268
Allesio’s POV
I stood there, frozen in place, as Alaric’s anger washed over me like a tidal wave. His words hit hard, each one sinking deeper than the last. I had been trying so hard to keep my head above water, but now everything I had been avoiding came crashing down.
He didn’t say anything right now, just stood there, his jaw clenched, eyes dark with frustration. He was waiting for me to speak, but I couldn’t. My mind was spinning, tangled in the web of lies and omissions I had spun.
Finally, he broke the silence, his voice low but lethal. “So this whole time, you’ve been holding back? You’ve known what happened to Dominic, and you didn’t say a word?”
I swallowed hard, my throat dry. “Alaric, I-”
“Don’t,” he cut me off sharply. “Don’t give me some excuse. I asked you to get close to Rosa and get information. You promised me you’d find the truth. And now you’re telling me you knew it all along and kept it from me?”
I opened my mouth again, but the words caught in my throat. There was no defense. I had failed him. I should have told him everything when I found out. But I had been so wrapped up in trying to protect Rosa that I had betrayed his trust in the worst possible way.
“I… I didn’t want to make things worse,” I finally managed to say, my voice barely a whisper.
Alaric’s expression twisted in disbelief. “Make things worse? Are you fucking kidding me? How much worse could it possibly get, Allesio? I’m already living in the middle of this goddamn mess. And you think keeping the truth from me is going to help?”
“I thought I was protecting you,” I said, the words feeling hollow even as I spoke them. “You’ve been through so much already, Alaric. The last thing I wanted was to add more trouble for you and Emilia.”
His eyes narrowed, and I could see the anger bubbling beneath the surface, ready to explode. “Protect me?” he repeated, the words dripping with sarcasm. “By keeping secrets from me? You think that’s protecting me? You’ve been lying to my face, Allesio, and for what? To spare my feelings? To make things easier on yourself?”
I winced at his words, the sharp sting of guilt making my chest tighten. “I’m sorry, Alaric. I should have told you sooner. I should’ve trusted you enough to tell you everything.”
He took a step forward, his eyes blazing with frustration. “No. You shouldn’t have waited at all. You should’ve told me as soon as you found out. But instead, you sat on it. You let me go on thinking I was still looking for answers, when you already had them.”
I felt the weight of his disappointment settle heavily on my shoulders. I had failed him. I had let him down, and now there was no taking back the damage I’d done.
“I didn’t know how to tell you,” I admitted, my voice cracking. “I didn’t know how to tell you that Rosa knew. That you had been right. That Cruz has been pulling the strings all along.”
Alaric took another step closer, his fists clenched at his sides, his body vibrating with anger. “And you think that’s something I should’ve been left to figure out on my own? You think I deserve to be kept in the dark?”
“No,” I whispered, my eyes locked on the floor. “I don’t. I was wrong.”
There was a long pause, the silence stretching between us like a chasm I didn’t know how to cross. When Alaric finally spoke again, his voice was quieter, but I could still hear the anger in it.
“Do you know what’s worse than finding out the truth, Allesio?” he asked, his voice almost too calm. “It’s finding out that the people you trust the most are the ones who kept it from you. The ones who knew and didn’t tell you.”
I flinched at his words. The hurt in his voice cut deeper than I had expected. I had betrayed more than his trust-I had betrayed our friendship, our loyalty to each other.
“I’m sorry,” I said again, the words feeling inadequate. “I never meant to hurt you. I should’ve come to you the moment I knew.”
Alaric looked at me, his gaze hard and unwavering. “You keep saying you’re sorry, but I don’t think you really understand the gravity of this, Allesio. You didn’t just hide the truth from me. You made the decision for me. You chose to keep me in the dark, thinking it was for my own good. But you were wrong.”
I nodded, a lump forming in my throat. “I know I was. I can’t change it now, but I swear to you, I didn’t want to hurt you.”
He didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he looked past me, his gaze unfocused, as if he were lost in thought. When he finally spoke again, his voice was quieter, more measured.
“I don’t know if I can forgive you for this, Allesio. You’ve crossed a line I didn’t think you would ever cross. I trusted you. We’re family, and you kept something like this from me.”
I felt the sting of those words like a physical blow. Family. That’s what we were supposed to be. But now, I wasn’t sure where I stood with him anymore. I had jeopardized everything.
“I know,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “And I hate myself for it. But please… don’t make this about me. This is bigger than me. We need to focus on Dominic’s death and what it means. We need to figure out what the Cruz family is really involved in.”
Alaric’s eyes locked onto mine, and for a moment, I saw something like regret flash across his face. But it was quickly replaced by a steely resolve.
