"Just promise me you'll be safe." My mother said as she looked at me with a worried expression on her face.

"Of course, I always am." I said confidently as I gave her a small smile.

Today was the day we were leaving for Paris. It was also the day we were transferring everyone from the estate to a safe house 60 miles away. 

I linked arms with my mother as we walked the garden one last time before we left. During our time at the Vino estate, we spent most of it perusing around the beautiful gardens, admiring the blooming flowers and lush pathways around us. 

We'd talk here for hours every morning, even having the twins, Giana or Florence occasionally join us. We'd drink coffee together under bougainvillea vines, and enjoy each others company before I began my day's work. My mother would even occasionally cut some roses and bring them inside, always filling the house with the beautiful blossoms of the garden. 

To see the color return to her cheeks, her hair slowly growing back, and her weight returning back to normal with each passing day filled me with gratitude and joy. 

"How are you feeling?" My mother asked as she looked down at the pathway underneath our feet. 

"I'm... nervous about leaving you here." I said hesitantly before I looked at her. 

"Oh honey, don't be! The twins rigged every door with explosives, and we have more than enough people coming to the safe house with us. If anything does happen, I'd be more worried about the other guys." My mother said as she smiled. She was always so positive, yet her blind optimism always worried me. 

"I mean, look at this thing." My mother said as she pulled out a small box in her hand, which I immediately recognized as one of Isa's explosives. 

"Geez mom, be careful with that thing." I said as I put my hands up quickly. She laughed before placing it back in her pocket once more. 

"So... you and Dante?" She began. 

"We're nothing." I said quickly as I looked down, my playful expression melting away into a serious one. 

"Well, that sure is a shame." My mother said as a sad smile formed on her lips. 

"Oh god, please don't tell me you're jumping on this whole 'he's a good guy' bandwagon?" I said as I looked at her with my eyebrows furrowed. 

"Well... maybe?" My mother said while she shrugged, making me roll my eyes in annoyance. 

She stared at my necklace, the same necklace that Dante gave me, before chuckling while looking down at the pathway.

'You two are more similar than you think." She said as she smiled at me.

"I don't get it. He treats me like shit, ignores me, insults me, yet everyone is on his side. It doesn't make any sense whatsoever." I said as we continued walking. 

"Don't forget darling, you're not a walk in the park either." My mother said gently. "We all have our demons, some more than others. Love isn't about changing someone, it's about accepting them for who they are, and seeing perfection in their flaws." She said as we looked down at a bush of roses blooming. 

"Hold up. Who said anything about love?" I said as I stopped walking. 

"Rebel, I can read you like a book. Stop pretending that you don't have feelings for him." My mother said as she bent down. She gently pushed back a few roses to reveal a very large, fully bloomed red rose. A few of its leaves were burned at the edges, and it's thorns were large. Towards the bottom, there were a few dead pedals that began to fall off as soon as my mother touched them. 

"Ah, I think this one will do." My mother said as she pulled out a small pair of shears from her pocket. 

I watched my mother, admiring how she gently cut the stem of the rose before smiling down at it. 

"Why that one?" I said as I raised an eyebrow. 

"Because it's the most beautiful one in the garden." She said as she held it up and examined it with a smile. 

"I'm not seeing it?" I said as I tilted my head, looking at the crispy edges and falling pedals. 

"That's because you're focused on the negative attributes." She said softly as she continued examining it. "But what you don't realize is that this rose had the largest, and most beautiful bloom out of all of them." She said as she smelt the rose and sighed. 

"Besides, the fact that it isn't perfect adds character." She said with a smile as she held the rose out to me. 

I took the rose in my hand, inspecting it as my mother continued walking down the pathway. I looked up to see that we were near the front of the estate, and I watched as rows of cars began driving off, filled with guards and guns. 

"Honey, everything will be fine. Stop worrying so much." My mother said as she gently grabbed my shoulder and pulled me in for a hug. 

"I love you mom." I said as I wrapped my arms around her.

"I love you more, Rebel." She said before she gave me one last smile. Even though I know that she's protected by an army of highly trained mafia members, I couldn't help the anxiety coursing through me. She's my mom, she's the only family I have left. I almost lost her once, and I don't know what I would do if anything happened to her. 

"Take care of her, will you?" I yelled out to the Isa. She quickly saluted me before she and Natalia walked over to where we were standing. 

Since the ball was mainly for Dons and their Capos, only Dante and Stephan were required to attend. We decided to bring Natalia along, that way we can have a weapons specialist on site in case anything happened. The rest were staying behind, overlooking security at the safehouse. 

"Only if you promise to take care of this one." Isa said as she elbowed her sister in the arm, making Natalia stare at her with a scowl. 

"I can take care of myself, thank you." Natalia said as she crossed her arms. 

"Don't worry Isa, I'll make sure she doesn't blow anything up that she isn't supposed to." I said as I smiled.

We shared our goodbyes, before they began to walk towards Florence and Giana, who were waiting for them in an all black SUV. I stared at the cars, watching as Isa, Florence, Giana, Harry, and my mother waved goodbye from their windows. 

"Ready?" Dante's voice said from behind me. I watched as the cars took off, driving into the distance and leaving the empty estate behind.

"Yeah." I eventually said as I looked down at the rose in my hand. I felt a hand on my shoulder, and looked up to see Dante looking down at me with his eyebrows slightly furrowed.

I gave him a small smile, before walking towards the car, spinning the rose's stem between my fingers. 

The car ride to the tarmac was silent. Based off the uncomfortable silence, I could tell the Vino's were just as nervous about leaving their family behind. Natalia was sitting in the front seat, texting Isa rapidly on her phone. Stephan was driving, his knuckles white as he gripped the steering wheel. Dante was sitting beside me with a tense expression as he looked out the window. 

I took a deep breath as I slowly reached for his hand before changing my mind midway and retracting it. I sighed as I looked at the city passing by, a wave of home sickness already washing over me. 

A few seconds later, I was surprised to feel Dante's hand cover mine. I looked over to see him still staring out the window as he gently held my hand within his. 

*********************************************************************************************

As the jet took off, I decided that I would be using this time to get as much work done as possible. The remainder of the flight was only 45 minutes, so I took my laptop to the bedroom, and closed the door gently. 

I laid down on the bed, and opened my laptop, running a face scan of the man that bugged Stephan's phone. As the software ran, I heard a soft knock on the door. 

"Come in." I said as I stared at my screen, expecting Natalia to walk in. 

To my surprise, Dante slightly opened the door before walking in, and closing it behind him. He walked towards the edge of the bed and sat down, a serious expression on his face. 

"Dante? Is everything okay?" I asked as I looked at him. 

"I think it's time I owed you an explanation." He said as he looked at me with his eyebrows furrowed.