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“I don’t want the money, Romeo. I want your sister.”
A door swings open. Marialena, wide-eyed, a little stunned, but as beautiful as I remember her, stands in the doorway. Her brothers tense and Mario half-rises from his chair, as if she was safe before she entered. They know better than that, but I can’t blame their instincts.
Rosa, the eldest sister, stands beside her with a possessive grip on her arm, as if her small hand on her sister will prevent me from taking her away. Their loyalty’s almost cute.
Rosa shakes her head. “We heard you,” she whispered. “Marialena didn’t know that woman was betrothed to you. She didn’t know who you were.”
“Go upstairs, Rosa.” Santo, her husband, is on his feet. He knows interference won’t be tolerated. But I have no need of punishing more than one Rossi woman tonight.
I shake my head. “That doesn’t matter. What’s done is done.”
“I can’t marry you,” Marialena whispers, then, more vehemently, “Iwon’t.”
I don’t respond to her but look to Romeo. He knows refusing me brings war. Blood. Devastation. Death.
Romeo Rossi’s a man of honor, well-respected among his peers. Will he falter now?
He swallows and turns back to Marialena. “You have to. You’ve left us no choice.” He hangs his head, defeated. “Rosa, help her pack a bag.”
Tosca enters the room holding a tray of wine. It seems she’s ready for more than espresso and needs an excuse to come back in here.
I can tell by the look on her face she hasn’t heard the news yet.
“Mama,” Romeo says, his voice still husky. “Help Marialena pack. She’ll be going home with Capo tonight.”
“What?”
Romeo’s voice rises, betraying his emotion. “She’s marrying Capo. She leaves tonight. Say your goodbyes.” He looks to his sisters, his tone sharp. “I told you to go pack.Go!”
The tray of wineglasses falls to the floor, shattering them. No one flinches as crimson red wine splatters over the walls, the carpet, and Tosca’s clothes.
“No,” she whispers. “Romeo—”
He snaps, “You know the rules as well as I do.” His voice has taken on the edge of a leader as he quickly loses his patience. “Go! Help her pack.” He waves his hands at the girls. “Go, all of you! There is no getting out of this. There is no arguing. Don’t make this any harder than it has to be.” His voice shakes as he levels his angry gaze at Marialena. “I told you it would come to this eventually. I told you to stay safe, to stay out of things, but you couldn’t leave well enough alone. And now, you’ve left me with no choice.”
He frowns.“Go.And call someone to clean this up, Tavi,” Romeo says, a bit gentler.
Tosca lifts her head. I see the tears shining in her eyes, but they don’t move me. The Rossis may have disarmed me when I entered, but I’m prepared to fight if anyone interferes.
“Mama,” Marialena says, her face pale. She doesn’t look at me but at Tosca, begging. “Don’t let them, Mama. You can’t.” Then she turns to her brothers. “Mario!”
Rosa tugs her hand and speaks to her in low tones, urging her to leave the room.
But Tosca’s had enough.
“You,” she begins, her voice laced with venom. Tosca Rossi may play nice from time to time, but it’s impossible for anyone to survive marriage to Narcisso Rossi without a spine of steel. “No.I don’t care who you are. I don’t care what claim you think you have on my daughter. I’ve seen what my Rosa has gone through, and it will be over my dead body that you take Marialena from here.”
Over her dead body. Hmm.
I look at her thoughtfully. Stroke my chin. Flick my eyes to Romeo, who’s clenched his fist and taken a step closer to her. I’ll let the Don handle his own. Still watching, I take another sip of espresso and watch as Romeo speaks to her in Italian, words I don’t catch, but she shakes her head.
“You’re no better than your father!” she screeches. “You—”
I stand, prepared for her to attack me. Italian women can go from screeching to physical violence in the blink of an eye.
But now the Rossi men have had enough. Orlando, the largest of all of them, reaches her first with a sigh and looks as if he’s going to hug her but actually restrains her in his big arms. She fights and smacks at him, but he only shakes his head. “Fighting won’t help,” he says with an air of resignation. I blink in surprise when she ducks, kicks him hard on the shin, and the next moment lunges at me.
I’m ready, though. I duck her blow and quickly block a second as Tavi joins Orlando and they reach us just as I lift her up and restrain her with her back to my front, her arms tucked by her sides.
