The Twelve Tables Ch. 13

"When will Ben get here?" Josh asked surprising them all.

"Less than an hour," Dante murmured looking at his watch.

"Alright, I'm leaving in an hour so if they want to meet it needs to be now," Josh said and continued to eat.

"I'll make the call and let them know we are coming," Joseph said grimly.

"Could you ask the commander if coffee could be made available for the meeting?" Josh said putting the now empty bowl on the table.

"D. do me a favour and shut down anyone who tries to give me details of the trial itself," Josh said seriously.

"Will do," Dante answered with an equally serious face.

"Coffee will be waiting for us when we arrive," Joseph said returning to the living room. The three younger men stood and left the townhouse with their father. They walked in silence down to the facility and were shown not to the Athenaeum but a room full of mismatched furniture and glass walls.

"Welcome to the Stanhope Room gentlemen," Marco welcomed them. "Please help yourself to coffee and something to eat, I understand you haven't slept since your arrival yesterday."

"We plan to sleep on the flight home," Emilio said easily accepting their offer of coffee.

Josh said nothing taking a seat after getting his coffee and looking at the men who had asked to speak to him. He listened to the polite chatter and gauging the mood to be pleasant rather than the hostile stiffness they had with each other at the hospital he relaxed slightly and sat back in his chair before finally speaking.

"I have been told you wished to speak to me," Josh began slowly. "If this is about Peri's trial, can I just say upfront I do not want to hear the details. This trial was pressed upon us by those who did not know Peri and how we were as a couple." He paused before speaking again, "No one could have foreseen the actions of my sister and for that I am sorrier than you could imagine. I want you to know you have my deepest sympathy for the loss of Giorgio."

He had done his part. He had apologised for his sister's actions, and he had let them know he did not wish to talk about Peri's trial. As far as he was concerned there was nothing left to say.

"I for one appreciate your candour," Francesco said. "You need not apologise for your sister's actions. As you have said, no one could have foreseen what occurred, and Giorgio allowed himself to be compromised by his killer."

"Thank you," Josh said surprised by the man's response.

"I," Francesco looked at the other men and rephrased the word, "We wanted you to know how much pride you should all have in how Peri conducted herself here. Each of us grew to care for her very much in the short time we knew her, and we are concerned that she wished to leave in the manner she did."

"We wanted to apologise that she did not feel safe in the hospital under our care," Nero said sadly. "I wish she hadn't left before we had made sure she was fully recovered."

"Perhaps I can help you to understand," Josh said shocked by what the men were saying to him. "Peri has always looked after herself, essentially by herself. She had an unconventional upbringing. When she is injured or upset, she retreats into her own space. She seeks out solitude where she can lick her wounds, understand what happened and regain her strength before facing the world again." He smiled as he spoke knowing this to be true and until she got home and was allowed to do just that she would continue to shun everyone who cared about her except Andie, who never crossed that line into her solitude.

"She needs medical care," Nero argued, "She should be in a hospital under observation for at least another two to three days." His words had taken on a lecturing tone of one who knows better than everyone else.

"Pete and I have arranged for a private room at a small hospital. She will have some solitude under supervision until she is well enough to return to her home," Josh explained. "While I understand your concern, you have to respect the fact that she is my fiancé. I love her. I know what she needs and will make sure she gets it. Treating me like an idiot right now will not help us or her to recover." Josh stiffened at the tone of the doctor.

"You are right," Marco cut in sensing Josh's rising anger. "It is just that she was in our care, and we feel a great responsibility for her condition. I do not doubt that you will ensure her well-being and continued recovery. We only wish that we could have helped more in that respect."

"She is where she needs to be for a speedy recovery," Josh said in a hard voice. This was not what he had expected from this meeting.

"Peri's trial is done, and she has made it clear that she wants to recover at home with her mother," Dante said and would have told them that their presence in Peri's life was no longer needed or wanted, but Emilio as always saved him from himself.

"We will let you know how she is recovering," Emilio said in a friendly way. "If you would like to exchange numbers I could call you personally," he offered.

