ARIA “Damn!” Luca’s scream jolted me awake. The mattress shifted under his weight and I rolled over, blinking to recover from sleep. Luca was getting dressed, his phone wedged between his shoulder and ear as he pulled up his pants.
“I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. Fuck!”
I sat down, worried. Luca put down his cell phone and put a shirt over his gun holster, then turned to me, grimacing.
“Someone threw a Molotov cocktail into one of the Family’s brothels. Two prostitutes were badly burned and all the furniture was on fire.
The police and fire department are there. I have to go and do damage control.”
I nodded slowly, stifling my disappointment. He moved toward me, gave me a quick kiss and left.
I bit my lip, suppressing the pain. It was my birthday.
I slid out of bed, grabbed my cell phone, and saw Gianna’s message. The moment she saw that I was online, my phone rang. After talking to Gianna, Fabiano and Lily, I felt better and got dressed.
I knew Luca had to take care of the family business if he wanted to be a good Chief, yet I wondered if he had completely forgotten about my birthday. I went downstairs where Romero was sitting at the counter. He smiled when he saw me and stood up, “Happy birthday, Aria.”
I gave him a tremulous smile in return and his expression softened further. “Luca will be back as soon as he finishes.”
I shrugged my shoulders and poured myself a coffee.
Loneliness overwhelmed me. I had no friends in New York. Because the wife of the head of our circle did not treat me as a normal human being, and I could not really be friends with strangers. Swallowing my emotions, I took a sip of coffee.
The elevator rushed by and Romero passed me, but he relaxed when Marianna entered, carrying a cake. Her dark gray hair was tied up in a hairnet as usual, and her dress hugged her plump body and abundant breasts. Her motherly face stretched into a wide smile, and when she put the cake down, she held me tightly in a hug. “Happy birthday, child. I made an almond cake for you. Luca told me it’s your favorite.” She frowned at Romero. “Where is it anyway?”
“Business,” Romero said simply.
Marianna asked no questions.
“Did Luca ask you to make the cake?”
“He did.” Marianna cut three slices of cake, then took the plates and gave one each to Romero and me, keeping one for herself. We dived in and I had to admit that the cake was the best I had had in a long time.
Marianna was a goddess in the kitchen.
Marianna touched my cheek. “You look sad. Why don’t you go out and have some fun with Romero?”
I wanted to spend the day with Luca but, since that wasn’t going to happen, I nodded. Romero took me out to lunch at a nice restaurant and afterwards I became a trophy wife and spent thousands of dollars at Century21, my favorite department store in Manhattan. We returned to the penthouse after a quick dinner at a small bistro. I didn’t bother to take the new clothes out of the shopping bags;
instead I grabbed a wool blanket and a book and went out to the terrace, where I curled up in my chair. Romero did not join me, probably catching my somber mood. I let my gaze wander over the skyline, a few tears slipped out, and I pulled my legs up and clasped them with my arms .
The sound of the door sliding open drew my gaze to the French doors, and Luke stepped out onto the terrace, his expression twisted with regret as his eyes rested on my face. I quickly wiped away my tears and stood up, but Luca took me in his arms and kissed me. “Happy birthday, princess. I wish I could have spent the day with you.”
“Romero kept me busy,” I said with a small shrug.
Luca shook his head. “Not busy enough.” He led me into the apartment and up to our bedroom. My eyes rested on the bed. A bouquet of white roses and a package were laid on top. I smiled and kissed Luca’s throat before he put me down. I smelled the roses, then took the package and unwrapped it. Inside was a red velvet box, which I opened. A rose gold bar bracelet was resting on a gray pillow. Nineteen diamonds were set in the smooth rose gold surface.
“Turn it over,” Luca said softly.
I did so and found words engraved on the inside of the bracelet.
In the darkest hour you are my light Deglutinating, I looked into Luca’s warm eyes. He grabbed his shirt, pulled it over his head and turned away.
I froze when I saw the new tattoo on his shoulder blade, which mirrored his Family tattoo. The skin was still red.
I read the intricate letters in black ink: I will go where you go, no matter how dark the path The words I had said to Luke shortly after our marriage.
He remembered them. I inhaled deeply, pressing my lips together, but not crying was a losing battle. His two tattoos on either side of his heart. Luca turned and walked over to me, wiping away my tears. He pressed my palm against his Family tattoo on his heart. “My oath came first, but the words on my back mean more.”
I swallowed. He should not have said such a thing . For a Made Man, Family came first, and even more so for a Chief. I nodded, brushing his lips with mine.
“Those words on your back, I mean them, Luca. I will follow you everywhere. Your darkness doesn’t scare me. I love you, your strength and your loyalty, your tenderness and your protection. I love your gentle side, but I love your darkness just as much. I will love you in your darkest moments, I will love you even when you are weak, and if you need me to be your light, I will. I love every bit of you, Luca.”
He held me to his chest, and I held him tightly. His love was the greatest gift of all.
It was April when Lily and Gianna came to visit me. From the moment I saw Gianna, I knew something was going on, but we didn’t get a chance to talk until one evening when Luca and Matteo were out on business and Romero was busy playing Scrabble with Lily. “You’re up to something, aren’t you?” I asked her as we enjoyed the view of New York City from the observation deck.
Gianna did not answer right away, which was not normal for her. “I can’t do that, Aria. I want to get out. Out of this world.
Out of my arranged marriage. Just out.”
I had suspected something like this, but now that she said it out loud, worry and fear assailed me. “Do you want to run away?”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure?”
Gianna cast me an oblique glance. There was no trace of doubt on her face. “Absolutely. Ever since the Bratva attacked the villa and I saw what Matteo is capable of, I knew I had to escape.”
