It was absolutely amazing how well Stephanie knew me. The fact that she warned me ahead of time that I wasn't going to like her idea should have clued me into the fact that I was really, really, REALLY not going to like her idea.
"Are you ready?" she asked as I turned away from the mirror I was standing in front of. I was wearing a black power suit with a black tank top underneath. On my feet, the black stilettos were already killing me, and my hair was pulled back in such a tight bun it was probably giving me a facelift at the same time.
My assistant… and friend… had even brought in a makeup artist to give me the whole look with a smoky eye and bright red lips. And to top everything off, I was wearing a bright red ribbon around my neck.
"Do I have a choice in the matter?" I sighed, straightening my jacket. I had decided to leave it open for comfort's sake, but I didn't know if I was making the right decision. All I knew was that when I looked into the mirror, I didn't see me anymore.
The aftermath of the massacre at St. Patrick's Cathedral went to shit in more ways than I could count. The fact that there were important people in that crowd who had been killed meant that everyone had questions, but no one outside of my family had the answers.
Viktor's power kept everyone out of jail. The President had issued a full pardon to everyone left alive inside of the church, but there were still somethings that he couldn't do.
Like helping Mathew and Mike keep their jobs with the NYPD.
While neither of them was really upset over that fact, I was taking it a bit hard. Yes, both had talked about retiring from the force once everything had settled down, but there was a difference between retiring on your own power and having a higher up telling you that you were no longer welcome at work.
Fucking prick. I really should have let the Chief of Police deal with the Angles and the other monsters who had a bone to pick with humanity by himself, but Mike had talked me out of it.
I bet he was wishing otherwise.
But, as I said, people had questions, and now I was having a press conference on the steps of the same Cathedral where I had killed hundreds.
Giving myself one last glance in the mirror, I turned around and followed Stephanie out of the small room I was given and to the podium.
My men stood on their side of me, dressed to the nines in suits and uniforms. Since Greyson, Levi, and Dom hadn't been punished, they were still allowed to wear their uniforms. Apparently, the military was bending over backward, trying to get them back in the fold, and they were willing to do almost anything to make that happen.
Stephanie stood behind me, her tablet and phone in her hands as she continued to do what she did so well. Looking just off to the side, I could see Mike standing there, his back straight as he stared at me.
"I'm so proud of you," he mouthed to me, almost making me cry. Taking in a deep breath, I looked down at the reporters in front of me.
"Hello," I started, happy to hear that my voice was coming out loud and strong. "I would first like to thank you all for being here. I am sure that you have lots of questions, but I would like you to hold them until the end."
'Ha! That was an understatement,' I thought to myself as I looked down at the notes Stephanie had prepared.
"My name is Natalia Nadezda Sokol Tesalor, and I am a Gypsy with all my pride intact," I announced, the old way of greeting flowing off my tongue. It gave me flashbacks to Viktor's office, but now, I was saying it for a completely different reason.
"While most of you might not know what that means, for those that do, pay attention. I am the Daughter of Queen Pandora, The Head of House Gypsy, and The Head of House Tesalor. I am many things, but the most important one is that I am the Ribbon Girl."
The reporters in front of me shared a look with each other like they thought I was crazy, but they kept their mouths shut, wanting to know where this was going next.
Looking back down at my notes, I let out a long sigh. "For as long as there have been humans, there have been monsters. You might think that we are nothing more than myths and legends, but that is the farthest thing from the truth. We have lived, worked, played, and grown up with you, and even if you don't know what we are… you know who we are."
Once again, I raised my gaze to the people around us and the crowd forming being, the reporters. "We will not go away; we will not go on pretending to be something that we are not simply so the majority of humans feel better about going to sleep at night. The massacre in this place two nights ago was a wake-up call to not only myself but every inhabitant of Earth. There are people who want to divide us, to take us out at our weakest, but to them, I say: bring it on. I will no longer hide who I am. I am here, and I am waiting for you."
The moment I had finished my statement, the sound of a bullet being fired echoed in the silence. A screaming hot flame seemed to enter my head, right between my eyes, as I stumbled back slightly at the force of the blow.
The humans around me ran for cover as Viktor and Nicholas held me on either side, their eyes scanning the buildings around us as they tried to find the shooter.
Happy that I was wearing back, I shook my head and went back to where I was standing, my men even closer to me now.
"Clearly, someone wasn't listening to what I just said."