|Sybella Fiori|
|Ten days later|

Dimitri is almost back to normal. He's a strong baby just like his uncle Ilya. Anna has been telling me for the past two days to go back to Paris because I've already been gone for quite some time but I like it here; Ekaterina and Vladimir make me feel at home and Ilya...it's been dreamy. I'm trying to take Arabella's advice and move on. What she said is true, my family is gone and nothing can bring them back so what's left is to continue living with their memory in my heart.

Antonio has been scolding me for the past five days for pretending to be at home and jeopardizing my safety which is not true because Ben assigned four silents (Ilya's best trained assassins) to take care of me and Arabella offered to send five of her Athenas to be under my command which I accepted since everyone in my security team is a male; I didn't hire any of them, Antonio did it but I'll admit I should've told him to find capable people which does not equal to all-men.

The DiStefano family has been gone for two days now and I miss Arabella, dearly; she's the first true friend I've found since I met Anna.

"A penny for your thoughts," Ben said, entering the kitchen as he wore his silk baby pink PJs which are amazing to say the least.

A deep sigh left my mouth "Russia has been good to me, Ben, I wish we could stay for longer. At what time does the plane leave tomorrow?"

"Ilya hasn't decided yet but he said he wanted to talk to you about it first because you would, most likely, want to stay for Slava's birthday," he poured himself a cup of coffee.

A smile appeared on my lips "Is he still asleep?"

"Most likely. Yesterday's meeting was exhausting and we didn't come back until 3:30 am," the man told.

"I'll go check," I chugged down what was left of my cinnamon tea before walking out of the kitchen with all the patience in the world but once I was sure nobody could see me, I ran. Inside of Ilya's room he wasn't in bed since it was neatly made "Ily—" my smile grew at the sight of the handsome man exiting his bathroom with the towel low on his hips. "Good morning, darling."

"Morning, malyshka," he leaned on the bathroom door's frame, looking at me up and down as if he was ready to pin me up against the door and fuck me for the next hour. "Can I help you, Sybbie?"

(Doll.)

"I was just coming to ask you how was your meeting last night, Ben said it was exhausting," I sat on the bed and slipped my hands in the pouch of my black hoodie.

He approached me with his arms crossed, causing his biceps to bulge deliciously "What if we talk about something else?"

"But business is fun," I gripped the knot of his towel to pull him closer and it, unfortunately, stayed tied. "What was it about? Guns? Money laundering? Killing people? All of the above?" My head tilted up to meet his eyes which were already on me.

A half-smile adorned his lips "I was thinking more about us," his right thumb caressed my bottom lip. "Where would you like to go?"

"Somewhere private like your bathtub," I pecked the tip of his thumb.

"Mhh," he hummed giving it a thought. "I'll work out something then." The man turned around to make his way to the walk-in closet.

I rolled my eyes and flopped on the bed "Where are you going?"

"I am going to the hospital to visit Dimitri and after it I have to go take care of more business but I'll be here before nine to take you out for dinner," he stood at the closet's door and undid the knot with a smirk on his face. "Do I make you horny, baby?" The towel pooled around his ankles as he slipped on the pair of black boxer briefs.

"Even if you did, I know how to hide it," I winked, getting up on my feet. "If you need me, I'll be upstairs with my shower head," a smirk formed on my lips as he clenched his jaw. "See you, handsome," I turned around and made my way out of the bedroom, humming a lullaby an old friend used to sing to me so falling asleep wasn't that hard.

Back in my bedroom, I took a quick shower; I have a lot to do before going to get a present for Michail and Slava since their birthday is tomorrow. Slava is turning 34 and Michail 30.

Contrary to popular belief, I have a business of my own too but it runs itself. My rules are strict and people know that if they wobble a column of my empire, I'll shoot them between the eyes. They respect and fear me but more of the latter which is so fulfilling. My business is more on the white-collar side but I do a little bit of everything. One of my favorite business is the chain of nightclubs with underground brothels where the big players of international government employees like to play. Every single women is there by choice and if they want out, I support them because there's nothing better in this world than a woman helping another woman thrive. It's a kink of mine. That's why I admire Arabella so much. Some men in this ilegal world like to minimize her work by saying that every penny used for her Athena project is her husband's and they're wrong, she's a Bianchi and inherited everything when her father died. Even if the money didn't come from her pockets, it's her idea, she runs it and has made it thrive in little to no time putting international agencies that have been around for decades to shame. They run to her when they hit a dead end and she gets it done in record time.

