Victor and I arrived at JFK airport early to check in. We had reserved a morning flight on Alitalia’s premium business class. They provided some of the best service around for business travelers to Italy; luxury seats, gourmet meals and many extra amenities needed when work had to be done during the trip.
Once we boarded the plane and found our spots, Victor had suggested we enjoy our meal before going over our caseloads; I happily agreed. We settled in and awaited the customary announcements from the cockpit. The pilot stated that everything was good to go and we were to arrive on schedule and land in Rome by midnight their time.
I took the liberty and booked two suites at The Inn at the Spanish Steps. I had stayed there in the past and loved the quiet elegance of the place. We needed to meet with clients on Wednesday for a dinner meeting and after telling Victor I reserved rooms at the Inn, he suggested we get room service and have the meeting in the suite.
I had to agree with him that the Inn had a relaxed atmosphere and would be the perfect place to meet with our clients and then rest up before we headed out to Capri Thursday afternoon to check in on the progress that was made at the vineyard house.
Breakfast was perfect; an egg white and vegetable frittata, assorted breads and jams, and of course, much needed Espresso. I felt good, but I wanted the meeting and the trip to be over as quickly as possible, so I could get back to Rain and our children. I hated being away from them every time I left the house, but even more so when I had to travel. I wished Rain and the twins could’ve come with us, but she was right, it was far too soon for them to travel, especially after everything they had been through.
Once breakfast was completed, Victor excused himself to speak with an old friend he recognized when we boarded the flight. I hadn’t slept much last night. I never do when I know I have to leave Rain, so I decided to use this time for a quick power nap before Victor returned.
My plan to sleep was thwarted by the voice of an unwelcome passenger.
“I never thought today would be my lucky day. It must be fate that brought us together again.” Madison stated, as she leaned in close, too close and whispered in my ear.
I didn’t move, nor open my eyes, but I did make it a point to address her. “I suggest that you get up and return to your appointed seat.” My voice was cold and tight.
“I see, you’re afraid that your wife’s daddy will see you with me and report back to her.” She continued, as she rested her hand on my bicep.
I ignored her statement, but slowly turned to face her while I placed my free hand around her wrist to remove her unwanted fingers from my arm. Her gaze followed my action, as she slowly tried, but failed to pull away from my grip.
My fingers tightened when I spoke. “I will say this again, just in case you didn’t hear me the first time. I said you need to return to your seat and leave me alone.”
She yanked her hand away abruptly, rubbed her wrist, and then gingerly straightened her posture before she spoke again.
“You and I should have never broken up, Nicky. Look how up-tight you are now.”
My pulse increased with my anger, as she continued to speak.
“You were never this tense when you and I…Oh, I get it now.” She stopped, as if she remembered something important that was crucial to the point she was about to make.
“I don’t know what you think you get, but I want you gone. Do you get that?” My voice made an impression because she trembled, as my words sliced through her, but it didn’t stop her in the least.
“She doesn’t give you want you need, that’s apparent.”
“Shut up.” I raised my voice slightly, while I tried not to disturb any of the other passengers.
“Hmmm…it appears that I’ve hit a nerve. She doesn’t give you what you're used to or does she even know how?” She taunted.
“I said shut your mouth!” I turned and before I knew what I was doing, I had my hand around her throat.
Though constricted, she still managed to talk.
“Just like old times.”
Victor returned just in time to diffuse the situation, but passengers began to notice that something was wrong.
“Dominick let her go…now.” His voice was low, as he demanded that I comply with what he requested.
I was hesitant, but I did what Victor asked of me.
At this point, the flight attendant came over to see what all of the commotion was about.
“Signore Medici, Signore Kane, is there a problem here?” The woman could tell that the situation between Madison and myself had become intense, so she warned that she needed to alert the in-flight marshals.
“That won’t be necessary. It was just a misunderstanding between two old friends. I can assure you that everything is fine. I apologize for any disturbance we may have caused to you or our fellow passengers.” Victor then smiled at the young woman to convince her that the situation was under control and that security need not be involved.
She nodded at him with an agreeable smile and quietly returned to her station.
Madison stood up to walk away, but before she did, she made sure to get in the last word.
“I promise that you will regret this incident, Nicky.”
I stood up and looked around before I quietly confronted her.
“I will always regret you, Madison.”
She grinned, as if she knew something I didn’t know.
Finally, she turned to leave, but before she did, she paused to turn back and make one last idle threat. “Enjoy the little time you have left with that wife of yours, because when I get through with you, Nicky, the only time you’ll spend with her, will be talking through plate glass.”
