Chapter Sixty Three

Trinity

This morning, I was determined to get things back on track. It was what Stephen and I needed.

I wasn’t completely over the mess Stephen had created in the past few days, but I decided not to dwell on it. It wasn’t good for either of us.

We had enough stress in our lives. The last thing we needed was to keep this fight going.

After our talk yesterday, I was sure Stephen understood he was on thin ice. If he kept acting this way, things would get worse. So, I decided to let it go and move on.

I also decided it was time for Stephen to see me as his equal. I wasn’t some fragile doll that needed his protection all the time.

It was 6:30 in the morning. We were in bed, waiting for the twins to wake up. Stephen was reading news updates on his phone, cuddled up to me. I was feeding Jay with my other arm.

Stephen asked, “You ready for today, babe?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I replied.

“We got this, babe. Together.”

“Together. What do you want to do about the other guys?”

“I’m okay with them coming, but I think we need to handle Chad differently this time. I have an idea, if you want to hear it?”

“Sure, baby. I’m all ears.”

We spent the morning discussing Stephen’s idea for our visit to Phil’s. We talked while I fed Jay and we waited for the twins to wake up.

Once they did, we headed downstairs to make breakfast and have coffee with everyone.

Stephen said, “Guys, I’m okay with you coming with us to Phil’s today. But this time, Clint, I don’t want you coming in with me. I want to do things a little differently. You and Dave can watch, though.”

Mia said, “I’m just glad you’re back to yourself, Hun. We don’t want to lose you. We’re a family, and families stick together.”

Clint added, “What my wife said! I love you, bro. We’re not going out like that.”

David said, “What he said, brother. It’s all or none.”

Felicity said, “I can’t begin to understand it all, but you all are so important to Dave and me. We do this together. We fight for our family.”

“Our family,” I echoed.

We all hugged. I was relieved that the past few days hadn’t torn our family apart. These people meant the world to me.

Mia asked, “So what’s the plan?”

Over coffee, we filled everyone in on what we had discussed that morning and Stephen’s plan.

David said, “Mate! I like that. It’ll completely throw him off and shift the power in your court, especially if he’s still trying to play games.”

Clint agreed, “Good idea, guys. It’s definitely one way to find out which side of the fence he’s sitting on.”

Felicity said, “Chad’s face will be a picture, that’s for sure.”

“Feel free to capture it then,” I said.

We all laughed.

We discussed the day further. Felicity and Mia decided it would be better if they stayed at the house with the five kids rather than bringing them to Phil’s. I decided we would take Jay with us since he was still so young.

The twins were more than happy to stay with Willie and Belle. They didn’t even bother to move when we tried to say goodbye to them.

Stephen asked, “Think we’ve already been replaced, momma?”

“I think so, daddy. Guess we’ll have to just tickle them to death.”

We raced over to them, covering them in kisses and tickles. They giggled their heads off. We reminded them to be good for Aunt Mia and Aunt Flick and that we’d be back soon.

Nathaniel said, “Bye bye, Jay.”

“Awww, bless my baby boy saying goodbye to his brother,” I said.

Miss Livy was too busy stealing her daddy’s kisses before he left.

We got in the car and headed to Phil’s. As usual, we were greeted by a beaming Marci.

“Look at you handsome devils,” Marci said. “It feels like a lifetime since I’ve had all my boys here together. How’s the new baby, David?”

“Great, thanks, Marci. She’s perfect.”

“And you didn’t bring her for me to meet?”

“She’s here with my fiancée. We just thought with everything going on today, it might be better if we all leave the catch-ups for tomorrow.”

“You boys never change. It’s always business first, pleasure second. You’ll put yourselves in an early grave this way.”

“Stop nagging the boys, Marci, and barreling them on the doorstep. Move aside, woman,” Philippe said.

Marci smiled and moved aside so we could enter. She nearly jumped with excitement when she saw me holding Jay.

“Ooooo, sweetheart, another precious little boy. Doesn’t he just look like his daddy when he was little. What did you call him?”

“Jayden Luciano Gotti,” Stephen said.

“Beautiful! Wonderful precious little man. May I?” Marci asked, reaching out to hold Jay.

I handed him over. It was adorable how much she swooned over my baby. It made me realize how lucky I was to have three beautiful children with a man I love.

As I looked at Marci, I couldn’t help but think that if she’d been given the chance, she would have had many more children.

“Hijo's, welcome back! Dave! How long has it been?” Eduardo asked.

“Too long, Eddie. Too long. Good to see you, my man,” David replied.

“And I see we have a new baby boy to take over from his daddy and uncles. Congratulations, sweetheart,” Sergio said to me.

“Thank you, Sergio,” I replied.

He gave me a big hug and kiss on the cheek as he shook Stephen’s hand.

“Hermosa, felicidades,” Eduardo said.

“Gracias, Eddie,” I replied.

“So what’s the plan tonight, kids?” Sergio asked.

I looked over at Marci, who was still swooning over Jay.

“Go, go, kids! I can look after this little gem,” Marci said.

“Thanks, Marci. If he gets hungry or restless, just buzz Stephen or me and we’ll come back up,” I said.

“He’s still on breast at the moment,” I added.

“Say no more, sweetheart,” Marci replied.

We headed down to the shed where we filled Sergio, Eddie, and Phil in on Stephen’s plan from this morning. We also discussed the plan to have Chad do one more drop to the cops, while Benji sets it up with the police commissioner to be in attendance.

Sergio chimed in, “I like this.”

Eduardo added, “Your lady is badass, Hijo.”

Laughter filled the room from all the guys.

Stephen grinned, “Don't I know it. She kicks my ass every day.”

Trinity shot back, “Because usually you do something idiotic to deserve it.”

Clint couldn’t help but laugh, “Hahaha, she's right.”

Stephen retorted, “Fuck off, Barney.”

Clint just laughed harder, “Ahahaha.”

Sergio, trying to regain control, said, “Alright, settle down kids. Are we ready to do this?”

Trinity replied, “Ready when you are.”

Sergio and Eddie left the room, heading back to the main residence. They returned with a blindfolded and cuffed Chad, who they unceremoniously dumped into the shed’s interrogation room. The lights were switched on, bright and glaring.

Once they got the signal, they removed his hood. It took Chad a moment to adjust to the sudden brightness. When his eyes finally focused, he saw me sitting on the table in front of him, a knife in my hand. Without wasting a moment, I used the handle to smack him in the mouth.

“Hi, Chad,” I greeted him.