With These Four Rings - Book Five: Wedding Bonus (Billionaire Brides of Granite Falls 5) (32 page)

When Yuri emitted a whimper, Adam said, “You have a beautiful family, Yuri. They seem to be having a good time, aren’t they?” It was a rhetorical question, so he didn’t expect him to respond. He returned his gaze to Yuri’s face. “I’m sure you’re smart enough to realize that I have them under surveillance, so my next question is, “do you love your family?”

Yuri stared at him, then at the video, apparently unsure of how to answer. He probably thought that if he admitted to loving them, Adam would have them killed in front of him as punishment.

If he were in Yuri’s position, he’d be thinking along those lines, too. And that was the difference between Yuri and Boris. Boris had nothing to lose so he had no chance of living, but Yuri—well, his life hinged on his response. To help him decide, Adam pulled the trigger, and felt absolutely nothing when Yuri squealed like a pig, tears rolling from the corners of his eyes. “You have three more chances to walk out of here, Yuri. So I will ask you again, “Do you love your family?”

Again Yuri kept his eyes glued on the cell phone screen and refused to answer.

Adam pulled the trigger again. “Do you fucking love them?” he barked, leaning closer to Yuri’s ashen face, his finger at the ready to pull the third time.

One finger on each hand went up. Yuri began trembling and whimpering like a baby, and lo and behold he pissed his boxers.

Adam let out a deep breath, sat back, and returned his cell phone to his pocket. “It seems we have something in common, Mr. Golub. Perhaps we can work together. You think we can?”

Yuri responded positively.

“Wonderful. Now, listen well, because this is the only conversation you and I will ever have. Like you, I love my wife. I absolutely adore her. I love my son, and I already love all the other sons and daughters we will have in the future. I think your friend and business associate, Boris, understood the lengths I would go to in order to protect my family, moments before he choked to death on his own blood. The thing is, I have no intention of living in fear of you or anyone else. I will not spend the rest of my life looking over my shoulders. So from this day on, you will forget that my wife exists in your world. I don’t even want you breathing the same air she breathes.”

He picked up the newspaper clipping and held it in front of Yuri’s face. “You know what she looks like, so if you’re in a certain country and you see her, or even hear she’s there, pack your bags and leave, or I will view your decision to stay as a breach of our agreement. You will also forget this meeting, and go on living as if you never met me. However, you and your family will be under constant surveillance until the day they put you all six feet under. If anything suspicious happens to my wife, to my son, or to any Andreas for that matter—even if you had nothing to do with it—I might be inclined to think differently. Consequently, your mother and father, your two uncles, your aunt, your three sisters, your brother, and all your in-laws will be removed from this world. And then I’ll mutilate you.

“I’m not into harming children, but I will take your two sons, your two daughters, and your seven nieces and eight nephews and ship them to different orphanages around the globe. They will never see each other again. They will never know their true identities, and you will spend the rest of your miserable life wondering where they are, whether they’re happy or sad, dead or alive. I won’t kill you, Yuri, but when I’m done with you, you
will
wish you were dead.

“This is not
Taken,
and I’m not Liam Neeson. So don’t for a moment think that taking me out will solve your problem. The wheels of your family’s demise are already set in motion.
You
put a mark on your loved ones’ heads the moment you set foot in Granite Falls with intentions to destroy mine. Whether or not your children grow up in their seemingly happy home with you and your wife is all up to you. You hold the cards to their fate in your hands. Do we have an understanding?”

Yuri raised one finger.

Adam slapped him lightly on the cheek. “Now, since you’re prohibited from breathing the same air my wife breathes, I suggest you make a hasty departure from this town and from this country. My advice is that you never return to the United States, ever again.” He pasted the clipping to Yuri’s sweaty forehead, pulled the revolver from his mouth, dripping with drool, and slammed it on his chest.

“I promised my wife a sunrise breakfast on the lake with our son. I don’t want to be late. Oh, and they’re leaving for Santorini later today, so if you have plans to visit Greece or Italy within the next week, cancel them.”

