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“I’ve brought home some brownies.”
“Yay!” Clemente yelled.
“They’re from the Blackbird Bakery just down the road—it’s one of the bakeries owned by the Fratellanza,” I explained to Anni.
“I like brownies,” said Clara in her quiet voice.
“There’s plenty for all of us. They’re a thank you, Anni, for your help with the accounting issue. I remembered you said that they are your favorite. They might not be as good as the ones in Staten Island, but I’m reliably informed that they’re a bestseller at the bakery in question.”
Anni gave me a warm smile, and I thought how much better things had been between us lately.
As I gratefully sank into my favorite armchair, I reached for the TV control to switch to the news.
“Don’t change the channel,” said Anni, looking up from Clemente who was sitting on her lap.
“I want to watch the news.”
“You can’t. Wilbur is watching the swimming championships.”
I looked over at the TV which was on one of the sports channels. “He’s a cat. And cats don’t watch TV.”
“Wilbur does. He loves watching the swim competitions and will be heartbroken if you change the channel.”
I glared at the creature. He was, indeed, transfixed by the scene in front of him. “You know he probably thinks the swimmers are fish, and he’s planning on how he can kill them.”
“I’d figured as much. Anyway, so what? He’s enjoying himself.”
All that cat did was fucking enjoy himself while I slaved away running the business. “By letting him watch this, you’re just pandering to his lethal tendencies.”
“By carrying around a gun, you’re pandering to your homicidal instincts, but such is life.” Anni gave me a cheeky grin.
There were a number of TVs in the house, but I couldn’t bring myself to leave the room. Next to Wilbur sat Clara. Although she wasn’t watching the swimming, she stayed at his side, gently stroking his fur and captivated by him. I didn’t want to change the TV channel if it meant that Wilbur would stalk off and disappoint Clara. For some reason, she liked him and he made her happy.
I’d known since his arrival that Wilbur was utterly besotted with Anni. Today, however, I realized that the cat also loved Clara and that his love was unconditional; and that Clara loved him back too.
Whenever I went to check on the children after they’d gone to bed, Wilbur would insist on trotting up the stairs behind me and following me into Clara’s bedroom despite my best efforts to keep him downstairs. Once there, he would perch his chubby paws up on the side of her bed and then look down at her as if checking to see she was alright. Once satisfied that she was okay, he would scamper back off downstairs to his basket in the kitchen. He was devoted to Clara and showed an unwavering loyalty to my daughter.
Everything felt right for once. Anni was finally beginning to settle into her role as a wife and mom, and the children were happy.
I’d also noticed that Clara’s speech had started to improve lately. I’d known that all she needed was some time, and I was glad that she was speaking a little more now.
I had the feeling that things were going to work out between Anni and me, and that thought made me feel good.
I’d come to realize that I needed her—the pain inside me needed her. She was like a healing balm to my damaged heart. She could soothe the anger inside me—the anger that Rita had left me and the children. Rita’s actions had shattered my heart and robbed my soul, but Anni was slowly mending me and mending my children.
She gave me a kind of love that pushed my walls down. Her love was like a drug—something that soothed the damage within me and made me happy again.
I sat back in my armchair and surveyed the scene in front of me: my wife curled up on the sofa playing with Clemente in her lap while my daughter and the cat sat snuggled up together at her feet.
Something akin to contentment passed through me…and I realized that it had been a long time since I’d last felt like this.
CHAPTER 34
ANNUNCIATA
In the weeks that followed our trip to Venetiville, things between Lorenzo and I were going well.
In bed one evening, I decided to broach the subject of Clara’s speech with Lorenzo.
