Page 2 of The Last Vendetta

Marianna shrugged. It was her turn to suggest it is what it is. She had no right to push me to imbibe in alcohol. She was only fourteen, but she wasn’t stupid. I bet she wished to escape this party just as much as I did, but she was limited as a minor.

Together, we glanced toward our father. He stood near our mother as she talked and talked and talked, all about being seen and heard. The glass at his lips was almost empty, and once it was, he set it down and sighed as though he immediately needed another.

“I bet it doesn’t help, anyway.” Marianna frowned, looking at all the guests partying here. She was the only child in attendance, and she had to feel like the odd one out. I’d argued with Mother to let Marianna stay home with Beatrice and Lucia, but she’d insisted on “checking out the options” for Mariana. If she intended to try to marry her off so soon, when she was barely an adult…

What? What can I do about it? I clenched my teeth, hating how stuck we were as Mafia daughters. I couldn’t stop my sister from being paired up with someone way too old for her any more than I could tell my mother no when she matched me with some abusive jerk.

And they all were.

“Uh-oh.” Marianna winced. “You look even madder now.”

I smiled quickly. “I just need a breath of fresh air,” I lied. Stepping outside wouldn’t solve anything, but I could take a break from the cloying perfume, overwhelming cologne, and the stench of too much garlic on everyone’s breath as they tried to get too close to talk and be heard over the music and chatter.

“Stay with Uncle Dario,” I instructed her.

She nodded, already heading back to him at the table. “He’s making it manageable.”

I raised my brows. “How?”

Marianna giggled. “People watching. And making up stories ad-lib-style about them.”

I smiled, heading outside with my champagne.

My mother wouldn’t let me hide for long. She’d track me down and insist that I try to socialize with the men, one of whom might soon be my fiancé. Even though tonight was supposed to be all about celebrating Luka and Cecilia, all the Mafia mothers would be doing the same things my mother was doing.

Scheming. Planning. Observing. Judging.

It was all she did.

No wonder Father just steps aside and seeks the oblivion of alcohol.

I sighed, then lifted my glass to my lips.

Night had long since fallen, and out here on the smooth patio stones of the courtyard entrance, I finally welcomed a sense of peace. Of solitude. Of loneliness I wished I could count on.

How serene it would be to truly be unbothered. No sisters to help raise. No mother to appease and avoid. No leering men to dread.

Just to be.

I breathed in deeply and set my hands on the cool granite railing. My glass stood on the top of a post, shadowed by the copious flowers overflowing from the planter space. Light glittered off the rim, though, reflecting the many lights from within the ballroom I’d just left.

Music floated out, teasing my ears without the harshness of too many decibels with the conversations inside. Beyond the chords from the band, the gentle trickle of water streaming into a fountain calmed me.

This was much better. Almost Zen-like. Alone and not being criticized or considered to be anyone’s pawn.

“Just for a moment,” I whispered to myself. Because even if my mother didn’t hurry to find me and keep tabs on me, like a freaking pet, I’d need to go back in and salvage the situation with Father. He’d drink more and more. Quicker and quicker. Loose tongues never went well, and I could always count on him to listen to me.

“Shh! Someone’s going to know I’m slacking off,” a woman nagged. Her tone was light and flirty, hinting at excitement.

I let my face fall into a blank stare at the navy-blue sky speckled with stars.

Someone was coming. Or a couple was.

A man’s deep chuckle followed the woman’s playful scolding. She giggled right after.

So much for peace.

Without turning my head, not moving from my position on this second tier of the patio, I leaned against the railing and stared at the sky. The ledge of the stone column next to me held my champagne, and the protrusion of the formation offered me a slight hiding spot.

---