"Ana, go play with Zeus. Lucian, you too," I ushered the kids away and braced myself for Athena to chew and spit me out in pieces. "How long have you known?"

          "Render a guess," she said, keeping her gaze intact on the kids with her arms firmly crossed below her breasts.

          "A week?"

          She chuckled, waving to Lucian who blushed once again. "Try two months."

          I shook my head with surprise. "And you haven't told anyone about it?"

          "As per Verona's wishes, I was planning on drawing you to us one way or another while keeping Leo's strict orders in my mind, but I tend to break rules, so I tried to get as much information as I could from your brother and boyfriend, but they were useless and didn't give me much." She shrugged and kept facing the kids. "Trying for so long to get things done that way, I had enough and dug into your life myself, and boy, was I in for a surprise."

          Helplessly, I plopped down onto the bench next to Soph who had been watching the entire ordeal unfold in silence. "And what are you going to do now?"

          "Oh, sweetheart, it's what you are going to do." She sat down beside me and propped her one smooth leg over the other with her back tactfully straight. "I should've told Leo about what I found right away, but it wasn't my place to pass on that piece of information. I was angry for the nerve you had to keep this hidden for years. My first thought was to break you completely, but I refrained and pushed you to your limits in Italy instead. It was truly exhilarating for me."

          "Of course, it was." My shaky hands shielded my distressed features from the kids who were getting chased around by Zeus. "What do you want from me now, Athena?"

"I want you to tell Leo everything yourself before he finds out about it from anyone else." Her naturally seductive eyes turned to me and rested for a bit. "He's flying in from Italy right now and will be landing in New York early tomorrow morning. I'll give you the number he'll be using and you must call him then. Do not hide anything from him this time like you did back in the elevator."

"You knew I lied in there. Why didn't you tell him then?"

Humming in thought, she turned her eyes away and resumed watching the kids play. "It wasn't completely a lie, was it? And besides, I understand why you kept your mouth shut. You need great courage and will to move to an entirely different state and start a new life as a pregnant young girl. Then dealing with everything under the stress of medical school, running a hospital, and having three kids." Despite her dislike for me, she couldn't help but let a little smile surface on her face as she glanced at me. "I can respect your diligence, Arie. You have kept the children safe and under great care, providing them with everything they need. In all honesty, I'm very impressed with your tenacity and vigor to shuffle kids and school at the same time."

          It was the first time I had seen her fairly content with me and it was a hard fact to swallow. "Really?"

          She rolled her eyes. "Don't make me say it again. I have a slight heart attack every time I'm nice," she scowled then chuckled when I did. "But yes, I mean it. I admire that about you and even your ability to shut anyone's bullshit down. It's what I liked about you when Leo introduced you to me for the very first time."

          Clasping my hands in my lap, I lowered my gaze and scoffed at the distant memory. "That was forever ago."

"Anyway, you must call Leo tomorrow morning or else I'll take the kids to him myself and you won't be able to stop me." There she was, the Athena I was accustomed to. "He wouldn't be as enraged if he hears it from you. You better hope he doesn't ruin your life for this."

My heart sank. The only thing that chilled my body was the thought of Leo snatching all the kids from me as punishment. If it ever came to that, it'd be an unstoppable war between us.

"I went to see your third one at the hospital. Alon, right?" I nodded to her question. "He doesn't look too well."

"He isn't well at all." A tear plummeted down my cheek before I wiped it away quickly. "I just hope I don't have to mourn him either."

"Which is why Leo needs to know before it comes to that."

I nodded once again as Soph rubbed my arm sympathetically. "I know."

"Well then," Athena exhaled and rose from the wooden bench. "My condolences to you both." She looked at Sophie and grabbed her hand gently. "Take care of yourself and your child. You're carrying a Bonferroni, so you must be very cautious. And since you're living with Arie now, Pavlov may send his men after you too. Hopefully, your sister has some control over him and prohibits him from doing so, but you can never be too careful."

"Thank you," Soph nodded and went back to watching the kids who headed for us exhaustingly, forcing me to brush away my tears.

"Water!" Lucian huffed, wiping the sweat off his forehead. Delving into my purse, I handed him a bottle and watched Ana tug on Athena's dress.

"Will you play with us?" Ana looked at Athena with hopeful eyes.

"I play different games, sweetheart." Athena patted Ana's cheek then pulled her dress from Ana's little fingers.

"May I play those games with you?"

"How polite!" Athena awed, then bent over a little to incline her head to Ana's level. "When you grow up, I'll teach you all about those games and how to be a winner every time."

"Why not now?" Ana pouted.

"Because you're a little human right now. A baby."