“It’s not just Matteo, you know that, right? He’s no worse than any other Made Man.” Matteo could be funny and charming. I was sure Gianna and he would be happy if she allowed herself to let him in, but I knew her, knew how stubborn she could be. She would not let me convince her to give Matteo a chance.
“That makes it even worse. I know that almost every man in our world is capable of horrible things, and someday Fabi will be too, and I hate him, I hate every second I spend trapped in this messed-up world.”
“I thought you and Matteo got along better.
You didn’t try to pull each other’s heads off today.”
“He’s trying to manipulate me. Didn’t you see how easily he could make Lily forget her nervousness in his presence?”
“It could be worse. Most men wouldn’t have forgiven you for giving him such a hard time, but he really seems to like you.” I wasn’t sure Luca would let me tease him like that.
“Are you on his side?”
I wasn’t going to take sides. “I’m not on his side.
I’m just trying to show you an alternative to running away.”
“Why? You know I never wanted this life. Why are you trying to make me stay?”
I grabbed her wrist, getting angry. “Because I don’t want to lose you, Gianna!”
“You won’t lose me.”
“Yes, I will. Once you run away, we won’t be able to see each other , maybe even talk to each other, unless we find a way to do it without risking the mob tracking you down.”
“I know,” Gianna whispered. “You could come with me.”
In the past I had often resented the gilded cage I had grown up in, and even now I sometimes wondered how it would feel to wander New York without Romero, to go to college and live life only by my own rules. “I can’t.”
He turned away. “Because you love Luca.”
There was a hint of disapproval in his voice, but I wasn’t going to defend my feelings. Loving Luca was not something I would ever feel bad about. “Yes, but that’s not the only reason. I can’t leave Fabi and Lily behind either, and I’ve made peace with this life. It’s all I’ve ever known. I’m fine with that .”
“Do you think I will abandon them if I leave?”
“They will understand. Not everyone is cut out for a life in this world. You always wanted to live a normal life, and they will still have me. You have to think about yourself. I just want you to be happy.”
“I don’t think I can be happy here.”
“Because you don’t want to marry a murderer, because you can’t live with what Matthew does.”
“No,” he said softly. “Because I can see myself being comfortable with that.”
I looked into her face. “What’s wrong with that?” I knew what Luca was, what he was capable of. I knew he would not change and I did not want him to because I loved the man he was now.
“Are you okay with what Luca does? Do you ever lie awake at night feeling guilty about being married to a man like him?”
“We come from a family of men like him. Do you want me to feel guilty?”
“No. But normal people would feel guilty. Can’t you see how messed up we are? I don’t want to be like that. I don’t want to spend my life with a man who tears his enemies apart.”
Luca always claimed I was pure and innocent, but I wasn’t, not by normal standards.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. I just-I know I have to risk it. I have to try to get away from all this and live a life without all this violence and that messed-up morality . I will always regret it if I don’t.”
“You know you can never go back. There is no going back once you run away. Even if Matthew would forgive you for insulting him like that, the Outfit would be responsible for your punishment until your marriage. And running away from the mob is a betrayal.”
“I know.”
“The Outfit punishes treason with death. Since you are not a Made Man, they might decide to go easy on you and throw you into one of their brothels or marry you off to someone much worse than Matthew.”
“I know.”
I grabbed Gianna’s shoulder because I didn’t think she did . “Really? Very few people risk running from the mob, and there’s a reason for that. Most people get caught.”
“Most people, but not all people.”
“Have you ever heard of anyone successfully escaping from the Mafia?”
“No, but I doubt anyone would tell us about it.
Neither Father nor Matthew or Luke have any interest in putting ideas into our heads.”
I lowered my hands, sighing. “You are really determined to go through with it.”
“Yes.”
“Okay,” I said, because I knew there was nothing I could do to change Gianna’s mind and I didn’t want her to start keeping secrets from me. “You can’t do it alone. If you want to have a chance at success, you will need my help.”
“No,” she said. “I can do it alone.”
“If I help you escape, I will betray the Family and in doing so betray my husband,” I whispered. Luca would have seen this as a betrayal.
He had been raised with the belief that his word would be law, that not following his command would be a betrayal.
“You’re right. And I can’t let you take that risk.”
I took her hand. “No, I will help you. I’m your only choice.
And if anyone can do it, it’s you. You never wanted to be a part of this.”
“Aria, you said it yourself, what I’m doing is treason, and the mob treats people who betray it harshly. Luca is not the forgiving type.”
“Luca will not hurt me.” Gianna looked doubtful but I knew those words were true, and not just because he had written them on her skin. “He won’t. If Salvatore Vitiello were still alive, things would be different. I would have been under his jurisdiction, but Luca is Chief and he will not punish me.”
“Maybe his men will leave him no choice. He is a new Chief and if he looks weak, his men might rebel. Luke will not risk his power, even for you. The Family comes before all the Made Men.”
“Trust me,” I said.
“I trust you. It’s Luca I don’t trust.”
“And if you think about it, I wouldn’t really betray the Family. You are still part of the Outfit until you marry Matteo. That means what I’m doing is at best a betrayal of the Outfit, but I’m not tied to them, so I can’t betray them .”
“Luca may not see it that way. Even if you don’t betray the Family, you are still going behind Luca’s back.
Not to mention that Matthew will probably move heaven and earth to find me.”
“True, he will hunt you down.”
“Eventually he will lose interest.”
Knowing Matteo’s obsession with my sister, I doubted it.
“Maybe. But I wouldn’t count on it. We have to make sure he can’t find you.”
“Aria, I shouldn’t have come to you with this. You can’t be involved.”
“Don’t try to talk me out of it. I’ll feel guilty if I don’t help you and you get caught,” I told her.
“And I’ll feel guilty if you get in trouble for helping me.”
“I am helping you. End of story.”