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Emelia’s eyes are wide and filled with tears. They overflow after another moment and cascade down her cheeks.
“I got there in time…to be there when he took his last breath,” I say, getting choked up at the memory of his last words of wisdom to me.
“Take care of your mother for me, son, and remember when you marry to protect your bride with honor.”
“At first, we thought it was our closest enemies, Los Angeles, so my father’s men were on them. But then I learned the truth months later.” This part makes my chest burn, because this was the one and only time I felt heartbreak and weakness. I hold back as best as I can before I tell her.
“Then my mother died. Losing my father was her death sentence. She couldn’t live without him. She breathed for him, Emelia, existed for him. Every ounce of her belonged to my father’s soul. They loved each other so deeply that they tethered together in death. Where he went, she would follow.”
Holding her stomach like she may be sick, she looks around the bathroom and shakes her head.“Nico, how do you know it was my family?”
“Well, just like your father, Sal was messy and didn’t cover his tracks well. One night, we were celebrating graduation. I mean,theywere. I was mourning the loss of the only family I had left. But in a drunken stupor, Sal confessed to someone what happened. He didn’t know I could hear him. I was just on the other side of the door.”
I remember hearing those words leave his mouth.
“I got him drunk, found out where his poor little daddy was, and told my father. I killed my father’s enemy and a mafia boss.”
He was gloating to some girl, but little did he know he was signing a death warrant.
“Nico, I think I’m going to be sick.” She climbs out of the tub quickly and runs to the toilet. I am out just after her and hold her hair back as she loses what little contents she has left in her stomach.
“Emelia, breathe,” I tell her, and she wipes at her mouth, trying not to puke again. I take this opportunity to grab her robe and my towel. I help her into it, and I wrap the towel around my waist as I get her to the bedroom. Her entire body is shaking.
“My family killed yours. And then you agreed to marry me? For what? Were you going to kill me?” She backs up slowly, losing her balance a bit. I reach out to catch her, but she holds her hands up and signals me to stop.
“No, I wasn’t. I was building an alliance withyou. Not your family.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means what it meant the day we said I do,” I tell her, but this time I’m harsher than I mean to be.
“We married so we would ensure that war was over between our families.”
I shake my head.“I never once agreed to anything but an alliance.With you.”
She watches me closely as it all starts falling into place for her.“You wanted to turn me against him as revenge?”
I nod. “I told you that the night your family came here,” I remind her. We are too far into this to hide anything anymore.
“Right, but then what?” She slowly backs up to the bed and takes a seat on the edge.
“Then when the time was right, I would take down your family, and they would see you standing beside me as they burned.”
“So, I was the revenge for my father killing yours,” she reiterates to herself.“I thought, when all that came out when they were here, that I was revenge for their mafia feud. I thought I was just your way to finish your father’s life goal of taking over New York, if that was the case. I had no idea it was your plan to kill—”
“At first, yes, you were only a pawn, no matter the catalyst for my plan. Now, you are revengeandmy redemption,” I answer what she asked me just hours ago. Charity work isn’t my redemption. Emelia is.
“What?” She shakes her head, and I drop to my knees in front of her and take her shaky hands in mine.
“I wanted your father to see you fall in love with me. I wanted him to see you would take my side and that you were mine. You belonged to me and had no choice but to turn on your own. Then…”
“Then what, Nico!” she screams, tears streaming, and I want so badly to lick up her tears and make love to her. Tend to her wounds and heal her. But I have to make her understand.
“Then we would take them down together, and when I met you and knew just how fucking badly your family treated you, I knew you would want that too.”
“You don’t know me! You don’t know that! It is myfamily, Nico!” she yells, placing her hands on her forehead and closing her eyes as the tears pour.
“Emelia, listen to me.” My voice turns stern. She has to listen.
