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"Giovanni and I have always been sweethearts, you see. Even till we aged, he never lost that flame of romance in him, something he tried to make sure Alessandro and his sister had."
It was weird how I had never come across this sister Alessandro had, but I would ask later. I let her continue her story.
"They did grow with the romanticized culture alright. And with that came the zest for adventure. One that Giovanni was game on. No matter how busy he was, he always made sure to spend as much time with his children as possible. The most possible way of doing this was to initiate them into the business."
The mafia.
"It was surprisingly easy for both of them to adapt. Artemis was such a stubborn child..." She paused a little and I lifted my head to see her face.
She had a daughter named Artemis? Wow. There’s a lot Alessandro never told me.
After some seconds, she gently placed my head back on her shoulder.
"So, this particular Friday, all three of them, along with some of the members of the syndicate were supposed to meet with someother cartel; I don't know the name. Hardly keep track of these things," she had her words peppered with little chuckles and scoffs.
"Anyways, they go for this meet, and I see or hear from none of them for days. Classic Giovanni. He'd sometimes leave for weeks on end without communication. Obviously for my own safety, he'd always told me. It wasn't until four days after, that Alessandro showed up to the house with a bullet wound on his chest and left arm."
At that moment, I sit up and face her directly, beginning to piece her story and align it in real time.
"Giovanni and Artemis had died that day. Point blank shots to the head. Alessandro came back for me. And he said someone had helped him." She stared into my very soul with her brown eyes that allowed tears to flow freely from them.
"It was you, Sienna. Alessandro is a stubbornidiotand would have passed out and possibly died from blood loss if it wasn't for you. And if he didn't fall in love with you, he'd have spiraled down the strings of depression and done something to harm himself. He and his sister were inseparable. You'd think they were twins if they didn't tell you and Alessandro would do anything for his baby sister. She was all he had. No friends, no bonds just the two of them. She also had the same gray eyes. Imagine his joy when he realized Artemis had them." She laughed amidst her tears.
"He broke down that day that he saw you for the first time after those three years. Rambling on and on how you'd given him the greatest gift of all. You'd given him his baby sister back." She paused to catch some air from the tears and let out some loose sobs. I hugged her sideways and looked at Artemis, my daughter who was still bouncing on her grandma's laps with new respect. She observed Mrs. Ricci in tears and made her way to hug her too.
"Sorry Grandma. Mommy's going to take all the pain away," she cooed to Mrs. Ricci. "Like she always does to me. Come on, mommy. Rock her," she prodded me, and I heeded my toddler's words, putting an extra wobble to my hug.
"Thanks, but. I'm not the one that needs this. Alessandro needs it more. He has always been the egg-headed idiot. He just thinks he can always suck it up and be the hero. He doesn't want to be the victim, but frankly, I'm tired of coping with his breakdowns. He even refused to go to therapy." She took my face in her hands and brought hers as close to mine as she could stare into me.
"He needs you, Sienna."
I gasped.
"It sounds like I'm speaking for him to convince you to bring Artemis back, but I know the one thing my son wants is you. You're his anti-depressant. It worked four years ago, and without it he's been miserable. Come home, Sienna."
Come home, Sienna.
Chapter 23
The word 'home' has always been relative to me. I usually defined it as a place that gave me the comfort and sense of protection and safety that I knew I would get from no other place. That home, I discovered for myself, was not a place. It was people. I could make the most intolerable places feel like the coziest of havens if the people around gave me the sense of comfort I needed.
When I decided to make the trip back to the Aurora Syndicate estate, I felt like I was leaving home. I felt like I was alienating myself from reality and moving to pursue a life that I knew would get me nowhere but a series of heartbreaks and wrenches. But I told myself that it was worth it.
Carlos completely disagreed at first.
"Sienna. This guy kidnapped you. Literally," he pointed out to me like I didn't know and needed more telling.
"I know, but I guess I'm not doing it for him," I mused.
"Who then?" he asked. "Who are you doing this for? Mrs. Ricci? Come on." He threw his hands in the air and let them fall loosely to his sides. He was flabbergasted.
How many bad decisions could I possibly make?
"You're safe here, Sienna. Don't you realize that? Back there, aside from all the emotional turmoil that guy is gonna put you through, there's still a lot that could go wrong. You could die in there and I'm not talking figuratively. You know that."
"I'm safe with you, Carlos," I told him. He observed me warily.
"No, I'm not losing a nut or falling in love with you, I'm saying this with all sincerity. I'm safe with you. Not here. I'm not safe here." I emphasized.
