Authors Note: Thank you to everyone left comments or sent me feedback about previous chapters of this story. Thank you to Margaret who proofread for me. I hope you enjoy this chapter. ~ellie
*****
“For fucks sake,” Nik raged at the constables who approached her cell. “If my Uncle is here to bail me out, he is in no danger from me.”
“Stand against the back wall please, Miss Donati,” the constable repeated respectfully.
“I’ve done nothing wrong,” she screeched at him. She couldn’t believe her family had left her here over night, and she desperately needed Charles to get her out of here. She stepped back against the wall unhappily. She had learned last night that it was pointless to fight these fuckers. She just had to be patient. Donati’s didn’t go to jail. She would be out of here within hours, she reassured herself.
Nik complained bitterly as she was handcuffed and guided out of her cell into an interrogation room and sat opposite a middle aged gentleman who sat looking through a file.
“Would you like me to stay?” The constable asked the man who looked up from his reading and assessed the woman in front of him.
“Perhaps if you could stand outside the door while I get to know my client and lay down some ground rules,” the man said looking back down at the evidence he had received via courier that morning ignoring Nik for the moment.
“Where is my Uncle,” Nik demanded through gritted teeth her temper flaring at the disrespect of the man who called her a client.
“He isn’t coming. None of your family have consented to be here with you. My name is Lawrence Kerrigan. Your family have engaged me as your lawyer,” he said.
“You’re not my lawyer,” Nik spat, “Where is Jules?”
“Both Jules and Romeo have disqualified themselves from this case due to conflict of interest. I am happy to proceed, however, if you would like to engage a lawyer yourself, you would be well within your rights. I would caution you, though, that you are being charged with some very serious offences, and it would be unwise to attempt to defend yourself or engage a law student,” Lawrence said in a short, clipped voice. “You may also want to consider that your family is prepared to pay my fees and on your own you would not have access to the documentation that portrays you as Nikita Mariskov, and therefore, you have no access to funds of any significance.
“Fine, just tell them to bail me out already,” she huffed fidgeting uncomfortably and twisting her wrists within the cuffs. They may not want to be here in the watch-house with her, but they would post her bail and then she would make her overtures to her family until they made this all go away. Then once things had calmed down she could make good on her escape.
“Let’s start with the charges then shall we,” he placed a photo of the dead guard before her followed by a photo of Peri.
“Oh my God, what happened to them?” Nik said in feigned shock. “I didn’t kill them if that’s what you think!”
“Giorgio Antony,” he pointed at the photo of the guard, “Was strangled and found dead in his office,” Lawrence said unemotionally watching her reaction carefully.
“Poor Giorgio, he was my guard at the rehab facility,” she said sadly. “It’s awful,” she said in a sad voice shaking her head.
“Perinique Andrea Wells,” he pointed to the other photo and stopped talking as Nik snickered under her breath. “Are you finding this amusing, Miss Maris?”
“Her name is Perinique?” she laughed again. “I’m sorry I only ever knew her as Peri. She was dating my brother. How did she die?” she asked the laughter subsiding but the smile still playing around her lips and eyes.
“She’s not dead,” he announced. She was close to death when they found her and had she not been wearing a thick leather band around her neck at the time she would have been strangled too.”
“She not dead?” Nik asked in genuine confusion.
“They found her below a window outside of the library, with numerous serious injuries, she is in intensive care but expected to make a full recovery.” He informed her.
“No. She’s dead,” Nik argued. “Anna, another girl at rehab, was so desperate for drugs she killed Giorgio and then hid in the library and killed Peri when she saw her trying to escape out of the window.” She rattled off her carefully prepared cover story in a rush, her mind not accepting that Peri was alive.
“She’s very much alive and has made a statement to the Canberra police late last night implicating you as the person who tried to kill her,” Lawrence said coldly
“She’s obviously delusional then,” Nik said. “I wouldn’t do that to Peri. Look at her! I couldn’t possibly have done that. I’m just a girl.” She said meekly blinking her eyes as if she might cry. Her mind though was raging at the stupid, fat cow who couldn’t even die like she was supposed to. She was a useless waste of space that existed just to annoy her.
“Gerald Carson and Gordon Baxter are also pressing assault charges against you,” Lawrence continued.
“It was a simple misunderstanding at the bank. I was distraught, and there was no harm done, he is just a big sook,” she dismissed the bank manager. “I am sorry about Gordon, he was kind to me, and I had thought at the time that he had called my brother and told him where I was. I was a little upset with him. I meant no harm. I am sure I couldn’t possibly have hurt him,” she smiled sweetly.
“On the contrary, both men claim you were not acting rationally at the time, and both have quite extensive injuries. I feel that the charges will be taken to trial for all four victims, three of which have implicated you as their attacker,” Lawrence checked his watch. “In addition, to these charges, there is also the matter of falsifying legal documents, including the passport you used to open a bank account and book airline tickets.”
“Your arraignment will be at ten thirty this morning. You will be required to enter a plea on all charges, and then the judge will decide if there is enough evidence to take this to trial and if you are to be given a bail bond,” he instructed her further. “I take it you are planning on pleading not guilty to all charges?”
“Of course, I’m not guilty. I didn’t do anything wrong!” Nik said as if he was stupid. “This is all a storm in a teacup. I won’t spend one more night in jail. My family will not let this happen to me!”
“Perhaps, but their agreement to pay my fees was that alone. They have said they would not be involved any further in your case,” He explained unemotionally. “I will see you in the courtroom, Miss Maris.”
*****
Peri closed her eyes in relief as the Angel Flight plane taxied down the runway for take-off. She had steadfastly refused to see Josh or any of his family except Pete, who would need to accompany her on the flight. She gripped her mother’s hand and cried silently reliving the nightmare her life had become since waking in that hospital bed. The sedatives and pain medication once again allowed the blackness of nothing to fill her brain and she fought to remember more about her time in the library with Nik.
She had spoken with police officers late last night, giving them an account of her movements leading up to entering the library to meet Nik. That account matched the reports they had from the video evidence presented by the owners of the facility. She hadn’t denied the information given that she was there to research their family history with the view to compiling a biography for them and that she was a guest there rather than undergoing one of the rehabilitation programmes offered there.
She remembered entering the library and seeing Nik disappear between two bookshelves. She had followed her there and had been grabbed and pushed up against the window her mouth covered. She had tried to fight back, but she had hit her head and face against the brick window edge and fallen to the floor feeling dizzy. She vaguely remembered struggling to breathe after that before losing consciousness. Try as she might, she had no memory of how the other injuries she had sustained or if she had broken her arm in the fight with Nik.
The darkness finally claimed her as she felt the plane lift off and it was only as the plane touched down jolting the stretcher she lay on that she swam through the heavy blanket of blackness back up toward the light. She kept her eyes closed and listened to the engines sing and eventually wind down as the small plane came to a complete stop.
“Andie,” she called in panic as they began to load her into a waiting ambulance.
“I’m here, I’m here,” Andie climbed in after the paramedic and took her hand. “We’re going to the hospital. You need more time to recover, and I can’t look after you properly at home. Just one or two more days I promise,” Andie said her eyes welling with tears. “We’re home though and I can get you all of your favourite things and bring them to you,” she said softly.
“Just want to go home,” Peri said softly.
“I know darling, I know, but we need to make sure it is safe to do so first,” Andie’s voice took on a pleading tone willing her daughter to understand the decision. “We have to listen to Pete, he’s the reason we got you this close to home, and he will make sure you get all the way home as soon as possible.”
“I will get you home as soon as I can,” Pete reiterated what Andie was saying. “Dr Atkinson is going to meet us at the hospital and examine you. He is the foremost neurologist available to us. If he says you can go home, then I will drive you there myself.”
“I don’t want to see Josh or his brother’s,” she said quietly closing her eyes.
“They are all very worried about you. They just want to see that you are recovering,” he said reasonably.
“I can’t face them. I don’t want to see them. Please Pete,” she began to cry. “I just can’t!” she became agitated and lifted her hand to her face. “I see the way they look at me. I can’t bear it!”
“It’s okay, Josh is still in Canberra,” Pete said trying to calm her. “We will keep you safe here. Relax Peri, your safe with me.” He said assuming she was worried about Nik returning to finish the job.
Peri lay back and let her tears flow. They didn’t understand, and she wasn’t sure she could make them understand why she couldn’t face the family. She knew that it was her arrival at the facility, and having to see her every day that must have made Nik do these horrible things. She could see the blame in their eyes when Josh and his family looked at her, and she bore that guilt even more so because she wasn’t going to sweep it under the carpet like they always did for Nik. She had told the police that it was Nik who had tried to kill her and that she wanted to press charges.
The family constantly forgave Nik for the way she treated other people, including themselves, but she shouldn’t have to. Not this time. The next time Nik came after her, she may not be so lucky. She realised now she should have walked away from Josh when she lost her job due to Nik’s machinations, but she had loved him blindly and believed they could overcome anything. Now she knew that wasn’t true. He and his family would never forgive her for bringing disgrace to the family name as the media became aware of what had happened at the rehabilitation facility. Still, even though she had been hurt badly, she was grateful for Josh’s sake that Nik would not be branded a killer.
The thought gnawed at her. She knew that something had also happened to Nik’s guard but every time she tried to ask about it, they had deflected her questions. Once she was home, she would hire a lawyer and find out exactly what happened before Nik left the facility. She just needed to go home and be allowed to look after herself the way she always had and find the answers she needed to make sense of this whole mess. She was so tired of people making decisions for her. She’d had no freedoms at all since she had gone to the farm for Christmas.
“I just want to go home,” she whispered impotently and squeezed Andie’s hand weakly. She was truly grateful that her mother had been there for her this time.
*****
Joseph had stood with his sons on the tarmac as the plane carrying Peri home took off. His guilt and regret held deeply inside. No one could have predicted what had occurred. The Battaglia also shouldered some of the blame for not heeding his warnings about his daughter’s power of seduction and ruthlessness. He too had wanted to believe that she had been reformed by her time at the facility and the lack of any narcotics or alcohol, but he had remained wary. It was a tragic event for both families, and it would take a united front to get them through what lay ahead.
“Ben, Lucia and Dino will be arriving shortly, then you can fly home and ensure her safety,” Joseph said to Josh. “Emily and the children will be going home to the farm. She and Antonia will be good for each other during this time.
“It doesn’t matter, Peri won’t see me or talk to me now,” Josh said trying to keep the bitterness from his voice.
“She’s in shock. She will recover, and things will return to normal,” Emilio said gently.” She loved you so much that she came here for you. That kind of love doesn’t just disappear.”
“It doesn’t matter how much she loves me if she no longer trusts me,” Josh said turning and walking back to the car. “He finally understood Peri’s need for solitude and wished his brothers would stop talking and just leave him alone with his thoughts.
Josh was thankful that he travelled back to the facility with his father, the twins riding in a separate car. His father left him to his thoughts and Josh knew he was deep in his own. Nik had committed the worst crime imaginable, and there was no way to escape the fact that they had all missed what was happening to her. Her bitchy antics had always caused unrest within the family. It had been that way since they were small children. She had been a princess from the time she could talk, ordering her siblings around in the same way she ordered the household staff. Josh had begun to cover for her, apologise for her and give in to her demands from an early age, helping to create the nightmare that Nik was now.
They went back to the small townhouse where Joseph had been staying. Josh was exhausted. Since being picked up yesterday by his brothers for the flight to Canberra he hadn’t slept and had barely eaten enough to stave away the hungry pangs. He needed a shower before anything else, though and went upstairs without a word to his father or the young woman who obviously was there to tend to his needs. Locating the bathroom, he stepped inside and turned the shower on stripping quickly and stepping under the rush of steaming hot water.
Closing his eyes, he let his mind wander through all of the emotions he felt. Overriding everything else was anger at everyone and everything that conspired to create this hellish situation. He was angry at his father, angry at the Battaglia, angry at Nik but most of all angry at himself. He should have stopped her from coming to this place. He should have said no at the airstrip on New Year’s Eve, but she had gone so willingly, and his head was still full of the ambition his Uncle had encouraged. He had believed, as his Uncle had pointed out, that with Peri at his side he could become the leader of the family and take a chair at the table of twelve. At this moment though he wanted nothing to do with the families that made up the twelve including his own.
Josh felt the slight breeze of the door opening and willed whoever it was to go away. He closed his eyes and said nothing as he stood to let the hot water soothe the tense muscles in his shoulders and back. The door closed again with a loud click, and he opened his eyes, seeing that he was once again alone. He splashed more water on the glass screen and peered through the steam. A pair of Jeans and clean shirt had been left for him by whoever had entered. He got out of the shower feeling better than when he had entered and towelled off. The clothes left for him were new, and he ripped off the tags trying them on and finding them a good fit. There was a soft knock on the door, and he opened it to find the young woman he saw on arrival.
“My apologies, Sir. Your father thought that perhaps you would like to shave,” she handed him a small kit and left quietly.
“Thank you,” Josh said knowing she would not hear him but appreciative of the clothes and kit. He took his time cleaning away the beard growth and feeling more like his old self with each stroke of the razor. His head cleared, and his anger dissipated into rational thought. The only person at fault here was Nik he told his mirrored reflection. It wasn’t his fault or his family or even the Battaglia. Only one person had done this purposefully, Nik.
His responsibility now lay with helping Peri recover and forgive him and his family for their part in her injuries. He understood her to need to escape into solitude and heal, and he would allow her that space for a short time, but he would not give up what they had, and he would make sure she understood the depth of his guilt and regret for his role in her injuries.
When he finally went downstairs feeling more like himself and deciding to start taking back control of his life and the situation he found himself in, he found his father and brothers sitting in the small living room talking in hushed voices.
“I need food,” he announced as they looked up at his arrival.
“The kitchen is well stocked, just tell Gail what you want,” his father said carefully appraising his son’s change of clothes and attitude.
“I just need food and some sleep on the flight home,” Josh said in answer to looks he was receiving and went into the kitchen.
“Maybe we should give him a choice,” Emilio said softly as the door closed behind Josh. “We owe him the choice to let them express themselves. He seems better than he did earlier.”
“Smoke and mirrors,” Dante said shaking his head. “It’s a brave front so we will all stop trying to explain the unexplainable to him.”
“He and they deserve the chance to know each other’s views. It will help them all to move past this,” Joseph said as Josh re-entered the room with a large bowl of muesli.
“Who and who,” Josh mumbled around a large mouthful of milk and muesli.
“The men who oversaw Peri’s trial would like to speak with you,” Joseph said weighing his words and Josh’s reaction.
“What do you think, Lio? Is it a way to build bridges on both sides?” Josh turned to his brother.
“Could be an ambush,” Dante said with concern.