I went to move toward her, but Victor placed his hand over my chest and guided me back in front of my seat.
“One incident that could alert security is one too many, Dominick. Now sit down.”
I didn’t like being told what to do.
“Do not make a scene, Dominick.”
I stared at my father-in-law. Perhaps it was a challenge on my part to preserve my manhood. Regardless of what I did, Victor didn’t waiver.
“Sit.” He stated one last time.
I did what he said, and yet I knew I was about to regret it, because Victor made it clear that we were going to have a heart-to-heart talk instead of going over our briefs for the meeting tomorrow.
“Do you want to explain to me what just transpired between you and Ms. Van Buren?”
“I closed my eyes to relax while you went to speak with your friend. A few moments later she sat down. I guess she waited for you to leave. She started to spew her typical, obsessive shit. We should have never broken up. I’m the only one for you, Nicky.” I stopped and just shook my head. I couldn’t believe she was back to cause trouble. I thought I was rid of her and her father a long time ago.
“That doesn’t explain why you had your hand wrapped around her neck.” Victor prompted me to elaborate on what he had walked in on.
“She started to talk about Rain and…I don’t fucking know…I just lost it.”
Victor shook his head for whatever reason…annoyance with my actions, regret that he didn’t talk Rain out of marrying me, I don’t know. But what I did know was that a lecture was coming and I was in no position to walk away from him.
“You need to get control over your reactions when it comes to Rain or anything having to do with her. You cannot appear weak or show that she is your weakness, especially where the Van Burens are concerned.”
“Don’t you think I know that, Victor?”
“Then, if you know it…it’ll be easy.”
“Nothing is ever easy when it comes to my feelings for your daughter.”
“Then, let the actions of Ms. Van Buren be your motivator.”
I looked at Vincent and nodded. I knew what he meant. Madison was not on this flight by coincidence. She somehow knew my schedule. Other than my family, only the Detective Stack and my employees knew where I would be this week.
“This means that someone who is employed at the firm is not only working for us, but is also working for them. This could explain how Madison knew to show up at the shore house for my birthday.”
“I was thinking the same thing. Yet who could it be? As you know I haven’t hired any new employees for a long time and even with the merger, your employees have also been established with you for years.” Victor made some valid points, but there was one employee who came to mind…Michael.
“Victor, I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but perhaps Michael was involved.”
My father-in-law looked forward, as he placed a closed fist over his mouth. It was something that had crossed his mind, but it was also something he didn’t want to think about. How could I blame him? He knew Michael his entire life. He was to marry his daughter until recent events cancelled the nuptials. He was a good attorney. To think that he now, after all of that history, had to question Michael’s loyalty of the firm, let alone his family, didn’t sit well with Victor. Yet, it had to be mentioned. No stone could be left unturned.
He tilted his head back and ran his fingers from his chin down to his neck repeatedly. He was contemplating his next move or pondering what I had just mentioned as possibly a valid concern. He didn’t turn to look at me when he revealed what he was thinking.
“You know, when I agreed all of those years back to take Mike in and let him stay with us, I did it out of guilt. His parents, Cella and I were friends for years. I felt I owed it to them to help anyway I could with Mike after the complicated world they lived their lives around.”
“You mean Rain’s world?”
Then he turned to me and spoke softly, as if he was a defeated man. “Yes, the world my wife created. The world that I allowed to continue to exist.” He stopped for a moment before he began again. “Look, I can’t take back how we lived then, but I can make life better for both of my daughters now.”
“That’s not your job any longer, Victor.” I interrupted.
“It will always be my job. Just like it will always be your job to make your twin’s lives better, no matter how old they are.”
“You’re right. I never want to see my family unhappy. I can’t allow that. I’ll always try to fix it.”
Victor smiled because he knew that many times the methods I used to fix things had Rain and me at odds. Perhaps, it was typical of the methods he used with his wife.
“I’m going to give you one piece of advice. You can take it or leave it, but I’m going to give it to you regardless. Tell Rain the truth. Don’t hold anything back. My daughter loves you with everything she’s got. You’ve given her a life she never thought would be possible for her and her condition, but you have to show her you trust her enough to be honest and that you believe that she is strong enough to take whatever you have to say. If you can do that, much of what you both struggle with would finally disappear.” He paused for a moment. “Like I said, take it or leave it, but I know my daughter. She has this uncanny ability to forgive almost anything, as long as you're truthful.”
