Johnson sighed into her daughter's hair. It was true that River was a thirty-year-old and a mother of two children herself but to Susan Johnson, she would always be her little baby; the one she loved so very much, worried for all the time and always prioritized over everything else. I am so glad you are safe!"

She hugged her daughter tight. She was a few inches shorter than River so she had to bent down to rest her head on her mother's chest. There was nothing in the world that could calm her and make her feel at peace like her mother and children's heart beats.

"Alright, now can I get a piece of my granddaughter?"

Susan laughed as she moved out of the way so that her mother-in-law, Lilith Johnson, could wheel forward. River knelt down before her, leaning into her palm when she rested it on her cheek. "You still haven't gained any weight." She grimaced.

River rolled her eyes as everybody else in the room laughed. No matter what in the world happened – you could come back home from a war, surgery or even a kidnapping – the first thing the grandmothers would notice was the fat content under your skin. River wondered if there were any exceptions to that.

River hugged her Nanna tight while the older woman patted her back, whispering sweet nothings in her ear.

"Where are my grandchildren?" Susan asked, pressing a napkin under her eyes, trying to absorb all the happy tears.

"Sleeping like sloths with their Papa." River replied, standing back up.

"I am so sad that they still don't know me well yet are super close to that stupid Adam." Alessia scowled while River gave her a mock-pity look for which she earned a smack on her arm.

Alessia and she hadn't been able to spend much time together either but they both had just clicked the very first time they had met. Or the second time. The first time they had properly talked to each other was in the car, on the way to the airport from her apartment after Mateo had pulled that stunt in front of everyone, training a gun against her head and all. It was the second time they met that Alessia impressed River with the grand entrance after the shootout. They had been good friends since then and would have been even closer by now if Mateo hadn't been an ass and flew back to New York after the misunderstanding.

"Let me introduce you to my family-"

"She flew us here genius." Jacqueline rolled her eyes. "And if family time is over, it's friends' time now."

River narrowed her eyes at her best friend since college. Jacqueline Meyers was like a sister to her and she had missed her very much and the first thing she said after meeting one another after so long had to be sarcastic. Classic Jackie.

"I don't know about you but I am family, you dummy." Sebastian shoved her aside and gave his little sister slash best friend from cradle to grave, his bear hug.

"You are crushing me you ass- asthmatic!" River hit him on his back trying to make him loosen his hold on her, catching her tongue from swearing at the last moment because her little godchild, Mia was also in the room.

"Gomama!" She grinned, unaware of the drama going on. She was still not getting the word 'God mom' and she was still the cutie pie she was.

"Let me go!" River hit her best friend one more time which made him place her back on the floor, a big ugly grin on his face.

River stuck her tongue out at him and hugged Alison and Mia, taking Mia in her arms as she pulled away.

"Did you miss me?" She asked her little precious godchild.

She nodded her head vigorously while they all watched her with adoration.

"Okay, my turn!" Jacqueline hugged River from the side.

River sighed. Jacqueline gave the most amazing hug in the world – she made worries disappear and body turn to mush for those few seconds.

"I missed you!!" River hugged her back with one arm.

"I know. I have so much to tell you-"

"Can we wait?" Sebastian butted in. "I am her bestest friend. I should get to fill in her on stuff first."

"Excuse me? What is bestest friend? We both are equal."

"No, I have known her for longer and even our mothers are best friends so I should get to talk to her first."

"Sebastian, you never make sense and you still aren't so shut up."

River looked between the two of them with a amused expression while they argued over who the hell was going to chat with her first.

"They do realize we all can sit and chat together, right?" Alison came and stood next to her, who looked over at her and chuckled.

"Nope." River sighed dramatically, kissing my little godchild. "You know these two are equally possessive of me, right?" She laughed.

"Oooh, so much demand for a few minutes of chat with you." Alessia nudged River in the shoulder and turned to Mia.

"Hi, I am Alessia. You can call me Sia." Alessia waved to the little girl. River raised a brow – she never told her that, or did she?

"And I am Mia." The little darling giggled.

"Oh that's nice." She cooed. "Wait till my friend gets here and then we can be Mia, Sia and Lia."

River raised a brow at her. Who's Lia now?

"Michelia, Leonardo and Lorenzo are also coming." She informed. "You know them, right?"

"Of course, I do." River rolled her eyes. "I helped deliver Enzo." Michelia had already insisted that she call that Italian masterpiece Enzo.

