Page 122 of Fratelli: Eternal Bloodlines

“Who I am don’t matter, chile,” he replied. “What matters is who you are. And you, little sir,”—he turned his piercing gaze to Domencio—“you matter most of all. That dragon of yours, he thinks he’s all-powerful with his old magic. But I got you two now, don’t I? Papa Vittorio will never see you coming.”

“Go away!” Domencio shouted. “I’ll call my Draca back, and he’ll fry you like bacon!”

The man let out a booming laugh that echoed endlessly in the void. Both children shrank back, trembling. His laughter stopped abruptly, and his expression darkened. “This here is the crossroads,” he said, his voice low and serious. “A place where lost souls meet when the loneliness gets too loud. I’ll let you stay and play, but there’s a price.”

“How much it cost?” Darlene asked.

“You’ll never know this place exists,” Legba said, his tone final. “You’ll never know each other. Not in the real world, not in the dream world, not in the chosen world. This here is my world. What you do here stays here. But when you’re all grown up Darlene ready to be free—” He smiled, a glint of malice in his teeth. “Remember it is you, not him that will owe the debt to me.”

Darlene grinned and agreed. She turned to Domencio. “Wanna play?”

Domencio frowned. He glanced between her and the scary man. “I—I don’t think we should.”

“We can play!” Darlene insisted, her excitement broke through the tension. “I know lots of games to play in the dark. You’ll see! It’ll be fun!”

Domencio hesitated. “But... he doesn’t belong here.”

Darlene spun to glare up at the man. “Go away! Go away right now! I said I’d pay the price for a friend so leave me alone!”

The man laughed again; he made Darlene’s voice echo back to them before he faded into the void. His presence lingered, a chilling reminder that the deal was final.

Domencio looked at Darlene in wonder. She smiled back, her hand still in his.

“See?” she said. “We don’t have to be alone.”

“Why did you do that? He’s a monster,” Domencio said.

“So, am I?” she grinned.

2018 - Present

“I need you to remember,” Darlene whispered. After her encounter with Papa Legba, the truth of her childhood had come rushing back in painful clarity—the lonely girl she’d been, the shadowed void where she played, and the boy who had been her only light. Now, standing before Domencio, she saw what he had become, and her heart ached.

Domencio smirked, the corner of his mouth lifted with cold amusement. She was so close now, close enough to touch, and yet utterly powerless in his eyes. Whatever she thought she knew, whatever she believed she could bring back, was irrelevant. The spell and the bargain had locked his memories away, buried them so deeply they may as well belong to another lifetime. Her disappointment was written across her face, and it only fueled his dark satisfaction.

Too easy,he thought, his ruby-tipped fangs descended with anticipation. He hadn’t fed tonight, and the hunger clawed athim, sharp and demanding. A silent apology to Lucio formed in his mind—he was going to enjoy killing his girlfriend and feeding her bones to his father.

But as he prepared to strike, Darlene placed a hand on his chest.

The contact sent a jolt through him, like lightning striking from her palm straight into his soul. His Draca—the ancient, malevolent force within him—stilled as if shackled. The hunger, the rage, the primal fury—all of it froze under her touch. No one had ever done this. Not once in his cursed, agonized existence had anyone subdued his Draca.

Domencio staggered, a tremor of barbed yet sensual energy ripped through him. He gasped, his vision blurred, and then something cracked open deep within his mind.

The memories hit him like waves, each dragged him into a forgotten past he didn’t know existed. He saw himself, small and vulnerable, kneeling in the endless void. A little girl with brown skin and bright, curious eyes skipped toward him, her pigtails bouncing. Her laughter echoed, filling the emptiness with light. She made him feel... safe.

They played games to pass the time, inventing stories about the creatures lurking in the darkness, weaving worlds of wonder to escape their own fears. When she disappeared, often to protect her sister, his heart ached. And when she returned, her sadness was a wound he couldn’t heal, yet they clung to each other. They made the darkness bearable.

He saw the day she left. The void had never felt so empty. An eternity passed, his Draca coiled and seething, waiting for her to return. But she never did.

Another memory surfaced. Lucio and Dolly, standing outside the hotel room, their muffled voices barely reaching him. Then a sudden, searing presence surged through him—a force hecouldn’t explain, something both alien and familiar. It had been her.

The flood of memories twisted and pulled him deeper. He saw the courageous child she’d been, facing the void with defiance and an unshakable heart. She’d charged at his Draca, a tiny warrior with pigtails and a jump rope, ready to save him.Him.

Domencio’s breath hitched. He remembered pulling her from the fire, shielding her from harm. He’d saved her soul, even as his own was claimed by the curse. The pain of her absence had been unbearable, but he’d clung to the hope she would return.

And now, here she was.

Darlene’s voice broke through the storm in his mind, soft and steady. “Do you see it now?”

---