Page 31 of Zane

He did not care who might be watching from satellites, informants, distant ridges, or the shadows of his own household.In fact, the possibility pleased him, because he imagined every hidden eye widening at the scale of what he had made.

The night of the celebration, strings of gold lights crossed the courtyards, turning guard towers into decorations and making the warehouse roofs gleam like stages.

Laughter rose over the generators, glassware flashed in the hands of guests, and the smells of roasted meat, expensive perfume, diesel fumes, and sunbaked dust mingled in the hot air.

Somewhere near the kitchens, knives struck cutting boards in a frantic rhythm, while the unfinished coliseum glowed beyond them like a promise too mad to ignore.

Marco arrived late on purpose, wearing a cream suit and a red carnation, with rings bright enough to catch the attention of everyone forced to applaud.He paused at the top of the villa steps, arms open, accepting the roar of music, cheers, clinking crystal, and idling engines as though the whole valley were chanting his name.

His speech began as a toast and swelled into a sermon.He praised his cleverness, his vision, his enemies’ stupidity, and the weakness of every institution that had failed to reach him, while his lieutenants clapped with the careful timing of men who knew hesitation could be noticed.

Beyond the music, workers kept moving in the darker parts of the compound.The party did not interrupt the shipments, and the shipments did not interrupt the party; the sweetness of wine and grilled fruit lingered on the terrace while oil, sweat, and exhaust drifted up from the loading yards.

To Marco, that harmony was the most beautiful proof of his command.

He led favored guests to the rim of the coliseum and described the contests he intended to stage there.The concrete still held the day’s heat, grit crunched under polished shoes, and floodlights hummed above the unfinished tiers while distant animals stirred behind temporary barriers.

He spoke with theatrical calm, as though describing opera or architecture, and the more monstrous the idea became, the more offended he seemed that anyone might fail to admire it.

Some guests smiled because they were loyal, others because they were trapped, and a few because they had learned long ago that Marco rewarded reflections of himself.

He mistook all of it for devotion, never recognizing that fear can mimic celebration until the room is full of masks.

From the far edge of the valley, the compound shone too brightly to be invisible.Its lights spilled over the walls, its music carried into the dark, and every careless gesture of Marco’s vanity made the place less like a fortress and more like a signal fire.

Marco raised his glass beneath the lights, certain the world below him had finally learned its place.

He did not see the danger in being seen, and that blindness made him more vulnerable than any enemy could have hoped, because a man who truly believes he is unstoppable often begins by removing every warning sign himself.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Blake was sitting in the garden with the dogs, just scratching their ears and nodding her head, listening to them as they spoke to one another and to her.She heard the crunching of gravel and then it became louder and more intense.

Standing, she saw people running toward something.

“What’s wrong?” she asked as Stephanie ran by.She stopped, smiling at Blake and holding out her hand.

“Come on!Lennon and Marnie are both in labor.”

“Oh, my gosh,” she laughed.

Both women were in the clinic, both being watched carefully by the medical team.Marnie was having difficulty remembering that she was the patient, not the doctor.

Five baby beds lined the wall, ready for the twins and triplets about to appear to the world.Brooks and Mitchell could only smile at one another.They’d come into the world together and now their children were coming into the world together.It seemed right.

“When did they go into labor?” asked Blake, truly curious.She felt the callused, thick hands of Zane fall on her shoulders as he kissed her neck and smiled.

“During breakfast,” smiled Priscilla.“They didn’t want anyone to know at first.I mean, labor can go a long time.Marnie is a few weeks early but they’re triplets, so that makes sense.”

“Is there any danger?” asked Blake.

“No,” smiled Marissa.“They’re perfectly healthy and we’re used to delivering multiples around here.”

“It’s so exciting,” smiled Blake. “I’ve only been around animals during birth, never any humans.”

No sooner had they filled the waiting rooms than the diner brought in rolling carts of food to keep the faithful happy and full.

“Zane?What happened to Josh?” asked Blake quietly.He stared at her, kissing her forehead.