Warning: violence
I was wrong. The first two tests were a joke compared to everything else my father has been having me do all day.
I barely passed that paintball test. One of the soldiers is weirdly good at hiding and I almost missed him entirely. It was pure luck that I saw him before he shot me; he should've had his phone on silent.
Then there was the hand to hand test. I'm a good fighter, I can hold my own in nearly every situation. I fought Ryan first. It's a pretty fair fight, the two of us, and we each landed some hard blows to each other. At the end of the day, I'm faster than him and ultimately pinned him to the mat.
But then my dad put me up against Rocco. The best fighter we have.
Much to my fathers disdain, he went easy on me. I could tell by how hard he was hitting and how fast he dodged my own punches. Not to say that he let me win, but he definitely minimized his skills to make it a fair fight. And I won.
There was another test at the shooting range. The first clip was actually easy, precise shots on the target. But then I was blindfolded. I really thought that was it, that was going to be the last test, but I did it. Not as good as when I can see but I hit the target nonetheless.
And now it's time for the final test. I follow my dad through the basement. It's the only place my entire life that I wasn't allowed to go to. I'm not stupid though, I know what goes on down here. I've known for a long time, actually.
My dad swings open one of the metal doors and gestures for me to go inside. The smell of death wafts into the air around me. I stride into the cement room made for torture. Uncle Gio is standing right inside the door and gives a nod of approval. Aunt Rosa is here too, standing against the far wall.
The final test. I guess it makes sense for the two of them to be here too. Gio, my dad's best friend and former consigliere. The man who's basically his brother, my uncle. And Rosa, the only other surviving member of the DiSilva family. The last one to remember the intricacies and traditions of the family.
There's a man tied to a wooden chair in the center of the room. There's a cloth bag over their head, obscuring their identity. He pulls against the ropes in a feeble attempt to break free.
"There comes a time in every Don's rule where he must exterminate a rat," my dad says. "It may be a lowly foot soldier but there is always the risk that those closest to you will turn on you."
I watch him as he approaches the tied man. "Am I here to torture him?"
"No," he says with his back to me. "You're here to execute him."
With that, he tears the bag off of the man's head. My face drops and ice rushes through my veins. The man tied to the chair meets my eye and I swallow hard.
My voice is no more than a breath of air, "Nacho."
"If this is what you want to do," Dad starts, "then there is no room for sentimentality or emotions."
I look at my aunt but her hardened face mirrors that of my father. Just like him, she's evaluating this test.
"Ignacio broke omertà," Uncle Gio says beside me. He holds out his hand, a shiny black gun in his palm. "Kill him."
I can't believe Nacho would go against the family. That he would throw away the life he has here. I know how well he's compensated, I know the way he likes to live his life. And going against the family will shatter all of it. I just don't understand why he'd do this in the first place.
I take the gun from my uncle with shaky hands and the edges of his lips quirk up. I turn the gun over in my hand, stalling.
"What did he do?" I ask quietly.
"The details don't matter," Rosa speaks up. "Kill him."
"Remember what I told you earlier," Gio whispers. Quiet enough that my father can't hear.
I nod in understanding. Don't hesitate.
I take a deep breath and walk up to my guard. Nacho looks at me with tear rimmed eyes and I'd be lying if I said it didn't make me feel guilty. This is the guy that's kept me safe for most of my life.
The guy who put bullies in their place. The guy who helped me pull out my first baby tooth. The guy who threatened to kill a horse that threw me off. The guy who made sure I never missed a single ballet practice. The guy who held my hand when I was afraid of thunder. The guy who protected me with his life.
I swallow down my emotions. He broke omertà, I remind myself, our sacred oath. This is the punishment for such an act of betrayal. He knew the risk and he broke it anyway.
I lift the gun, lining the barrel up with his forehead. Don't hesitate. I glance at my father once more before pulling the trigger.
But the gun doesn't go off. It just clicks in my hand. I pull the trigger again but nothing. No loud pop, no gunpowder, no bullet, no blood. The gun's empty.
Confused, I look up at my dad. I just don't get it. But the scowl looking back at me makes me keep my mouth shut. His jaw ticks incessantly and his hands are curled into tight fists. He is absolutely fucking livid.
I turn to look at my uncle, gun still aimed at Nacho's head. Gio smiles at me, bright and proud. I look past my guard to Rosa but she keeps her expression indifferent. I can't read her, I never can.
My dad snatches the gun from my hand and storms towards the door. My brows knit together and I scurry to follow after him. It's not my fault the gun didn't go off, I don't know why he's acting like it is.
"Dad-"
"Pass," he pauses in the doorway.