"Yeah, we call her Lia." She said. "The boys call her baby though, because she was the only girl after those two."

River nodded. Mateo had told her something like that. But he made it so complicated that she didn't remember what it was about.

"Hi, I am Alessia." Alessia put her hand forward to Alison while River moved back with Mia and approached her mother and grandmother.

"I am so glad you guys came." She said as she sat down next to Nanna and across from her Mom.

"I know." Susan Johnson said with tear filled eyes.

"Will you stop with the crying already, Sue?" Lilith Johnson shook her head. "It's getting old. Not to mention it doesn't suit a hardcore criminal lawyer like you!"

"Mom!!" Susan whined as she patted under her eyes with a paper towel while River and Lilith chuckled. "I am just so happy I could see you guys. Mateo was generous to let us come visit."

River nodded, her own eyes welling up with tears only to narrow a tad bit after a moment. "Mateo kept contact with you?" She quirked a brow, searching their faces for answer.

If he did and he just hadn't told her, she didn't care what dumb reason he gave her, that dumbass was a dead ass.

"I did, through Benjamin." Her mother confessed, looking at her empty plate.

Who?

'I don't know.'

River gave him a confused look as she took the spoon from the Nutella jar and gave it to Mia for her to lick. "My last case which brought all these troubles."

Ahh the sketchy guy.

'Yep. Got it.'

'Why are you back anyway?'

Because after a long time, you started reading werewolf stories again and your brain has started to think you have an inner wolf.

'Wow, that's very reassuring. I am losing my mind, aren't I?'

When did you ever have a mind to lose LOL!

River internally rolled her eyes and cleared her throat. "It's fine. At least the kids got their father due to this."

"That was a treacherous move," Sebastian took a seat next to his best friend, booping his daughter's nose as he did.

"What?" River took the spoon from Mia's hand, when she got her attention pointing at the licked clean metal, and put it in the Nutella jar and shoved a scoop of chocolatey goodness in her own mouth before getting her a scoop. She also moved the jar towards the two of them.

River decided that since they had put their saliva filled spoon in it, the two of them had no choice but to finish the whole jar.

"You ditched us and are chilling with these oldies." Sebastian pointed at his godmother.

"Who are you calling an oldie, you senile salamander?" Lilith scowled at him.

"My tongue slipped Nanna. I meant to say oldie, and I was talking about Mom, not you." Sebastian pointed at Susan yet again.

The criminal lawyer scowled and swatted his hand away while everyone laughed. The three girls also joined the table.

Alessia fit right in. They chatted over breakfast. Only Alessia and River were yet to eat but the rest of the family sat with them and talked to them about how life was going. River and Alessia had to withhold a lot of information from them because they just didn't want them to worry so much.

Of course, Jacqueline and Sebastian had exclusive content that they could tell their best friend only when they were alone. Ahhh drama queens.

"Where are your parents?" River asked Alessia as they all got up from the chairs.

"Very excited to see the in-laws I see.." She winked. "Mrs. Adesso."

River smacked her while she guffawed out loud, sounding so similar like Mateo. Of course, they would have some similarities, they are freaking siblings.

"Well, our Nonna wanted to come meet you. But she is this drama queen who is over her head." Alessia said distastefully, the aura around changing drastically. "She wanted to take her time and enjoy the beauty of Italy so she wanted to take a train? Honestly, I don't understand that woman one bit. If you ask me, it's high time she went up or to a looney bin."

River blinked. Alessia hated her grandmother? Or was that just the way she expressed her love? After all, everyone has different ways of showing it.

"But... Abrianna Costello doesn't die that easily." Alessia sighed. "She was once shot by her most trusted bodyguard of seventeen years. That too straight to the head, shot range, part of her brain spattered to the floor." Alessia shivered, visualizing it in her head. "She lost sight on her left eye but other than that, she is still hellfire!"

River nodded, taking it all in.

So Abrianna Costello was a made woman of the Mafia and a scary one at that. And from the way she spoke, Alessia happened to hate the woman's very existence. She wondered what had happened between them for her to despise her own grandmother so much, because grandchildren loved their grandparents – it was like a law of nature. They adored their grandparents. But the way Alessia talked about her grandmother made it seem like she wanted to be the one to put an end to Abrianna's life.

And River knew that kind of hatred couldn't form out of nowhere. Something really bad had happened.

"I am just going to check on the kids." River announced to everyone and before Sebastian could protest, "I will listen to your stories after that."

"You will listen to me first, right?" He asked more specifically.