“That’s why I asked the nice one,” Josh chuckled, but it sounded hollow even to his own ears, and he looked at Lio again.
“It can’t hurt,” Lio said thoughtfully. “It will go a long way to show that this is a tragic event caused by one person and not worthy of a rift between the families. The other ten families will be watching and preparing to choose sides in what could become a dreadful affair for everyone. Nik is certainly to blame and will be tried for her crimes, but they let it happen on their watch. There can be no good or easy end to this unless we make it that way.”
“Papa, you feel the same?” Josh asked still eating. The thing was that he had never wanted to know the details of her trial. He had made that clear to Peri from the beginning. He didn’t like asking her to do it, and he didn’t like what it entailed. If they wanted to discuss the details of her trial, he doubted that he could listen to them.
“Veronica is guilty of murder. They have every right to demand justice from us. They may have been lax in their security and planning here, but the damage was done by a Donati,” he said simply shouldering the responsibility for his daughter’s actions. “Emilio is correct that both families have much to lose if we battle each other. If we can bring peace between us before you leave, when they have lost one of their own forever, then it would be wise to accept their request.”
“When will Ben get here?” Josh asked surprising them all.
“Less than an hour,” Dante murmured looking at his watch.
“Alright, I’m leaving in an hour so if they want to meet it needs to be now,” Josh said and continued to eat.
“I’ll make the call and let them know we are coming,” Joseph said grimly.
“Could you ask the commander if coffee could be made available for the meeting?” Josh said putting the now empty bowl on the table.
“D. do me a favour and shut down anyone who tries to give me details of the trial itself,” Josh said seriously.
“Will do,” Dante answered with an equally serious face.
“Coffee will be waiting for us when we arrive,” Joseph said returning to the living room. The three younger men stood and left the townhouse with their father. They walked in silence down to the facility and were shown not to the Athenaeum but a room full of mismatched furniture and glass walls.
“Welcome to the Stanhope Room gentlemen,” Marco welcomed them. “Please help yourself to coffee and something to eat, I understand you haven’t slept since your arrival yesterday.”
“We plan to sleep on the flight home,” Emilio said easily accepting their offer of coffee.
Josh said nothing taking a seat after getting his coffee and looking at the men who had asked to speak to him. He listened to the polite chatter and gauging the mood to be pleasant rather than the hostile stiffness they had with each other at the hospital he relaxed slightly and sat back in his chair before finally speaking.
“I have been told you wished to speak to me,” Josh began slowly. “If this is about Peri’s trial, can I just say upfront I do not want to hear the details. This trial was pressed upon us by those who did not know Peri and how we were as a couple.” He paused before speaking again, “No one could have foreseen the actions of my sister and for that I am sorrier than you could imagine. I want you to know you have my deepest sympathy for the loss of Giorgio.”
He had done his part. He had apologised for his sister’s actions, and he had let them know he did not wish to talk about Peri’s trial. As far as he was concerned there was nothing left to say.
“I for one appreciate your candour,” Francesco said. “You need not apologise for your sister’s actions. As you have said, no one could have foreseen what occurred, and Giorgio allowed himself to be compromised by his killer.”
“Thank you,” Josh said surprised by the man’s response.
“I,” Francesco looked at the other men and rephrased the word, “We wanted you to know how much pride you should all have in how Peri conducted herself here. Each of us grew to care for her very much in the short time we knew her, and we are concerned that she wished to leave in the manner she did.”
“We wanted to apologise that she did not feel safe in the hospital under our care,” Nero said sadly. “I wish she hadn’t left before we had made sure she was fully recovered.”
“Perhaps I can help you to understand,” Josh said shocked by what the men were saying to him. “Peri has always looked after herself, essentially by herself. She had an unconventional upbringing. When she is injured or upset, she retreats into her own space. She seeks out solitude where she can lick her wounds, understand what happened and regain her strength before facing the world again.” He smiled as he spoke knowing this to be true and until she got home and was allowed to do just that she would continue to shun everyone who cared about her except Andie, who never crossed that line into her solitude.
“She needs medical care,” Nero argued, “She should be in a hospital under observation for at least another two to three days.” His words had taken on a lecturing tone of one who knows better than everyone else.
“Pete and I have arranged for a private room at a small hospital. She will have some solitude under supervision until she is well enough to return to her home,” Josh explained. “While I understand your concern, you have to respect the fact that she is my fiancé. I love her. I know what she needs and will make sure she gets it. Treating me like an idiot right now will not help us or her to recover.” Josh stiffened at the tone of the doctor.
“You are right,” Marco cut in sensing Josh’s rising anger. “It is just that she was in our care, and we feel a great responsibility for her condition. I do not doubt that you will ensure her well-being and continued recovery. We only wish that we could have helped more in that respect.”
“She is where she needs to be for a speedy recovery,” Josh said in a hard voice. This was not what he had expected from this meeting.
“Peri’s trial is done, and she has made it clear that she wants to recover at home with her mother,” Dante said and would have told them that their presence in Peri’s life was no longer needed or wanted, but Emilio as always saved him from himself.
“We will let you know how she is recovering,” Emilio said in a friendly way. “If you would like to exchange numbers I could call you personally,” he offered.
“Thank you,” Marco said. “Peri is an amazing young woman, and you’re a very lucky man Joshua. Those of us who spent time with her here have no doubt about how much she loves you and looked forward to living happily ever after with you. I would hope that given time we could be friends once again.”
Josh stared at the man. They had never met before, so the friendship these men wanted was with Peri, not himself. He looked at his father and the Commander of the Battaglia, who sat quietly each watching their children and judging them. In a moment of clarity, he realised from what had been said over the last twenty-fours that there was more to Giorgio’s death than they were saying out loud. Something that would shame the family almost as badly as Nik’s crimes and Josh felt sick imagining the depravity that must have occurred between the man and Nik for her to have gotten the upper hand on a trained military man.
“It seems that the only person in all of this who bears no guilt at all is Peri and at this time she wants nothing to do with any of us, not even me,” he said sadly addressing the two older men and admitting the truth. “I hope that you can both work all of this out so that there is no rift between the families.”
“We have lost Nik as surely as if she had died alongside Giorgio. She will receive no support from us during her trial. A lawyer who knows the family rules will represent her as is our way,” Joseph said unemotionally. “A closed court and press gag is in the works.”
“We intend to work together with the police to ensure that justice is done, and the Twelve are protected,” the Commander added, presenting a united front with Joseph.
“I don’t blame you,” Josh said to the Battaglia men realising that this was why he had been brought here. “Peri seemed happy when I spoke to her during her evening phone calls. I appreciate that you looked after her well during the elements of the trial. What Nik did could not have been predicted, and if it could, we wouldn’t be here now.”
“We would like to know about her recovery, please,” Nero spoke up into the small silence that followed Josh’s words. “We will not force our ourselves into your life. We are content to let the elders deal with the necessary legal arrangements and report to the Twelve at the sitting.”
“Fuck! Enough of this polite bullshit,” the straight-talking Francesco said. “Peri was in our care, and we fucked up royally. You have every right to sit there and blame us, hate us even, were the positions reversed I don’t know that I could be so magnanimous.”
“Yeah, that’s true, but you didn’t hurt her Nik did, and that blame is hers alone. As for how it occurred there is enough blame and guilt to be shared by everyone, including me,” Josh said with a shake of his head. “It was my sister who murdered your brother and the same feeling of blame and hate could be applied to the three of you.”
“His death was due to his lack of judgement,” Francesco spoke as if the conversation was just between him and Josh. “It’s a fucked up situation for both families. For you especially, the fact that you have come here without recriminations to meet with us when I know you would rather be following Peri home is a testament to the kind of man the you are, you have my respect.”
“Speaking of which I should be leaving now,” Josh got to his feet. “As you have said this matter is best left to the elders to deal with. I want no blood feud, you have more right to demand that than me when Peri lives and Giorgio does not.”
“The damage Veronica has done to both families is more hardship than either deserves,” Francesco said, followed by the murmured agreement of those in the room. “Have a good flight and let us know about her recovery please.”
*****
Nik paced the small cell waiting. She was furious, and anyone who came within arm’s reach of her cell bore the brunt of that fury. Every day she waited for them to come and apologise to her for waiting so long to pay her bail. Now ten days later she would make them pay dearly for making her wait. She heard the rattle of the outer doors and stopped pacing and looked at them.
“Well,” she snarled at Lawrence Kerrigan as he walked through followed by two guards.
“Your trial has been expedited. Given the overwhelming evidence against you and your lack of any evidence to the contrary, I have come to urge you strongly to cut a deal and plead guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter,” Lawrence said in his stiffly formal way.
“I did nothing wrong!” she yelled. “You get me out of here you fucking moron.”
“As you wish, I will see you in court tomorrow,” he said and turned to leave.
“Wait,” she said in a completely different voice and he turned to look at her.
“I want you to bring me something decent to wear. I can’t go to court looking like this. I want a hairstylist and makeup too,” she said imperiously. “Call Bianca Donati she will know what I need and how to get it for me.”
“The Donati family have declined all of your previous requests, but I will deliver your message,” he replied and walked away without a further glance back in her direction.
“You probably didn’t even deliver the requests you fucking asshole!” Nik screeched and continued to rant and rave long after the door was shut behind him.
Lawrence went from the jail, directly to the House of Battaglia, where Joseph and the Commander waited. They were paying him an exorbitant fee for his services in this matter, as well as to keep them fully informed. Machinations by several high-ranking officials were expediting the case, making it a closed courtroom due to the sexual nature of the murder and keeping a tight gag on mainstream media. Veronica was not so well liked by her friends that her demise was even a blip on their radar. Only a few who seemed to relish her misfortune kept it alive on social media but as none of them knew her as a Donati, the family was unconcerned.
Five of the Donati men listened in on a conference call as he relayed the scene from his brief talk with Nik. Lawrence included the request that Bianca furnish her with a suitable wardrobe and stylist for her day in court.
“Maybe it’s a good idea,” Emilio said thoughtfully. “Leaving her to her own devices doesn’t seem to have made a difference to her state of mind. If we send in someone she perceives as a friend, someone safe; she may confess and this would be over without a lengthy trial.”
“I’m not putting Bianca in that position,” Jules said firmly.
“If someone goes in it can’t be family,” Ben added to the conversation.
“She won’t say much if she doesn’t think the person is her friend. It doesn’t matter how deluded she is, she’s not an idiot,” Dante said grudgingly.
“Sabrina,” Josh said grudgingly. “I don’t know if she would do it but she would be one of the few people Nik might trust enough to gloat about what she did.”
“See if you can locate her,” Ben took charge of the conversation despite his father’s presence. “Seems that’s the only way to avoid a long and invasive trial. Who knows what Nik will say if she feels cornered.”
“I assure you I am quite skilled in these matters,” Lawrence said indignantly. He had to admit though that if their plan worked it could speed things up considerably. “Give me the girl’s number I will negotiate with her and get one of my associates to pay her a visit. It’s best you all stay out of the whole scene,” he said.
“I agree,” Romey spoke up. “You didn’t see her when she was arrested. She’s not the same Nik we knew. She believes that she can do what she likes with no consequences because we have always bailed her out in the past. She has no compassion and no sense of wrongdoing, let Lawrence handle it.”
Josh spent some time giving Lawrence a brief version of what had happened between Sabrina, Nik and Peri. He had gone to Canberra separately from Peri. She wouldn’t have let him be there with her but he couldn’t have stayed away knowing she would be distressed and may need him. Had he been at home he would have gone to see Sabrina himself.
*****
“Hello Josh,” Andie answered the phone looking at Peri, who shook her head and walked away.
“How is she?” Josh asked.
“She’s getting ready and seems confident, so that’s a good sign,” Andie said brightly. She felt caught between a rock and a hard place. She knew that Peri still loved Josh and he her, but Peri seemed determined to have nothing more to do with the family until the trial was finished. Truthfully, Andie wasn’t even sure if Peri would talk to him even when it was done.
“That’s good,” Josh agreed. “Has she said much about how she is feeling about seeing Nik at the trial?”
“Only to her lawyer, after she overheard me talking Charles about it one day she won’t let me be part of those meetings anymore,” Andie explained. It wasn’t exactly true but she had promised Peri not to repeat the same mistake again.
“I won’t be at the courthouse to support her so keep her close please,” Josh said with feeling. “Call me if she needs anything I will be close by.”
“Of course,” Andie said softly her heart breaking for Josh and Peri. She didn’t know what to do to make it better. “We have to get going, we are meeting with the legal team for breakfast,” Andie said unable to take the heartbreak in Josh’s voice any longer. She ended the call and turned to Peri. “You have to talk to him eventually.” She said softly
“Not until this is over,” Peri said with a sigh. It was the same every time he called. As the trial grew closer, he seemed more desperate to talk to her. She was sure he wanted to talk her out of going ahead with the charges she had levelled against Nik. She was the only witness to anything that occurred in Canberra, without her the case was purely circumstantial. No one had seen Nik do anything but leave the facility using Peri’s identification. Identity theft alone would allow her to walk free with her families help and the thought filled Peri with terror. She couldn’t see Josh now. She didn’t want him to try to change her mind and she knew it would be killing him that it was her that was sending his sister away for a long time.
“Andie, it will all work out if we just do as the lawyers tell us,” Peri said in a voice stronger than she felt. “That includes staying away from the Donati’s.”
“They never said that,” Andie frowned.
“Not in so many words but it was implied,” Peri sighed. She was tired of having to have this conversation with her mother. “Let’s just go to the meeting and get this over with.”
They left the hotel and made their way to another closer to the courthouse where they met with the lawyers for the prosecution including her lawyer. She had refused the assistance offered by Charles and the Donati family choosing to engage a lawyer for herself after consulting with some of her friends from university. She knew it would take most of the money she had saved over the years for her dream trip to the great museums of Europe but she wanted nothing from Nik’s family during the trial.
She sat through the breakfast quietly listening as they went through the order of events again when an assistant came through the restaurant in a hurry to talk quietly to the chief prosecutor.
“There’s a possible new witness for the defence and we need to go and look over the file they have given us before we get to court so we don’t get any nasty surprises in there,” the man said looking at Peri. “Just tell the truth, I will lead you through everything.” Turning to one of his associates he instructed, “Make sure they get there early enough for us to prep them on any changes.” Then he stood and left the hotel.
“There’s no need for concern; these things happen all the time,” Peri’s lawyer said kindly and patted her hand before following the men from the room.
Peri continued to push the food around her plate as her mother chatted about the fashions of the other ladies in the restaurant and suggested that they should go shopping and check out the local designers before they left Canberra again. Once she had gone home, her recovery had sped up remarkably. She still wore a cast and a sling on her right arm and her face was bruised and still slightly swollen. It was obvious to anyone who saw her that she was not recovered enough for shopping and she gave a sad half laugh at the suggestion.
