A Lifetime With You by Athrhteera

Chapter 61

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Matteo

The doctor came in to check up on Alena again for a few times today to make sure she was recovering well. The injuries she suffered were traumatic and it was best for her to rest for the next few weeks until she fully healed. Not just that, the doctor wanted her to be in a stress-free environment, too. Alena was able to go home tomorrow, even though she had persuaded to leave tonight but another round of checkup was needed to confirm that.

She was prescribed with an IV drip of painkiller and now, she was sound asleep. The medication had made her feel comfortable for a good rest-even though in reality, the pain was supposed to make her restless.

I stared at her for the past few minutes, my mind empty.

I glanced down at her hands, reming were kept safely near my chest; I had kept them as a necklace ever since she left, incase she came back. I wanted to feel her close to me and in a way, it was to keep me sane as well.

Mikhail and Alexei had been calling me since morning. Pretty sure they knew we had found Alena and they wanted to take her away from me but they couldn't possibly think it was possible for them. Alena didn't know about the calls because if she did, she would've wondered why I didn't want to pick them up. reminded back of when she used to wear the wedding band and her engagement ring before she took them off. Her wedding band and and engagement ring I had almost lost my mind in trying to remember about our marriage. Now, she was here with me, I knew we could make it it work. We

was terrified.

When Alena left, it almost felt as if she never existed and I was could fix our relationship in order to become better for our future despite the rough patches we went through. This time, I had every chance to make it right, to keep her safe.

My phone rang again and I sighed after glancing at the caller ID.

So, it was best to step outside for this call-I didn't want Alena to wake up. Besides, I didn't want to stress her out anymore about the situation between her family. She had enough of being controlled in her life and it was for her own good to decide. I closed the door behind me as I walked to the window, looking out at the busy streets.

"Matteo. It's nice of you to finally pick up the damn phone." Alexei said from the other line, trying his best to hold his

Cont

A smirk appeared on my face as I noticed the annoyance. Alexei was impatient but I understood it from his point of view, he had every right to be annoyed. Things weren't going according to his plan and as a man who had every power, somehow that part was out of his

"Don't go quiet on me. I know you're there," he added. "Can I help you?" I asked.

I imagined him rolling his eyes at my question.

I had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with him during our investigation about Alena's whereabout and I took the time to observe him. Alexei had quite the temper when it came to unsolved mysteries but he had a soft spot for his sister; he wanted to protect her and if he could, he wanted to destroy anything that came in his way.

Despite almost being ruthless towards his men, he was a bit of a sadist. Those type of men used to suffer on their own

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Chapter 61

growing up and he didn't bother hiding that fact. However, he was afraid of Mikhail.

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He was afraid if he would disappoint his father. Actually, he was afraid of the disappointment itself.

It didn't surprise me because I knew Mikhail and I knew of his ways. Mikhail was a good leader with the Bratva, he prioritised his men and their safety whenever he went to war. He had good strategies and different set of skills. He wasn't afraid to die every time he joined his men because he knew, he could die anytime.

I heard of his stories from different men and most of them respected him.

Unfortunately, the Italians and the Russians were never on the same page. We always had our disagreements and we couldn't come to the same term-one of the reasons why we decided on a peace treaty, to never bother one another, to mind our own business, to stay out of war against one another but also to never help one another. It was the

the only conclusion we could find.

It had been like that even before me as the mafia leader.

"I know you found her." Alexei replied.

"What makes you think that?"

"You Italians just love to leave little traces behind. We were just a few hours late."

"She's safe now. That's all that matters," I responded.

He scoffed, "You're testing me, Matteo. You don't want to test me."

have no right to take her back. I'm her husband, Alexei."

out.

"What kind of husband are you, Matteo? The one who let his wife be alone? The one who let this whole kidnapping happen? You're not a husband, you're a coward. You need to know where you stand." The words felt like daggers being stabbed in my heart but I kept calm, not wanting to let to let my anger Alexei i was purposely testing my patience and he was doing a very good job at that but I knew myself better, I knew my marriage better, he was an outsider who knew nothing. Despite being Alena's brother, they haven't seen each other as often after she got married. "Say whatever you want. She's with me," I replied. "You don't want to interrupt the peace treaty, do you?"

T

I kept quiet, knowing my decision could risk everything. The Russians were known to never give up when it came to the things they wanted. As for now, they wanted their Bratva princess back and they could start a war just for that reason. "You do know that when I married your sister, we're practically family, I gain an alliance with you through the marriage. How irresponsible would it be if you start an unnecessary war?"

"You should've thought about that before her life was in danger. We respected her decision to marry you and we thought the very least you could do was to protect her but you showed us how incapable you were. It's best if we get our princess back." I sighed deeply, "I'm not letting her go, Alexei." "Even for her own sake?"

The words silenced me and I stood still.

Ever since Alena came back into my arms, I had promised myself to prioritise her safety. The kidnapper was still out there and we haven't found any clue of him-he could come back for Alena any time, especially if she was alone. 2/4

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Chapter 61

Then again, how could be sure that she was going to be safe with her family?

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I could always ensure myself to protect her but Alexei was right, I had failed twice. The first time was with Sofia and now, I couldn't even tell who. This tragedy could happen again and if the next time Alena got killed, I had no one else to blame but myself. The thought had sent shivers down my spine. "You're thinking... I can tell. Alexei added, breaking the silence.

"Get out of my

head."

He chuckled, "You know what, Matteo? I'll give you a couple of days to sleep on it. It's either you break her heart and set her free or we'll take her away but only after we kill your men." Just like that, he ended the call.

I stood still with the phone in my hand as I stared outside, knowing he had given me no choice. Either way, they wanted Alena back and they weren't going to sit down and discuss about it anymore.

I felt a presence behind me but I didn't have to turn around to know who it was.

"He called you again?" Luca asked, keeping his voice down.

Luca knew about my decision to keep it quiet. He had been with me through a lot of hardships in my life and he knew me better than anyone else. Not just that, he had saw Alexei's ways when they kept interrogating me.

count."

I turned around, seeing him in his shirt and jeans. He had taken the time to leave and change earlier after stopping by my house to grab a few of my clothes.

"What are you going to do about it?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

I shook my head, "He wants me to let her go or he'll come and ruin me."

"What did he threatened you?"

"To kill my men. To destroy me."

סו.

Luca sighed, clenching his jaw. "Why did you marry the Russian, Matteo? You knew it could all end badly if things went wrong. They're crazy f***ks,"

I scoffed, "They're just hot-t

ot-tempered."

"And crazy f***kers. They don't listen to anyone but themselves.

It would be a waste of time to disagree with Luca because I knew he was right but I had fallen in love with their Bratva princess and there was nothing I could do about it. Out of the many women who threw themselves at me, my heart chose to be with Alena. My heart longed for Alena. My heart craved for her.

I could never imagine a life without her. She had became the air I breathed

"Love blinds you. Love makes you do crazy things. You'll get that when you fall in love," I responded before letting out another sigh.

I had been doing that more often nowadays.

He made his way towards me before placing a hand on my shoulder, "Whatever you choose, you know that we're always

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Chapter 61

going to be there for you, right? Don't worry about us."

"Thanks, Luca."

"Just say the word and I'll put a bullet in his head."

"That would be easier said than done."

"F**k, I wish I could."

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