“You both are fucking idiots,” Alek growls. “You both have put my daughters in danger.”
“They agreed to make peace,” Nina says. “But you have to agree to it too. If you want me and Susanna to stay safe, you have to agree to it, Alek. You know you do.”
Alek looks between all of us, clearly angry, and clearly not wanting to make peace but… then he sighs and slumps onto a nearby chair. “I just want this fighting to be over. I just want to know that both my daughters are safe.”
“I know you have every reason to hate me,” I say. “But Susanna and I are married now. She chose to marry me. I get her in a way no one else does. She will be happy with me. I’ll take care of her. I promise. And if I’m being honest… I’m tired of being in hiding. I’m tired of always looking over my shoulder. I don’t want to lose Susanna. And if she makes it through, then I’m willing to make peace. For her.”
Alek gives me a hard stare before he nods. “For some reason, I believe you. I don’t like any of this. I want to kill both of you. But… if it means protecting both Nina and Susanna by ending this war, then I’m on board.” He holds out his hand to me. “Deal.”
I don’t hesitate to shake it.
Chapter Nineteen
Susanna
When I wake up, I see Gabriel, my sister, my mom, and Alek all at my side. Which is an unusual sight. So much so that I think I must be dreaming before I realize that I’m not.
“What’s going on?” I ask, my voice groggy.
“Shush,” Mom says, squeezing my hand. “You’re out of surgery. You were shot but you survived. Fortunately, the bullet didn’t hit any vital organs. You’re going to pull through. You’ll just have to rest and recover.”
That’s when I remember: Luca was the one who shot me.
“Luca?”
Nina frowns. “He’s waiting outside. He figured you wouldn’t want to see him.”
“He shot me,” I say flatly.
“To get to me,” Gabriel intervenes. “Luca and I agreed to make peace for yours and Nina’s sake.”
A flicker of hope enters my chest. “Truly?”
“Yes. We hate each other but we’re willing to do this. I’m willing to do this. For you.”
His admission catches me off guard. Gabriel has always been filled with darkness but right now, he’s letting me in. Letting me see the vulnerable, real side to him.
“I need to talk to Luca first,” I say. “I need to know he won’t try to kill me again.”
“I’ll go get him,” Nina says, leaving the room and coming back a moment later with Luca.
“Susanna,” he begins. To his credit, there’s guilt in his eyes. “I am sorry. I never meant for you to get hurt.”
“But you didn’t care if I was in the way, did you?”
He hesitates before sighing. “I was hellbent on going after Gabriel. I didn’t care about anything else and I should have. I should have thought about you and Nina. And for that, I am sorry. All I can do now is make peace with my enemy. To make things right. I’m willing to fight for peace if you are. If Gabriel is.”
“I already agreed,” Gabriel explains. “But you have to agree too, Susanna.”
I look around at all the people closest to me. The love in my mom’s eyes. The relief in Alek’s. And the pride in my sister’s. She had the chance to grow into a woman she could be proud of when she married Luca and I want the same.
I want to live in a new life where I can be happy. Where I don’t have to be filled with so much anger. Where I can make the people around me proud.
The old me would have made Luca’s life a living hell for shooting me but I know he truly didn’t mean to hurt me. This new me has to grow and change. Has to be better.
And for the sake of everyone in this room, peace needs to happen. It’s the only way to keep all of us safe.
“I want peace too,” I say. “I want it more than anything.”