"Man-child." Jacqueline rolled her eyes while Sebastian stuck his tongue out. "Yeah yeah, she will listen to your lame stories first. Then I will revive her neurons with what I have to say."

"Oh please... Stupid hospital stories are going to kill her scarce brain cells."

River rolled her eyes and walked out. She wanted to get offended at her best friend for calling hospital stories boring but she knew that Jacqueline and Sebastian were going to have a row about it anyway and she didn't have to indulge in it. It was all taken care of. Her two best friends were bickering children.

As if you aren't.

'I need a therapist.'

And a life.

River sighed. She was so mad that the voice in her head had become way too frequent. This mini bitchy version of her used to rear her head once in a blue moon and now River was having full blown conversations with her. River wondered if it had anything to do with the cookie accident – who in their right mind poisons cookies? It's so mean!

River wondered if the drug had some necrotizing effect on her brain tissue.

No, it means you are terrified out of your wits but you just don't want to accept it and it's eating away at your scarce brain cells.

River sighed and shook her head violently. She wondered if she was really going crazy – that was kind of the last thing she needed right now.

River opened the bedroom door very slowly, not wanting to make any noise that would wake the three up but they already were.

And Mateo's legs were up in right angles, Kiara lying on top while he held on to her arms while she posed like Superman. Lucas was taking pictures with Mateo's phone.

River sighed. God, these kids! She felt like she had three of them.

"That is going to come off really blurred." River commented as she walked in.

The three stopped what they were doing and looked at her like deers caught in headlights. At least they had the decency to look scared.

River held out her hand and Lucas handed the phone over to her, hugging her waist after.

"Alright let's make this quick." River said and they started posing as she took the pictures, Kiara and Lucas taking turns.

"Alright that's enough." She said finally, sending some of the photos to herself as well. She had a scrapbook to maintain. "Now, did you two brush your teeth?"

"Yes mommy." The kids nodded, their grins still in place. At least they woke up happy.

"Hmm.. Then follow the noise downstairs and you will find your surprise." River tried to sound enthusiastic but she was feeling very pessimistic so she couldn't bring it to her voice.

Their eyes and grins widened even more, not registering their mother's negative mood. She didn't even think that was possible. They took off like their tails were on fire while her eyes followed them, a smile forming on her face for a brief moment before it went back to a scowl.

"What's going on River?"

She turned to Mateo to see that he had a mixture of emotions on his face – concern, sadness, disappointment, annoyance, anger and frustration.

"Nothing." River shrugged. "I guess I am still tired."

"Are you angry that I brought your kids to the Mafia headquarters?" He asked, sitting up, looking like he was trying to control his annoyance.

River rolled her eyes. River had decided that she would keep it together and let it go, and that it was a small thing and she didn't need to make a big deal out of it but every single time, Mateo managed to get on her nerves with his assumptions. He was a man-child who always jumped into conclusions and decided he was right.

"I am angry." She said finally. "I am angry you didn't tell me you still had contact with Mom, through Benjamin or whoever he is."

"I didn't want you to miss them too much." He said stubbornly.

She blew out a frustrated breath. "It takes a bit more than lack of contact for me to not miss them, Mateo."

"So that's it?" He stood up. "You are being a killjoy for this reason now?"

"How am I being a killjoy?"

"Look at the mirror and you will know how you are doing it!" He exclaimed and walked away, slamming the bathroom door shut, making her jump.

River blew out more deep breaths, trying to calm herself down as she sat down on the edge of the bed. She rubbed her face with her palms.

'What the hell is happening?'

'Why the hell am I acting like this? I should have just let it go!'

She didn't blame Mateo for reacting the way he did because it's like someone had flipped a switch in her head since the last day and all of a sudden no matter how happy she was, her mood just spiraled back to being blah once she was alone or once she was left to just think about life.

Ugh.

'What is happening?'

You know what.

'SHUT UP!'

River shrieked as she covered her ears feeling manic all of a sudden.

"River?" Mateo's muffled voice reached her ear from the other side of the door but she couldn't bring herself to respond.

Her heart started aching.

She started to feel suffocated and a dull long sound invaded her ears.

She could feel her vision blur, clouded with tears.

'What is happening?'

River slid off the bed and onto the floor.

She curled into a ball, trying to breathe.

She couldn't breathe.

"River?" She vaguely heard Mateo's voice as the bathroom door opened.

Black spots invaded her vision as she watched legs approaching her and then all went black.

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