His shoulders tense before he strides into the hall and slams the door shut behind him. I stand there for a moment, stunned. I passed? But I didn't even kill him. Why is he so angry that I passed?
"Congrats, tesoro," Gio approaches me with a smile. "I knew you could do it."
He hugs me tightly, patting my back. I can see the pride on his face, a complete 180 from my dad's reaction. At least someone is happy for me. I offer a hesitant smile.
"Can you untie me, now?" Nacho asks.
I look at my guard, "you didn't actually break omertà, did you?"
"Do you really think I'm that fucking stupid?" Nacho scoffs. Rosa crouches down and begins to untie the ropes holding him to the chair.
"I don't get it," I shake my head, looking to my uncle for answers.
"It wasn't about you killing him," he says slowly. "It was about whether or not you'd be willing to. If you had it in you."
"In me to what?" I ask. "To kill a person?"
"To cut ties," Rosa answers. "To turn off any sentimentality and do what needs to be done."
Her stern expression hasn't changed. She still wears a cold stare and thin lips. Her disdain mirrors that of my dad's. And again, I can't quite figure out why.
"Guards have flipped before," Nacho says as he stands. He stretches his arms over his head with a grimace. I wonder how long they had him tied up down here.
"What guards?" I look between my aunt and uncle, now standing side by side. Is that what's been going on? The cause for increased security?
They exchange a look before Rosa says, "yours. When you were little."
"What? Rocco would never go against the family."
"Not Rocco," Rosa corrects. "And it's not important. Your mom killed him the second you were put in danger."
What the fuck? The more I learn about my mom, the less I feel I know her. This must've been that second time she told me about. Damn, maybe she is a badass. I'm starting to understand why the soldiers are afraid of her. Sure, my dad is a terrifying person but it seems like my mom might be as well.
"Has it not clicked yet?" Gio taps my forehead with his finger. "You passed. You passed all of the tests."
Something hits me in the chest; satisfaction, almost triumph. As far as I'm aware, I'm the only woman to have ever passed the tests. And I did so with my father doubting me every step of the way.
"I did it," I smile.
"You fucking did it," Gio smiles right back.
An excited squeal leaves my lips and I throw my arms around his neck. He laughs as he hugs me back. When we separate, I turn to Rosa ready to share my joy but her frowning face quickly leaves the room. I watch her walk away with furrowed brows.
"It's not about you," Gio says vaguely. "She's very proud of you."
Nacho ruffles my hair as he walks past, "you did good, kiddo. But don't you ever put a gun to my head again."
"As long as you don't give me a reason to," I quip. He narrows his eyes playfully as he leaves the room.
"Why don't you go find Ryan?" Gio suggests, looking at his phone. "I need to go talk to your dad."
I can't be bothered to address everyone's differing emotions. I don't really care. I passed all of the fucking tests.
I head straight for the training rooms, that's always where Ryan can be found. He's in one of the mat rooms sparring with a new soldier. He has his back to the door as he lifts his fists in front of his face.
I run into the room and tackle him in a hug. He hits the ground with a grunt and rolls over to lay on his back. I straddle his chest, smiling brightly. His eyes scan my face, a grin of his own spreading across his lips.
"What?"
"I passed!" I exclaim.
His entire face lights up, "oh my god! Elle, that's awesome!"
"He's going to consider me as his heir," I continue to enthuse. "He's going to have to, now! Mom and Gio are on my side and I passed all of his stupid tests!"
"Now you're up against Enzo," he jests.
"As if," I scoff, climbing off of him. I offer my hand and help him to his feet.
"He made a request, you know?" Ryan informs me. "When he heard you were taking the tests he asked to take them too."
"He won't pass," I roll my eyes. "And I don't want to talk about him. I want to celebrate."
"Let's go, then," he juts his chin at the door.
"What do you think?" I ask him. "How should we celebrate?"
"Well," Ryan tilts his head. "There's something else worth celebrating as well."
"Like what?" I laugh.
He stops at the landing between the second and third floor. He holds back a smile, poorly, hands embedded in his pockets. I quirk a brow at the elongated silence.
"Charlie picked a name," he smiles. "Orion. And I'm going to be the godfather."
My mouth drops open and I launch myself at him. He catches me before we can fall over again and laughs. I squeeze him tightly, face buried in his neck.
"Dude!" I pull back from the embrace. "That's great! You're going to be an awesome uncle!"
"Yeah," he looks away even though he's smiling. "It's pretty cool."
"It's fucking incredible is what it is!" I correct him. "Now we really need to celebrate!"
"Let's get drunk," Ryan declares.