After getting out of the shower, I changed into wide-leg black pants, a black oversized high-neck sweater and black stiletto knee-high boots which will be hidden under the legs of my pants. Once dressed, I went back to the bathroom to blow-dry my hair and use a black thick silk ribbon to do a low ponytail at the nape of my neck with some loose strands of hair framing my face. After I was happy with the hair, I moved on to the makeup which was faded light brown eyeshadow, black for the feline eyeliner look, a tad of blush, mascara, and red bold lips. Finally, I retrieved my Alexander Vauthier black velvet puffer coat and an all-white Dior saddle bag from the closet before leaving my bedroom all ready to take over the world.

My jewelry is the usual (diamond studs, an emerald-cut diamond pendent in a thin silver chain around my neck and numerous gold and silver rings), the only difference is the Graff diamond bracelet around my wrist.

On my way downstairs, I overheard Ilya speaking to his mother who seemed to be upset; she's been mad at him for a week for not telling him right away about Dimitri.

Ekaterina walked into the foyer in her navy blue long satin robe and with her gorgeous straight hair loose and not an ounce of makeup. She's stupid gorgeous. It's unbelievable.

"Dobroye utro," I smiled at the woman as she stood at the bottom of the stairs.

(Good morning.)

"Good morning, darling," she walked up the steps until she was standing in front of me. "Where are you heading?"

I smiled softly "I have a couple of things to take care of before going to get Slava and Michail's presents—"

"Present?!" Slava ran into the foyer with a pint of ice cream in his hands and nothing on but black joggers. "What present, pretty brain?" The man grinned, looking up at me from the bottom of the stairs.

"Your birthday present," I replied with a chuckle.

A big grin formed on his lips "You remember."

"Of course I remember, Slava," I pecked Ekaterina's cheeks before stepping down until I reached Slava. "Don't follow me or I'll stab the back of your knees in your sleep," my right hand patted his right cheek.

"Sybella?" Ekaterina called out.

My head immediately turned to look at her "Yes?"

"Would you mind having breakfast with me in the morning? We can go anywhere you like," the woman crossed her arms with a smile. "There are some things I would like to talk about with you, regarding what you, Arabella and I talked about at dinner a couple of days ago."

I nodded "Of course, Ekaterina. At what time would you like me to meet you at the door?"

"9:30," he replied. "You know, I have to give Mr. Zharkov his morning sex or he'll be grum—"

"Ma!" Slava exclaimed.

"What?" Ekaterina raised her right eyebrow. "Do you think I sculpted you out of clay and prayed to some god to give you life? No. Cock, pussy and bam, baby," The Zharkov mother turned around and made her way upstairs, leaving us all surprised.

"She's the reason why I got into college," Ilya said, standing at the arch which connects the foyer with the formal living room.

"Because she's a great teacher?" I chuckled, analyzing every inch of my Russian stud.

"No," Slava said. "Because she gave us countless traumas!" The middle Zharkov shouted as he rushed up the stairs, leaving Ilya and I alone.

"Black is definitely your color," he approached me with his hands in the pockets of his trousers.

"Well, of course, black is the color of villains," I stated as he stood in front of me with a soft smile on his lips.

Ilya placed his hands on my waist to pull me close "You're not a villain, malyshka," he leaned down to peck my lips. "You're a fucking goddess."

"Does that mean you're at my feet?" I joked with a grin.

The man in front of me nodded with a tender smile "I've always been at your feet, Sybella."

My smile quickly faded as nervousness took over my body "I was just joking—"

"Well, I'm not," he pecked my lips once again. "Meet me at the Red Square before 9:30 pm, I'll take you somewhere private where we can hide away from the world for the night."

I looked to my right and over my shoulders to make sure nobody was spying on us "Does that mean you're going to fuck me all night long in the most expensive room of a fancy hotel?" My arms were around his neck and my eyes on his lips.

"Yes, baby doll," he placed a soft kiss on my lips. "I have to go do some shady business to be free for you tonight and you have to go do some shat business too," the man pulled away to walk to the coat closet by the door and throw the fur coat over his shoulders since he'll take it off in the car anyway. "Call me if you need anything." Ilya winked before exiting the house and leaving me with some sort of fever...

After a minute of standing in the foyer, my temperature was back to normal which means that my blush won't be visible to Antonio so I made my way out of the palace the Zharkov family has as a home. Antonio was waiting for me along with a silent and an Athena by the black SUV's door.

"Good morning, Ms. Fiori," Beatrice, the Athena who is almost six-foot tall, smiled at me.

"Morning, Beatrice," I smiled back. "How have the men been treating you? Do I need to spank them?" Stavros, the silent, opened the SUV's back door for me.

She chuckled, glancing at the two men "They both brought me breakfast this morning."

My smile grew as I hopped into the car "What's your favorite flower, Bea?"

"White calla lilies," The brunette with tanned skin replied.

A soft chuckle left my mouth "You're gonna have to work harder than that, boys but you're welcome," I glanced between the two men standing behind Bea as I closed the door.

