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“It wouldn’t be a date.” His expression reanimated as he tried to reassure me, but I couldn’t allow myself to get any closer to him. I was far too familiar with romance novels for the kind of trouble it would bring.
“Even so, I can’t,” I insisted, and he yielded at last. Diego joined us and once again, as always, Salva’s face changed color and he excused himself.
On the drive back home, a part of me still hoped I would get to see Salvatore again, even if it was accidentally. I knew however that I had to stop meeting him before it escalated further.
***
Once I was back at Ivan’s mansion of a home, I was starving. It was still a very odd experience to have the food already prepared for me. Approaching the kitchen area, I heard one of the maids speaking with another one.
“What are you doing? Why are you putting olives in that dish?”
“But she likes it,” the other had answered.
“No. No, she doesn’t. She isn’t Madam Josephine, remember?”
“Oh, that’s true. My mistake.” Something about this Josephine figure bugged me. Ivan has already mentioned her a few times in an off-handed manner, but I feel like there’s more. I made a mental note to investigate this further as soon as I was properly fed.
***
There was one reliable person I was sure to get the truth out of and that was Katarzyna. She had been with Ivan the longest. I invited her to my room and without any preface asked her about Josephine. Her face changed and she sat down gravely.
"I'm not sure I should say anything. It's not my place," Katarzyna was visibly worried.
"Please, feel free to speak," I tried to muster as much authority as I could, but she still refused.
"I'm not sure the Boss would like that," she shook her head and was about to stand up, when I held her.
"I'm sick and tired of you all hiding things from me. I'm sick of it. Sit down and tell me about this Josephine lady now, Katarzyna," I ordered. The poor woman gave in.
“Josephine Lopez was the Boss' first love—first true love—two or three years ago, I think. They met at an orphanage when the Boss was going to those his public-image-building sessions. I heard they hit it off and in no time, they started dating. Josephine was kind of like you, very young with an innocent aura about her, and the Boss, well he wasn’t in charge of the organization then. The Boss was in a dark place back then and her presence was a refreshing change for him. He even started showing signs of wanting to give up the organization life—thank heavens he didn’t—and live a normal life with her. Later on, some unfortunate accident befell her. She got killed in a gang crossfire here in Philadelphia. Her death really got to him and after that, he just...changed.” I feared if I moved, I would get her out of the trance, so I listened carefully as she continued.
“I really liked the girl though. She was very kind. The Boss always blamed himself for her death and kind of swore not to love again and put anyone else in harm’s way, which was why we were all surprised when he told us he was getting married." Katarzyna seemed to be finished her tale and once again, I was left speechless.
"Katarzyna, what is the organization? What does Ivan do?" I asked her.
"I'm sorry, ma'am. I cannot say," she replied as she stood up and bowed.
"Cannot or will not? Katarzyna, what is this organization everyone refers to?" I rose up and followed her.
"It's really not my place. You'll have to ask the Boss yourself," she excused herself and left me. The questions filled my brain.What kind of organization was Ivan a part of?It seemed like there was a connection between it and Josephine's death.Am I foolish for not seeing the bigger picture here?
Chapter 22 - Ivan
After the whole day spent going over different scenarios regarding Bianchis and other business matters, I was finally home. I couldn’t wait to bury myself in Audrey and forget about the dull and tiring world of bratva.
As I entered the mansion’s familiar halls, a soft breath of relief escaped me. I steered towards my office to leave the paperwork and there she was, Audrey, waiting in my study. She was standing next to The Ouroboric Web, her fingers tracing along its convoluted marble surface ever so lightly.
"What are you doing in here, Audrey? I thought I said you should avoid coming to this room," I said.
"Are you part of the mafia, Ivan?" Audrey asked without any preamble, her eyes boring straight into me. The question came as a shock and my heart sank. She still wasn't ready for the truth. The whole affair with the Bianchis had prevented me from grooming her well enough to be able to handle the truth.
"What? Why would you think that?" I tried to be careful. I couldn't tell a direct lie that would implicate the relationship further down the line.
"Don't lie to me, Ivan," she said, her voice colder than I had ever heard before.
"I'm not lying to you," I insisted.
"Really? Then tell me once and for all what happened that night you kidnapped and brought me here. Do you know how long I have been holding it in and trying to ignore it?" She panted, "I've literally been brushing it away from my mind, but no more of that. I want it addressed. I want to know everything."
