Page 88 of A Seed Of Peril

Katrina sat back in her chair.

You can do this, I thought to myself, noticing the subtle tells in his expression and body language—staring hard at the table lost in thought, messing with the buttons on his sleeves, clearing his throat as he adjusted his collar.

“I’ll make this brief,” Dominic began, staying seated. “Hector Salamone was a man of integrity. Honor. He defined the code this family lives by—family above all.” He cleared his throat again. “He would’ve been sixty-one today.”

A knot formed in my chest. Tears wanted to reach my eyes. Throughout all that went down between me and Hector, I never wanted him dead. This family wasn’t quite the same without him, whether that was goodorbad.

Dominic held up his glass of wine. So, we all did the same. Well, I held up my glass of water and Katrina her glass of juice.

“To Hector. May he look down on us all and be proud, and may he continue to rest in unconditional peace.Salute.”

“Salute!” we all repeated in unison, raising our glasses higher before sipping on our drinks.

“You did great,” I told Dominic, winking with a smile.

I slid the urn over to Katrina after she lifted off of her chair again to reach for it. Angelo left his seat per Dominic’s request and held Katrina steady as she hugged Hector’s urn.

“I love you, Papa.” She gave it a kiss.

I looked away, losing control of my fight to hold back tears.

“I miss you,” she added. “You would’ve liked your chocolate cake. Lulu and B and my uncles helped me bake it.”

Bianca’s soft cry rose above mine.

“You would be proud of me, Papa. I’ve been good, and I’m happy here with everyone. Lulu’s even having a baby, Papa!”

I broke down, making a fist in my lap as I battled my self-control. Dominic took my hand in his, caressing my knuckles. He gently squeezed my hand as I bit my lip, crying harder.

“I know,” he said quietly. “You still have the floor, Katrina. Please go on.”

“I wish you were still alive, Papa. Please come back.”

A long silence stretched, and when I lifted my head, everyone was watching Katrina. She stared intently at the urn, quivering with sadness. We each sat in wait for her next words or next move. She swallowed the lump in her throat as a tear slid down her cheek. Her face twisted, more tears falling.

“The man that hurt you is dead. You… You can come back now, Papa. Please.”

Bianca, cupping her face in her hands, leaned into Anthony for support. I glimpsed him dabbing the lining of his own eyes with his finger before I noticed Angelo keeping composure, along with Dino and Dominic.

I stared at Dominic longer, seeing beyond his mask. The corner of his eye twitched. His jaw clenched through the war waging inside of him, his other hand a tight fist in his lap. He refused to wave his white flag.

In life, we learned the ways of navigation. We learned strategies to jump over its hurdles, and we learned to cope with its trials and tribulations. We pushed ourselves through the horrors of life. Those painful moments.

Dominic Rosini fought so many horrors in his short twenty-six years. He learned to wear his masks as he deemed appropriate, but this mask wavered, his bleeding heart revealing itself enough for me to see.

His hatred for Hector was substantial, but he still found enough space in his hardened heart to care about how Hector’s loss impacted the rest of us.

Friday, June 16, 2017

One minute,I was in dreamland, envisioning Dominic cuddling and holding and soothing me with sweet Italian nothings while I rode through the waves of labor. The next minute, I was back in my bedroom. Alone. Dominic’s side of the bed was made. His phone, keys, and cigarettes weren’t on his nightstand.

Exhaling, I began to stretch, arching my back before pain suddenly seared through my muscles, taking my breath away. “What the hell?” I asked no one, biting down on my bottom lip through the pain as I tried to move. Giving it one more go-ahead, I gritted my teeth and swung my legs off the side of the bed, my ass damp.Did I wet the bed?All I knew right then was that my back pain wasn’t normal. I needed to call Julie. Dominic. Someone, but fuck, did I have the means to get to my phone, let alone get out of bed?

It was like knives stabbing me in the back. Warm, long knives.

Blowing out a breath, I told myself I could do this and whined as I fought through the pain to sit on the side of the bed. I immediately leaned forward, gripping the edge of the mattress. This position helped some, but intense pressure pushed on my pelvis.

Oh, fuck.

---