Page 43 of King

I watch them as they leave the dining room carrying empty dishes and stacked plates. Still talking about random things.

My heart is tight with a strange sense of relief.

Dante is going to be ok.

He’s been the one struggling the most with his mom’s death - but for the first time the weight of his pain has eased, and I can smile. He’s going to be ok.

Now I need to get through to Santino and Romeo.

If they can give Zina and Guido a chance the tension in this household will ease away.

The dining room is empty, so I sit down again at the head of the table, with my hands resting on the dark wood.

Maybe I also need to give Zina a chance.

What if someoneiswatching her and it’s not just a story to distract me?

I would be furious with myself if something happened to her - something I could have stopped if I had just taken the time to listen.

I pull out my phone, messaging my head of security.

Me: Fabio, I want you to pull a report of who accessed the security cameras this past Thursday - between the hours of 2:30pm and 3:30pm. You can email me the data.

Fabio: Will do. Did something happen? Is there something I need to be aware of?

Me: Not at the moment. It’s just a precaution.

Standing up I make my way to the kitchen, following the sounds of laughter.

Dante, Zina and Guido are all in here, rummaging through the fridge and pulling out random ingredients.

“What’s going on?” I ask, leaning against the kitchen counter with my arms folded across my chest.

“Zina said she can make macaroons with strawberries and creams.” Dante says, holding up the punned of bright red strawberries. “Do you want some?”

“Uh. Sure.” I nod.

Santino walks in with Romeo close behind him. They stop and stare in confusion at this scene.

“What’s this?” Romeo snaps.

“We’re making desert.” Dante smiles.

Santino glares at him and Dante shrinks backwards. The smile wipes off his face and he shifts uncomfortably.

“You guys should join us.” I say to Santino, hating the effect he has on his youngest brother. Can’t he see Dante is happy. That he’s smiling for the first time in a really long time.

We all went through a lot, watching Bella suffer as the sickness got worse.

Santino shakes his head, still glaring at Dante. “I’m not a traitor.” He says quietly, aiming his words at Dante.

Romeo and Santino leave, and Dante looks beaten down.

“Hey.” I say, walking over to him. “Ignore them.”

“I try to - but they hardly speak to me anymore.” He says tightly.

“They are your brothers, they’ll come around.” He nods without conviction. “I mean it, D. They are still processing their grief in their own way. Let them work through it. You’ll see, it’ll be ok in the end.”

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