*REBEL SIMMONS POV*
I took a deep breath, trying to calm my running mind as I collected my thoughts.
Johnny made a deal with the Vino Mafia for safety.
Cobra followed my mother and Johnny out of town, most likely to kill them.
Stephano killed Cobra.
Cobra is Luka Pavlovki.
Stephano Vino killed my father.
I had sex with the son of the man who killed my father.
Xavier Pavlovski leads the Russian Mafia.
Xavier Pavlovski killed nearly half of the Vino family.
Luka is Xavier Pavlovski's younger brother.
Luka Pavlovski is my father.
Different emotions swirled it's way to the surface of my subconscious as the room stared at me. The tension in the air was thick as everyone waited for me to say something.
"Well... that was... enlightening." I said as I looked up at everyone with my eyebrows furrowed.
"Yeah... um..." Natalia said as she pursed her lips.
"Let me just be the one to break the ice and say that I'm sorry our father killed your father." Isa said awkwardly as she looked at me with wide eyes. Her words were slow as she held out her hands, emphasizing every word as she spoke.
"It's fine, really." I said quietly as I looked up at the room.
A flood of emotions came to the forefront of my mind, confusion being the most prevalent of them all.
Despite the fact that I was subjected to unfathomable living conditions as a child, I always felt the undying need to gain acceptance from my father. Granted, Johnny was a serious piece of shit for what he did to me, but nevertheless, I always fought off the subconscious desire to have him say those clique lines:
I'm proud of you.
You belong.
You're worth it.
I love you.
I always longed for a father that was present in my life; a father that would interrogate boys whenever they picked me up for those corny school dances, someone to be my number one fan, someone who I could rely on to have my back, to protect me.
It took years to get over the fact that I killed my father, yet now that I realize my real father is also dead, I couldn't help but feel that familiar longing scratch its way to the surface once more.
Although, I couldn't tell which made me feel worse: The shock that my real father was dead, or the fact that I would never get to meet him. Either way, I didn't feel sadness. Instead, I felt as if I missed out on the opportunity to see if Luka would be the father I always daydreamed about.
Granted, it was relieving to know that my real father's identity has finally been brought to light, but it was about 20 years too late. Besides, given his criminal record, I doubt he'd be the stereotypical father I wished for as a child.
As I looked around the room, I felt no resentment or bitterness towards the family that ordered my real father's death. On the contrary, I saw a room full of people who have treated me with nothing but kindness and respect.
"You're contract is now officially terminated. Get your shit and get out." Dante said as he gave me a menacing stare with his arms crossed.
Well, almost everyone treats me with kindness and respect.
"What happened to one year?" I said sternly as I narrowed my eyes at him.
"It won't be necessary." Dante said in a low voice.
"You want me to leave when we potentially just found out why the Russian Mafia is after me?" I said, disgust evident in my voice.
"Yes." Dante stated as his eyes narrowed.
"She is not leaving Dante." Giana said seriously as she began to walk towards him.
Dante looked at her with an expression that made the tension in the room grow thick. The deadly expression in his eyes made Giana stop in her tracks, making her eyes widen in the process.
"She's the fucking reason Pavlovski is back. She's the fucking reason we're under attack again. Give me one god damn reason why she should stay?" Dante said in a calm, and intimidating tone.
"Because she's family." Florence said as she glared at her son.
"She stole from us, is that what we're classifying family as now?" Dante said sarcastically, making my heart drop at the seriousness of his words.
"Last time I checked, I'M IN CHARGE OF THIS FUCKING FAMILY." Dante yelled as he looked around the room.
"And you want to know why I'm in charge?" Dante said, his temper rising with each word.
"Because her fucking Uncle wants to wipe my family off the face of the fucking Earth!" Dante exclaimed as he flipped over the desk near him, startling the entire room. He ran a hand through his hair as he took a deep breath before quickly walking towards me.
"You," Dante said as he knelt down in front of me. "Get the fuck out of here, and never come back." He said in a dangerous tone as he got in my face.
Without even thinking, I quickly cocked my hand back and punched him square in the face. I continued to throw a barrage of punches at him as emotions came flooding towards the surface of my mind. To my surprise, Dante didn't even try to defend himself from my blows, instead, he just accepted it with a serious look on his face.