"I am not a baby. I am a big girl." Ana pointed at Sophie's stomach that had begun to swell a little. "Auntie Sofa has a baby in her tummy."

A burst of laughter bellowed through my mouth along with Athena and Soph. "Baby, it's Sophie, not sofa," Soph tried to correct the little girl, but she was yet to realize who she was dealing with.

"Thas' what I say. Sofa. Sofa. Sofa."

"I don't like kids at all, but I like you a lot." Athena booped Ana's little nose and smiled. "Let me tell you a little secret."

Athena whispered something in Ana's ear before the girl jumped in excitement. "You are having a little baby too."

"What did I say about secret?" Athena laughed at the little girl. "When the baby is out, you can play with it, but don't tell anyone. Promise?"

"Promise!" Ana beamed with great joy and excitement as Athena tidied her posture by pushing her shoulders back and lifting her chin.

"You're pregnant?" Soph asked.

Athena snorted. "Can you imagine me pregnant?"

"Honestly, no," I blurted.

"Exactly." Athena smoothed out Ana's bangs and fixed them across her forehead before turning to us. "But Mr. Azallion and I have decided to give this baby thing a try through the process of IVF with a gestational surrogate. I don't have the time to bear a child myself among many other reasons, so this is the path we're taking."

          She acted a bit aloof about the topic but the undertone of it all seemed a bit stoical. "You don't want the baby?" I asked.

          "I'm not a fan of children in general, but I do enjoy a challenge. Besides, it'll be my child," she smirked then hardened her features. "No one knows about this. Tell a soul and I'll slit both of your throats in your sleep, and Arie, I'll text you the number you can call Leo on." She turned around and caressed Ana's cheek. "I'll see you again, little human."

"Okie!" Ana hugged Athena's legs and giggled. "Bye, 'Thena."

Athena was taken back by Ana's innocent gesture, but she let the girl cling onto her legs for a few seconds before she urged her away and looked at Lucian. She ruffled his hair, studying his features for a second too long. "I see why you named him Lucian Leonardo Noelle." A few more seconds later, she finally tore her gaze away from my boy and exhaled. "Quite uncanny. Anyway, I'll see you all sometime in the near future." Sliding a pair of sunglasses on, she nodded and strutted away, waving to Fred's mother. Her men followed her in the same direction as Mike and vanished into thin air like ghosts.

***

          The rising sun blared in through the windows and the glass balcony doors in my room, only making me feel sicker than I already did. Since Mike's people were keeping a protective eye on us, we all finally came home and found solace, but I couldn't sleep for even a second thinking about what was coming.

          My eyes stared at the phone as fear crept further into my chest. You can do this! I tried to talk myself into it. I had to pick up that phone and call Leo no matter what. No more hiding.

          Sitting up straight, I punched in the digits messaged to me through an unknown number, presumably Athena. My thumb hovered over the green phone icon for a whole minute as my heart palpitated to unhealthy measures. Taking a deep breath, I hit the icon and shakily put the phone to my ear. One ring. Two rings. After the third ring, I heard the familiar hello from the other side of the line.

          "Hi. I-It's Arie." I swallowed down to unclog my throat filled with trepidation and calmed my frenzy nerves. "There's something I need to tell you."

          "I know." Agitation rang in Leo's strong voice, forcing my heart to drop to the pit of my stomach. "You and I will be having a very long chat this evening, Noelle." His tone was harsh as he hissed my name with sheer distaste. "Don't even think about skipping town this time. I'll find you wherever you are."

***

ONE HOUR AGO

(Leo's POV)

I walked into the underground level of one of my hotels in the city of New York. Rain was pouring down when we landed an hour ago and it still hadn't stopped. With all the shit circling around me, I hadn't gotten decent sleep or even developed the appetite for a proper meal. Mother hadn't spoken a word to me since she slapped me and that bothered me. I couldn't take her being upset with me, but I decided to give her the space she needed to mourn Wren.

As I entered the soundproof torture room, Vince stepped back from the girl who was tied up to a chair. Her forehead was covered in small depictions of penises ranging from circumcised to uncircumcised and short to long.

          "What the actual fuck, Vince?" I chided, looking at the biggest penis drawing on the girl's face. Her nose acted as the shaft, the tip was in the middle of the forehead, and the balls were drawn on the apples of her cheeks. The smiley face on the tip only added to the absurdity of it all. "Did you mistake this for a frat party?"

          "I was bored." Vince lowered his gaze and cheekily slipped the sharpie into his pocket. "Sorry, boss."

          "Idiot."