“I’ll deal with the Cruz family, Allesio,” he said, his voice cold. “But this… this is something I have to figure out on my own. I can’t trust you like I did before, not after this. You’ve broken something that might never be fixed.”
I felt my heart drop into my stomach. I didn’t know what to say anymore. He was right, of course. I had broken his trust. I had broken something that might never be repaired.
“I’ll do whatever I can to make it right,” I said, though I wasn’t sure if it was even possible.
Alaric didn’t say anything for a moment, his gaze still locked on me. Then, without another word, he turned and walked out of the room, leaving me standing there alone and cursing myself for not choosing him in the first place.
I walked out of the room soon after, feeling suffocated bu the thick anger and disappointment that Alaric had left me with. I needed air, needed to clear my head, so I made my way to the garden. My thoughts were still racing, consumed by Alaric’s words and my guilt. I had failed him-there was no denying that.
I sank onto one of the stone benches by the fountain, running my hands through my hair in frustration. What was I supposed to do now? Alaric had every right to be furious with me. And I couldn’t undo what had been done, no matter how much I wished I could.
I let out a heavy sigh and leaned back against the bench, staring up at the sky. It was getting dark now, the first stars starting to appear.
“Allesio?”
I turned my head and saw Emilia standing a few feet away, looking at me with a curious expression. She’d come up quietly, almost as if she had been watching me for a while. Her face softened when she noticed my mood
“Emilia,” I said, trying to sound more composed than I felt. “What are you doing out here?”
She shrugged, taking a few steps closer. “I was just taking a walk. I saw you sitting here looking… not like yourself. What’s going on? You look like you’ve got the weight of the world on your shoulders.”
I opened my mouth to respond, but nothing came out. How could I explain it to her? How could I tell her I had just failed Alaric in a way that might not ever be forgiven? And how could I explain that the truth about Dominic’s death-something she didn’t even know about-was eating me alive? I couldn’t. I wasn’t ready for her to know the details, and honestly, I wasn’t sure if it would even be safe for her to.
“I just…” I started, trailing off. I couldn’t bring myself to go into specifics. “I messed up, Emilia. Big time.”
Emilia sat down next to me on the bench, her eyes soft and concerned. “What happened? You can tell me, you know.”
I sighed, running a hand over my face. “I… I was supposed to do something for Alaric. I failed him. And now I don’t know how to fix it.”
Her gaze stayed on me, but there was a quiet understanding in her expression. “It’s about him, isn’t it?” she asked, her voice gentle.
I nodded slowly, my gaze shifting to the ground. “Yeah. It’s about Alaric. I screwed up. I’ve been trying to protect him from something, but now I think I’ve only made it worse.”
Emilia leaned back, her fingers gently tracing the edge of the stone bench. “You’re always trying to protect him, aren’t you? You’ve got a loyalty to him that goes deeper than most people would ever understand. But everyone makes mistakes, Allesio. Even you.”
I chuckled bitterly. “Doesn’t feel like it’s just a mistake, Emilia. I’ve kept things from him, things that he should’ve known. And now I’ve damaged the trust he had in me. I don’t know how to fix that.”
She was quiet for a moment, her eyes thoughtful. “Trust can be broken, but it can also be rebuilt. It’s not easy, and it might take time. But if you really want to make things right, you’ll find a way.”
I looked over at her, surprised by her words. “You really think that?”
Emilia gave a small nod, her expression firm. “Of course. You can’t undo what’s already been done, but you can choose to act differently from now on. If Alaric is really your friend-your family-he’ll see that. But it’s going to take more than just saying sorry. You’ve got to prove to him that you’re trustworthy again.”
I exhaled slowly, feeling a mixture of relief and dread. I knew she was right. I couldn’t just sit here and wallow in guilt.
“But what if it’s too late?” I asked quietly. “What if he doesn’t want me around anymore?”
“Don’t give up on him,” she said, her voice soft but firm. “People don’t just stop caring that easily. And you know better than anyone that Alaric might act tough, but deep down, he values loyalty above everything else. You’ve been loyal to him for so long. Don’t let one mistake erase all of that.”
I nodded slowly, her words sinking in. There was a small part of me that had been afraid Alaric would completely cut me off, that our relationship-or whatever we had-was done for good. But Emilia was right. If there was any chance of making things right, I couldn’t just give up now.
“I’ll try,” I said softly, almost to myself. “I don’t know what else I can do right now, but I’ll try.”
Emilia smiled at me, her eyes full of encouragement. “That’s all you can do. And if you ever need someone to talk to, you know where to find me.”
I met her gaze, grateful for how she supported me even though she didn’t know what it really was. I felt relived a bit, even though I knew I still had a lot to figure out. The only thing I was sure of was that I couldn’t loose Alaric. Not over this.