Page 100 of Ruthless Oath

“How do you know all of this?” I asked.

“Like I said, I don’t fit in because I feel too much. There are things I’m not willing to do, but that doesn’t mean I’m not loyal. I observe and learn. I know this family. I care for them.”

“What’s your connection?”

“I already told you, Nico has been good to my mother and my siblings.”

“There’s something else.” I moved toward him. “I observe too. Why do you work for them? What keeps you here?”

“It keeps me close to my father.”

“But you said he was dead.”

“He died with Julia.” His lips formed a hard line. “They were getting ready to go shopping in the city.”

“Oh.” I sat down on the step again. “What happened?”

“They went to the car that was parked at the side of the house. Nico always insisted that the car be brought to her, but Julia wanted some fresh air, so she walked with my dad to the car. If she had listened to Nico, she would probably still be alive.”

“How?”

Ricardo moved closer to me and stood over me. “If my father had gotten into that car first and turned the key, he would have died, but Julia would have been safe in the house.”

“The car blew up?”

“With both of them in it.”

“Oh my God! What kind of person blows up a pregnant woman?”

A horrible thought crossed my mind.Am I the daughter of the man who murdered Marchello’s mother, Ricardo’s father, and that innocent baby?

“Marchello was on the porch when the car exploded. He waved goodbye to his mother, and a second later she was gone.”

My stomach churned. “That’s horrifying.”

“I stay employed here because that’s how I stay connected to my father. When I’m at the main house, I take comfort in knowing that’s where he spent most of his day. I can stand in the driveway and feel his presence. Some of the trees still have burn marks on them from the explosion.”

“That’s… I’m sorry.”

I needed Ricardo’s help now more than ever. The death and destruction the Accettis experienced on a daily basis was too much for anyone to handle. Marchello was a ticking time bomb. If I thought my father was dangerous, I had a feeling Marchello was a lot worse. Pain was his motivator.

“Thank you for sharing that with me,” I said. “I’m sure it’s difficult for you to talk about it.”

“You said you wanted to understand Marchello. I’m not sure you ever will because he’s too guarded—too calculated with his emotions. But maybe knowing what he’s been through can help.”

“You can help me.”

“How?”

“The other day, you were about to.” I stood and took his hand. “I need your phone.”

“Lissia, I’ve thought about that, and I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“Please, Ricardo.”

“You need to let Marchello handle this,” he said. “Don’t put yourself in the middle.”

“Let Marchello handle it the way his father did? What good did that do Julia?” I squeezed his hand. “I can stop this.”

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