          The girl was beginning to wake up after the effects of the drug wore off. Some of her short blonde strands stuck to her sweaty temples while the rest was a mess. Her blue eyes slowly pattered open and looked around before she was hit with the realization of what was happening. With the tape on her mouth, she couldn't scream. She was weak and didn't have the energy to even tug on the ropes around her wrists.

"Hello, Misha," I greeted the girl and pulled a chair to sit in front of her. "Do you know why you're here?"

Misha shook her head, her eyes frowning with distress.

"Your brother killed my brother. And I need an eye for an eye." Fear loomed in her irises. "But I guess we're even since I killed your other brother. The cancer one. He was dying anyway." I gave her a smug smile as she started to struggle. Her tears instantaneously rolled down her chin as she attempted to scream. "I'm willing to spare you if you give me information on how to take down Orel. Are you ready to talk?" Too absorbed in heartache, she shunned me out and sobbed, forcing me to repeat myself. "You're going to rot like an animal if you don't give me anything, so tell me if you're ready to talk."

She cried for another minute, mewling in pain before she finally nodded. "Good girl." As soon I leaned forward and removed the tape from her mouth, she spat in my face with immense disgust and hatred:

"You're the one who will be rotting in hell, you filthy cunt!" she roared, yanking on her ropes to break free, but her measly attempts were to no avail. "I will kill you with my own hands."

"We shall see about that." I pulled out a handkerchief from my pocket and wiped her spit from my cheek. "You're only going to make it harder on yourself. Trust me. You can never escape me."

"Your war is with Orel, not me," she seethed. "What the fuck do you want from me?"

"It's a shame how family gets caught in the crossfire just like my brother. It was his wedding day and he was going to become a father," I sighed and leaned back in the chair once again. "It's a shame."

"If you want to hurt Orel, get to that stupid wife of his and their child. That's all he cares about."

"Their child?" My interest was piqued. "Now that's something."

"They have a daughter together. That's why Cornelia can't leave."

          I hummed and rubbed my scruff. "One last thing. Does Luca Lumov ring a bell for you?" If the man who had Lina followed was linked to Orel, it'd be more of a reason to kill that bastard and end it at the root of the problem.

          She shook her head and sniffled. "Never heard that name."

          "Alright." Rising from my chair, I motioned Vince to tape her mouth again.

          "Wait, why aren't you letting me go?" she rebelled and violently moved her head to prevent Vince from taping her, but he eventually shut her mouth.

          "I need you alive." I walked toward her and wiped her tears. "Save the waterworks for when I line the dead bodies of everyone in your family in front of your eyes."

          Her screams were muffled by the tape before she was wheeled away into another room and out of my sight. "And someone better clean the dicks off her face," I gave the orders as one of my men brought me a glass of bourbon that I desperately needed. I turned around to leave with the drink and get back to Verona, but Mike entered the room in a hurry and halted my steps instead. "Weren't you in Cali attending that footballer's funeral?"

          "Yeah, well, this needed to be said in person." He tipped his head toward a chair and urged me to take a seat. "Just want to preface this by saying I look at Arie as my little sister. She is Wendy's niece and I will always look out for her the way Wendy did."

          "Stop beating around the bush, man, and bark," I snapped in frustration. I was already irritated due to the lack of sleep and his nonsense was making it worse for me.

          "I don't know if you're ready for it. It may change everything."

          I glared at him whilst taking a sip of my drink. "Just blurt it out."

          He inhaled and sat on the conference table in front of me. "At the funeral, I saw these two kids with Arie. They called her mom and mamma."

          "What?" I asked out of sheer confusion. "She has kids?"

          "Well, yeah. She actually has three." He placed a few papers in front of me that looked like lab results. "Basically..." he sighed deeply and continued. "Two of them are yours."

          That couldn't be possible. Arie said she had a miscarriage, and now two kids with my genes? It couldn't be true unless she... she lied to me. Anger coursed through my veins rapidly, making me tighten my grip on the glass until it shattered in my hand.

          "She fucking lied to me!"

———————————————————

Yay or nay? I know it was short but it came out quick. I'll have more for the next chapter I promise. I didn't expect to finish this chapter so soon but yay.

The truth is finally out! Who's happy?

Who expected Athena to be understanding of Arie's situation?

What did you guys think about the talk between Athena and Arie and our cute little Ana?

Athena and Eros are having a baby!!! It probably doesn't matter to those who haven't read Escort Me Baby or don't like Athena but this is a major step for the couple if you have read EMB. Who's excited to see a mini Atheros one day? 💕

And Leo finally knows. What will he do now?

What's gonna happen next now?

Thoughts on Verona?

Leo?

Or Arie?

Further comments and questions are always welcome ❤️

HIT ME WITH THE THEORIES!

INSTAGRAM: reetilicious

Much love ❤️
~Reet