Page 111 of Forced Vows

Dear Róise,

Your uncle has held Brother Gabriel off for three years, but now that you are twenty-one, you must have a care.

Have a care? What does that even mean?

Do not leave the house without your bodyguard, the note goes on. Ever. My sister didn't want you anywhere near this life, but if Brother Gabriel has his way, you'll be as trapped as any of us.

Trapped? Us?

This isn't from my grandmother. It's from my Aunt Hope, my mom's younger sister. And she says that Uncle Brogan has been holding Gabriel off since I was eighteen.

Any urge I have to thank my uncle is obliterated by the fact he used the threat of marriage to one of Gabriel's sycophants as leverage to force me into the contract with Miceli.

My aunt doesn't need to worry about me going anywhere without bodyguards though. Miceli has taken care of that.

That twinge of warmth I'm feeling is probably an allergic reaction to something. Not affection or gratitude toward Miceli De Luca for his vigilance on my behalf.

I'm in bed later, online buddy-bingeing a show with Kara and Fiona when my new phone rings. I send a message through the group watching app.

Rosy: Miceli is calling. Be offline for a few.

Then I swipe to answer. "Is this important? Because I'm group watching a show with my cousins."

"Hello, Róise. It has been a busy day, productive if not pleasant, thank you."

He's not here to see me roll my eyes. "Hello, Miceli. I'm busy."

I don't want to know what productive if not pleasant means.

"Are you okay?" I ask before I know the words are coming out of my mouth.

Well, great. I just said I didn't want to know. And like everyone else in my life sometimes, I'm not listening to me.

"Yes. Others are not so fortunate."

"Sometimes, you sound so formal."

"I wasn't allowed to use contractions until I learned to communicate without them."

"Really? Isn't that weird?"

"Not in my family."

"I always heard the Italian mafia is more stuck up than other organized crime families, but that's something else."

"Stuck up implies we think we are superior because of how we talk."

"Don't you?"

"No."

"But you do think you're better than everybody else."

"Not everybody."

I laugh. I can't help it. "You're so stuck on yourself."

"Our syndicate puts more time into training new recruits than others and children born into the mafia are trained from birth for their role."

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