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“The business? We’ll live.” He dismissed it with a flicker of his wrist. “Giovani can make money out of stone, our clubs are thriving, Giorgio is the biggest arms trafficker in this country, Goliath is running every train, bus, and ferryboat in Sicily. We’re not going to starve, don’t worry.”
“That’s not what I mean.” I wasn’t worried one bit about money. I haven’t touched my account once since it was given to me when I was eighteen and all eight of us could live on that alone comfortably for the rest of our lives. “You and dad? Are you two fighting?”
“No.” He answered too quickly and his eyes shifted away.
“Garon!”
“Fine, we aren’t on the best of terms, but I’m not supposed to say anything to you.”
“Why not?”
“The guys don’t want you to worry.”
“The guys?” My jaw dropped. “So not just you?”
“Grazia, damn it. Our mother, blessed be her soul, has gave birth to eight stubborn children, it’s not just you. There’s no surprise Father has a hard time coming to terms with the fact that we won’t let him pull our strings.” He chuckled and threw his arm around my shoulders. “I think you were his last hope for an adoring child. Little Grazia, always a good girl, until you screamed in his face.”
“I didn’t exactly scream.”
“That’s not what Giovani said.”
“He likes to exaggerate.”
“Don’t tell him we talked about all this shit, ok?”
I walked a few steps away before throwing my hands up in the air, feeling overwhelmed with exasperation.
“I don’t get it. Why not include me? Because I’m not a man? I’m your sister too, Garon.”
My brother put his hands up and looked at me with amusement. “Wow, easy, tiger. Because you’re not aman?”
“Father holds it against me.”
“Yeah, well, we’ve already established that we and Father have pretty different opinions. Giovani didn’t want to involve you in our problems because he wants you to live your life. You should be focusing on ballet and just be happy right now, not get caught in the family drama. Again.”
“I can handle it.”
“You shouldn’t have to. Dad has gambled with your future twice. When he decided to marry you to Salvatore and then again when he decided that wasn’t going to happen anymore. The guys and I have a pact of sorts.”
“A pact?”
“Yes. We won’t do it, Grazia. We won’t put your happiness at risk for the sake of the family.”
My heart climbed all the way up into my throat and settled there.
So maybe if it was Giovani sitting in the chair at the end of the table – the CaputoDon’schair – he would understand that it was not peace, or freedom, or ballet that I truly want. It was Salvatore.
Maybe…
No, I couldn’t hang on to a maybe when I wasn’t even sure Salvatore wanted me anymore. He clearly said he won’t ever come after me again.
“Garon, is our family falling apart?”
“What?”
“All those things you said, your fights withBabbo… the fact that we don’t gather together like we used to, it all seems so… I don’t know. It feels like we’re breaking apart.”
“God, no! I don’t know if you’ve met our brothers, but there’s no way of getting rid of them. Trust me, I’ve tried. We are not breaking apart and I think that’s what’s driving the old man crazy.”