"You fuker!" I yelled as I quickly threw two more jabs at his jaw before kicking him in the balls, making him groan and fall to his knees. While I had the momentary height advantage, I quickly grabbed his head, and kneed him in the face, making him fall to the floor and filling the air with a loud cracking sound.
"Rebel!" I heard from behind me as I kicked Dante in the stomach, making him grunt loudly.
I felt a pair of arms around me, and out of instinct, I threw an elbow back without looking, making a loud crack fill the room.
I quickly looked back to see Stephan cursing under his breath as he held onto his nose, blood dripping between his fingers.
"Shit! I'm so sorry." I said as I quickly ran over to Stephan's side and grabbed his hands.
"You're saying sorry to him?!" Dante exclaimed before he spat out blood.
"Shut the fuck up!" I yelled as I looked at him, before turning my attention back to Stephan.
"I'm good, I'm good." Stephan said quietly as he took a step forward, and tripped over a book on the floor. He quickly fell, groaning as his muscular body hit the ground. Florence, Harry, and Giana rushed to Stephan's side, stepping over Dante in the process. Harry saw the blood and gagged before turning around, leaving Florence and Giana to help Stephan up by themselves.
"What the fuck are you still doing here?" Dante said as he slowly stood up and stared at me. "Don't make me fucking repeat myself." Dante growled.
"I've met a lot of fucked up people in my life, but you... you make them all seem like damn saints." I spat as I stared at him. I couldn't help but feel proud of myself as my eyes landed on his gashed lip and broken nose.
"You treat everyone around you like shit, stepping over people who love and care about you because you're too insecure to work out your own fucking issues. You have a family that loves you, yet day in and day out, you only think about yourself and constantly treat them like shit." I said in a serious tone as I poked his chest roughly.
"It's shocking to me that you apparently want whats best for your family, yet you don't even show them any kind of respect." I said, shoving his chest roughly with one hand. He stared down at me with narrowed eyes as I continued.
"You're the most cocky, arrogant, and selfish bastard I've ever met!" I said as my voice began getting louder and louder.
"I just found out that my real father, was killed before I even got to meet him, and yet you're blaming me for that? Your dad killed my dad! Did you even think for one second how I'm feeling? Oh, wait, of course not! Because you never have! Everything is always about YOU!" I yelled as I threw my arms up in the air.
"I get that I don't mean shit to you, Dante, you went out of your way to make that blatantly clear, but at least have the decency to face me like a man instead of running away like a little bitch." I said as I got in his face. I looked at his unreadable expression for a moment, admiring those grey eyes that infuriated and infatuated me one last time.
"I can't believe I thought I saw something in you." I said quietly, making his eyes widen slightly.
"But don't worry, you'll never see my face again. I'll make damn sure of it." I said before turning around and facing his shocked family. I looked around the room at the distressed faces of his family, of the people who took me in and showed me a kindness that was unmatched. I awkwardly looked down at the floor, feeling embarrassed for telling off Dante in front of them.
"Thank you all for being so kind to me during my time here." I said, breaking the silence.
"Thank you for your kindness." I said looking at Stephan.
"Thank you, for being my best friends." I said, looking towards the twins.
"Thank you, for guiding me." I said looking at Giana, Florence, and Harry.
"Just... thanks for everything." I said, giving the room a small smile as I looked up.
I began walking towards the door, filling the room with the sound of my feet hitting the floor and Natalia softly sniffling. My eyes wandered back down to the floor, unable to look the Vino's in the face after the humiliating show I just put on.
I couldn't help but admire the books scattered among the floor, the books that Dante scribbled in, the books I reread to peer into his mind even for a moment. But something else caught my eye, something... shiny?
Curiosity got the better of me as I bent down and tilted my head, examining a piece of metal underneath a book. I moved the auto mechanics book to reveal Stephan's broken cell phone, making my eyes widen.
"Rebel?" My mother called out, concern evident in her tone.
I carefully picked up the pieces of the cell phone, turning around and looking Dante in the eye as I held up the broken iPhone, revealing a blinking Russian tracking device attached to the back of it.