Arianna’s POV
The tears were already there just waiting to fall but I held them back. Gabriele’s Godfather was a sensible man. Maybe there was still hope in all of this if last night’s apology meant anything.
Maybe he didn’t mean to hurt me. Maybe he just didn’t know how to express himself.
I sniffled back my tears and tried to keep a hopeful mind as the plane descended onto the cockpit.
We landed safely and soon we were ushered out of the plane.
“You don’t have to worry Arianna, everything will be fine,” Niko assured me as we made our way to the arrival point.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
Somehow, I believed him. I didn’t know how things were going to get better but I just knew they would.
We continued walking and I noticed a well-built man ahead of us. I squinted my eyes and I saw him. He was here.
Agostino was standing with a very large pink card that read welcome home daughter.
It brought a small smile to my face as I thought of my parents and the day I arrived in Italy.
They could have come to wait for me like this. Then no one would have dared kidnap me. Gabriele would have never met me and all of the pain I feel now would have never occurred.
But they sold me to the hell I was currently living in, how could they have picked me?
“Hello Arianna,” Agostino said giving me a quick hug.
“Hello, Sir,” I replied.
“Nonsense, call me Agostino. It makes me feel much younger,” He commented with a small chuckle.
He and Niko exchanged greetings with their heads –or whatever crime sign they had and Niko moved away with our boxes.
“How was your journey, my dear.” His hands went over my shoulder and we started heading out, trailing after Niko.
“It was fine,” I responded in a small voice.
He stole a look at me and gave me a small smile. “Ahh… Angelo can be such a burden. I know because he is my godson. Everything will be fine…” He said almost to himself.
We got to the car and his men opened the door for us. As we got in, a tray with two glasses and a bottle of wine emerged from the center of the seat and Agostino let out a chuckle as he picked the glasses.
“This is one of the reasons why I love Italy. Everything is always prepared. America everything is done in a rush, no?” He asked and I nodded slightly.
He poured the wine into the glasses and handed one over to me as the vehicle slowly made its way out of the airport.
“Drink up my dear. Life is full of many things. Sometimes we find ourselves in situations that we are not very happy to be in… But remember that everything has a starting point and an endpoint.” He gulped his wine and gave it a refill.
“One day you will look back and say, ‘hey, I have been kidnapped and sold too but I had expensive champagne, how about you?’ hey?”
I found myself smiling at his comment. It was true. If I ever got out of this situation, I would want to tell my friends about so many things that I have been able to see.
“So drink up before you regret not tasting one of the finest drinks in the world…” He wiggled his brows at me and this time, my laugh escaped my lips.
“Thank you,” I mouthed as I brought the glass to my lips.
“Yes, you should enjoy yourself. Has Gabriele taken you to our property in the suburbs?”
“No, he hasn’t,” I said as I started enjoying the wine.
I had taken champagne before but this tasted different. It tasted richer.
“Big mistake! I will take you there myself! That is one of our finest properties and it isn’t open to the public. So,” I said dropping his glass on the tray.
“Imagine you get your freedom and leave us,” He said as he gesticulated with his hands. “Then boom! You see our property on the television, tell me, dear, won’t you feel bad that you didn’t get to see it before leaving? Especially when I say it’s paradise!”
I smiled at him and he nodded.
“Can you take me there?” I asked.
“Oh no. I am too old. That place needs young blood going there to enjoy themselves under the palm trees, the waterfall… The beautiful scenery… It is amazing.” His eyes were dazed as he spoke with so much passion about the place.
“It must mean a lot to you,” I said thoughtfully. It felt like he was seeing things I couldn’t just by reminiscing in his memories.
“Yes, it does my dear. Gabriele’s father and I built that place for our wives. It was supposed to be our escape point from our worlds… Sadly it got ruined too quickly,” he said, ending the speech.
“I am sorry about that,” I said even though I didn’t understand what he meant.
“Ah, it’s nothing to be sorry for. It happened so that we may all cross paths. Or you and my Angelo,” He whispered.
“What?” I asked unable to keep the confusion off my lips.
He poured himself yet another drink and said, “If bad things didn’t happen and you didn’t meet my Angelo. It would have been such a shame. Gabriele would be so rigid! I am so glad you came into his life.”
“What bad thing happened?” I dared ask.
By now I should probably be used to getting no answer to these kinds of questions but I always asked anyway.
Maybe, Agostino would be more open compared to Basilio.
“Ah, dear girl… That’s a story only Gabriele can share,” He replied taking another sip of his drink. “I can only share mine…”
Silence fell between us as my mind wandered to that one secret everyone was afraid to tell. What happened to Gabriele?
“You have changed him so much, I don’t know if you noticed…” He said giving me a more serious look.
I let out a sigh as I gulped down my wine.
“You are right. He changed… But then he changed again. He is back to his usual self…” I said. Even as I spoke about him, his image appeared in my head.
Gabriele was so difficult to deal with. One minute he was as clear as a glass bottle and then the next minute, he was acting like the back of a pot, all black and cruel.
“Why is he so complicated Agostino? Why?” I asked suddenly unable to keep it anymore.
“Why is it like a chameleon? One moment he acts like he wants me and the next, he doesn’t even trust me…” I cried out.
The issue we had fallen over returned to my head. I felt the anger and the pain all over again. Why did he think I would go sleeping with Brett? Why would he think I could even have anything to do with Brett?
Agostino’s hands landed on my shoulders again and he started massaging them to ease the tension I felt deep within my bones.
“My Angelo has gone through a lot… But of course, that is not an excuse for treating you badly. But, I will ask that you give him a little time.”
It was the same thing they all said -more time.
“What if it’s all a waste?” I asked and he paused his fingers on my shoulders.
“Loving someone is never a waste my dear child. The memories live with us forever…”
“I don’t know Agostino, what if I don’t want to live with only memories?” I asked him.
He left my shoulders and returned to his sit.
“Arianna, tell me, dear, what do you want?” He asked as he stared straight into my eyes.
I was surprised by his question. Since I got to Italy, no one had ever asked what I really wanted. No one even cared -not even Gabriele.
“You don’t have to be shy… Go on and tell me, I promise to keep your secret safe,” He urged, offering me a small smile.
It wasn’t a huge comforting one but it was reassuring. I could trust the old man. Besides like he said, I wanted to look back one day and remember every deep conversation with a Mafia lord.
“I want a simple life, Agostino. A crime-free life. A life where I don’t have to be scared of my neighbors,” I sighed. It was almost impossible to even dream of a simple and calm life these days but he wanted the truth, I was spilling it.
“Gabriele can’t give you that, you know?” He said with seriousness in his voice.
“He can leave the Mafia…” I mumbled under my breath.
I heard him snicker and I looked at him. There was a glint of amusement in his eyes. Soon, he broke into a smile.
“Gabriele is a promising young man. Mafia or not, he will be great. The only problem is convincing him to stop… You see his past makes him think the mafia world is the only way he can get his revenge… Again, convincing him will be hard…”