Even getting ready and coming here this morning had been exhausting and she knew she needed to eat but the thought of facing Nik today made her feel ill so she nibbled at the toast willing her stomach to settle.
“Peri?” A female voice asked questioningly making her look up. “I didn’t know you were staying at this hotel.”
“I’m not,” Peri said stiffly, looking up into the face of Lucia, who stood with a tall man in military uniform.
“You must be Andie,” Lucia held out her hand, “I’m Lucia and this is my husband, Dino.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” Andie took her hand looking confused. “How do you know Peri?”
“Lucia is one of Josh’s sister’s,” Peri answered for her.
“Oh,” Andie’s eyes widened. “It’s probably best if we don’t invite you to sit then. With the trial beginning today and all.”
“I understand,” Lucia nodded. “I want you to know that we all support what you are doing today.” She saw surprise flicker over Peri’s battered face. “We won’t be in court because we don’t want Nik to think we support her in the slightest, it is just a shame that we can’t be there to support you.”
“Thank you,” Peri said not quite believing what she was hearing. Her mother had told her that the family did not blame her but she knew differently.
“My brother, Marco, speaks very highly of you,” Dino said in a soft voice. He will be glad to know I have seen you looking as well as you do considering your injuries.”
“I’m so sorry about Giorgio,” Peri said with feeling.
“He’s in a better place now,” Dino nodded.
“The Donati and Battaglia stand together in this, Nik must pay for her crimes, she will get no help from either family,” Lucia said. “She is as lost to us as Giorgio is, you, on the other hand, have our love and support. If there is anything you want or need you only have to ask.”
“I doubt you all feel that way,” Peri said sadly. She could hear the sincerity in Lucia’s voice and her brain couldn’t quite believe what she was hearing. Blood was thicker than water and she knew that having Nik be sent to prison must be upsetting all of them, yet Lucia stood there offering her support and friendship. “I appreciate you saying that, though.”
“Oh Peri, it’s true. Please believe me,” Lucia took the empty chair beside her and took her hand. “Beyond the archaic family laws and secrecy is a genuine respect and adherence to the laws of church and state. What Nik did was unforgivable. We care but we also know that she is criminally insane. Any killer’s family would care what happens to them but they know that they can’t be allowed to roam freely to do it again. You are one of the strongest and bravest women I have ever met, but you don’t have to do this alone.”
“She’s not alone,” Andie said softly. “I will be by her side through everything.”
“I can’t do this right now,” Peri got unsteadily to her feet. Tears threatened to roll from her eyes. “I have to be in court to condemn your sister, Josh’s sister,” she said her voice turning hard. “Thank you for saying what you said but we both know the family is the most important thing in Josh’s world. I have to do this despite the fact that he will never forgive me.” Now that she had started to speak the words came tumbling out. “This is my fault and they all blame me. I can see it in their eyes every time they look at me. Both of your families know that if I wasn’t there at the facility, in her face every day that she wouldn’t have been pushed to do it. She hated me so much that she wanted me dead,” Peri’s voice cracked.
“Maybe it would have been better for you all if I had died then there would be no witnesses to testify against her,” Peri drew her shoulders back painfully and winced. “I can’t just walk away and pray she doesn’t find me again, though, so no need to try to be nice to me. I won’t change my mind about the trial.” She turned and walked slowly towards the nearby bathrooms, keeping her head up and her back straight knowing the people at the table and probably in the restaurant were watching her. It was too hard to face even Lucia and she knew she could never face Josh again.
She let herself cry for a few minutes then stiffening her resolve she tried as best she could to fix her makeup. Lucia was right about one thing; she was strong and brave and she could see this through to the bitter end. When she returned, Lucia and Dino had left the restaurant and Andie looked shaken.
“Why didn’t you tell me that was how you felt?” Andie said still shocked.
“So you could tell Charles?” Peri said acidly and instantly regretted it. “I didn’t mean that. I’m sorry” she sighed. “I’m just feeling sick about today,” she admitted.
“No one blames you sweetheart, least of all Josh,” Andie said and got a scowl in return from her daughter. “We’ll get you some barley sugar to suck on and settle your tummy. You haven’t eaten much for days,” Andie said, changing the subject quickly and looking at the almost untouched breakfast.
The two associates who had remained with them reminded them of the time and escorted them from the hotel. It was a short drive to the courthouse and the driver pulled into a small local chemist for Andie to purchase some barley sugar and glucose jelly beans.
Grateful that there were no external stairs to this building, Peri followed the associates into the building and up in an elevator to the third floor, where she was shown into a courtroom and given a seat at the end of the prosecution table. Andie had had to wait in the meeting room. The lesser charge of attempted murder for which she was the key witness was being held alongside the first charge of premeditated murder so she would hear all of the details. The assault charges were pending in another state and so had to wait until this trial was done.
Nik arrived looking glamorous in a blonde bob and designer dress despite the manacles she wore. With no audience to preen for she looked sullen and resentful. Aside of the lawyers, jury and the court staff they were the only two people in the room and Peri felt ill looking at her would-be killer.
“I’m not sure I can do this,” she whispered to her lawyer as they came to their feet and the judge entered.
“You may not have to,” her lawyer replied cryptically in hushed tones.
The swearing in of the jury and opening statements from both sides seemed to take an extraordinarily long time and Peri visibly sagged in her seat as she listened to everything being said. She immediately sat up in shock when she heard the name of the first witness for the prosecution, Sabrina Avic. She couldn’t work out what the woman had to do with this case and panicked that she was being ambushed by her own legal team.
“Miss Avic, can you tell us in your own words how you came to be here today,” The chief council asked.
“I got a phone call from Lawrence Kerrigan asking if I could bring some wardrobe and personal items from Nik’s home for her to use during the trial. I agreed and flew down last night,” she began.
“Can you point to the person you refer to as Nik, please,” he interrupted her and nodded as she pointed. “Let the record show she has pointed out Veronica Maris as the person known to her as Nik.” He looked back at the witness, “Please go on.”
“Lawrence took me to the jail to see Nik this morning, and I met her in an interview room. She wasn’t happy with the wardrobe I brought for her and became quite angry with me, about it. She began ranting about how stupid I was,” she stated looking over at Nik as she spoke. “She said that if I had done the job, properly she wouldn’t have had to take matters into her own hands. She said it was my fault that she was in jail, and her family was mad at her.”
“What did she mean by doing the job properly?” he asked to clarify.
“When Peri had first started dating her brother, Nik and I conspired to scare Peri away from him. We caused her to lose her job and I assaulted her on the street, for which she was good enough not to press charges at the time.”
“I see, please go on,” he said politely.
“Not much of what she said made sense after that except that she had hurt Peri and she was angry that Peri was still alive,” Sabrina said with a frown. “She was ranting and raving and honestly I was scared so I banged on the door for a guard.”
“Surely Miss Maris was restrained and you had no reason to be scared,” he said in a kindly tone.
“You weren’t there. You didn’t see her,” Sabrina answered with concern, “She went crazy!”
“Objection your honour it goes to the state of mind,” Lawrence stood up interrupting the testimony.
“The prosecution would like to enter into evidence the recording of that meeting, so the jury can see for themselves what Miss Avic has recounted, is true and correct,” the chief councillor strode to the bench and handed him a CD of the recording. “All interview rooms are recorded as a safety procedure, aside of rooms one and two which are reserved for lawyers and their clients.”
“Objection,” Lawrence strode to the bench pressing flimsy objections covering confidentiality within the meeting rooms and his client’s lack of privacy within the jail itself.
“A jail is not a country club even if your client treats it as one. I will allow it,” the judge handed the recording to a bailiff and it was projected onto a large screen directly across from the jury box. Without the emotions of being trapped in the small room with Nik, Sabrina could clearly hear that Nik had tried to kill Peri but had also killed another man and she gasped audibly making the jury turn to look at her.
“No further questions your honour,” the chief council sat down and Lawrence came to his feet.
“Miss Avic that must have been a frightening time for you but you came here as a friend to my client, the woman you know as Nik, did you not?” He asked.
“I did,” she answered truthfully.
“She had never threatened or been violent toward you in the past? You were not worried going to the jail to meet her were you?”
“No,” Sabrina shook her head.
“In fact, my client has never been physically violent or aggressive to anyone in the past to your knowledge has she?” Lawrence asked gently.
“No, Nik may rant but she hasn’t hurt anyone, before now, I don’t think,” Sabrina said slowly turning her eyes toward the battered form of Peri.
“Do you believe that your friend, Nik, is capable of planning and executing two murders in cold blood?” Lawrence asked.
“Objection your honour. We are not here to hear thoughts and supposition. The defence needs to stick to the facts of the case,” one of the prosecution team stood and stated loudly.
“Let me rephrase,” Lawrence said before the judge could rule. “To your knowledge has Nik ever talked about plans to harm or kill another person?”
“When she was angry maybe, but we all do that and not mean it,” Sabrina said steadily. “Who hasn’t wanted to kill a hairdresser for a bad haircut?” she smiled as she saw some ladies in the jury box smile at her analogy.
“No more questions, your honour,” Lawrence returned to the defence table as Sabrina was dismissed and escorted from the room.
Peri looked across at Nik, who had stayed surprisingly silent during the whole testimony. She sat primly and looked for all the world like an innocent woman. After a short recess for lunch in which Peri spoke to her team about the new evidence Sabrina had brought to the trial and how it looked even more certain that she would be convicted they returned to the courtroom and a parade of witnesses from the rehabilitation facility.
Each witness spoke of their relationship to the deceased and his charge, Nik, commenting that they had believed she was on the road to recovery. They noted that she was sweet natured when they saw her in the dining room and appeared happy. The video evidence of the night in question never showed her face though the body and hair at the time fit her description. She was known to have been with Giorgio before supper but had arrived without him, then had left the note for Peri and gone to the library. The evidence of this was shaky and the video tape grainy and hard to make out.
The proceedings were adjourned for the day, and Peri left with Andie feeling shaken and exhausted. She didn’t feel that the day had gone very well at all aside of that first video with Sabrina in which she clearly stated that she wished Peri had died. She felt numb, and she ate a little under Andie’s insistence before going to bed.
She had dozed off slightly when she woke to a kerfuffle in the main room of the suite they had been given by the prosecution team. “I’m going to talk to her whether she likes it or not,” she heard Josh’s demanding voice loud and clear before her door opened flooding the room with light.
“Go away Josh, I don’t want to talk to you,” she said pulling the blanket up over her head.
“Well that’s just too bad because I want to talk to you,” he sat on the edge of the bed heavily and sighed. “How could you think I would blame you for this?” He spoke to the blanket letting her stay beneath it. “This is my fault, I made you go there; I didn’t stop you getting on that plane. It was my psychotic sister that did this, you did nothing but love me,” his grief and despair finally overwhelmed him as his rage gave way to the truth that he had probably lost the woman he loved. “Always and forever,” he said in a choked voice. “I promised you that, and I meant it. How could you think I would blame you for any of this.”
Peri started to cry. She had no words and stayed silent under the blanket. She felt him lay down beside her and hug her blanket-covered form. She could feel his chest heave as he too cried at the unfairness of it all.
“Please Peri, look at me,” he pleaded as she remained under the blanket.
“I can’t, you will ask me to drop the charges and I won’t be able to say no,” she cried.
“I don’t want you to drop the charges, no one does. Why would you think that?” Josh was shaking his head. He had been melting down since he had spoken to Lucia that morning, his anger at the whole situation the only thing keeping him from falling apart. “I’m so sorry I did this to you,” he cried. “If I had thought for one moment that any of this would happen I would have stopped it. We could have moved away, lived a simpler life anything but this.”
“I would never ask you to leave your family, it’s me that has to go, alone,” she said sadly finally peeling the blanket from her face. “I’ve messed up your whole life, your job, your friends, your family, and I can’t do it anymore,” she said sadly. “I don’t want to do that to you, but I can’t walk away from this trial, what if she gets out and…” her voice petered out not wanting to voice her fears. She turned her head to the side and looked at him properly seeing the tears in his eyes and the grief etched on his face.
“You don’t understand, no one blames you, no one!” he said trying to convince her. “No one wants you to drop the charges, we are doing everything possible to help the prosecution, we suggested Sabrina come to see Nik when she asked for Bianca to bring her something to wear. No one not even Mama and Papa will lift a finger to help her now.”
“You hired a lawyer for her,” Peri accused as if catching him in the lie.
“Because he will protect the rest of us from scandal, not because we want her free,” he explained seriously. “Lawrence knows our family laws, there will be no media, Nik won’t get the notoriety or public sympathy she can manipulate to her advantage. He will defend her because that is his job and he must do it but the evidence against her is pretty overwhelming, and he continues to try get her to change her plea.”
She reached up awkwardly with her left hand and touched his cheek, and he leant his head into her soft touch putting his hand over hers. He leant forward and kissed her forehead not wanting to scare her and have her hide from him again.
“From the time you stood toe to toe with me in the research dungeon I have known you were my other half, my soul mate. I’m am not letting you leave me, alone or otherwise. I want to marry you and have lots of babies and grow old together sitting on the big wraparound veranda of the house you dreamed into existence at the winery,” he said staring into her eyes.
“This is why I couldn’t see you. I want to believe everything you said but I can’t, not until this trial is over,” the tears came again. “I need to do this alone, for me. I need to let her know that she can’t do stuff like this and expect just to walk away.”
“You don’t have to do this alone. I’m not going anywhere no matter what happens. I love you, and I can’t let you go through it alone. I know that you have always been alone and looked after yourself, but you don’t have to do that anymore. You have me, forever and always. Don’t send me away again,” his arms tightened around her and she winced making him move away startled.
“I’m broken Josh, I’m no good to anyone right now,” she said sadly.
“I don’t care. I’ll take you any way I can get you, just don’t send me away again,” he said softly looking into her eyes.
“I’m exhausted I need to sleep, you have to go,” she tried a different tack but said it with a smile. “You need to let me do this my way,” she said quietly, “I need to do this my way.”
“Promise to call me in the morning?” he asked softly, “or, at least, answer my call this time?”
“Okay,” she nodded.
“Promise, I need to hear it, and then I will leave you to sleep,” he said stroking a finger lightly over the swollen side of her face.
“I promise to answer your call in the morning,” she said looking up at him.
“Sweet dreams,” he placed a soft kiss on her forehead and stood from the bed. “Thank you for letting me see you,” he whispered and left her room closing the door behind him, knowing that he hadn’t given her much of a choice.