Stavros was behind the wheel, Beatrice on the passenger seat and Antonio in the back with me.

"Did you talk to Santino?" Antonio inquired.

I nodded, looking out the window as the car advanced "Yeah, he's in the Maldives with his girlfriend. He told me he is going to propose on her birthday."

"Aw, cliche as fuck," he said, making me chuckle.

"Speaking of cliches, can you explain to me why did your ex called me last night?" I kept my eyes on the outside view.

Antonio cleared his throat which means he's nervous "Well, we bumped into each other a little over two months ago when I went to visit my mom and you know...reconnected."

"What did you two use to reconnect?" My gazed moved to meet his eyes. "Her princess parts and your prince parts?" I joked with a sweet smile on my lips and the two individuals on the front laughed but Antonio just showed me an annoyance look. "Please illustrate the car on the art of fucking your ex when she is in a relationship with another man."

My best friend rolled his eyes at me "I didn't know."

"What about after the fifth time?" I slapped the back of his head. "She's pregnant, dumbo, what are you going to do about that?"

"It's not mine," he rubbed the back of his head.

I leaned my head back and closed my eyes as I took a deep breath "I want to shoot you on the foot so bad. She told me the dates don't add up, her boyfriend was in a business trip in Japan for three weeks." My eyes fluttered open "You need to go and see her, Antonio, she's terrified."

"She can do whatever the fuck she wants with it, I don't want it," he stated, making my blood boil.

"Stavros stop the car," I ordered and he immediately complied. "Get out of the car, Antonio," my eyes were looking forward. How dare he say that? Knowing that there are so many people in the world who want a baby and can't have one or have lost them...like me who am like a sister to him.

"Sybella—"

"Get off the fucking car, Antonio!" I looked at him with tears in my eyes as rage ran through my veins. Every corner of my body was so tense I was trembling.

Antonio looked at me with regret in his eyes before hopping off "I'm sorry—"

"You don't need to apologize to me, piece of shit," I shut the door. "Drive, Stavros."

"Yes, Ms. Fiori," he replied.

For the next hour, I was quiet but Stavros and Bea were conversing which kept me calm; after a confrontation, I don't like silence because it means I'll be thinking about what caused the confrontation.

"Thank you, Bea," I showed her a weak smile as I hopped off the car. "I'm sorry about what happened...I'm not a bad boss but Antonio touched a sensitive nerve."

She shook her head "You don't have anything to be sorry for; Athena has taught us to never be sorry for our feelings or for showing them. The society we live in has made us believe that a woman's display of emotion is uncalled-for so they trained generation after generation to say sorry which isn't correct, it's just another way of making us feel like we are wrong and men are right because society doesn't demand apologies on behalf of them for anything."

A soft smile appeared on my lips "Thank you. I didn't know that I needed someone to tell me that."

"The truth should always be shared," she laced her hands behind her body. "Would you like us to go in with you or wait outside?"

"You, Stavros and Antonio, once I'm no longer mad at him, will always accompany me in and out of places," my smile grew. "Let's go in," I walked into the building with Bea and Stavros behind me. There was a redhead wearing a white satin dress waiting for me with an iPad in her hands, she gave me the usual information of the nightclub; the average monthly income, the names of the girls who have a longer client list, big names that have become members of VIP members and told me about how Anna had been coming to check up on them every week for the past four months.

I've said before that pregnancy helped Anna mature in a matter of months which is when I opened this nightclub; I'm not liked in this country because I'm competition but it's nothing against my person in specific. Some people feel threatened when you make more money than them or take clients from them even if you don't look for them personally, so people believe this place is owned by Anna which on paper it is the truth. The people who work here are not on the dark on who their boss is because they're loyal to the one who signs the checks and helps them without asking or expecting anything in return.

The girls don't start working until 7:30 pm so the Ivana, the redhead, gathered them in the grand living room "I know you don't know me and that will most likely make it hard for you to trust me," I said, leaving my coat on the coffee table surrounded by three black velvet sofas. "My name is Sybella Fiori," a couple of them let me know with their reactions that they do know who signs their checks. "For the ones who haven't figured it out, I'm the holder of the name at the right bottom corner of your checks. My best friend, Anna Zharkova, has been taking care of you girls for the past four months but it's important to me that we get to meet each other so Ivana here will let you into my office one by one; we can talk about what bothers you, suggestions, dark pasts, exchange seduction and masturbation techniques," a smile formed on my lips as they chuckled. "I'm your ally, darlings, all I want to do is help you. All right?" The gorgeous girls nodded. "Perfect, I'm looking forward to meeting each and one of you personally."

For the six hours, I sat in my office on the ground level of my building, and spent every second of those hours getting to know all of them. Not all of them have fucked up pasts: some of them come from families with money but have been repressed their whole lives and this is their act of