Adam got up and walked to the door. With his hand on the knob, he looked back to see Yuri curled up on the bed in the fetal position, cradling his gun and bawling as a brown stain slowly appeared in the seat of his boxers.

Adam could almost hear his father’s proud voice and see the sparks of admiration in his eyes. “
Ora, il figlio mio, che è il modo un Andreas si occupa di minacce alla sua famiglia
.” Yes indeed, that was the way to deal with a threat to his family. After all, he
was
an Andreas.

Adam opened the door to the musky motel room and stepped out into the light of dawn. With a smile on his lips, he looked up at the blue sky and inhaled the fresh crisp air of his beautiful hometown of Granite Falls.

La vita era incredibilmente bella
!

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

The Wedding Day – Saturday: Thirteen Days Later

Channel 9 News – Granite Falls People News Segment. Saturday Night…

“Okay Lester, you’re on in five, four, three…”

Lester Cobbs adjusted his earpiece, straightened his shoulders, cleared his throat, and focused his eyes on the teleprompter.

“Good Evening. I’m Lester Cobbs, and welcome to tonight’s segment of
Granite Falls People News
. Tonight we’ll be focusing on the exciting local highlights of the day. As many of you know, I’ve been reporting news for seventeen years—locally, nationally, and internationally. I’ve been fortunate to cover celebrity and other high profile weddings, political and charitable campaigns, et al. But never have I witnessed anything as grandiose as the wedding that took place today in my little hometown of Granite Falls, New Hampshire. Before I run the uncut video of the events, I think you will appreciate it even more if you knew some of the history of the church where the ceremony was performed, and of the families involved.

“Granite Falls Community Church, now a historical landmark, was the first church to be built when the town was chartered in 1788.” Lester waited for the picture to appear behind him. “As you can see, back then, it was just a small wooden chapel on the corners of Main Street and Highland Avenue, but it was the only place of service for the town’s residents. From street cleaners to wealthy magnates—including but not limited to the LaCrosse, Andretti, Andreas, and Forsythe families—worshipped there together.” A series of photos of the church at various stages flashed as he continued.

“Over the years, the building underwent several major overhauls, increasing in size to accommodate the growing membership each time. Its biggest and most recent transformation occurred a few years ago, when business mogul Bryce Fontaine bought the adjacent block and expanding the church property three and a half acres in size.” He paused as a photo of the church in its present state was posted. “In addition to remodeling the building into a magnificent two-story structure from locally queried granite, imported marble, stained-glass windows, Renaissance style doomed and skylight ceilings, he also built a playground, a free church-run daycare, and a preschool on the grounds.

“The Fontaines weren’t among the founding families of this beautiful, mountain mecca that I and many of you who’re watching call home, but the Fontaine name is now as revered, and carries as much weight in the area as other prominent families.

“Many of you know the history of the LaCrosses, Andrettis, and Andreases—the current leading families of our town. But what you may or may not know is that Bryce Fontaine first arrived in Granite Falls as a freshman at Granite Falls Preparatory School. It was there that he met and formed a bond of brotherhood with billionaire heirs, Erik LaCrosse, Massimo Andretti, and Adamo Andreas, who were all born and raised in Granite Falls.” School photos of the young friends in various grades were posted. “Even though, Bryce was not yet a billionaire or even a millionaire, together, the friends formed their exclusive Billionaire Bachelors’ Club and made a blood oath to always be there for each other.

“It is reported that upon graduating from Harvard University, Bryce inherited a small fortune from his grandmother. He then placed himself under the tutelage of business tycoons Alessandro Andreas, and the now deceased Luciano Andretti, and within a decade, he turned his small fortune into a multi-billion-dollar corporation. Fontaine Enterprises, along with Andretti Industries, Andreas International, and recently incorporated Erik LaCrosse Doctors Abroad Foundation, and the Michelle LaCrosse Children of the Future Foundation, is now among the leading corporations in the world. The rest, we can say, is mogul history.