*****
The following morning in court was filled with a range of witnesses from the stores and places where Nik had used Peri’s ID to purchase items including the phone store and the hairdresser that had changed her hair style. Peri felt physically ill as they played the phone message she had left on Peri’s answering service. “So sorry you can’t call the dead. Joshua if this is you, your welcome. You’ll realise I did you a favour eventually.” The message was punctuated by a peal of laughter and the beep to leave a message.
She couldn’t imagine how he must have felt if he had heard that before they had found her injured and unconscious below the window. A voice analysis expert confirmed that the voice did, in fact, match that of Veronica Maris and a second witness from the phone company confirmed that the phone number in question was still registered to one Miss Peri Wells.
After a short adjournment for lunch, Peri was called to the stand. She told her story of Nik’s manipulation of her life from the time she had started dating Josh leading up to the final meeting with her in the library and the attack that caused her injuries. She spoke not to the court but directly to Nik looking at her as if to deny what she was saying.
“I believe she was trying to kill me, but she wasn’t clever enough. She was never smart enough to realise that it wasn’t me she had to scare away from her beloved brother,” Peri said pouring salt into the wound. “It was Josh she needed to scare away from me. Even now he is begging me for forgiveness for what you did. You may have hurt me physically, but you have scarred Josh, and even if I leave him, he will never forgive you.”
“Why don’t you just go away and die, like you were supposed to” Nik finally snapped. “Fuck, I have to do everything myself,” she made a move to stand up and found herself caught in the shackles. She screeched in her fury. “Donati’s don’t go to jail, and when I get out of here, you are going to die like the stupid fat cow you are.”
“Like Giorgio died! I know you killed him you fucking psycho bitch!” Peri screamed back as Nik was being restrained and the judge continued to bang his gavel.
“Giorgio was weak and stupid he deserved what he got, the stupid cock jockey, as if he could ever subdue me,” she raged at Peri, who had come to her feet.
“You didn’t have to kill him!” Peri screamed in her enraged state unable to help herself.
“You’re right I wanted to kill him. I enjoyed it just like I will enjoy killing you when I get out. So get ready to meet the devil because you are going straight to hell,” Nik was practically frothing at the mouth. She had sat and smiled for a day and a half chained to her chair while the reason for all her problems strutted around free as a bird and glaring at her. She struggled to break free of her manacles and strangle the girl who taunted her.
“You’re fucking dead. Dead!” she screeched as she was dragged bodily by three guards from the courtroom to a nearby secure room. Peri collapsed into hysterical tears at finally facing Nik. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t stop crying and gasping for breath until she hyperventilated and passed out.
She woke as Josh carried her from the courthouse to a waiting car. She knew that if he had heard what she said to Nik and how she had goaded her into a confession, he wouldn’t be looking at her with such concern and she hated herself for that.
“Josh let me go, I’ve done something so very awful,” she began to cry again, “Just leave me alone.”
“No,” he said stubbornly and pushed his way into the car with her, his concern palpable. “There is nothing you could have done in that courtroom to make me leave you, now,” he said staring her in the eyes. “Nothing.”
His phone rang, and she grabbed his arm, “Don’t answer it.” She said in a panic.
“Andie will want to know where I am taking you,” he said soothingly and pulled his phone out of his pocket as it stopped ringing.
“Nik and I had a big fight in there, we were screaming at each other,” she admitted. “As soon as she is released she will kill me.” Peri swallowed hard knowing that the family could still bring their influence to the trial and her sentencing, regardless of the fact that she had just confessed.
“Nik won’t be getting out of jail until she is a very old woman, if ever,” Josh said seriously. “You are in no danger from her now.”
“I said some dreadful things,” Peri continued to cry. Josh’s phone rang again and he looked at it before answering.
“Andie, Peri, is fine, but we are on our way to Calvary Hospital just in case. You can meet us there,” Josh said.
“Josh, take Peri to the hotel, not the hospital. Ben will call you there,” Andie said carefully not wanting to alarm Peri.
“Is he there with you?” Josh asked and a moment later he heard Ben’s voice on the phone.
“Take her back to the hotel. Nero is on his way there. Do not take her to the hospital,” Ben said urgently. “Nik is on her way there in an ambulance. I’ll call you later with the details.”
“Fuck!” Josh exploded and looked at Peri, “Change of plans.” He instructed the driver to take them to the hotel and held Peri close wondering what the hell happened in that courtroom for both women to have come out of it in such bad shape. His priority had to be Peri though and he held her to his chest as the car changed course and headed for the hotel.
Nero was waiting in the foyer when they arrived and helped take her up to her room. He gave her a light sedative and let her sleep. She had continued to cry more from the heightened emotions of the trial than any real medical concern. He reassured Josh that she would be fine in the morning.
“Do you know what happened?” Josh asked.
“To Nik?” Nero asked shaking his head. “No, but it was chaos back there. I came straight here when I heard Peri passed out.”
“I guess we wait then,” Josh said thumbing his phone. “Andie should be here soon.”
Ten minutes later Andie walked in with Ben. She went straight to Peri’s room to check on her and found her asleep.
“I gave her a sedative,” Nero said gently. ”She will sleep for a few hours. When she wakes, I will reassess her while she eats something. ”
“We have to go,” Ben said without any pleasantries. “Andie we’ll call as soon as we know exactly what happened. All I know for sure is that Peri and Nik got into a shouting match about what happened at the facility.”
“She’s very distressed,” Nero said. “I will come back later tonight. Please call me if she wakes and needs anything further.” He handed Andie his card and followed Ben to the door.
“I’ll call you,” Josh said and looked at the door. “Look after her, she was still crying when she finally fell asleep.”
*****
Antonia walked into the jail with Joseph and Ben. She knew everything that had occurred during the trial and the incident with Peri the day before had shocked her deeply. She had known that Nik was guilty but the words of the transcript had shown that she had no remorse or even a sense of wrong doing. Joseph had called her a master manipulator, but Antonia believed her to be nothing more than a spoilt princess, who believed that her parents would make the trouble go away, as they always had for her in the past. She had wanted to see Veronica alone but Joseph had insisted on accompanying her. She tried one last time as they approached the meeting room where Lawrence waited with Nik.
“Lawrence will be there and you can wait outside. You need to maintain your distance, both of you so that she knows what I say is true,” Antonia said rationally. “She still believes we won’t let her be convicted and she needs to know that not even I can stop that now. Let me speak to her alone.”
“It is important that she hears it from all three of us,” Ben said sadly. “We all had a part in creating this monster.” He pushed open the door and held it for his parents, following them into the room.
“Well it’s about fucking time,” Nik snarled at them. “Get them to take these things off me,” she shook the manacles that held her in the wheelchair. “I want to go home.”
“We aren’t here to take you home, Veronica,” her father said sternly, “And if you continue to use that language to me again I won’t allow your mother to speak to you as she wishes.”
“Fine, I’m sorry Mama, but you left me here so long and you have no idea how mean Peri was to me yesterday in court,” she put on a little girl voice as her mother took a seat.
“You almost killed Peri. I think she has a right to be upset with you Veronica,” her mother spoke carefully.
“A few bruises are hardly almost killing her,” Veronica said off-handily. “This is a nightmare; can we just go home now?”
“No Veronica,” Antonia said softly not wanting a scene like what had happened when she was in court yesterday. “We can’t and won’t help you any more than we already have by engaging Lawrence to defend you. We are not here to take you home.” She stopped as Nik stared at her wide eyed for a moment the words sinking in. She saw Nik look at the guards who had followed them into the room.
“You will get me out of here,” Nik snarled in a threatening voice.
“No Veronica, I won’t,” Antonia answered softly. “You can’t honestly believe that you are so special that you can take a life and not have to pay for your crime. The drugs, the assaults we could have imposed our sense of family justice upon, as we have done in the past, but you murdered someone Veronica. In cold blood. The family has to answer to the Twelve for that. Our power is diminished by your actions and even if we wanted to help you, we no longer have the capacity. This is not something that can be covered up or made go away. You have brought shame and bad blood to us all, not just to yourself.”
“Liar!” Nik screeched, “You just don’t want to help me. “Papa is the most powerful of the Twelve and he always was. You cannot diminish power like that. We are Donati’s and people do as we say!”
“NO!” Joseph roared at his daughter making her sink back into the chair. “You are no longer a Donati. You are Veronica Maris and unless you accept the responsibility of your actions you may never claim the Donati name again.”
“I did nothing wrong!” Nik hissed through clenched teeth rattling the manacles in frustration.
“If a Battaglia girl was sent to us as a punishment and murdered Josh to escape her punishment would you think she had done nothing wrong? If she had also harmed Emily or Bianca?” Ben said trying to make her see reason. “You have done very wrong things Nik and even if you don’t admit to them the jury will find you guilty, and the sentence will be the same if not worse because you lied about it.” He sighed. “No one is going to bail you out, this time, Nik, not even Josh.”
Nik rocked back in her chair as if Ben had dealt her a physical blow. “Josh will come around, he always does. I was just trying to stop him from making a big mistake. She’s not one of us. She never could be,” Nik whispered. “Mama you know it’s true. Please, you can’t leave me here like this,” she pleaded tears forming in her eyes, the fight seemingly gone from her.
“If Peri ever forgives Josh for your actions I will welcome her as a daughter. What Peri said to you yesterday was true, it was never her you had to stop from seeing him, it was Josh, he chased her and still does. You’ve broken your brother’s heart by not understanding that,” Antonia said trying to make Nik understand how badly she had hurt her twin.
“Then he’s a bigger idiot than I believed possible,” Nik snapped unable to face her guilt.
“We will not help you evade justice Veronica, but plead guilty and accept your fate and I will ensure you have what you need while you are incarcerated. Continue with this melodrama and you will need to survive on your own,” Antonia said and stood. “You will be found guilty, you will be in jail for a very long time, how you survive there is entirely up to you now.” She left the meeting room without looking back.
“You confessed in court yesterday. The jury heard that to continue to claim your innocence only makes you seem insane,” Ben said before following his parents from the room.
“Well you heard my darling brother, I’m insane. Now get me off, so I can go home,” Nick yelled at Lawrence.
“You had a psych evaluation when you were arrested. It is too late to use the insanity defence, temporary or otherwise,” Lawrence said in his tight unemotional way. “In light of your parent’s unwillingness to help you, I would strongly urge you to change your plea to guilty.”
“No, I did nothing wrong,” Nik said less confidently than usual. “The confession means nothing I was just distraught because of that bitch.”
*****
Peri walked into the courthouse flanked by Josh and Nero. She had woken twice during the night from nightmares. Both of these men had been at her side within minutes. She knew she should be grateful but she felt trapped by them at that moment. Like a condemned woman walking to the gallows.
“We will be waiting with Andie,” Nero said stiffly, “Should you need anything.”
“Please don’t waste your day waiting for me,” Peri said. “I won’t be speaking with Nik today.” She could have stayed at the hotel and no one would have blamed her but she was determined to show Nik that she wouldn’t run away like a scared little mouse.
She went to meet with her lawyer taking only Andie with her. She sat as he spoke of the defence not changing their plea after the outburst yesterday and having one added witness to call today. He felt that it would only be a formality before the final remarks and the jury retired to consider their verdict. Which he was sure after her confession would be a swift deliberation.
When they went into the courtroom, Peri noticed that Nik was not on the bench with her lawyer but rather was sitting behind a curved Perspex wall in the corner of the room in what looked like a wheelchair that she was manacled to. Her outburst the day before seemed to have greater consequences than Peri had thought and she was grateful that she was not similarly censured. The judge arrived and the jury was sworn in once again before proceedings started with the chief counsel of the prosecution standing and saying that in light of the events in the room yesterday the prosecution rested its case.
The defence opened with its first and only witness aside of Nik herself. A psychiatrist who had spent time speaking with and observing Nik since her arrest. He diagnosed her with a high functioning narcissistic personality disorder. He spoke eloquently on this topic relating it back to Nik as he went through several qualities of a narcissist.
“A High function narcissist is someone who can maintain gainful employment, marriage and relationships. Interaction with narcissists like Veronica Maris can be confusing, even bewildering at times because the reasons for what they do are not the same reasons that a perceived normal person would do the same things. In fact, treating them like a normal person, for instance, appealing to their better nature or giving them a chance to apologise and make amends will only make a bad situation worse,” he explained. “What you see is what you get, they have no better nature. The fundamental problem here is that narcissists lack empathy.”
“It is my belief that Veronica Maris is quite capable of knowing wrong from right, and understanding the laws of our nation. If she believes herself innocent of what she is accused of, then she will not change her mind,” he said finally after a long session of questions and answers about the diagnosis.
“Thank you, Doctor, for that full and clear explanation,” said the chief counsel for the prosecution. “I will keep my questions brief. “You said that she would understand the laws of the nation, do you believe this personality trait would allow her to hold herself above them or beyond them?”
“Indeed, if she believed that what she did was for the greater good, that being her perception of the greater good, she would not feel she had done anything to be held accountable for,” he agreed.
“Yet she would hold others accountable for the same actions,” The prosecutor pressed.
“Yes she understands the law and that justice must be served,” he said in a professional tone.
“Is it your expert opinion that she understands why she is on trial here today?”
“It is,” he nodded. “But like many narcissists, she simply believes that the laws do not apply to her.”
“Thank you, Doctor, no further questions,” he took his seat again.
Nik gave her testimony from behind the Perspex wall. She spoke clearly and concisely as she relayed her carefully prepared alibi about a fellow patient at the rehab facility called Anna. Anna was the drug crazed murderer and she had been scared witless and run away before Anna murdered her as well. She had no idea why Peri was lying about her being in the library. She had excuses and alibis for everything that happened at the rehabilitation facility. Lawrence did not press her too hard for fear that she would contradict herself as she sat speaking confidently about her innocence.
The prosecution though tore each alibi and excuse to shreds. There was no record of anyone by the name of Anna at the facility during her time there. She was seen in the security tapes at various places in the facility other than where she should have been and she had been found in possession of Peri’s phone and identification.
“Are you a moron? Did you get your degree from the University of Wallamaloo? Nik raged as he caught her contradicting herself yet again. “Listen to what I am saying and stop putting words in my mouth!”
“Tell me again how you came to be in possession of Miss Wells wallet and phone?” he asked calmly in the face of her rage.
“She didn’t show up to meet me so I went to her room to find her and it looked like she had left in a hurry so I took them for safekeeping,” she said through clenched teeth.
“Where did you think Miss Wells had gone without any money or ID?” he asked inclining his head as if trying to understand.
“How the fuck should I know? She’s a simpleton. She probably planned to hitch her way home,” she seethed barely containing herself.
