Page 56 of Ivory Crown
And I had no idea how the fuck I was supposed to get out of this one.
Chapter Thirty-Four: Dante
Sunlight barged in uninvited, its rays like prying fingers through the half-drawn curtains. I blinked away sleep’s last stand, my senses sharpening to the midday quiet of the penthouse. The soft warmth of Jade beside me was a contrast to the chill of duty awaiting beyond these sheets. With a reluctant exhale, I reached for my phone, its screen too bright against the lingering fog of my thoughts.
“Morning already came and went, didn’t it?” I muttered to no one, slipping from bed with the stealth of shadows I knew too well. My bare feet found the cool tile of the living room.
I started pacing, feeling the pull of family—of blood stained in ways I couldn’t wash off. The phone felt heavy in my hand as I dialed the number that connected me to a world I both commanded and despised. I didn’t know if Marco would have his phone, so this was the easiest way to get in touch.
“Marco Moretti’s room,” I demanded, my voice steady despite the chaos brewing inside.
“Connecting you now,” the voice on the other end said before the line clicked and hissed like a fuse set ablaze.
“Hey, it’s me,” Marco’s voice crackled through, each syllable laced with a pain he tried to mask.
“You sound like hell warmed over,” I commented, jaw clenched tight enough to crush stone.
“Ah, just another day in paradise,” he quipped back, but the jest fell flat, landing with the weight of reality we both bore.
“How are you, really?”
“It’s fine. Manageable,” he claimed, obviously lying.
“Good,” I said, another lie bitter on my tongue. “I’ll swing by soon, alright? Just gotta sort some things out here first.”
“Sure, sure,” Marco replied, a hint of resignation bleeding through. “Just... don’t take your sweet time, Dante.”
“Of course.”
“There’s something else I need to ask you for,” he said. “I need you to tell Ma.”
“Ma doesn’t know yet?” I frowned, the weight of neglected duties settling on my shoulders. How had Dad not told her?
“I don’t think Dad has yet and I want to see her,” Marco continued, each word punching the air out of me.
“She’s going to freak out,” I warned him, already dreading the fallout.
“I know, but...I want to see her.”
“Of course,” I replied, a promise etching itself into my resolve. “I’ll go get her before I swing by.”
Steeling myself for the day ahead, I glanced at the clock—noon—and felt the demands of my dual lives pressing in. The room seemed smaller all of a sudden, the walls inching closer with expectations. But before I could face the outside world again, there was one thing I needed to do.
Something really important.
I strode back to the bedroom, my movements silent, a stark contrast to the emotional noise in my head. She lay there, still ensconced in the sheets, a serene figure amidst my turmoil. I lingered by the bottom of the bed, watching her for a moment in quiet contemplation.
“Jade,” I whispered, though she didn’t stir.
The city outside might be ruthless, the family business unforgiving, but here, in this moment, I allowed myself the illusion of tranquility. Soon, I’d have to shatter it, along with the delicate balance we’d so far manage to maintain.
But had we?
She had tried to leave.
I knew the gravity of what lay ahead; it was mirrored in the tightening of my chest, the silent vows I made to protect her from my reality.
“Jade, you can’t leave,” I rehearsed the words I’d soon have to say aloud. The words tasted like betrayal on my tongue, but I had to do this. There was no other way to make her understand.