AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"You think I'm a liar, don't you?"
"No–" but I realize her question is rhetorical. She doesn't really want to hear what I think of her. Again, she doesn't let me finish.
"You're a cruel man. You speak of honesty, and loyalty, and righteousness. Where's the righteousness in supporting a man who has assaulted an innocent woman. Get out."
"Isabella, please," I try to tell her. The man I've known my whole life is changing before my eyes. I just needed a few seconds to process her accusations. I stand by her. I'd kill for her. "I will stand by you."
But, to my shock, she grabs the vase by her night stand and throws it to the wall behind my head.
"I said, get the fuck out! You're evil, just like that Capo of yours" she screams.
Her words cut like knives, sharp and cruel. After everything I have sacrificed for her, how dare she accuse me so?
"We will not discuss this further," I say stiffly. "There is nothing more to say."
"See if I care!" Isabella hisses. "From now it's best we keep our distance.”
She turns her back to me, shoulders rigid. My hands itch to reach for her, to beg her forgiveness - but my pride refuses to bend, and also, it's clear she's not willing to listen.
We stand on opposite sides of an uncrossable divide, the gulf between us widening with every bitter word. I want nothing more than to bridge the distance, to reclaim what we once had - but I no longer know the path back to her heart.
All I wanted was to keep Isabella safe. Instead, I have only succeeded in driving her away.
"Leave," she whispers, a reminder for where she stands.
I storm out of her room without another word, my footsteps heavy on the marble floor. Anger and regret war within me, tangled threads I cannot unwind.
Isabella does not call after me. The silence that follows is more damning than any curse.
I stride down the hall, fists clenched at my sides. The mansion seems to close in around me. I need air, space, a reprieve.
The garden. I push open the doors and step out into the warm sunlight, drawing a sharp breath. The remnants of our picnic are still scattered on the grass, two wine glasses tipped on their sides, a plate of cheese and olives going stale in the heat.
Such a perfect night. Ruined, like everything else.
With a snarl, I kick one of the chairs, sending it skidding across the lawn."Accidenti!"
When will I learn? Happiness is not meant for men like me. I am destined only for darkness, for the slow decay of the soul. Love comes swift and bright as the summer stars - and leaves us just as quickly, with naught but ashes in its wake.
I have lost everything that matters. My Capo, behaving in ways I've never seen before. The woman I'm falling in love with shutting me out.
And I? A confused wreck with no tangible sense of what's true and what's not.
This time, I fear there shall be no going back to who I used to be - with the Capo, with Isabella, or myself.
Chapter 23
Isabella
Theamberliquidinmy glass glints in the low light of my bedroom. Tequila, the last bottle in my suitcase - my father's legacy, my burden to bear. I take a burning sip, letting the harsh taste distract me from the ache in my chest.
Stefano. His name pierces my heart like a dagger. I ended it, turned my back on our potentially blossoming love, all because I couldn't accept his blind loyalty. He is a part of the mafia, and that, perhaps, I can live with. But believing in the Capo? Never.
He refuses to see the abuse rotting Capo Conti's empire from the inside out. But how can Stefano stand beside a man who wishes to ruin me, without motive?
"Lo siento, papá," I whisper. If only I had your strength.
But I am done being passive, slipping silently through the shadows of Conti's compound. I'm all alone, and I must save myself.