"Thank you," Marco said. "Peri is an amazing young woman, and you're a very lucky man Joshua. Those of us who spent time with her here have no doubt about how much she loves you and looked forward to living happily ever after with you. I would hope that given time we could be friends once again."

Josh stared at the man. They had never met before, so the friendship these men wanted was with Peri, not himself. He looked at his father and the Commander of the Battaglia, who sat quietly each watching their children and judging them. In a moment of clarity, he realised from what had been said over the last twenty-fours that there was more to Giorgio's death than they were saying out loud. Something that would shame the family almost as badly as Nik's crimes and Josh felt sick imagining the depravity that must have occurred between the man and Nik for her to have gotten the upper hand on a trained military man.

"It seems that the only person in all of this who bears no guilt at all is Peri and at this time she wants nothing to do with any of us, not even me," he said sadly addressing the two older men and admitting the truth. "I hope that you can both work all of this out so that there is no rift between the families."

"We have lost Nik as surely as if she had died alongside Giorgio. She will receive no support from us during her trial. A lawyer who knows the family rules will represent her as is our way," Joseph said unemotionally. "A closed court and press gag is in the works."

"We intend to work together with the police to ensure that justice is done, and the Twelve are protected," the Commander added, presenting a united front with Joseph.

"I don't blame you," Josh said to the Battaglia men realising that this was why he had been brought here. "Peri seemed happy when I spoke to her during her evening phone calls. I appreciate that you looked after her well during the elements of the trial. What Nik did could not have been predicted, and if it could, we wouldn't be here now."

"We would like to know about her recovery, please," Nero spoke up into the small silence that followed Josh's words. "We will not force our ourselves into your life. We are content to let the elders deal with the necessary legal arrangements and report to the Twelve at the sitting."

"Fuck! Enough of this polite bullshit," the straight-talking Francesco said. "Peri was in our care, and we fucked up royally. You have every right to sit there and blame us, hate us even, were the positions reversed I don't know that I could be so magnanimous."

"Yeah, that's true, but you didn't hurt her Nik did, and that blame is hers alone. As for how it occurred there is enough blame and guilt to be shared by everyone, including me," Josh said with a shake of his head. "It was my sister who murdered your brother and the same feeling of blame and hate could be applied to the three of you."

"His death was due to his lack of judgement," Francesco spoke as if the conversation was just between him and Josh. "It's a fucked up situation for both families. For you especially, the fact that you have come here without recriminations to meet with us when I know you would rather be following Peri home is a testament to the kind of man the you are, you have my respect."

"Speaking of which I should be leaving now," Josh got to his feet. "As you have said this matter is best left to the elders to deal with. I want no blood feud, you have more right to demand that than me when Peri lives and Giorgio does not."

"The damage Veronica has done to both families is more hardship than either deserves," Francesco said, followed by the murmured agreement of those in the room. "Have a good flight and let us know about her recovery please."

*****

Nik paced the small cell waiting. She was furious, and anyone who came within arm's reach of her cell bore the brunt of that fury. Every day she waited for them to come and apologise to her for waiting so long to pay her bail. Now ten days later she would make them pay dearly for making her wait. She heard the rattle of the outer doors and stopped pacing and looked at them.

"Well," she snarled at Lawrence Kerrigan as he walked through followed by two guards.

"Your trial has been expedited. Given the overwhelming evidence against you and your lack of any evidence to the contrary, I have come to urge you strongly to cut a deal and plead guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter," Lawrence said in his stiffly formal way.

"I did nothing wrong!" she yelled. "You get me out of here you fucking moron."

"As you wish, I will see you in court tomorrow," he said and turned to leave.

"Wait," she said in a completely different voice and he turned to look at her.

"I want you to bring me something decent to wear. I can't go to court looking like this. I want a hairstylist and makeup too," she said imperiously. "Call Bianca Donati she will know what I need and how to get it for me."

"The Donati family have declined all of your previous requests, but I will deliver your message," he replied and walked away without a further glance back in her direction.

