The Heiress

Ray listened as Grace went over everything that had happened, gripping her hand the whole time.

"I'm sorry you went through that. I made a mistake making Floyd a candidate." Ray sighed, shaking his head.

"Don't blame Floyd for all of this. He was acting out of fear. That's one thing I've learned as a cop, that fear can make people do things they'd never otherwise do," Grace said.

"I understand where you're coming from, but it doesn't excuse him. We'll see how he handles his family before I decide what to do with them."

"Thank you..."

"That said, he's out as a marriage candidate. I will not have my granddaughter marrying a man who would drug and kidnap her. Pathetic."

"Did he really attack his brother and take over?"

"I wouldn't lie about that."

"Doesn't that mean he's turning things around already?"

Ray sighed. "All that means is I won't hunt them down like the wild animals they are. They're lucky I didn't kill Samuel then and there. Then again, with how insane he is, maybe it would've been doing their family a favour to kill him."

"I don't think that would've been a good idea. And I'm against killing anyone unnecessarily."

"I understand that, but some people are beyond saving, Gracey."

Considering what he wanted to do to me, maybe he's right. "Um... Do you think Zain is going to be okay? He wasn't looking so good."

"Zain's a fighter. He's been through worse than this and kept going. I have faith he'll pull through this, too." Ray's grip on her hand tightened as he nodded.

She looked into his eyes, and he turned away, but before he could, she saw a hint of tears building up.

Zain is like another son to him, and he's already lost so much... Zain, please be okay.

Grace took a deep, shaky breath as she tried to calm herself, and scooched closer to Ray to lean on his shoulder.

"He'll be okay, Gracey; he has to be..."

When they arrived home after the vehicle with Zain, they spotted him being wheeled into the house on a gurney.

Grace hopped out of the car and went to rush over to him, but Ray pulled her back. "Let them work on him for now, and sit back down; you don't have shoes on." Ray nudged her back to the car.

"It's not that far to the house."

"And yet, there's still a chance you'd get hurt on the way. Just wait one moment."

As if on cue, Mary came rushing outside with a pair of flip-flops. "I'm sorry I wasn't already out here." She huffed and set them down in front of her.

"Don't worry about it, Mary," Ray said. "Let's just get our girl inside so she can get checked on."

"Uh, I don't need a check-up. I just need some ice for my cheek and a nice, warm bath, and I'll be good to go." Grace slipped the flip-flops on. "Thanks for these."

"I insist you get checked out." Ray wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Uh... I'm okay, really. Besides, you should have all your medics looking after Zain right now."

"You don't like getting check-ups, do you?"

Grace frowned and looked away. "That's putting it mildly."

"Gracey, you need to get checked."

"Why? I know I'll be fine after some rest and after I know he's okay."

"We need to make sure there are no aftereffects of the drug they used on you."

She glared at him, wriggled out of his grasp and took off into the house.

Ray stood there, stunned for a moment. "Why does it feel like I did something wrong? I'm just worried about her."

"She's either too worried about Zain for it, or has a serious aversion to doctors. Either way, don't push too much with her; she doesn't like it, and you want to stay on her good side."

"Ha... I suppose you're right. But still—"

"I'll keep an eye on her." Mary patted him on the shoulder. "So try not to worry too much. Now, what happened out there?"

Grace knew she wouldn't be allowed near Zain yet, so she grabbed a quick shower, and got changed into a t-shirt and comfortable pair of joggers. She got an ice pack from the kitchen, headed back to her room, and sat on her bed with the ice pack wrapped in a towel against her cheek.

"Ah..." Damn, he hits hard. I can't believe I got knocked down from one hit like that. For someone who's supposed to be good at fighting, I don't think I helped too much today. I probably won't be able to see Zain for a while. Ha... When did I get so used to having him around?

Grace shook off that line of thought and finally set the ice pack down. Maybe I'll go see Roger... assuming they'll let me do that alone.

She wasn't locked in her room anymore, so she headed downstairs to the basement. No one seemed to pay her any mind, since they were busy taking care of their wounded.

Feels creepy coming down here by myself. She tiptoed into the basement.

"He did what? That wasn't a part of the plan," Roger's voice rang through the basement.

Grace halted. Plan? Who is he talking to? She stayed close to the wall as she reached the bottom of the steps. Around the corner, a man stood in the open doorway to Roger's room.

"What did you expect? Trying to use Samuel, of all people. Arg—"

Roger cut him off by grabbing his throat. "I used him because he's strong. Because he has a big family, that's been aiming to grow. If someone wants to take over this family, they need to have more ambition and backbone than ninety-nine percent of people."

Heart racing, she stretched out to see the man's face. Herald? He's the one that keeps an eye on Roger in the first place, isn't he? But he's actually a rat? And what about Roger? He's my partner, isn't he? But he's got something to do with Samuel? With the mafia?

Herald coughed when Roger let him go. "I'm sorry, Boss, but what do we do now? There's no way Vincent will work with us; if anything, he'd rat us out."

"You think I don't know that?!"

Herald flinched back. "Careful, Boss; I know they're busy outside, but someone might hear you."

"Funny, because you told me before that it's soundproof down here."

"Oh-h... yes... I forgot." He inched back. "Ahem... What do we do now? Floyd's taken over the family."

"I suppose we'll have to get him in on our side, then."

"He... How should I put this? I think he likes the girl, but lost the chance because Samuel pushed him too far."

"Ugh... All these idiots weren't worth dealing with."

"Why don't we kill the girl? It'd be the quickest way to take revenge on Raymond."

"That's the quickest way to end up with Ray on our tails! Our family wouldn't survive an all out attack like that. Why do you think I wanted the Russo's help in the first place? Besides, that wouldn't make everything they have ours, including her."

"You want the girl, too? I thought she was a means to an end?"