“So you were just trying to help this simpleton by stealing her identity and leaving the facility because you were scared of Anna or to find Miss Wells and help her?” he asked turning his back to her. “I am afraid I am confused by your ever changing stories, Miss Maris.”
The questioning went on after lunch with Lawrence objecting to every line of questioning he could and Nik being caught in the web of lies she wove around herself and the events that occurred on the day Giorgio died and Peri was hurt. When it was done, the defence rested.
“There will be a short recess and I will hear final remarks today,” the judge said and left the courtroom looking unhappy about the farce that had just occurred. It was bad enough that the girl had recounted her confession claiming emotional duress but the convoluted testimony made no sense to him at all.
Peri sat with Andie in a meeting room within the courthouse picking at the food provided. She had listened to all the nasty venomous things Nik had to say about her without a word and tried to rationalise how awful they had made her feel. If Josh had just dated Sabrina, none of this would have occurred, but then he might have ended up like Dante, bitter and regretful. Her brain tried to come up with a way the family might have gone on happily if not for her presence. She could never really know if Nik wouldn’t have self-destructed anyway or if Josh would have found a woman who loved him enough to enter into this bizarre world.
Just the thought of Josh with someone else, living happily ever after at the winery made her sad but she wasn’t sure they could every fully move past this now and that thought just made her sadder.
Authors Note: Thank you to everyone left comments or sent me feedback about previous chapters of this story. Thank you to Margaret who proofread for me. I hope you enjoy this chapter. ~ellie
“I need to get away for a few days,” Peri said watching Pete as he filled in her chart. “My face is almost better, and my shoulder seems fine.” He turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow.
“It will be at least another two weeks until your cast comes off, I think you should wait before doing any more travelling,” He said cautiously. “Any reason you need to get away?” he asked putting emphasis on the word need.
“Forget I mentioned it,” Peri sighed. She should have known better than to ask him, of all people, but she wanted to know that she was not going to get dizzy or faint anymore. She just wanted to drive up the coast for a couple of days and clear her head. She hadn’t had a moment alone since coming back from Canberra to herself.
“Are you sleeping well?” Pete frowned. “Any more nightmares?”
“No the tablets you gave me work well,” she lied. “Is that it?” she asked brightly, sitting up and resuming the mask she had shown to the world since Nik had been given a life sentence.
“Why don’t you go to the farm if you’re feeling claustrophobic in this room,” he looked around at the clutter of her life. He didn’t think she had thrown anything away since high school.
“No,” she shook her head with a soft laugh, “I am not ready for that.”
“I wouldn’t be happy if you were to dash off somewhere alone, if that is what you are thinking,” he said seriously. “You still need time to heal. You’ve been through a great deal of trauma both physically and emotionally.”
“Yeah I had a front row seat for it,” she said sarcastically. “No one is about to let me forget that for more than five minutes in a day, as if I could forget,” she waved her cast at him.
“It’s only because we care that we want to make sure you are healing,” he said apologetically. “Have you given any more thought to seeing a counsellor?”
“It’s fine. I’m sorry I wasn’t thinking about all of that. I just want to to do my own thing instead of having people babysit me every moment of the day,” she sighed softly.
“Think about the farm, only Antonia would be there at the moment, Carlo works from dawn til late so you would hardly see him and since Angelo lives on the other side of the property you would virtually be alone,” Pete suggested again.
“I can’t go there. Everyone says they don’t blame me, but Antonia must be hurting about Nik being convicted,” Peri said sadly. “I need to get away from that feeling, not run toward the centre of it,” she said.
“Think about it,” he suggested. “You might be surprised by how happy Antonia would be to see you,” he smiled encouragingly and picked up his case. “Call me if you need anything at all, even just an ear to talk to that isn’t strictly family.”
“You and Charles might as well be,” she laughed at the idea. “I’ll think about it,” she assured him and stood to walk him to the door.
“How’d it go?” Andie asked as she came back into the kitchen.
“No time off for good behaviour, two more weeks,” she held up her cast.
“Best to let it heal properly,” Andie consoled her.
“When are you going back to work?” Peri asked her mother, “You can’t stay home with me forever.”
“Tomorrow, Bianca asked me for some advice now that she is starting to show,” Andie said with a smile. “I thought it wouldn’t hurt to get back into it slowly since you seem so much like your old self.”
“I’m glad I don’t want you stuck here with me all the time,” Peri sat on one of the stools that lined the kitchen bench. “Are you going into the city?”
“No, we’re going to the DFO out near the airport, would you like to come,” I’m sure Bianca wouldn’t mind,” Andie offered.
“No thanks, I am not sure I could manage a whole day of shopping,” she laughed good-naturedly knowing how she still looked even four weeks after her injuries. “I could use a bit of pampering, though, if you could drop me off at the salon I can catch a cab home.”
“Oh gosh what a great idea! Why don’t we book a spa day for Friday and get the works done, hair, nails, waxing, massages? It’s been forever since I’ve had a proper cleansing massage. That little place out near the bay did those wonderful whole body sea salt exfoliating treatments,” Andie enthused. “I could use a bit of pampering too.”
“Sure,” Peri agreed enjoying Andie’s enthusiasm. She had just wanted a leg wax because she had so much trouble showering with a cast and maybe a trim for her hair but she thought she could handle a day of forced relaxation somewhere other than here. “We can afford to go anywhere you want now, what about one of those places that have a salt room?”
“Do you think we could? Let’s look online and see what we can book?” She came out of the kitchen and sat at the table where her laptop was. Peri was enjoying Andie’s enthusiasm. She had been so good to her through everything that had happened. She had gotten Peri out of the Battaglia hospital, and stayed by her side night and day without complaint. She had helped her bathe and eat and do everything and anything the first week. She had put her life on hold to come to Canberra and be with her during Nik’s trial. She had run interference between her and Josh, which couldn’t have been easy and she had gone above and beyond anything she had ever done for Peri before.
Peri knew she owed her mother much, much, more than a spa day. As soon as the guilty verdict had been delivered Peri’s lawyer had filed for damages, it had been settled out of court and Peri had been awarded more than she had asked for. All she had wanted was the money to pay her lawyer and any ongoing medical costs, so she wasn’t reliant on Josh, who had not given her a choice but to accept the medical treatment he had organised for her when she was first injured. Her lawyer though had taken into account loss of income and asked for damages for mental and emotional distress caused as well as the hardship to her family who had to accompany her interstate for the trial. She had become a millionaire overnight, and she knew that if she invested it wisely, she would never have to work again.
“Wow, look at this place!” Andie said delightedly turning the laptop so Peri could get a better look at the exclusive spa’s web page.
Peri read aloud, “Opal Rasul Steam Temple, includes Skin Brushing, Three Signature Muds, Detoxifying Steam Rain Shower and Hydration. This is a popular experience for friends to enjoy together, the temple can accommodate up to three adults and is a sultry one-hour journey of mud therapy, warm steam, and tropical rain showers. This ancient cleansing ritual involves covering the body in mineralised body masks to powerfully detox and purify your skin throughout the spa journey. Perfect for up to three people.”
“Doesn’t it sound divine?” She asked.
“It does but do they do the other stuff there, like waxing? I am starting to look like a yeti,” Peri laughed and held up one of her legs.
“The only thing I can see that they don’t do is hair, but if we went to the one in the city we could do that as well,” Andie grinned. “This is going to be so much fun!” She was happy about the idea of a spa day, but she was overjoyed that Peri was willing to start going out again.
They spent some time going through the website and choosing the treatments they might like before Andie finally made a phone call to see if they could book in to get the things done that they wanted. Peri lay on the couch listening to her mother on the phone and smiled. It felt good to be making some plans to do something fun. She was tired of being wrapped in cotton wool.
She may not be able to get away for a few days alone, but perhaps with Andie going back to work she could start doing a few of the things she wanted to do on her own. Starting with getting something fun to read. She’d enjoyed a manuscript Josh had let her read by a first-time author. For a fiction book, the story seemed unbelievably real to her as she recovered from her injuries. She had downloaded several books to her tablet, but she missed the smell and feel of a solid book and turning real pages.
She could catch a taxi to where she wanted to go, but she knew that while she still bore the bruises on her face to remind every one of her injuries that they would not let her go alone in case, she got dizzy and fainted again. It hadn’t happened for over a week, but she knew she had scared Andie and Josh when it had occurred last time.
“Andie,” Peri said rolling to her side and craning her neck to look at her mother who still sat at the table. “Where did the drivers come from in Canberra? The ones who drove us to and from the courthouse?”
“The lawyers organised them I think,” Andie said uncertainly. “It was much better than taking a cab.”
“I was thinking about doing a few things by myself, nothing important just going to the library and hairdresser, it might be handy to have a driver, more reliable than a taxi and I don’t think I could handle the bus just yet.”
“I can take you,” Andie said frowning.
“You and Josh have put your businesses on hold long enough for me,” Peri said. “I just want a little more freedom. Sometimes I just want to go and get some Fro-Yo. If I could just call a driver, I could do that even when you’re working, and you wouldn’t have to worry about leaving me stranded here at home.”
“Why don’t you talk to Josh about it, see if he says it’s a good idea. If he thinks it would be okay then I’ll agree,” Andie said to compromise but not liking the idea.
“You both realise I’m a grown woman and can do whatever I want, right?” Peri rolled her eyes and huffed turning onto her back ending the conversation. She brooded for a few minutes her mind wandering. It wouldn’t hurt to talk to Josh about wanting to get out and do things to make herself feel normal again. She looked at her watch and sighed loudly, it would be hours before he finished work. Feeling normal would mean being able to look after herself again. She knew he wanted that as much as she did.
*****
“Lawrence has informed Nik that the family won’t fund an appeal against the conviction, and all her funds have been frozen by the courts,” Romey informed his brothers. “She has no choice but to accept the verdict.”
“She had very little money in her name when they caught her anyway,” Jules shrugged.
“So she stays in Canberra? She doesn’t have to come up here to face the other charges?” Josh asked.
“The paperwork has been filed, but the judgement deferred. If she ever gets out on parole the Queensland authorities will pick her up, and she will go on trial again,” Romey said.
“They could sentence retrospectively if she pleads guilty and behaves while she is imprisoned,” Jules added putting a slightly positive spin on the news.
“So life goes on,” Dante said. “It’s not going to do anyone any good to keep going over the details. It’s over, time to move on. At least, we’ve got some celebrations to look forward to. A couple of new nephews, and a proper engagement party. You can get Peri to invite all her single hot friends for Carlo to make a fool of himself over and add to the entertainment.”
“Shit D. let the girl recover,” Ben said saving Josh from having to admit that Peri hadn’t wanted to talk about the future. She hadn’t given him the ring back, but she refused to talk about the plans they had made before the trial whenever he brought it up.
“She’s gotta be going crazy being stuck in that house twenty-four seven,” Dante said. “Things will get back to normal pretty soon. I’ll call her tomorrow and ask her when she’s coming back to work,” he grinned. “That should cheer her up, the thought of spending all day with me again.”
“She’d probably quit if you remind her about that, better to focus on the artefacts if you want her back,” Josh chuckled not wanting to be drawn into a conversation about his and Peri’s relationship.
“When are the babies due?” Maryann asked happy to change the subject.
“July,” Ben and Jules replied in unison.
“What about you Josh have you set a date yet?” She asked with a grin.
“Dates have been the last thing on our minds lately,” Josh said evasively.
“You’re all mean you know that,” Maryann pouted, upset that no one had asked her why she was worried about the timing of family events.
“They’re men you have to spell it out for them,” Lucia rolled her eyes at her brothers. “They still think your twelve and at school.”
“It’s okay,” Maryanne shrugged. “I just won’t invite them to my wedding, and they can go on believing that.” She grinned at her big brother’s waiting for them to become the overbearing, overprotective men she loved.
For the next half hour, Maryanne enjoyed the interrogation they gave her despite being outwardly petulant at being treated like a child. It was Josh who hugged her tightly first and congratulated her.
“I’m happy and don’t worry about me you pick whichever date you like, we’ll work around you, it’s your turn to shine. I don’t know that they can change the babies’ minds about being born in July though,” he chuckled.
“Have you tried telling one of my kids what to do?” Jules grumbled. “The dog is the only one in my house that listens to me, and that’s only when I have a handful of treats!”
“Now if it were my wife, there would be no problem,” Romey said seriously. “Carmen would die rather than miss a family wedding. She would just command that child not to come until the time was right.”
“I imagine mine will be early if that helps,” Ben said, “Emily’s listening to Pete though and resting as much as she can so you never know.”
“At least, one of my patients is listening to me,” Pete chuckled walking in and taking a seat. “What did I miss?”
“Let me help you out,” Josh said with a smile and began pointing at his siblings, “Baby on the way, baby on the way, wedding, best-selling author,” he smirked at Lucia, “And the three most boring men on earth. He is harbouring delusions of grandeur, though,” Josh indicated Dante.
“So nothing interesting then,” Pete nodded ignoring Maryanne’s dramatic sigh and hiding his smile.
“Honestly, I don’t know why I tell you guys anything, at least, Lucia was excited for me,” she complained.
“You remember that nervous dude at the vineyard on New Year’s Eve?” Ben asked Pete. Then they all began to start teasing Maryanne again.
“How’d it go with Peri?” Josh asked Pete.
“She’s healing faster than expected. I think she wants to start getting out and doing things for herself which is always a good sign,” Pete said easily not wanting to betray Peri but having enough concern about her need to get away to want to warn Josh. “I think she may be ready for a change of scenery. I asked her to hold off on making any plans until her cast comes off before doing more than a short outing.”
“I guess that’s good then,” Josh said thoughtfully. He looked up at Lucia, who had been listening in on their conversation. They’d become a great deal closer through all of the drama of the trials.
“Maybe it’s time I invited her to lunch, had a little girl bonding time with my future sister-in-law,” she smiled. “Wouldn’t hurt to give her a change of scenery and people,” she laughed. “We could get a car from Al’s for the day and maybe go up to Paragons near the winery. I know Marisol has been sick with worry about her.”
“I’m not sure she would accept,” Josh said cautiously, “But no harm in asking.”
“I need to get back to work,” Josh said with a smile and farewelled his family. Now that everything had settled down he was enjoying the challenge of taking on a new business. The company he took over offered a range of services from ghostwriting to manuscript editing, typesetting, book cover designs, ebooks, as well as printing and binding for paperback and hardback books. Now in addition to this, he would add book marketing and distribution packages which would include national and global distribution channels.
He’d done his homework on the company he bought and was pleased with the way the staff had handled the transition to new ownership. They were all good people who excelled in their specialities and were looking forward to the breath of fresh air that Josh promised to bring to their workplace.