"You probably didn't even deliver the requests you fucking asshole!" Nik screeched and continued to rant and rave long after the door was shut behind him.

Lawrence went from the jail, directly to the House of Battaglia, where Joseph and the Commander waited. They were paying him an exorbitant fee for his services in this matter, as well as to keep them fully informed. Machinations by several high-ranking officials were expediting the case, making it a closed courtroom due to the sexual nature of the murder and keeping a tight gag on mainstream media. Veronica was not so well liked by her friends that her demise was even a blip on their radar. Only a few who seemed to relish her misfortune kept it alive on social media but as none of them knew her as a Donati, the family was unconcerned.

Five of the Donati men listened in on a conference call as he relayed the scene from his brief talk with Nik. Lawrence included the request that Bianca furnish her with a suitable wardrobe and stylist for her day in court.

"Maybe it's a good idea," Emilio said thoughtfully. "Leaving her to her own devices doesn't seem to have made a difference to her state of mind. If we send in someone she perceives as a friend, someone safe; she may confess and this would be over without a lengthy trial."

"I'm not putting Bianca in that position," Jules said firmly.

"If someone goes in it can't be family," Ben added to the conversation.

"She won't say much if she doesn't think the person is her friend. It doesn't matter how deluded she is, she's not an idiot," Dante said grudgingly.

"Sabrina," Josh said grudgingly. "I don't know if she would do it but she would be one of the few people Nik might trust enough to gloat about what she did."

"See if you can locate her," Ben took charge of the conversation despite his father's presence. "Seems that's the only way to avoid a long and invasive trial. Who knows what Nik will say if she feels cornered."

"I assure you I am quite skilled in these matters," Lawrence said indignantly. He had to admit though that if their plan worked it could speed things up considerably. "Give me the girl's number I will negotiate with her and get one of my associates to pay her a visit. It's best you all stay out of the whole scene," he said.

"I agree," Romey spoke up. "You didn't see her when she was arrested. She's not the same Nik we knew. She believes that she can do what she likes with no consequences because we have always bailed her out in the past. She has no compassion and no sense of wrongdoing, let Lawrence handle it."

Josh spent some time giving Lawrence a brief version of what had happened between Sabrina, Nik and Peri. He had gone to Canberra separately from Peri. She wouldn't have let him be there with her but he couldn't have stayed away knowing she would be distressed and may need him. Had he been at home he would have gone to see Sabrina himself.

*****

"Hello Josh," Andie answered the phone looking at Peri, who shook her head and walked away.

"How is she?" Josh asked.

"She's getting ready and seems confident, so that's a good sign," Andie said brightly. She felt caught between a rock and a hard place. She knew that Peri still loved Josh and he her, but Peri seemed determined to have nothing more to do with the family until the trial was finished. Truthfully, Andie wasn't even sure if Peri would talk to him even when it was done.

"That's good," Josh agreed. "Has she said much about how she is feeling about seeing Nik at the trial?"

"Only to her lawyer, after she overheard me talking Charles about it one day she won't let me be part of those meetings anymore," Andie explained. It wasn't exactly true but she had promised Peri not to repeat the same mistake again.

"I won't be at the courthouse to support her so keep her close please," Josh said with feeling. "Call me if she needs anything I will be close by."

"Of course," Andie said softly her heart breaking for Josh and Peri. She didn't know what to do to make it better. "We have to get going, we are meeting with the legal team for breakfast," Andie said unable to take the heartbreak in Josh's voice any longer. She ended the call and turned to Peri. "You have to talk to him eventually." She said softly

"Not until this is over," Peri said with a sigh. It was the same every time he called. As the trial grew closer, he seemed more desperate to talk to her. She was sure he wanted to talk her out of going ahead with the charges she had levelled against Nik. She was the only witness to anything that occurred in Canberra, without her the case was purely circumstantial. No one had seen Nik do anything but leave the facility using Peri's identification. Identity theft alone would allow her to walk free with her families help and the thought filled Peri with terror. She couldn't see Josh now. She didn't want him to try to change her mind and she knew it would be killing him that it was her that was sending his sister away for a long time.