“Today, during a group wedding in the beautiful Granite Falls Community Church, Erik, Bryce, Massimo, and Adamo—the Fabulous Four as they’ve been fondly nicknamed—renewed their vows of love and devotion to each their wives: Michelle, Kaya, Shaina, and Tashi, and their commitment of friendship to each other, and each other’s families.”

* * *

The Wedding – Saturday Morning 10. A.M…

From his vantage point on the second floor balcony—and in an area that was quartered off for the crew from
Granite Falls Times
newspaper, and WFCN, one of the television stations owned by Fontaine Communications Network—Lester looked down on the arriving guests as they were escorted to their seats by teams of ushers dressed in black and white tuxedos.

People from every walk of life and every corner of the globe, including several Hollywood and Broadway celebrities, renowned artists, politicians, Heads of States, and CEOs and representatives from many of the world’s leading corporations, were among the honored guests. Lester had heard that the First Family had been invited, but they’d canceled at the last minute due to a family emergency of their own.

Just the thought of the President of the United States rubbing elbows with the humble citizens of Granite Falls made Lester smile with pride to be one of them. He was also grateful that of all the reporters on the planet, many far more seasoned and respected, he had been the one chosen to report on this grandiose wedding of the decade.

Things weren’t always amicable between Lester Cobbs and the billionaires, who’d provided a lot of juicy gossip for him to feed on over the years. But since the Fabulous Four had settled down into marital bliss and stopped generating infamous fodder, he and they had arrived at a tacit respectful understanding. That mutual respect had crystalized when they’d allowed him to interview them a few months ago, at which time they’d relayed the stories of meeting the loves of each their lives and talked about the upcoming wedding ceremony that was presently unfolding before his eyes.

Everything concerning this wedding was local: the designers for the bridal, bridesmaids, and flower-girls’ dresses, the tailors who made the morning wedding suits for the grooms and the other male members of the wedding party, the jeweler who’d designed the four duplicate diamond and precious stones rings, the wedding planner, and the eighty-member Granite Falls Symphony Orchestra that was currently rendering
Pachelbel’s Cannon in D
as everyone awaited the arrival of the four couples—Granite Falls’ own homegrown, and much loved celebrities.

The only thing not local about the wedding was the honeymoon venue. It was rumored that not even the wives knew where their husbands were taking them for a week of love and romance. It could be anywhere in the world, and since the location was highly secretive, Lester was certain it would be private and paparazzi-free. Just as highly secretive were the bridal gowns and the four rings. No one, but the designers had seen them.

The husbands had given Lester an inside scoop about the designs of the platinum diamond rings they would place on their wives’ fingers. The platinum shank was split into three lanes—representing their Past, Present, and Future—and studded with diamonds that extended into the gallery and shoulders. The head was designed with two layers of platinum and white gold, asymmetrically placed to form eight V-shaped, leaf-like halos, all randomly studded with the birthstones of the four couples and their children, with room for future offspring. One of the halos had been damaged during the design, and instead of fixing it, the couples had requested that all the rings contain a broken halo to show that none of them were perfect.

Wow
! Talk about humble.

The center stones on each ring—a twenty-five-carat Princess cut blue diamond—were equal parts of a one-hundred-carat diamond. Side stones, representing the birthstones of the husbands, nested in the prongs that secured the center stone. The rings were engraved with the couples’ motto:
To God, Life, Love, Family, Friends, Prosperity
. The motto said it all.

Lester sighed, completely overwhelmed. If the honeymoon haven possessed any of the aura of the romantic Cinderella theme that the church and the ballroom at Hotel Andreas where the reception would take place, then Lester knew it would be a place of pure exotic splendor. The walls of the church were draped with red, pink, purple and gold lace, threaded with strings of illuminated pearls. They were replicas of the drapes that were hanging on each side of the back entrance to the sanctuary.