Louisa had been a godsend. She had been steadfastly loyal and handled a constant stream of communication between the staff and himself during Nik’s trial. She had stepped up into the executive assistant role as if she had been doing it for years and he was beyond grateful for the long hours she had been putting in with him and for him. He’d make it up to her once everything was put in place.
*****
Peri had surprised even herself with how quickly she had agreed to a lunch date with Lucia. She had prevaricated at first saying that she couldn’t even cut her food by herself let alone contemplate going to a restaurant. Lucia had just laughed and told her about a wonderful risotto that she knew Peri would love. She had made a couple of feeble excuses about her appearance which Lucia shut down easily with a wine soaked laugh and Peri had agreed to a day out.
Peri woke early and dressed in jeans to hide her unkempt legs and a loose shirt she could pull on easily despite her damaged arm and shoulder. She hadn’t been anywhere since returning from Canberra where her mother had still had to help her dress each morning, and she had worn nothing but a wide array of comfortable pyjamas since then. It felt good to be getting ready to leave the house. She slipped her cast through the padded loops of her sling and went to see if Andie was awake to help with her hair. She desperately wanted to be able to do it for herself, but she still had trouble reaching back to put it up, and it was in bad condition, so she didn’t want to leave it down as she had been doing.
It wouldn’t have been so bad, she thought, if it had been her left arm and shoulder that were incapacitated. She was constantly frustrated by having to use her left hand to try and do the normal things. Andie was also up early, and Peri could smell breakfast before she got to the kitchen.
“Good morning, how did you sleep?” Andie smiled and slid an omelette onto a plate.
“Fine,” Peri said and took a seat at the table with her mother.
“That’s a pretty shirt. Did you want to see how some makeup feels? It might soften the bruising a little bit,” she asked trying to say it lightly, so Peri didn’t become even more self-conscious about the damage that still showed on her face.
“That would be good if you have time,” Peri said lifting her hand to her face. “It doesn’t hurt much anymore, if we use a soft sponge, I think it will be okay. Not too much, though,” she warned her mother out of habit.
“I know baby, I have learned a thing or two about you over the last six months,” Andie gave a small laugh.
An hour later Peri took a last look in the mirror, amazed at how much better she felt just from a little makeup and having her hair put up properly. The idea that she could start getting her life back on track and doing normal things seemed more real somehow. She picked up her handbag and hugged her mother goodbye before walking out to the waiting car with Lucia.
“You’re looking so good,” Lucia said enthusiastically. “I haven’t seen you since that morning I ran into you in Canberra.”
“I think I am feeling better just from getting out for the day, thank you again for the invitation,” Peri said with a smile as the driver helped her into the car. “I didn’t realise we would have a driver,” she said curiously.
“I don’t drive anywhere,” Lucia admitted. “I enjoy a glass of wine with lunch too much,” she said acknowledging the fact that she drank to excess quite often.
“I wanted to thank you for what you said to me the first morning of the trial,” Peri said after they had driven for a for minutes. “I wasn’t ready to hear it, and I reacted badly at the time, but I appreciated what you tried to do.”
“Well, now that you have brought it up it makes this easier to talk about,” Lucia said kindly. “I wanted to talk to you about what happened and tell you about my experiences facing my would be killer in a courtroom.”
Peri frowned at first and then her eyes widened as she looked at Lucia and saw the seriousness of her face.
“You see, out of everyone who was in Canberra, I probably was the only one who had an inkling of what you were going through. Of course, my case was different in many ways, but it came down to the same thing. Trying to find the courage to face not only your attacker but their friends and family too,” She turned a small, sad smile on Peri. “Fortunately, for me, I never had to see any of them again, you though, need to come to terms with it every day because of Josh.”
“It’s not easy,” Peri admitted cautiously.
“We have a bit of a drive ahead of us,” Lucia picked up the manuscript that had some editing comments throughout it that Josh had given her to work on and placed it on the seat between them.
“I’ve read that,” Peri said not making the connection immediately. “It was a very good story and could be a best seller once it is edited properly and Josh works his marketing magic on it.”
“I know you read it,” Lucia smiled, “Josh asked my permission before giving it to you.”
“This is your story? I thought it was fiction, I mean it reads like a fictional account,” Peri was shocked.
“It’s embellished and stylised, you know names and locations changed to protect the innocent,” Lucia laughed.” It’s meant as fiction, only a handful of people know I have written it though I expect that’s about to change.” She pulled a face. “I’ve never had anyone to talk to about what happened to me who would understand how it feels to be that vulnerable. So I thought I would tell you the real story, without the embellishments and name changes. I thought it might help you not to feel so alone, knowing you had someone close by who understood what you were going through.” She reached out and took Peri’s hand, “It might also show you a different side to our family, the loving and caring one that created Josh.”
“I don’t know if things can ever go back to how they were with Josh before it all happened. Not just the trial but even over Christmas and the New Year. I feel like I have been sucked into a bizarre world, and I am not sure I can stay with this dark cloud hanging over me for a lifetime, Nik’s lifetime.” Peri admitted. “I would like to hear your story, though, your right, I do feel like no one can understand how I feel right now.”
“Okay well, let me state the obvious and put it out there that we did not have a typical childhood. None of us did, which is why I think the boys are all determined that their kids should be as normal as possible, go to regular schools and have regular hobbies and things,” she laughed. “We were spoilt brats and despite this, I think every single one of us rebelled as teenagers. Let’s see,” she thought about it.
“Angelo being the oldest was the first to start rebelling. He and Ben were close not only in age but personality and love for each other. As soon as Ben graduated from high school, Ang deferred his Uni degree, and they took off without a word to anyone on a surfing safari. Papa cut off their allowances and froze their bank accounts. They came home after realising that they weren’t cut out for menial work washing dishes or labouring. Carlo joined the rodeo circuit for a while but came home without any prompting. I don’t know what happened there. Dante and Emilio were heavily into the club scene and always in trouble for fighting.”
“Seriously,” Peri interrupted astounded by that piece of information. I can’t imagine Lio getting physically aggressive with anyone.”
“Yeah and by all reports he used to start most of the fights and it was D. that went along for the ride,” Lucia laughed. “Let’s see Izzy got into the band scene, became a groupie for a punk band that was heading over to England, Papa stopped her at the airport and dragged her home again. So the six oldest paved the way for us younger six. We didn’t get away with much after all those things. The Valentine brothers were practically perfect in every way. Perfect students, perfect athletes, the perfect sons of the Donati family. They got caught taking tests for other people in a huge cheating racket at the law school. They were always entrepreneurs destined to be rich and famous in their own right. It went against the family code to cheat your way into it though or help others to do that more importantly.”
“They still got their law degrees, though,” Peri said tilting her head.
“Of course, they did, you are not mistaken about the power our family holds. They can make almost any dumb thing we did as kids go away. Nik had every reason to believe that if they wanted to Mama and Papa could have gotten her out of jail. What she didn’t comprehend was that what she had done was so awful that they wouldn’t get her out and would conspire to make sure she paid the price for her crimes. I would have liked to be there the morning of the last day of her trial when they finally went to see her and told her that if she didn’t plead guilty she was on her own.”
“On her own how?” Peri was confused.
“By all accounts prison is a much easier place to be if you have money and visitors to bring you things to trade or just make life more bearable. Let’s not worry about Nik right now. Except to say that she and Josh never openly rebelled except that they kept putting off the family expectations. Nik refused to date any suitable husband material, and Josh kept delaying becoming a family man and taking the family name. Maryanne followed Nik’s lead, but it was short-lived. It didn’t matter what Maryanne did to befriend Nik, it was never good enough, and Nik treated her with barely concealed contempt.”
“Poor Maryanne, she seems happy now, though, planning for her engagement,” Peri smiled.
“Yeah I am honestly happy for her, it will do her good to get away from all the drama up here, but I will miss her a lot when she finally goes to Melbourne to start her own family,” Lucia said softly.
“How come you didn’t have to go and live in Canberra if you married into the Battaglia table?” Peri asked curiously.
“One of the perks of marrying a military man, anywhere can be home base while he is on assignment. We have a house in both cities,” she smiled. “That brings me to my rebellion, being one of the younger ones you’d think I would have learned from everyone else’s mistakes but I was young and dumb.”
Lucia went on to talk about how she started out in nursing school and how she had loved to party with her friends. Talked about how she had met the most handsome and charismatic man and they had started to date. His influence over her had started small, and she had swiped a few ampules of pure alcohol from the dispensary at the hospital she worked at for him. They had used it at a party to make a punch that was almost toxic. After a while, she found herself swiping other medications too, particularly those containing pseudoephedrine. It was cold and flu medications mostly, cough syrups and tablets. She was totally naïve about the illegal drug culture and saw nothing wrong with it, until she went home for the holidays and stopped supplying her boyfriend with it.
Her handsome beautiful boyfriend turned nasty and began to threaten not only her but her friends if she didn’t keep the steady supply coming. A few weeks later she was caught at work in the dispensary and had to face the disciplinary board. Feeling that there was nothing she could do, she went home to her apartment to hide from everyone. She was too scared to tell her boyfriend, and terrified of what her family would say when they found out that she had to go in front the disciplinary board.
He came for her that night, using his most charming ways, he talked her into letting him into her apartment. When she told him that she had been caught and had to face a disciplinary board, he lost it and hit her for the first time. He then made her pack a bag and forced her down to his car. He had ranted about her not taking him down with her, and he had driven her from there to the drug lab he and his crew ran.
She found out the hard way that she had been supplying an illegal drug lab, not entirely on her own but she had added to it all. She knew that if it ever came out it would be one of those despicable crimes that her parents would never forgive her for even though she had never taken a drug in her life. She had become quickly hysterical and when beating her into submission didn’t help she had been drugged.
She had been kept drugged for several days and moved from house to house, as her boyfriend and his crew dismantled the lab, sold most of the drugs they had made and prepared to move interstate. During those three days, she had been beaten and repeatedly raped by her boyfriend and his crew. Despite her inability to fight back or protect herself she was aware of what was happening the whole time. She knew that once they were ready to move the operation interstate, they planned to give her an overdose and leave her behind because even if someone found her, who would believe a prostitute junkie’s version of events.
“My family had found me before they had the chance to do that, though, and I was taken to the Battaglia facility,” she said unemotionally as she had told the story.
“I can’t even begin to imagine what you went through,” Peri said quietly. “I feel like a cry baby now.”
“Don’t be silly,” Lucia squeezed the hand she still held. “My ordeal was caused by my stupidity. I was blinded by love to the reality of what was happening to me and who he truly was. You may have been blinded by love, but Josh is very real, and true and loves you with the same blind adoration.”
Peri thought about this as Lucia continued her story.
She was given the morning after pill, but it turned out that she had been pregnant longer than anyone had realised and there were complications. She developed a high fever and an infection in the midst of going through withdrawal from the meth she had been injected with. By the time she was well enough to press charges, they had already been sentenced to a variety of drug-related crimes.
The men had turned on each other, and when her day in court came, they had pleaded guilty to the added charges of rape and torture with intent to kill, making a deal with the prosecution for leniency but still receiving hefty sentences added to the ones they were currently serving. She explained that she knew what it was like to sit in a courtroom with someone who wanted you dead, but also that she knew it was worth every excruciating minute.
“It’s taken me years to get to this point and still there are only a handful of people who know the real story. Most of the family are happy to believe I had a drug habit, and that’s why I was sent to rehab,” she said. “I’m fairly happy to let them believe that, I don’t need to relive the horror over and over again when they see me. Those that knew treated me like damaged goods and I could bear that about as much as you probably can.” She said with understanding. “So you won’t get the kid glove treatment from me, or Josh if I have any say about it.”
“Thank you,” Peri said. “I don’t need it nor do I want it.”
“That doesn’t mean I don’t care, I do. It just means that I won’t cut your steak for you as a child, but I will suggest the risotto,” she laughed and Peri laughed lightly with her.
“Well that made time go quickly,” Lucia said as the car pulled up in the main street of the quaint little mountain township. “Do you feel up to a small walk? There is a fudge shop up the road a that Dino loves, and I promised to bring some home for him.”
“I could do with stretching my legs,” Peri agreed easily and let the driver help her from the car. Did you meet Dino at the facility?” She asked as they walked side by side slowly.
“In a manner of speaking. I didn’t have to go to the cells once the drugs were out of my system. There wasn’t a self-inflicted habit to break so I stayed in one of the townhouses and met with a psychologist in that room with all the mismatched furniture to help me deal with the trauma. Dino was home on leave from his ship, and he claims to this day that it was love at first sight. He never treated me like damaged goods. He never asked why I was there. I told him myself after a few weeks, so he knew as we got closer, it never mattered to him.”
“He sounds wonderful,” Peri smiled genuinely happy that Lucia had been able to move on.
“He is! Now come and help me choose some fudge for him,” she smiled.
*****
Josh sat at his desk going over the publication scheduled for printing in the next run. He would rather concentrate on novels and biographies but for the moment publications of company reports and mission statements made up the bulk of the company’s income. They could be doing more, but the two editors on staff were buckling under the pressure already.
The small staff that came with the company were over worked and under paid and Josh was in the process of headhunting some of the better junior editors he had worked with or heard about from his sources. In the larger firms, it took time and influence to climb through the ranks at anything but a snail’s pace; he wouldn’t have to twist too many arms to jump ship and come to work with him, getting in on the ground floor of a new and upwardly mobile publishing house. He looked up and smiled coming to his feet with his hand extended in greeting as Rick Donaldson walked into his office.
“Nice digs,” Rick said looking around. “It’s a little bit more upmarket than I had expected. I was surprised when I heard you bought this place, and curious enough to come and check it out for myself when you called.”
“It’s good to see you, Rick. So just curious to see the place or would you like to hear more about my offer?” Josh grinned knowing the man wouldn’t have come if he wasn’t seriously interested in what he had to say. He knew there was no bullshit about Rick, he called a spade a spade and would tell him honestly what he wanted to make the move from his comfortable job in the city.
“Dazzle me,” he said raising his hands and shaking then in an imitation of Mario, the senior-edited they had both worked under until Josh left.
“I want you to work with me, not for me,” Josh began. “I need someone I can rely on to do things my way. I like your honesty and work ethic. I think together we could make this place great. Let me show you how it’s running currently and then dazzle you with my plans.”
He spoke in depth about the state of the company and its current overworked staff. Then he talked about his planned changes, particularly in the marketing. He had enough contacts to get certain area’s up and running almost immediately what he needed was senior staff that he could trust and rely on to put in one hundred percent to help him make the company everything he believed it could be.
“The company is owned by me alone, no shareholders, no board, no unseen owners to answer to which gives us the freedom to be innovative in the way we approach the old stale relics of the publishing industry. We can take on the old guard and make a dent in their stranglehold the publishing world,” Josh spoke with the fervour of a man on a mission.