"Andie, it will all work out if we just do as the lawyers tell us," Peri said in a voice stronger than she felt. "That includes staying away from the Donati's."

"They never said that," Andie frowned.

"Not in so many words but it was implied," Peri sighed. She was tired of having to have this conversation with her mother. "Let's just go to the meeting and get this over with."

They left the hotel and made their way to another closer to the courthouse where they met with the lawyers for the prosecution including her lawyer. She had refused the assistance offered by Charles and the Donati family choosing to engage a lawyer for herself after consulting with some of her friends from university. She knew it would take most of the money she had saved over the years for her dream trip to the great museums of Europe but she wanted nothing from Nik's family during the trial.

She sat through the breakfast quietly listening as they went through the order of events again when an assistant came through the restaurant in a hurry to talk quietly to the chief prosecutor.

"There's a possible new witness for the defence and we need to go and look over the file they have given us before we get to court so we don't get any nasty surprises in there," the man said looking at Peri. "Just tell the truth, I will lead you through everything." Turning to one of his associates he instructed, "Make sure they get there early enough for us to prep them on any changes." Then he stood and left the hotel.

"There's no need for concern; these things happen all the time," Peri's lawyer said kindly and patted her hand before following the men from the room.

Peri continued to push the food around her plate as her mother chatted about the fashions of the other ladies in the restaurant and suggested that they should go shopping and check out the local designers before they left Canberra again. Once she had gone home, her recovery had sped up remarkably. She still wore a cast and a sling on her right arm and her face was bruised and still slightly swollen. It was obvious to anyone who saw her that she was not recovered enough for shopping and she gave a sad half laugh at the suggestion.

Even getting ready and coming here this morning had been exhausting and she knew she needed to eat but the thought of facing Nik today made her feel ill so she nibbled at the toast willing her stomach to settle.

"Peri?" A female voice asked questioningly making her look up. "I didn't know you were staying at this hotel."

"I'm not," Peri said stiffly, looking up into the face of Lucia, who stood with a tall man in military uniform.

"You must be Andie," Lucia held out her hand, "I'm Lucia and this is my husband, Dino."

"It's nice to meet you," Andie took her hand looking confused. "How do you know Peri?"

"Lucia is one of Josh's sister's," Peri answered for her.

"Oh," Andie's eyes widened. "It's probably best if we don't invite you to sit then. With the trial beginning today and all."

"I understand," Lucia nodded. "I want you to know that we all support what you are doing today." She saw surprise flicker over Peri's battered face. "We won't be in court because we don't want Nik to think we support her in the slightest, it is just a shame that we can't be there to support you."

"Thank you," Peri said not quite believing what she was hearing. Her mother had told her that the family did not blame her but she knew differently.

"My brother, Marco, speaks very highly of you," Dino said in a soft voice. He will be glad to know I have seen you looking as well as you do considering your injuries."

"I'm so sorry about Giorgio," Peri said with feeling.

"He's in a better place now," Dino nodded.

"The Donati and Battaglia stand together in this, Nik must pay for her crimes, she will get no help from either family," Lucia said. "She is as lost to us as Giorgio is, you, on the other hand, have our love and support. If there is anything you want or need you only have to ask."

"I doubt you all feel that way," Peri said sadly. She could hear the sincerity in Lucia's voice and her brain couldn't quite believe what she was hearing. Blood was thicker than water and she knew that having Nik be sent to prison must be upsetting all of them, yet Lucia stood there offering her support and friendship. "I appreciate you saying that, though."

"Oh Peri, it's true. Please believe me," Lucia took the empty chair beside her and took her hand. "Beyond the archaic family laws and secrecy is a genuine respect and adherence to the laws of church and state. What Nik did was unforgivable. We care but we also know that she is criminally insane. Any killer's family would care what happens to them but they know that they can't be allowed to roam freely to do it again. You are one of the strongest and bravest women I have ever met, but you don't have to do this alone."