Coming Home For Christmas

My head was throbbing and my jaw felt like I had been sucker-punched in it and the pain I was feeling wasn't being helped by the thundering voices in the room.

“That makes no sense, Klay, why would Kat go against you?” Logan? “That's exactly what I said, Logan" Iheard Cassie saying sounding triumphant Why is she so triumphant? what's going on? “Katerina is family, Klayton, she'd never go against you"

"But I've got evidence, Lacey, it proves she's the mole” “What evidence?" I ask confused

“We've got video proof that shows her talking with the guys who Chapter 35 - Cugina Vs Cugino. ~ attacked you and we also found out that she helped these same guys into the event by giving them VIP tickets" “Let me guess, one of the men was called Juan Herreros?" I ask shocking them “How do you know that, Lace?" Cassie asks me I briefly look at her and Logan before looking back at my cousin who was anxiously waiting for me to respond

“Juan Herreros is Trevor Lopez's alias...he was right here under our noses and none of us knew" “Kat knew" No, she didn't, Klay" Isay with an annoyed sigh “How do you know she didn't know, Lace?" “Because like I told you the other day, Klayton, she's been acting weird and tonight she was also acting weird but not as much as she has been and then the auctioneer said that name and Kat..she froze, she looked like she was gonna piss herself”

Ilooked up at my cousin whose face had softened “She looked frightened, Klayton and she had every right to be because that man is warped way more than any of us know" “In what way, Lace?" “Does it matter, Cass? Kat's still on his side and she's betrayed us" Klayton says shocking me “You don't honestly believe that, do you, Klayton?" “Well, what else am I supposed to believe, Lace?" Klayton asks while throwing his hands up in annoyance

Chapter 35 - Cugina Vs Cugino. oy “All of the evidence points to Katerina” “And you never thought for one single solitary second that this evidence you've got may have been planted or doctored in any way to trick you? your brain never thought that maybe just maybe someone who is working for Trevor could've hacked the guest list to make it look like Kat was handing out VIP passes like candy, you never thought that maybe Katerina was being threatened by Trevor on whatever video evidence you've got..you never thought about any of that, Klayton?" Lask before scoffing “Youre losing your touch, cousin’

Isay as 1go to get out of my bed but was stopped by Klayton and Logan “Hey, where are you going?” “Well, first, 'm gonna go home and have a shower and then I'm gonna do what someone in this family is clearly incapable of doing and I'm going to do a deep dive into what REALLY happened here tonight and prove Kat's innocence”

“Are you calling me incompetent, Lacey?" Klayton growled and I looked at him like DUH//, YOU MORON! "Well, if incompetence was a hat then you'd be wearing it proudly, cugino® (Cousin) I say getting in my cousin's face as he continues to glare at me "Why are you being so stubborn about this, Lace?" "Why are you being so stubborn about this, Klayton?" I throw his question back at him with annoyance in my tone

“Tell me, cousin, what REAL evidence do you have to prove Katerina is our mole? I mean, it makes sense that the mole would be someone who Chapter 35 - Cugina Vs Cugino. _) knows the both of us because whoever it is had to find a way to get on our yacht to put the cameras there, right? so it would have to be someone who knows us as well as you, am I right?” Task him and he nods his head “That's right" “Then how did Kat do that?" Lask stumping him

“How did Katerina find a way to get onto our yacht which is always guarded by the way, to plant cameras for her brother to perve on us? and how did she do it without you or Vanessa not wondering where the hell she was? surely her being gone for a substantial amount of time would have caused suspicion, right? I mean, it's not like she can say she's going to see her famiglia” “She obviously tricked you or Logan into giving her the keys, Lace" Klayton said sounding so sure of himself and I nodded my head “That's plausible, Klay, except for the fact that neither of us

had met her until after our wedding” Klayton looked at me shocked and I hoped that this was enough to make him see some freaking sense but unfortunately for me and my migraine, he's as stubborn as amule and what he said next flipped my ultimate b**h switch which isn't a good thing when you're an Italian female like me “Look principessa, you need to get back in bed, ok and rest, you've had a massive knock to the head and you're not thinking clearly, maybe after a good night's rest, you'll see things my way and we'll be on the same page” Chapter 35 - Cugina Vs Cugino. ©) “Are you kidding me right now, Klayton? I mean, are you seriously kidding me right now? Kat's innocent and you

"So is Trevor, Cassidy and he did" Klayton and Cassidy were arguing and I felt like being a typical mom and banging their heads together to get them to shut up but for some reason, I was finding it hard to open my eyes and even when my eyes did flicker and show signs of opening the pain in my head and my temples from these two shitheads was making it impossible for me to do anything but breath through the pain My cousin and his wife continued to argue and I let out a slight groan as I held my head

know this but you're so determined to believe she's guilty and I don't understand why...she's your cousin for god's sake, Klayton, she's your blood, your family who in your own words, you know better than me, right?" Lask and Klayton's face drops “You don't have enough evidence to prove she's the mole, Klay and what you do have, is circumstantial at best, not to mention, the fact that I'm still here...f Katerina was working With her creepy ass brother then why didn't she call or text him the moment we got to the bathroom? we were in there for a while, Klayton, so it wouldn't have taken much for them to overpower me and take me without any of you knowing" “She's got a point, love"

Cassie says while stroking Klayton's bicep Klayton then narrowed his eyes to Cassie before looking back at me “Circumstantial or not, I can't just ignore this evidence, Lace" Klayton says and I sigh in disappointment as a series of knocks are heard on the door “Hey guys, oh hey Lace, you're awake" Benjamin says and I groan as I rest my head against the pillow “What have you got for me, Benj?"