“Alright, I’m dazzled,” he said. “You’ve told me what I could do for you and your company let’s talk about what you’re prepared to do for me.”
Josh had been preparing for this and slid a folder across the desk to him. “This is somewhat negotiable but I think you will find what you want and need all listed there,” he said cautiously sitting back and letting Rick read through the offer he was making.
“I can bring my assistant with me and offer him a raise,” Rick nodded, “I’d also like to offer my intern a gig, he’d be a decent copy editor to start with.”
“That’d save me an interview,” Josh said easily. “I need staff at all levels of the company; these guys are overworked as is and we could be doing a greater volume of work with the addition of a few extra people in each division.”
“Who else are you thinking of bringing in?” He asked.
“Does that mean you’re in?” Josh asked raising an eyebrow.
“You made it so that I would look like a fool if I turned you down,” he said tapping the folder.
“I have a few ideas of who I would like, but I’m open to suggestions,” Josh chuckled knowing Rick would have ideas of his own. “When can you start?”
“Give me a few days to feel out a few of the others at work. We don’t want an avalanche, but it’s better than interviewing the untried and tested versions. Let’s say I resign on Friday and threaten to use up all my sick leave owing if they don’t allow to me walk out that day free and clear,” He considered Josh’s momentary surprise and chuckled, “I’m not one for long goodbye’s. Considering I am planning to take a few people with me, I doubt they will want me hanging around to steal all of their staff.”
“Sounds good, let me show you around,” Josh came to his feet feeling good about having Rick on board. It meant that ultimately as she returned to health he could spend more time with Peri and know that his company had reliable people at the helm.
*****
“Get up Peri, we’re leaving,” Lucia said suddenly coming to her feet. Peri stood with her sensing the urgency and turned toward the door seeing Marisol walking toward them followed by Antonia.
“Antonia showed up this morning as a surprise. She said you asked her to join us,” Marisol said with a smile. “How are you, Peri? I am so glad you came up to see us.”
“Mama you lied to Marisol?” Lucia hissed. “This is exactly why she doesn’t trust any of us anymore. You ambushed her, and she deserves better than that! Haven’t we put her through enough? Come on Peri, we’ll go somewhere else.” Peri stood stunned by Lucia’s tirade.
“I only wanted to make sure you were well,” Antonia spoke to Peri. “I’ve been so worried. No one will tell me anything about how you and Josh are doing.”
“This is the first time she let anyone from the family see her, and you had to gate crash it? You can’t possibly be this clueless, Mama,” Lucia seemed close to tears as she turned to Peri. “I didn’t know. You have to believe I would never have done this to you.”
“Let’s just sit down for a moment,” Peri whispered feeling every eye in the restaurant on her. She sat back down and waited for the other ladies to take their seats.
“I’m so sorry,” Marisol whispered seeing Peri’s stricken face.
“Oh it’s fine Marisol, see we are all sitting now. We will have a nice lunch, and everything will be fine,” Antonia said quite shaken by her daughter’s tirade. Her children never spoke to her like that in public and even in private they usually just accepted that she was their mother and had certain privileges.
“No Mama, it’s not fine,” Lucia said sadly. “I promised no surprises today, and you made me into a liar. How can she ever trust us when you do things like this?”
“I am a mother I worry, and you and Josh are not telling me what has been happening,” Antonia complained.
“Please stop,” Peri said softly making the three ladies look at her. “I am quite fine as you can see, and I have my own mother who worries enough for everyone thank you. I realise that coming from such large families you can’t understand my need for boundaries, but Lucia is right. I didn’t want to see you today. I’m not ready for this conversation. Not with you and certainly not with Joseph. I am sorry for what you must be feeling, but I am not sorry for what I did, and I won’t apologise for wanting to protect myself from Nik by making sure she was convicted.” Peri said woodenly. “Now if you will excuse me I need to go.” She went to stand without looking at any of them. “Lucia take your time I will be happy in the car by myself.”
“Sit down, we will go if that is what you want,” Antonia said obviously shaken by Peri’s words. She waited as Peri resumed her seat. “It’s true that I don’t understand your need to shut everyone who cares for you out of your life, but you should know, we know that Nik is where she belongs. We are grateful that you did what you did before she hurt anyone else. You have nothing to apologise for.”
Peri watched her pick up her handbag and leave the table slowly walking toward the door. She vaguely heard the apology Marisol made as she too left following Antonia. Peri felt ill, and she began to cry.
“Come on, we have to go. If I know Mama she will be back once she thinks you’ve calmed down,” Lucia said gathering her things and helping Peri to her feet. She tipped the waitress twenty dollars and apologised for their premature exit and left the restaurant. She bundled Peri into the car and got in with her. She gave the driver quick instructions and they drove ten minutes further up the mountain to a Bavarian style hotel. “It’s not as fancy, but they know me here,” Lucia said.
Feeling like she had little choice, Peri followed Lucia into the hotel. She sat on a comfortable couch as Lucia approached the bar and came to sit with her.
“Marisol’s a good woman, she will be telling Mama off even as we speak,” Lucia said as she poured them both a glass of wine.
“I probably shouldn’t be drinking,” Peri said looking at the glass.
“One won’t hurt you, and you look like you could use it,” Lucia said with a smile. “I don’t drink as much as I make out. It’s my barrier against the family. When I’ve had enough of their drama and bullshit, I just let my eyes glaze over and stare at them like they are speaking a foreign language. I mean I love a glass of wine, but it’s rare I drink to excess anymore. Sometimes you know, I just want to go home rather than sit around with my brother’s.”
“Yeah, I get that,” Peri sighed. “Over Christmas, it seemed so strange to have to sneak away just to get some peace and even when we did that they found us pretty quickly and summoned us back into the chaos. I’m an only child of only children. I have never had any extended family, it’s always been just Andie and me.” She took a sip of the pale pink wine.
“I used to dream about a life like that,” Lucia said softly. “I never fit the family mould. I kept hoping one day that they would realise there was a mix up in the hospital, and my real parents would come and claim me.”
“Josh lives for his family, it’s such a big part of his life and I thought I could do it, be part of a big family, but I don’t think I can. There is so many of you that every time someone finally gives me a bit of space, someone else shows up to fill it. Especially now.”
“You’ll recover, and everyone will calm down. They’re looking for forgiveness. They each know they helped to create the monster that tried to kill you. They’re dealing with their guilt, and they want you to forgive them,” Lucia said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “I’ve been telling them for years Nik was dangerous, but did they ever listen to me?” her voice took on an angry tone. “I even tried to warn you at our first meeting.”
“I remember. I never forgot. So you can to sit back and say, I told you so, now and I will deserve it,” Peri sighed heavily.
“Don’t you think I haven’t been shouting that at everyone who would listen to me,” she laughed derisively. “I have been saying that she was dangerous, narcissistic and conceited since we were teenagers, but I never thought she would kill in cold blood,” she admitted.
“I don’t think anyone’s family thinks them capable of it until it happens,” Peri said considering her words. “I don’t blame any of you. There’s nothing to forgive.”
They talked their way through the bottle of wine and ordered finger food through the bar along with a second bottle. Peri liked Lucia. They had common ground and a common understanding of how each other felt, and she found herself talking a great deal about what she had been going through over the past weeks. Lucia didn’t treat Peri with kid gloves, just as she had said, and asked the difficult and sometimes insensitive questions, trying to make Peri see things from a different perspective.
It was late in the afternoon when they finally ordered coffee and black forest cake. They had been talking for hours and Peri found that just being able to say the things she had been holding inside, for so long, out loud made her feel better. She had even been able to work through some things on one level. She compiled a list of things in her head that she needed to do to get past what had happened to her. She almost wished she had pencil and paper to write some of them down.
“I never even thanked the Marshalls for finding me as quickly as they did and saving my life,” Peri said sadly realising just how self-absorbed she had been. She hadn’t been looking at how anyone would feel about her, but instead had focused on their feelings toward Nik and that they saw her and her injuries as a constant reminder of what she had done to her.
“Well that’s an easy fix,” Lucia said brightly turning her phone back on and looking at all the missed calls from her family. “I have his number you can call him. He will appreciate that. First, though you might want to call Josh and let him know I haven’t kidnapped you.”
“Good grief,” Peri rolled her eyes and turned her phone back on seeing the amount of missed calls she had as well.
“I’ll call Ben, he can talk to Mama and you call Josh, he can tell Andie you are fine,” she suggested.
“Okay,” Peri agreed grudgingly knowing it was the lesser of the two evils. She dialled the number and waited.
“Are you okay?” Josh answered his phone in a worried voice.
“Well, now that I am back on solid ground I feel better, I had no idea skydiving was so much fun,” she answered with a small giggle and a stunned look from Lucia, who burst out laughing a moment later.
“You what?!” Josh’s voice boomed into the phone.
“Honestly Josh, I’m with your sister having coffee and cake what did you think we would be doing today?” She continued to laugh. “You can’t keep panicking every time I turn my phone off for a little peace.”
“Don’t turn your off would be a better solution,” he said slowly calming down. “Just put it on vibrate so you can see who is calling and answer it when I do.”
“Was there a reason you needed to speak to me so urgently,” Peri asked in a sweet voice ignoring his tone.
“I heard your lunch didn’t go as planned,” he said cautiously.
“I wasn’t ready to face your mother, but I wasn’t rude about it. I just needed to be given the opportunity to do it when I’m ready. You all pride yourselves on never forcing anyone into anything but that’s all that’s happened to me lately. I wasn’t ready, and I didn’t want to be forced into another bad situation, so I left.”
“You’re okay then?” he asked again.
“I’m just fine, Lucia, and I have had a lovely afternoon together,” she said with a smile.
“Good. Will you call me when you get home please?” Josh asked, “I’ll be working late, so anytime is fine.”
“Sure,” she said her voice softening along with his. “I’ll talk to you then.” She hung up before he could say anything else and she felt compelled to apologise for the way she had reacted to seeing his mother.
*****
When she had gotten home, she had begun writing out the list of things she felt she needed to do or overcome before she could move on properly. She was tired from being out for the first time in weeks, and the effects of wine caught up with her rapidly. She had fallen asleep with the list on her knees, and the pen still clutched in her hand. When she woke several hours later, she found Josh snuggled beside her, and she rolled to look at him. Despite everything that had happened, she loved him deeply and knew she had treated him badly since being hurt. Her time with Lucia today had reinforced that knowledge. She stroked his face, and his eyes fluttered open.
“Always and forever,” she whispered and pressed her lips lightly against his.
Josh carefully pulled her closer deepening the kiss. He needed this physical connection with her and knew now that she did too. After reading her list, he knew he had been too careful with her treating her like a fragile china doll when what she needed was his love and the passion he felt for her. She needed him to show her that he still found her desirable, not just tell her she was still beautiful to him. He knew he shouldn’t have read her list, but he couldn’t help it after seeing his name listed so many times.
“Still Mine,” he murmured kissing her neck and shoulder, “Always and forever.” He rolled her onto her back pushing the thin straps of the chemise from her shoulders as he kissed her again tugging it down gently to expose her breasts. He lowered his head to kiss and suck on the nipples letting his teeth graze over them lightly and appreciating the sigh of pleasure she let out. His hand slid down her left side to the tops of her thighs, but she reached out and stopped his hand going any lower.
“Josh, I’m,” she started to speak, but he cut her off.
“You’re the woman I love, I love every inch of you, even the more colourful parts,” he smiled and kissed her shoulder and neck again. The bruises there had all but gone, but he did it symbolically.
“I’m like a yeti,” she said still clinging to the hand that rested on her thighs. “I haven’t been able to shave. My body just won’t let me move the way I need to yet, between my sore ribs and my arm.”
“Do you honestly think hairy legs will stop me, when this is the first real intimacy we’ve had in over a month?” he chuckled leaning back and looking down on her. “Here I was worried that I would hurt you, and you’re worried about hairy legs?” He brought his hand up to play with her breasts as he spoke.
“You wouldn’t hurt me,” she whispered. “I’m practically healed. Pete’s just being over cautious with the cast and sling.” She pulled him back down to kiss her and wrapped her arms around him. “I know I’ve been a bitch, and I’m sorry,” she whispered holding him tightly.
“I can’t even begin to imagine how hard this has been for you. To be hurt and confused and scared. You don’t owe me any apologies,” he said softly. “Loving me is what caused all of this,” he began to apologise again.
“No more sorries,” Peri said abruptly. “Not from you or your family. I was there by choice you didn’t force me. I’m not sorry for that. I’m not sorry for anything except that I wasn’t thinking about how you must have been feeling when I shut you out.”
“You’ve slowly opened that door again,” he kissed her, “Now if I could just get these hairy legs open,” he grinned, and she smacked him lightly with her cast and laughed before letting him manoeuvre his way between her legs. He kissed her deeply and passionately while moving to enter her slowly. He was gentle and tender as he slowly rocked his hips and pushing his cock deeper into her. He tested her boundaries unsure of the remaining damage to her hip and ribs.
“Josh,” she reached up and placed her hand against his cheek feeling him nuzzle into it as he looked down into eyes. “Just fuck me, I will let you know if it’s too much,” she grinned up at him in the moonlit darkness and squealed softly, and he thrust into her hard and deep.
He didn’t hold back as he felt her wrap her legs around his waist and fucked her, a sense of desperation for what they had once enjoyed together and had lost for so long. He mauled her breasts with one hand, teasing her nipples with his fingers, not wanting to lean too much of his weight onto her body. He felt her tremble as he came, realising she hadn’t reached the heights of their previous lovemaking.
He collapsed onto the bed beside her and pulled her into his arms. “Next time it will all be about you,” he smiled and kissed her.
Peri snuggled against his side feeling like they had just overcome a barrier between them and stroked his chest. “So in a few minutes then?” she giggled, and he smacked her ass lightly chuckling with her.
*****
In Lucia, Peri found the sister she had never had and likewise Lucia found a kindred soul. They spent a great deal of time together over the two weeks following their day out. Lucia had joined her and Andie on their spa day, and she had taken them both to her favourite salon to have their hair and nails done. Peri realised that Lucia didn’t drink to excess but rather used alcohol as a ready-made excuse for anything she didn’t want to do or to avoid people she didn’t want to speak to. It amazed Peri how easily she could slip from normal speech into the slightly slurring words of a drunk.
She realised at the same time that she was hiding behind her cast and sling the same way. Anytime she didn’t want to deal with someone or a situation she would claim fatigue retreat. She desperately wanted the cast taken off, but she knew she would have to face the reality that her readymade excuse to avoid the hard things on her list would be gone.
