Lorenzo listened to his father's explanation of Donatella's situation, and his heart broke knowing she didn’t have a family. "But I like her, Daddy. And she needs us, right? I’ll protect her."
“I’m glad you like her, but you will have your own coven to protect, and many that will rely on you, so it is a big job. What do you say we get back inside, you need a bath before bed.”
Lorenzo folded the letter carefully and tucked it in his shirt. He’d write back to Donatella tomorrow. “Okay, I'm ready."
"Come on, little warrior, let’s see what Mommy is up to. By the way, have you heard from Alfie yet?"
"Yep. He wrote to me too. I will have a lot of letters to write, huh?"
"Just one more duty you better get used to performing on a regular basis, Prince Lorenzo."
As they entered the house, the boy ran ahead to the stairs. Halfway up, he stopped and turned to his father. "What is it, Lorenzo?"
"Don't worry, Daddy. I study every day and pay attention to Enzo just like you told me to, and I practice with Skelk and Marcello. And now, I have Zeus. I like being a warrior. I'll be ready when you send me to Castello, and Marco will be proud of me too. I promise."
Shade stood looking up at this small boy standing on the stairs, and remembered doing the same, begging for some small compliment or words of encouragement from his own padre, and rarely getting it. He vowed to never be like his father. "You already make me proud, Lorenzo.”
He watched as his son scurried up the stairs, and he knew in his heart Lorenzo would be okay. He’d grow up to be a great warrior, Shade’s equal in all things, and lead the next generation of Medici.
92
Shade made his way up the stairs as Lorenzo ran ahead. He could hear his son talking to Theresa about Zeus and their night of riding, and he smiled. Then he heard a loud wailing as he headed toward the nursery. Walking in, he found Gita in a nervous frenzy, trying to get Sophia to settle down and feed.
He gently took his daughter from Gita and laid her over his shoulder. "Go on, Gita, my Princess needs her padre."
Gita wrung her hands, and feared she’d let him down, but nodded and left the room.
Settling himself into the rocking chair, Shade cuddled Sophia to his chest. "So, what is the problem here, little princess? Why are you resisting your feeder and only seeking the comfort of your madre? Settle down, Padre has you, nothing will harm you while in my arms."
Sophia immediately settled and looked up at him, as if she understood his words. Then she scrunched up her face, as she was about to unleash some serious wailing.
"Oh no, no, no, Padre does not like tears. Come on now, let’s get some powerful Medici blood in your system, and you will sleep like the princess you are."
Pulling her to his neck, she nuzzled and sank her small fangs into his flesh. He closed his eyes and rocked slowly as his progeny fed, drawing her power directly from the source of her Medici roots. Rubbing her back, he felt her body relax against his chest. "There, you see, you just needed Padre. Feed, my sweet angel."
Kate stood in the doorway of Sophia's nursery, and watched as the infant had him wrapped around her fingers already. Walking in, she sat on the nanny's sofa bed. "Your princess already thinks she should only drink royal blood. She needs to bond with you, but she’ll need discipline and structure as well. I can't feed both of you."
He continued to rock and listened to her lecture him. Opening his eyes, he looked at her and placed his hand gently on Sophia’s head, letting his fingers slide through the soft red curls. "She hasn’t fed from me since birth, bel, perhaps this will calm her. I understand our bambinos need structure and discipline. Lorenzo does just fine. So will Sophia."
As she unlatched, he nuzzled into her soft cheek and kissed her, continuing to rock her as she laid her head on his shoulder, staring at her mother. "See, she is fine now."
Kate looked at him in the soft light of the small lamp, as he held their daughter to his chest. She was so small, and her skin so white against his dark complexion. "She’s beautiful, isn't she? Now, tell me about Lorenzo and his first experience with his pony. How did that go?"
“Lorenzo did great. He and Zeus are a good match, and I let him ride alone for a good hour or two. Damn, he makes me so proud. But there was one other thing." Shade paused, and hoped she didn’t get angry about the letter, but better coming from him than finding out from Lorenzo. Sophia wiggled a bit and he adjusted her on his shoulder and she sighed.
Kate sat forward on the sofa. "Did he fall? Is he okay?"
"No, mi amore, he didn’t fall. He will be a strong rider.” Shade repositioned the infant in the crook of his arm as she gurgled and closed her eyes. "Dona sent a letter to Lorenzo, just to say she hopes he enjoys the pony and wishing him well in the future. Just a letter, is all."
Kate looked at his face, trying to read his intent. "A letter? I suppose that’s appropriate. She did find the pony. You did pay her, right?"
“Of course, I paid her. She is just being kind to Lorenzo. I don’t think she has any motive except maybe to stir the pot between you and me. So, don’t play her game. Lorenzo thought the letter was nice. He is going to write back to her. I explained her situation to him, his responsibility to the Alizzi coven and he understands. And my princess is sound asleep, so you see, she just wanted her padre’s potent blood."
Standing, he carefully placed her in her crib, pulling a soft pink blanket over her. "She is so beautiful. I will have to fight them off when she grows up. Every damn male in the world will want her."
Kate joined him at the crib, looking down at their daughter as she nestled into the soft blanket. Sliding her arm around his waist, she leaned against him. "I’m not jealous of Donatella. I won you from her centuries ago, long before I even existed in this world, and there’s no one who’ll come between us. But you’re right about one thing, this one will give us a run for our money."
93
It had been a month and a half since the funeral, but Braden had them back on the campaign trail in three short weeks. Alec had seen an initial bump in the polls immediately after Rissa's death, a sympathy response from the voters. But his absence in the campaign gave his fellow candidates an edge, and now that he was back, the press was questioning whether he should be in the race. Every reporter wanted to know how he was doing, and if Rissa's death would have any effect on his ability to focus on the Presidency. No one was asking him policy questions and he was having a hard time getting the same attention. The women still approached him for an autograph, or a selfie, but the crowds were noticeably smaller.
After a very disappointing day, he was walking back to the campaign bus with Braden at his side, and Mateo close behind him. As soon as they closed the doors of the bus, Alec poured a large Midnight. "Well, that was a fucking waste of time."
Braden dropped down in his own seat and tried to maintain a positive spin. "Give it some time, Alec. This is new ground. The people don't know how to respond."
Alec gave him a stare that could melt steel. "Oh, they know how to respond, Braden. They're taking their support elsewhere." His laugh was bitter as he downed the Midnight. "Rissa is having the last laugh, controlling everything, even now."