"It would be a shame to kill such a strong woman. And I think having her might be the best revenge."

"Then why didn't you do that in the beginning?" Herald huffed.

Roger stepped towards him, glaring. "That's none of your business." In truth, he didn't know Grace was related to the Bertolottiss at first, and they met by chance. It troubled him more than anything that she was the granddaughter he had heard was alive.

"W-why don't you win her over, then?"

"I'm a cop; they won't want me to be the next boss. It was hard enough getting Floyd to be a candidate. If only the lot of them didn't screw it all up."

"If it's mafia families they're after, then letting them know you're part of the Kuros family should work."

Kuros? Like Zain?

"You mean the mafia family they think disbanded? We can't let them know until they're already in our grasp." Roger sighed, racking his brain as he tried to come up with a new plan.

"It's just as well; you couldn't win her over, anyway. From what I hear, you are seen only as a friend."

"Quite the mouth on you. Maybe you'd like to have it removed."

Herald's eyes widened. "Sorry, Boss. What I meant to say is, you can't win her over from here, and it's hard to go from friends to more. What if you recruited Zain? He is family."

"No!" Roger growled. "I will not recruit that turncoat!"

"He is blood, though. And it wasn't his fault his parents gave him away. If anything, he's a victim here, too."

"Zain is his underboss—"

"Which means his power in the family is only second to Raymond himself."

"Do not interrupt me."

Herald bowed his head slightly. "Sorry."

"The Kuros talked to Zain years ago, looking for help, and he turned his back on us. I need time to think about this. Get lost," Roger commanded him.

Oh! Damn! Grace rushed up the stairs and tripped on the steps.

"Who's there?" Roger asked. "Tch, go check." Roger wished he didn't have to command Herald at every turn.

Grace righted herself and bolted out the door. She kept going upstairs, not stopping until she was in her room. Her back against the door, she slid to the ground with her heart racing and immense pressure in her head from all sides.

Roger... is related to Zain? He's a part of the Kuros family? But isn't his last name Gibson? Is it fake? Grace held onto her head. Who have I been partnered with this entire time?! And what was with that personality? It didn't seem like him at all... Has everything been a lie?

Grace hugged her knees to her chest. Just when it started to feel like home here, everything falls apart.

Knock, knock.

Grace nearly jumped out of her skin, a tingling sensation running up her body. She swallowed hard, barely able to because of the lump in her throat, and answered, "Yes?"

"Grace, dear, even if you won't let a doctor see you, can I?" Mary asked.

"N-not right now. I want to be alone." Not really, but what in the world could I even tell her?

"I understand," Mary sighed, her shoulders slouched. "How about tea or something to eat? I can bring you anything you want."

"I don't want anything right now."

"Please, at least let me see your face; I'm worried."

She's not going to leave without something, is she? Must've been sent by Ray. Grace forced herself to stand and staggered over to where she left the ice pack. She picked it up and opened the door. "Can you put the ice pack back for me?"

"Of course." Mary took the ice pack and looked up at Grace's face. "Oh, dear..." Her heart sank.

"The bruise will heal; the swelling has already started to go down." Grace covered the bruise with her hand. "Don't worry about it."

"That's not what I'm worried about."

"Hmm?"

"You must not be able to tell what expression you're making right now." Mary reached out to her, and she automatically backed away. "I'm sorry, dear, but... you look so sad and lost right now. All I want to do is give you a big hug."

"I-I'm fine."

"You don't have to be shy with me. I'm practically a den mother here, and I've seen even the burliest of men break down in tears. And you probably think you have to be strong, being the mafia princess surrounded by all these men, but—"

"That's not it. I don't want to cry. I hate crying. It's a useless act." The more Grace went on, the harder it got to keep the tears back. "It doesn't help anything. My tears won't fix Zain, or tell me what I should be doing about... everything!"

Mary pulled her into a tight hug and stroked her head. "Tears are meant to help release all the stress and pain you have built up. Forcing yourself to keep them in will only make it worse down the line when it comes out, because you can't hold back any longer."

Grace went silent as the tears threatened to spill over. Mary's soothing touch was too much for her. She buried her face in Mary's shoulder, her tears pouring out as she hugged her back.

"Everything will be okay," Mary whispered, and Grace couldn't help but think about her grandma, who used to take care of her. She'd give her hugs whenever she wanted, and even when she didn't want them. That only made her cry harder.

"Everything is going to be okay now. You're home with your family, the people who care about you. Zain is strong; he'll pull through. And Ray will get to the bottom of everything. You can stay in here, safe away from the dangers of the outside world."

Grace pulled away from her and wiped the tears away as she averted her eyes. "I can't stay hiding in here. Badge or not, I'm still a cop, and I won't hide from whoever is trying to destroy my family." Even if it is Roger.

"Grace..." Mary sighed. "Ray, he's going to want to keep you inside again, you know? He cares about you more than anything else in the world."

She calls him Ray? They must be even closer than I thought.

"Which is exactly why I'm the target."

"True, but that doesn't change anything. You are precious, and he will do his best to protect you."

Trapped again. But do I even worry about Roger anymore? After what I learned, maybe I should just leave.

Grace stepped away from her as she thought. "If you guys lock me in here again without anything to do, I'll either go crazy, or I'll find a way to leave here."

"Grace... Why don't you go talk to your friend? Roger, right? I'm sure his presence can help you—"

"No; I don't want to see him right now." Grace took a deep breath. "Get me my phone back, so I can at least use my own contacts to help things along from here."

"I'll see what I can do. Take care." Mary gave her a small smile and headed out.

"Ugh... That seemed suspicious, didn't it? Who am I even talking to?" Grace flopped back on her bed, and Roger's conversation with Herald replayed in her mind.

I still can't believe it. How can all of that be true?