Chapter 504. ...And Women

Proserpina

I smiled up at him as our littlest son chuckled in delight.

"I am fine," I whispered. "That happened a long time ago."

He grunted and pulled me into his arms. I looked around at the faces of the people around me—everyone who loved me just as I cared for them.

James Schwartz. My sons, Piers and Claude. Beston, who was watching me anxiously, as was Gustav.

I smiled, safe in the arms of the only man I had ever loved.

"I am strong," I repeated.

***

The phone calls began soon after.

Calls from unidentified numbers to my handset. When I responded the first few times, there was only a deep, heavy breathing. It was meant to scare me for I could sense the hostility, the deep menace behind the sound. The first two times, I was shaken and replaced the phone hurriedly.

When I informed Lucien, he was livid. He ordered me to stay off the phone; all calls would be diverted to me through his staff. But when a ca