After the unexpected and unwelcome disruption that occurred during the flight, Victor and I agreed that we would review the briefs for our meeting tomorrow morning after a good night’s sleep. Victor also stated that when he returned to New York he would place his focus on Michael and his possible connection to everything that had been going on in the past few months. I promised him that I would tell Rain what happened on the flight and I would update her on the information we had on the investigation thus far. For all involved, I secretly hoped we didn’t find out that Michael was the person who set this all in motion.
I have always depended on my instincts when I had to deal with my enemies. And although I would have loved to shield Rain from this and any situation that could potentially harm her in her life because of all the shit she dealt with in her past, now it finally became clear to me that no matter how much I wanted to keep Rain out of harm’s way, I knew that it was impossible in this case, if I kept her in the dark.
Rain and I loved one another passionately. We could always get that part of our relationship right. The part of our relationship that was a difficult obstacle for us was my undeniable thirst for control and my frustration when Rain would not comply.
Yet, after seeing just how far Madison could potentially take her agenda by her appearance on the plane, I knew I would protect Rain as I always had, but I also needed to arm her with knowledge. Knowledge that would not only make her less vulnerable, but knowledge that in my mind may help her come to the realization that her insistent curiosity to find that truth could get her hurt this time.
The plane landed on time without any further disruption. When we exited, Madison was nowhere to be found. She mysteriously slithered away, as mysteriously as she came.
Victor and I checked in at the Inn after midnight. Rome is a beautiful city, but its late night dining was scarce. With that in mind, I called ahead to the hotel and had them prepare both Victor and I a platter of Antipasto to leave in our refrigerators for when we had arrived.
We said good night and we each went to our designated suites. I didn’t wait to get changed. I washed my face and immediately phoned Rain.
“Hello, handsome.” The sound of Rain’s sultry and knowing tone instantly quelled my pent up anxiety that had developed earlier on the plane.
“Angel,” I exhaled a whisper, as I addressed my wife. I was exhausted, but I knew I came across solemn, almost defeated.
“Dominick, is everything okay? You don’t sound like yourself.” Rain’s immediate worry was obvious.
“I need you, Rain.” Maybe I was defeated. I, for the life of me, didn’t want to be here. I didn’t want to check on the vineyard house, nor did I want to meet with any new clients. I just wanted to go home and be with my family.
“Now I know there’s something wrong. So, what is it?” Rain was adamant for my answer.
But all I truly wanted to do was relax, lay back, close my eyes and listen to her soft voice soothe me. I wanted to hear her smile through the phone as she spoke to me. I wanted to hear her laugh and tell me about her day with our twins, but I knew I had to reveal to her what had happened on the flight over to Italy.
I bitterly sighed and explained what happened. “Madison was one of the passengers on the flight over here.”
Rain stopped me before I could go on. “You’re joking, right?”
“I wish I were.”
“I can always tell when you’re upset and tonight’s phone call is no different, but I hadn’t expected Madison Van Buren to be the reason that you didn’t sound right. So tell me what happened.”
“Your dad and I boarded with no problems and then after we talked, he mentioned he had seen an old friend at check-in and wanted to catch up briefly with him. He left his seat and I decided to close my eyes to rest for a bit while he was gone. Not too long after that she sat down and started in with her dramatics.” My voice became tense.
“What do you mean with ‘her dramatics’?”
I didn’t know how to explain my sex life with Madison. It was nothing like what Rain and I had. I know I had to tell her, as uncomfortable as it may be for me to talk about and for Rain to hear, especially since Madison seemed outwardly curious about Rain and myself. As she taunted me earlier with our past together, I knew her intent would be to tell Rain eventually. It was far better coming from me than having to hear it from that bitch.
“She hinted at the fact that she was going to reveal my personal life with her.”
“So what? You've already discussed that with me. What else is there to talk about?” Rain seemed blatantly unmoved by Madison’s antics this time.
“The obvious, Angel,” Even I couldn’t get the words out.
“Ahh, she wants to tell me what an amazing sex life you two had together. So we can compare notes? Am I right?”
“You're right on the money, baby.”
“Unbelievable” That’s all Rain said.
“What?” I wasn’t sure what to make of Rain’s statement.
“I find it unbelievable that she would go to these lengths not just to see you again, but to threaten you with exposing your sex life with her to me. Unless…” Rain stopped, as if she remembered something.
“Unless, what?” I asked, but was unsure where Rain was going with this or if I truly wanted to know what she was about to say.
“Unless, she believes that what you did with her was more intimate than what we have together. It’s her way of having something more with you than I have and something she feels she can hold over your head.”
The Ties That Bind (Miss Taken Identity #3) Page 17
