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“It's nothing important.”
“Every now and then you wake up weird in the morning.”
“Must be sleep.”
“Could be.” My sister paid attention to her breakfast again, and she didn't insist.
I hadn't told anyone about what I saw at the fundraiser four years ago. I would gain nothing by confessing what was stealing my thoughts, plus I would never know if the guy was still alive.
“Girls?” I heard my mother's voice and turned towards the kitchen door, seeing her come in and look at us. “Have you finished eating?”
“Not yet.”
“Then do it quickly.”
Perla and I looked at each other until we nodded.
“I'll be waiting for you both in your grandmother's library.”
I swallowed hard and the piece of pancake came down with difficulty.
There must be a serious reason why my mother wanted to talk to us, and I already suspected what it was from the conversation I had earlier with my sister. The noise of the cars wasn't just my father or my head.
My sister and I finished eating the rest of the pancakes. I hurried, as I thought that the quicker, I faced the situation, the less painful it could be. In a way, we were partially prepared for that our entire lives. For us, there was never any free will to just go out there and find someone we would like to spend the rest of our lives with.
We didn't fall in love to get married, we exchanged vows and hoped that some kind of love would emerge over time. I would be happy if I could get a connection like my parents.
We passed through the living room, which was still empty, and went up to the library, where my mother was talking to my grandmother.
“Girls.”
“Hey!” Perla waved awkwardly, and I remained silent.
“Sit down.” My grandmother pointed to the sofa in front of her.
My sister and I came closer and stood side by side. We looked at each other, as if exchanging confidences until Perla dared to break the silence and question the older women.
“It's the Sicilians, isn't it? I heard they would arrive today.”
“Who did you hear it from?” My mother seemed surprised.
“From the employees.”
“Oh! Yes, it's them,” she confessed. “Tatiane's family is here, and they are currently talking to your father and uncle Theo. As you two may already know, the influence of Sicilians throughout Italy is very great. And maintaining the alliance with them is crucial for the safety of the mafia and our family.”
“Aunt Tati is our family.”
“Yes, but now that they have a new capo, your father thinks it's important to maintain this alliance.”
“Which of us will marry Luca?” Perla ran over the subject by getting straight to the point.
“Why not Manuela?” I didn't let my mother answer the question, because of the apprehension I was feeling.
“Manuela is Tatiane’s daughter and cousin of the Palermo capo. She is not suitable to marry him due to their blood ties.”
I remained silent, with a lump in my throat. I knew it would happen at some point, but I hoped it would be later. As I had been the first to be born, I had the terrible feeling that the sentence would fall on me, but if it weren't with him, I would certainly end up with someone else.
“Nina...”
