The Heiress

They headed back to the Bertolottis estate, and Zain immediately went to talk to Ray. Vincent grabbed his jacket, hat, and gun from near the door, where he left it in a show of faith, but who would've known he'd need it for their little excursion?

How did they know we were there? We only decided that at the last moment, so they must've been following us. But to even know we left the house, doesn't that mean they're watching the house?

Vincent leant down to look into her face. "Thinking about something quite hard, are you?"

"What? Oh! I'm sorry. It's just... Ah, never mind."

"No, say what's on your mind. Please." He stood up straight, his full attention on her.

"None of our outing was planned, so they must have been watching us, but from where? After the last incident, I thought they would've had more guards around outside, keeping an eye out for anyone, but somehow we were followed."

Vincent nodded. "It's hard to have eyes and ears everywhere. If you are short on staff or anything, may I offer some of my own?"

"That won't be necessary." Ray appeared at the top of the stairs. "I will be remedying this situation." He descended the stairs with Zain close behind him. He held his hand out to Vincent. "I must thank you for saving my granddaughter, and for cleaning up the mess."

They shook hands. "Of course, I'd protect her. Although it seems hardly needed with how well she handled herself. She is a good fighter."

Ray turned his attention to Grace and dropped his hand on her head. "I'm glad to hear it, but I'd prefer if she didn't have to fight a bunch of grown men on her own. The Marini family is now in my sights, and I plan to deal with them swiftly."

"Do we actually know why they're after me?" Grace asked.

He pulled his hand back. "Because they don't want the Bertolottis family to grow any bigger and stronger. They also hold a long-standing grudge against me, and I them." A flash of pain crossed on his face. He turned back to Vincent. "It's personal."

"I see. Well, feel free to ask for help later, should you need it, regardless of how this turns out." He glanced at Grace. "I hope our families will at least have a strong friendship; a partnership of understanding, where we can live and thrive together."

"I, too, hope for that. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a rat to deal with." They nodded to each other, and Ray patted her on the head again before leaving.

"I swear he thinks I'm a little kid still." Grace tried to fix her hair.

"To him, you are, and probably always will be. It tends to be that way with grandparents. Parents, too, I would imagine."

"Oh right... You lost yours when you were young, too, right?"

"Yes, but not as young as you. I was fifteen, and I had to take over as head of the family."

"Shouldn't they have had an underboss to fill in until you were at least an adult or something?"

"They offered, but I felt like that would hinder my power and control over the family. It would be seen as something weak to do."

Her brows furrowed. "But at fifteen you were still a kid."

He lightly pressed in between her furrowed brows. "Don't worry so much. It's in the past, and it was my decision. I grew up in this life; I was prepared for it."

"No one is prepared to lose their parents."

He faltered for a moment, and his hand fell to his side. "I suppose you're right. I did what I had to do given the situation, though."

"Were you given time to grieve?"

"The whole family grieved. My parents were great leaders."

"As in both of them?"

"Yes; they were quite the duo, and both considered the bosses of our family."

"So there are female leaders in the mafia? It's just my grandfather who doesn't want that?"

He raised an eyebrow. "I suppose he'd prefer to protect you, and keep you away from the worst part of it all. You were dragged into it; it's not the same. Besides, would you actually want to run the family? There's a lot of darkness you'd have to deal with. In the long run, I think it'd be up to you to decide the fate of the family." He took her hand, and she expected him to kiss the back of it again, but instead, he tugged her in close. His hand around her waist, he kissed her on the cheek. "Until next time, cara mia. Take care," he whispered into her ear and then left.

Grace stood there for a moment, stunned, with her heart racing a mile a minute.

"A kiss on the cheek, and you're that overwhelmed?"

"Ah!" Grace jumped away from Zain, who had popped up behind her. "Don't do that!"

"It's not like I hid my footsteps or anything. So, have you fallen for the charmer already?"

"I... Uh... I don't know about that."

"If not, then he at least left you wanting more." Zain pointed at her face. "At least, that's what your face tells me."

She swatted his finger away. "It's rude to point. What are you doing here, anyway? I thought you went with my grandpa?"

"We had a few words, and he sent me back."

"And here I thought I was getting alone time for a moment."

"You weren't alone. Ran," Zain called out for his assistant, and he popped up beside Grace.

"What the hell?" She jumped again and inched away from him. "What are you, a ninja or something?"

"Something like that," Zain said. "You can head off now, Ran."

"Sir." Ran bowed and headed for the kitchen, where Mary was coming from.

"Grace! Why do you look so ragged? Are you okay?" Mary asked her.

"Do I look that bad right now?" Grace tried to check her clothes and hair.

"Yes! And you have dinner with the boss later. We can't have you looking like this. You need a shower and better clothes. Dear, I thought you were out on a date, but you look like you were exercising."

"Technically, it was both."

"Come on; let's get you cleaned up before you leave a sweat stain on my floor." Mary tugged her along.

Sweat stain?! I'm not sweating that badly, am I?

Grace sat in a hot bath after washing up, staring at the ceiling. Should I just expect to be attacked again? This time, grandfather will be there. Would they still aim for me, or him? I'd feel better if I had a gun, but I doubt they're going to give me one again unless something is already happening. I wonder if they've done something about the people earlier. They don't tell me anything; I'm completely out of the loop! She swung her hand down at the water, making it splash out of the tub.

Is it always going to be like this? Even when someone else takes over, I'll just be pushed around and kept in the dark. What if I actually grow to care about them? I'd hate to be kept like that!

"Arg!" she let out a growl and slapped the water again.

"Are you taking a bath or having a fight in there?" Zain asked from the other side of the bathroom door.

"What...? Are you hanging out in my room listening to me?"

"I'm your bodyguard and watcher; of course, I'm here."

Geez... Can't even be alone when I'm in the bath! She leaned into the water until it went to just under her nose.

"Grace?" She was quiet for a few minutes, so he called out to her. "Everything alright in there?"

Ugh... go away... Oh... Her head spun a bit, and she shook it off. What in the world was that? I should probably get out, but this is as close to being alone as I can get. Grace sighed and blew bubbles in the water.

Another dizzy spell hit, and her vision blurred.

Knock, knock. "Grace? I know you're still in there; this is the only exit from that bathroom." Zain leaned in close to the door to listen. "You've been in there quite a while... Are you okay?"

"Ugh..." Everything started to go dark, and she went limp.

Zain knocked again. "If you don't answer me, I'll come in there whether you want me to or not."

When she didn't answer, he cursed under his breath and kicked the door open. His eyes went straight to her, her eyes closed as she laid in the tub. Thankfully, her nose was still above the water.

"Damn it, Grace... Crazy woman," Zain grumbled and threw a towel on the floor beside the tub. "She's gonna kill me," he mumbled as he drove his arms into the water and picked her up. He set her down on the towel and wrapped it around her before picking her up again. "Who stays in the bath until they pass out?" Zain set her down on her bed. "I'll be right back with someone who can help you."