BR's POV (let's listen to what my munchkin thinks, shall we...)
I make no apologies for how,
I choose to repair what you broke.
–Meredith Grey.
"What did you do to her Luciano?" I looked up the stairs towards where Bella had disappeared to. Her eyes were bloodshot and tears were running down her face.
My heart was breaking for V. The only time I've ever heard her like that was when she had to give Sorcha to Aunt Sarah after she'd fallen sick. Three weeks after she was born.
"It's nothing you haven't done before Nicola, she killed somebody, swore omerta... she really didn't do it." He mused. "Come to think of it she didn't say any words." He frowned probably at some stupid thought that crossed his mind.
"I told her the rules, cleaned up her hand and we came back here." His upper body was still leaning over the railings and he was staring straight down, but there was nothing there. Nothing significant anyway.
How could he be so emotionless.
"Oh and Padre told her she can never leave without losing her life." For the first time in seven years I felt like punching my brother.
"Luciano didn't you hear her crying? Didn't you see her face? It didn't hurt you to hear or see her cry? This is fun for you?" I asked him, I needed to know.
The brother I knew could never stand our mother's tears any woman's tears for that matter, he'd either storm out if he couldn't get her to calm down or find the cause of her tears and end it. But here Luciano was, after listening to his so called 'queen' wail and do nothing about it.
V didn't let me comfort her, she brushed past me. She was still angry at me and she had every right to be.
"What happened to you fratello?" (Brother)
"She needs this Nicola, you of all people should know that this only makes you stronger. Becoming part of a family is nothing to cry about."
"No, but you should remember she wanted no part in this. She didn't even know what she was fucking getting into. You dragged her into this." I pointed at him. Never in my life have I been so tempted to punch somebody in the face.
I needed to get a reaction out of him. He was too... Unconcerned, this wasn't the Luciano I knew. That much was true.
"I'm not like you Nicola." He smirked the stupid smirk he'd long perfected since childhood. "I can't bail on promises, duties and obligations. I made mom a promise and I intend to keep it. Besides she's too beautiful for me to let anyone have her." Great! Now he was making me wish V wasn't Sorcha's mother, so she'd have nothing to do with him. Just what she need, my stupid brother Obsessed with her. I knew how bad Luciano's obsessions could be.
"Once again. I'm not like you. I'm selfish with those that belong to me, I don't just pick up and leave them hanging." He straightened his stance, folded his arms and stared down the railings at the first floor.
He was talking about me, I know that me leaving hurt him, but...
"You know that was different Luciano. I just lost Amaya and our daughter. She died in our fucking house, in front of me. I couldn't live with that. What the fuck did you expect me to do?" I tried to make him see reason, but I could tell he wasn't having it.
"Oh fuck that Nicola, you've always hated this life, you just saw an opportunity and you took it." He glared at me, then turned back to look at whatever it was that was fascinating to him.
"But I've been meaning to ask you, what happened to us against the world Nicola?" He turned his eyes away from the first floor and back to me.
And for the first time in forever, I saw pain in Luciano's eyes, before he hid it again behind that stupid wall he'd perfected while I was gone.
"What happened to forever? What happened to those promises you made Nicola? What happened to you always having my back?" He faced me completely now, his hands in his pocket, his stance rigid I could get the pain reflected in his eyes clearly, he didn't bother to hide it again. But why couldn't he see where I was coming from? Why couldn't he understand that Amaya's death broke me?
"You left Nicola, you broke my heart and took our bond with you."
"This." He gestured to himself. "Is who you've turned me into."
"I didn't do anything to you Luciano." I muttered and turned away from him.
"Right again big brother, protector of the helpless and needy." He was mocking me, I knew it, he knew it too.
"You took your light with you, you showed me that the darkness is something that should be savored."
"What did you do Luciano? What are you not telling me?" I grabbed a hold of his arm. Luciano was the most tight lipped person I knew, but he'd always drop hints when he had something to hide. Like the 'darkness he savoured'.
"Nothing you should concern yourself with Nicola." He gestured upstairs towards where V had disappeared to.
"Tomorrow she starts training. She needs to learn to defend herself. She should learn to protect herself. I shouldn't leave my 'queen' unprotected right? Bad for business." He muttered the last part and proceeded to walk down the stairs.
"She picked the assassin card." I almost let out a gasp, she needed to be proficient at everything.
"Father wants her to start training as soon as possible, he sees potential in her, and since you're the best we have at knives you should train her..." He paused. "Unless you're too much of a pussy and too scared of Amaya's ghost to." I felt like punching him, slapping him or throwing the said knife at him. That much was settled. But I knew he was hurting too. So I ignored him and watched him go.
We loved each other so much, hell we'd shared our mother's womb.
I hurt him when I left I know. But I was hurting too. I'd just lost my wife and kid. I couldn't continue living the life that claimed theirs. I had to leave, but here I am. Back again. To the place where I was hurt the most.
To the place I never wanted to return back to.
To the place where I lost it all.
I won't allow that to happen to V, she's been the best thing that has happened to me since I left home. She became my family when I lost mine. I won't let my family get hurt again.
"What crawled up his ass and died?" Chiara asked as she hugged me from behind.
I didn't even notice her walk up the stairs. "Hey little sister." I grabbed her hand and brought her to my side. Putting my hand around her shoulder.
Luciano and I treated Chiara like she was our baby sister, Luna and Stella too.
"Who's ass?" I knew who but I wanted her to clarify.
"Lucifer's equivalent of course." She sassed. Making me laugh.
"Don't let him hear you call him that."
"It's not like he's gonna do anything to me." She rolled her eyes.
"I always used to wonder why you never grew taller... You're just the right size for trouble."
She hit my shoulder and pushed my arm off her. "Watch it." I laughed. Chiara did have a way of cheering people up.
"No, really what happened? he just walked right by me, no kiss on the cheeks, no messing up my hair or slapping my shoulder. He banged the door behind him too."
"He's just not himself today." I sighed and rubbed my hand over my face. All this shit was doing was turning me old... prematurely.
"He's not been himself since five years ago."
Before I could say another word a muffled scream cut me off.
Chiara looked at me and I nodded.
"He didn't do anything about it?" She looked as shocked as I probably looked when Luciano acted so nonchalant.
Luciano could never watch a woman cry. Especially females in our family.
"Go calm her down. It's probably the guilt of killing someone that's eating her up." She said to me and I nodded.
"Yeah. Luciano said she killed someone called Trisha...?" I tried to remember the name.
"Trisha." Chiara looked like she was set on fire. "That bitch deserves a fate worse than death." She seethed. Then calmed down after few seconds.
"I'll go see to her." I gestured upstairs. And she nodded.
"I'm glad you're back Nicola." She got on her tip toes and kissed both of my cheeks. "I missed you."
I walked up the stairs.
"I missed you too little sister." I called behind me. She scoffed. "Of course you did. I'm hard not to miss." She flipped her hair over her shoulder.
"Still haven't thrown away the sass." I muttered more to myself than to her, but she heard me anyway. "Never."
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Well for what it's worth, I'm glad BR's back too. 😁 Probably because I love him so much🥺 and I'd marry him in a heartbeat😏.
In case you didn't get the memo🙄, keep off. BR's off limits.😒
You know what they say, find you a man who can kill for you.🙂 Or is that how they say it?😩🤗
Anyway... That's all for today. Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. If you did, don't forget to hit the vote icon, comment and share. Ily.
As always I remain the author who never fails to bring you that dose of extremely harmless but much needed ecstasy. Bye guys.
Edited.
August 26th 2021.
Ecstasy.
❤️❤️❤️.