She watched as Pete brought out a small circular saw and cut the cast, prying it apart and allowing her to lift her arm free. She gingerly tried to move it, but winced as the limb was shot through with tendril of pain with each small movement.
“It will take a little getting used to, and some physiotherapy will help,” he said as he took hold of her arm and slowly manipulated her wrist, which had been motionless for six weeks. “Give it another week before you try to go back to work,” he advised.
“I have a few things I have to do before I consider going back to work,” Peri said tentatively. “Things are getting back to normal finally, though.”
“Just don’t rush it, you don’t want to relapse,” he said throwing the cast in the bin and wiping down the dust from the table she had been leaning on. “You had a head injury, and that’s not to be taken lightly. I understand you just want to get back to normal, as soon as possible, but try not to push yourself.”
“Okay, okay. I get it,” she sighed, “Can I go now?”
“Yes you can go, I’ll see you tonight,” he smiled.
Peri hurried out to where Andie waited for her, and they drove home where Peri showered properly for the first time, in almost two months, relishing the fact that she didn’t have to worry about the cast. She dressed in a loose flowing floral dress and packed an evening gown and overnight bag into the car. They then spent the rest of the afternoon at the salon Lucia had introduced them to, getting ready for the night ahead.
Since that first night when they had reconnected as a couple, Josh and Peri had talked openly about everything. How she felt going through the ordeal of waking up in the hospital not knowing what happened and at the subsequent trial. In turn, she had listened properly to what Josh had said about his feelings and memories of seeing her so badly broken. She listened and began to understand that while he and his family cared what happened to Nik, they knew she was where she deserved to be, and they would see to it that she got the proper help needed despite cutting her off from their power and influence.
Their relationship they admitted could never go back to what it was, but their love for each other was such that the passion and devotion to each other were rekindled rapidly. Peri was feeling more and more like her old self as the bruises faded, to barely blemish her skin and she learned to appreciate the help offered by her mother and friends rather than resenting the fact that she could do very little for herself left-handed.
She and Andie had gone to dinner on a double date after their day at the spa. Josh and Charles had booked rooms in the hotel the spa was attached to, and Peri felt relaxed and happy during the evening. It was as they stood on their balcony late in the night that Josh had proposed to her again.
“There will always be bumps in the road and mountains to climb but if we do it together, I promise our life will be amazing,” he had said getting down on one knee. “I love you for your strength, your honesty and your wisdom to do what is right for you in the face of overwhelming pressure. I love your smile and your heart and everything about you.” He had taken a small box from his pocket. “Marry me, Peri.”
“I already said yes, and I already have the ring,” she had said startled by the proposal.
“We needed a do-over,” he had grinned. “We both did. This,” he said taking her hand, “Is an eternity ring,” he came to his feet and looked at her and murmured, “Because what we have is forever and always.”
They had stayed up most of the night enjoying each other and talking about their future once again. Josh had wanted to host an official engagement party for their family and friends, and Peri had agreed that once her cast had come off, she would like that. She just hadn’t expected him to plan it for the day her cast had come off but caught up in his enthusiasm she had gone along with his plans.
Peri had still not spoken directly to his parents or the majority of his family, and she wanted to look her best. Without the cast and with makeup hiding the pale remnants of the damage to her face she hoped that no one would mention her recent trauma and just celebrate the event. As the time got closer, though, she became nervous about facing them all. Not only his family but also their friends.
At her insistence, Josh had invited the Battaglia men who had saved her life, so she could finally thank them properly. Lucia had given her Marco’s phone number, but each time she picked up her phone to call him she couldn’t think of a way to adequately thank him. They had accepted the invitation, and she knew from Josh’s earlier phone call that they were already at the hotel.
Peri and Andie arrived at the hotel just after three and checked in. Peri helped her mother take her bags up to her room. She retrieved the three small gifts she had bought for the men while Andie went to put her bag in her room before returning. She nervously checked the time not wanting to be late, fashionably or otherwise. She rotated her wrist which still protested movement but didn’t want to spoil her appearance with any sign of the injuries she had sustained at the facility. She went to the full-length mirror and checked her reflection.
“Well this is as good as it gets,” she said out loud to the empty room and fidgeted with the dress. Despite losing some weight during her recovery, she still sported a curvy full figure.
“You look beautiful,” Andie said coming back into the room. “You’re practically glowing with happiness.”
“I am happy, nervous but happy,” Peri laughed lightly and went to gather the three small gifts before going back downstairs with her mother as some protection again her anxiety.
“Andie, I know I have said it a few times but thank you. You’ve been so good putting your life on hold for me since, well since you came to get me, from Canberra,” she gave a half smile. “I love you, Mum.”
“I love you too baby, and thank you for not shutting me out. You make me a very proud mother.”
At three thirty in the afternoon, there was no one else in the small lounge bar. Peri smiled as she saw them sitting with Lucia, who they were staying with, while they were in town.
“Wonderful they’re here, I’ll get the champagne,” Lucia stood up.
“That’s not necessary,” Marco said also coming to his feet. “I will get it after we have had a chance to say hello and ask the girls what they would like to drink.”
“It’s so good to see you all,” Peri gushed nervously and went to embrace them one by one as they stood awkwardly allowing her to move between them. “A drink would be lovely but please let me get it, it’s the least I can do.”
“Nonsense,” Andie said. “Sit down and talk to your guests Lucia and I are quite capable of ordering a few drinks. Gentlemen what would you like.”
“I’d like to try the local beer,” Francesco said easily. “Whatever is on tap is fine with me.”
“I’ll have whatever Marco has decided on, he’s been studying that wine list long enough,” Nero said seriously.
“Ah then, the Billiecarte-Salmon if you’re in the mood for bubbles,” Marco pointed to the wine list as he spoke. “And a bottle of the Taylor’s Pinot, thanks.”
“You’re looking well,” Nero said in his stiff, formal way.
“I feel well, and happy,” Peri said suddenly unsure of herself without the support of Andie and Lucia. “I need to say some things so if you could just bear with me while I try and remember my perfect speech which has suddenly fled my mind,” she laughed nervously.
“I hired my own lawyer when I went to court, and I asked him to investigate everything that happened that day because I was trying to remember as much as possible,” she began to speak while they sat looking at her blankly. “I know you could have easily have seen the trail Nik left for you and believed I had run away,” she paused as they began to protest. “Please let me get this all out,” she said quietly and held up her hand.
“I realise you didn’t do that and rather than believe I had run away you searched for me. I know that it was your determination not to give up on me that led you to find me, when you thought you had exhausted every possibility. I also know that if you had not found me as quickly as you did, I might not have survived at all. Or at least, I would have been in much worse shape,” she tried to smile again, but it didn’t fully translate to her eyes. “I wanted to thank you all personally for not giving up on me and saving my life.”
“You shouldn’t be thanking us for saving you from a situation we should have prevented in the first place,” Francesco shook his head.
“I’ve had a lot of time to think about all the what if’s and maybe’s while I have been recovering,” she spoke softly and smiled at the three men. “I think that Nik would have tried to hurt me eventually, and I am lucky that it happened when I had people who cared enough to come and save me instead of here in the city or god forbid at the farm with all that wide open space.” She paused. “I also know there were other factors for why it was important to you to find me quickly, but I am choosing to believe you did it because you cared about me rather than because I was a special case given to your care and the consequences that went along with that. So please don’t burst my bubble.”
“We do care about you, that is why we have come all this way,” Marco said taking her hand. “I wish I could take part of the credit for finding you, but it was those two who worked it out in the end and found the loose window.”
“You still searched, I know because I have read each of your statements to the police,” she said sounding more confident than she felt. “I owe all three of you, my life.” She turned then to Nero and looked at him for a long moment before speaking. “I also owe you an apology for the way I left your hospital. I was confused and frightened, and I didn’t want any of the Donati’s near me or anything to do with them. That included the people they had sent me to. I am not making excuses but hoping you can understand why I had to leave so fast. I was going insane, like a rat trapped in an awful and painful experiment, and I had to get out.”
“Thank you for that explanation,” Nero said. “I didn’t understand you as well as I perhaps thought I did at the time but Joshua said as much when we spoke to him the day you left. So there was no need to explain or apologise. We are just happy to see you so well again.” He smiled uncharacteristically
“Well fuck me, he can smile,” Francesco laughed loudly and earned a scowl from Nero in return.
“I bought you each something small to remind you that despite everything that happened that day, you were heroes, at least, to me,” Peri said.
“And me,” Andie said returning to the table with Lucia.
Peri felt more relaxed now that she had said what she needed to, in order to thank them properly and she mentally ticked another thing off her list. They toasted her good health and the coming together of friends. Each of them opened the crystal paperweight she had bought them for their desk and the small note she had written to go with them explaining why the design had reminded her of the time she had spent with them individually. They had talked for over an hour before Francesco spoke louder than necessary to her.
“It’s a shame I like Joshua so much, or I might be trying to talk you out of marrying him,” Francesco said teasingly. “The man has my respect though for the way he handled himself at our table so I guess I will have to step aside graciously.” He grinned looking past Peri to the bar beyond their table.
“As if you ever had a real shot with her,” Marco laughed easily getting to his feet as Josh walked to their table. “Thanks for the invite, my friend,” Marco greeted him.
“I had little choice in the matter to tell you the truth,” Josh admitted, “All three of you were on that list of hers.”
“A list of people she’ll leave you for?” Francesco asked hopefully.
“My mother is on that list, so I’m thinking that’s a different list that I haven’t seen and probably includes, Gerard Butler,” Josh joked good-naturedly. “Can I get anyone another drink?”
“Yeah, I’ll come to the bar with you to get a beer,” Francesco said and stood from his seat, as Josh leaned down to kiss Peri’s cheek.
“I’d love some iced water,” she whispered and felt him nod his understanding.
“Another bottle Lucy?” He asked.
“Sure why not,” she laughed easily. “Andie will help me drink it.”
Pete arrived within minutes of Josh and Dante, and Emilio followed him in a short time later. Each had wanted to clear the air with the Battaglia men for their own reasons after the traumatic time spent at their hospital facility.
“Our guests will be arriving soon,” Josh whispered in Peri’s ear.
“I’ll see you all at the party,” Peri stood with a smile. “I just need to freshen up a little if you’ll excuse me.”
“Me too, you have no idea how much time it takes to look this pretty,” Josh joked pulling a face.
“I guess that’s my cue to change as well,” Andie said sadly. “This has been a lot of fun, though, I hope it continues tonight. Lucy, you’re welcome to come and freshen up in my room if you like, not that you need it with your beautiful complexion.”
“You’re not leaving me here alone with all these men and their terrible humour,” Lucia laughed and stood with her friends. “Don’t have too much fun remember the oldies will be there too.” She had warned before they started walking from the bar.
“I like Josh and all but how did he just manage to leave with all the women and leave us stuck with you guys,” Francesco complained to Dante and Emilio.
*****
“How’s the arm?” Josh asked as they entered the suite.
“It’s good,” she smiled and held it up to show there was no sign of bruising or anything to show she had been in a cast for the last six weeks.
“I’ve missed this arm,” Josh said taking her arm and kissing it tenderly and pulling her into his arms. He kissed her deeply and fumbled with the zip on the back of her dress.
“Josh, stop that, I’m not going to host a party that your parents and family are attending immediately after you have messed up my hair and makeup!” she put her hands on his chest and tried to push him away.”
“What?” he asked feigning innocence. “I was just trying to be helpful by undoing the zip for you.”
“Uh huh,” she said sceptically but returned his grin as she stepped away from him and let the dress fall from her shoulders. “Thank you for the help,” she laughed and retrieved the garment bag from the small closet where it had hung. She unzipped it and reached into the bottom of the bag pulling out a sturdy looking strapless bra.
“Oh god,” Josh moaned. “I thought we got rid of all those old boulder holders.”
“Josh, it’s a strapless dress, and I need this, trust me you will like the effect it has on the girls,” she held it in front of her breasts.
“I prefer it when they are free to move and jiggle any way that they want,” he said closing the gap between them again.
“Just trust me this time,” she said still laughing and dancing out of his reach. “Aren’t you going to change too?” She asked.
“I will as soon as I am done helping you with the girls,” he waggled his eyebrows.
“Stop that it’s our party, and we don’t want to be late,” She said putting a hand out as if to warn him off.
“Okay fine,” he said petulantly. “But you just got your arm out of a cast so let me help you do up that torture chamber you are putting my girls into.” He said with a perfectly straight face.
“That would be helpful,” she admitted. “Just try to behave and keep your hands where they should be.” She turned her back to him then so he could unhook the bra she had worn during the day.
“I’ve got an idea,” he said as he moved closer and kissed her shoulder and neck. His hands deftly undid the hooks of her bra, and he followed the straps around to cup her breasts and pull her back into his body. “Why don’t we just make a brief appearance tonight and then come back here and have our own celebration of that cast coming off.”
“That sounds lovely,” Peri sighed softly in pleasure as his skilled hands played with her breasts and he spoke softly in her ear. “But we have to get there first,” she pulled the bra away and placed the strapless bra over his hands.
“If we have to,” Josh groaned and took the straps to fastened it behind her. He watched mesmerised as she turned, her hands dipping in and out of each bra cup rearranging the soft globes of flesh until they sat up as if being served on a platter to him. As much as he disliked bra’s he had to admit that she had a valid point about this particular sturdy bra.
He loved that she always left the dress to last moment and he watched as she stood in front of the mirror to play with the small tendrils of her hair that had escaped the intricate style she wore and fixed her make up. He so badly wanted to mess up both her makeup and her hair at that moment. Groaning, he turned to retrieve the fresh shirt and tie he had brought with him for tonight and get ready for the party.
“Don’t groan at me,” she teased. “This party was your idea remember. You’re the one who wanted to hold it on Valentine’s day, regardless of the fact it was the day I got my cast off.” They continued to banter as they finished getting dress. Peri enjoyed being able to roll the thigh high stockings up her legs by herself and steadfastly refused Josh’s repeated offers of help. Once she was happy with everything else she stepped into her dress and pulled it up holding it against her chest as Josh stepped behind her to do the zip. She smiled noting that the tie she had bought him matched the silver of her dress perfectly.
“I agree,” Josh murmured into her ear and kissed her shoulder again.
“I didn’t say anything,” Peri looked at his reflection in the full-length mirror as he stood behind her kissing her neck.
“About the bra,” he murmured and let his fingers slide over the exposed skin of her breasts appreciatively making her smile.
“Shall we go downstairs before you get carried away?” Peri asked and grinned at his answering groan.
“I guess we have to put in an appearance at our party,” he chuckled and stepped away from her slightly. “Are you ready for this?”
“No,” she said anxiously, “It’s now or never, though, so let’s go.”
*****