“Well, 1 did some research into that Juan guy and I couldn't find anything about him, it's like he's a ghost, there's no social security number for him, no family history, no nothing but I did find this” Benjamin says as he hands Klayton a piece of paper “He's got a police record, mostly stupid s**t from when he was a Chapter 35 - Cugina Vs Cugino juvenile but here's the kicker, the name Juan Herreros is an alias, an alter ego if you will which explains why I couldn't find anything on him" “So, who is he?"

“His real name is...

“Trevor Lopez” I'say and Ben looks at me shocked “Yeah, how do you know?" “Wild guess” I'say with a smile as llookinfla share eye contact with Klayton before looking away from him “ILalso did some digging into Trevor and Antonio hoping to find something, maybe some new activity and I found this, Connor also found these in your office”

Benjamin handed Klayton several pieces of paper as well as a brown envelope and I just knew that whatever was on them must be bad because his eyes immediately blazed with anger and his jaw clenched tightly as he looked at me “Is this proof enough for you, Lace? Kat's been in freaking contact with them” Klayton says as he hands me everything in his hand The papers showed a series of calls and texts between Katerina, Trevor and Antonio and just as I expected, none of Kat's texts showed that she was colluding with her brother whereas their texts looked like they were trying to set her up which they have done As for what's in the envelope, well, there was a series of pictures which showed Kat being very friendly with Antonio like they were old

Chapter 35 - Cugina Vs Cugino. oy friends just like she told me earlier "What's wrong, Lace? cat got your tongue?” Klayton asks me and I glare at him “You disappointment me, Klayton" “What did you just say?" “You heard me, I said I'm disappointed in you" Isaid as I felt tears fill my eyes “Ever since I was a little girl, you were the one who I could

always go and tell anything to, it didn't matter what it was or how big or small it was, I knew that I could always come to you because even though you were this big, bad mafia Don in training, you were always my big cousin who was a massive softy and you had a massive heart...but somewhere along the line, the mafia has tainted that side of you because if that side of you was still there, Klay, then Kat wouldn't have been so afraid to talk to you, she wouldn't have been terrified that you'd think so low of her just because of who her brother is” “What are you talking about, Lacey?" Cassie asks me and I take a deep breath to calm myself down before answering her “Kat's terrified of Trevor and Antonio, Cass and I mean

REALLY terrified of them and I don't blame her...her story with them runs way deeper and a lot darker than any of you can ever imagine” Tsay as I wipe my tears away not caring that the saltiness from my tears is causing some pain to the cut on my lip "For the past few weeks, Antonio has been stalking and harassing her..wherever she goes, he's there, it doesn't matter if it's work, the gym or even dress dropping for a certain event, he was always there and Chapter 35 - Cugina Vs Cugino. A according to Kat, he's constantly calling and texting her, he's always blowing up

her phone no matter what time of the day or night it is, she even told me that she's blocked him several times but somehow he's always found a way to unblock himself" "She's telling the truth, Klay, well, at least for the latter part she is" Benjamin says and Klayton looks at him confused "What are you talking about?" "I hacked into Kat's phone and also all of her socials and I found out that she has indeed blocked Antonio at least a dozen times before he was magically unblocked again"

"Told you so Isaid childishly “But I don't understand" Klayton said in frustration as he ran a hand through his hair “If she's innocent and she was being harassed then why didn't she come and tell me? she knows she can tell me anything “Because she was scared you wouldn't believe her, she was scared that you would do what I did and immediately judge her and think she was the mole just because she shares the same DNA as that psychopath and that's exactly what you did, you accused her at the first sign”

My eyes were blurry and unfocused but after blinking several times, I was able to lock my eyes on the most heavenly sight even if said heavenly sight looked like it had been dragged through a hedge several times “Logan” I'said huskily causing my husband to snap his head at me Chapter 35 - Cugina Vs Cugino. SJ "Lacey...oh my god, baby, you're awake"

I'say and Klayton's body stiffens “Trevor set her up and you fell for it..and now she's in danger"

He said sounding shocked as he cupped my face and kissed all over my face including my lips which caused me to wince in pain “Ouch, dammit Logan" “Oops, sorry baby" Logan once again pecked my lips, this time gently before pulling away and smiling down at me which I reciprocated Ithen looked around at everyone and my eyes narrowed when I noticed I was in an unfamiliar room which I knew was a hospital room, not because of the smell but because only a hospital would have a room this neutral and boring

There are other colours than white, people “Are you ok, love?" “I'm fine, why am [in the hospital?” “You don't remember, cugina?” Klayton asks me as he places a hand on my shoulder “You and Kat in the bathroom” "Me and Kat?"

"Me and Kat?" What the...oh no I frantically looked around and my heart rate sped up when I'saw Katerina was nowhere in sight “Where is she? where's Kat?"

“That's nothing for you to worry about, kid" Klayton says and I narrow my eyes at him “Why? where is she? please tell me she's ok” “We don't know where she is, babe" Chapter 35 - Cugina Vs Cugino. os “And if she knows what's good for her then she'll stay wherever she is because I'm gonna kill her when I get my hands on her” What? “Why are you gonna kill her? what did she do wrong?" “I'm so sorry, principessa”

Iwas startled suddenly when Klayton embraced me and repeatedly told me how sorry he was What the hell? “Klayton, what the hell has gotten into you? why are you so sorrowful?" “Because you told me about Kat, you told me you were suspicious of her and believed she was our mole and you were right” “What? no, no I wasn't, Klay" "Yes, you were, Lace"

Klayton said as he cupped my face and looked me in the eyes “No, Klayton, she's not the mole, I promise you" “lace...” “No just please listen to me for once, Klayton, she's not the mole” Isay and he narrows his eyes at me “How do you know, principessa?” “Because she saved my son from Trevor's men because she loves you and Cassie more than anything..she'd never betray you, Klay"