Chapter 11

Pretending to care about whether ‘she' had a nose job or not. But missing Guilia's engagement announcement and the Catelli brother's choice of a queen is not something I could do. My Papa hardly asked me for much. He gave me everything without complaint. On a few occasions, he told me to do something, I did. No questions asked. I don't think my Papa has ever heard me say no. After the ongoing bitching fit of Ilaria, we are finally ready to leave. My sister and I take the twins with us in our new car. One of the SUV's with our soldiers drive in front of us and the other at the back. Today we have four guards for each of us besides Filippo, who has two. Something is definitely wrong. My stepmother, Filippo, and their soldiers take the Bentleys. I drive, knowing the curves of the road, taking it at a fast pace, laughing with the twins as they scream, 'Faster, Faster." Guilia yells at me to slow down. This is normal when the 4 of us are in the car with me behind the wheel. Our men keep up with my reckless nature on the road. I have always had a friendship with speed, and I have never hidden my taste for danger. I am my father's daughter, after all. The road is filled with flashy cars seen from the distance as we drive closer to the venue. People walk to Azure from the top of the street. Azure is a top-class restaurant and hotel owned by Deno Catelli. The original venue for tonight was supposed to be the Catelli's Mansion, but due to unknown reasons, they changed it to Azure. I rev the car's engine when I spot the car guard waiting to take the car. All these people should be familiar to me by now, but they aren't. It wouldn't stop them from opening their mouths about me or talking to me. Deciding to calm my nerves a bit, I make a big show as I do a three-point turn and park my own car. Guilia and I decided I would keep this one, as it is already here. Guilia would have the one coming in a few weeks delivered to New York. My sister mumbles something about me showing off as I cut the engine. 'A car this sexy is meant to be driven fast, Guilia." 'Not when we have the twins," She retorts. I roll my eyes, looking at the number of people around, 'Are you ready to get engaged?" I question her. She looks stunning in a red dress and dark shadowed makeup that makes her eyes sparkle. She is dressed to impress her soon to be husband, that's for sure. I hope Papa picked a man who will love her, even if it is just for the sake of his children. I still believe Deno will be an excellent match for her. He has crimes, but I have witnessed the way he treats a woman who he beds. Guilia's chest expands as she inhales a deep breath. I smile, hoping my eyes give Guilia the comfort I know she needs. I love my sister, all of my siblings, really, but I am glad I am not too close to any of them. I wouldn't be able to handle this unknowing. The faith that lays before her is going to be determined today, in front of all of these people. Yes, I am grateful I am not close to my family. Very glad indeed. When my sister visits, we are like long last friends coming together for a short time. We share that time, having our laughs, but my secrets remain my own. There is an unspoken rule between us, lines which we don't step over. We are our father's daughters, yet, our choices remain a big difference between us. Our history, our path. I stare at her, unblinking, waiting for a signal. She nods her head, keeping her eyes on the people outside. The road is filled with cars. Everyone knows that something big is happening at Azure tonight. It is no secret that Deno Catelli is a prominent businessman. Azure is the ultimate venue in Seattle. We open the car door and jump out, getting the twins as a few cameras flash. I wonder what this event is going to be called in the tabloids tomorrow? The thought comes to my head as a soldier blocks one of the cameramen with his big stocky shoulders. His back is faced toward me, but the sense of familiarity hits me, regardless. I frown as a thought crosses my mind. It couldn't be. 'This weather is not good for my hair," I spin around at the sound, a familiar voice, and beam. 'You made it!" I hug Gabriel DeMarco. Ren, Gabriel and I were particularly close growing up. When we got to high school, we'd sneak fire-crackers every year into the school's premises. Gabriel would take the blame, knowing Ren and I would get into big shit with our fathers. 'You said you weren't coming." His stubble brushes my cheek as I let him go and take a step back. I look up, because, like Ren, Gabriel is very tall. But where Ren is showing the promise of a man's body, Gabriel is very much a man. His haunted, dangerous blue eyes that smile at me proves he is a Made-Man with very dark and evil crimes. 'I know, I know. I wasn't going to, but I couldn't let Ren have all the fun now. Plus, I missed you a bit." He winks as my face goes red. My stepmother hisses behind me, as Gabriel engulfs me in his arms again laughing. 'Aliyana, let's get inside," My stepmother says in a firm voice, as I take another step back from Gabriel. His dark olive skin, and narrow, sharp features, with those almond-shaped eyes, have caused his uncle a lot of headaches over the years. The DeMarco family is married into the Catelli family. My Papa once mentioned that Gabriel's uncle married our Capo's sister. Ren told me once, they had a daughter. However, I am not so sure how true it is. Rumors get people killed in the Mafia. We shouldn't start them unless we have facts. My Papa instilled in me the art of silence and not starting rumors when I was still young, untainted by the reality of the cruel world I live in. It was the first and last time he ever hit me. I have never been the target of his violent temper since. And I have done much worse than start rumors. Much worse, indeed. I spot Gabriel's uncle, Stephano DeMarco, at the back of us. He has three times more guards. I don't know him very well, apart from the few times I attended a function with Gabriel at his mansion in the South. The way he scans the open road tells me that I don't wish to. Stephano DeMarco could very well be the Capo Dei Capi. But not many people know for sure. I wish I knew who he was. 'Why are you staring behind me when I am standing right here, Liya?" I roll my eyes at Gabriel, as his brown gaze twinkle in mischief. 'I am looking at your uncle; he is always so heavily guarded." Gabriel's mood switches from my lighthearted friend to a closed-off stranger at the mention of his uncle. Maybe I said too much. 'My uncle is just a bit cautious. Why do you say such random stuff? You should be careful in places like these." He shakes his head in amusement. I notice a girl standing, watching us with envy or hatred. I don't know her enough to distinguish between the two. If I had to guess, maybe a bit of both. The turmoil in her gaze paints her pretty face in intense emotion. She would make an excellent piece for my art class. Her blue dress, however, doesn't match her face at all. Although it matches her glare perfectly well. Such is the thing I don't get with a lot of young women. They wear their emotions for everyone to see at the worst of times. Capturing such rawness has always been my passion when I put my brush to the canvas. The small piece of devil hidden in all of us. "Deno has at least five more soldiers than my Uncle," Gabriel point's out. I turn to look at the man, jumping out of a black Maserati parked directly behind mine. Deno Catelli is our underboss, today he fits the title well. His black suit has silver linings on the edges. His shoes glimmer under the nights sky. I tilt my head as the soldiers surround him, yet still keep their distance. Yes, he fits it quite well. All the people around him stop and stare in awe as his presence surrounds everyone on the street. Deno Catelli is a man born to be Capo of the entire Famiglia. Maybe he could even be the Capo Dei Capi? I know my desire to know who is the man my father answers to and advises is not the smartest thing to know. Knowing such a secret in the 5th State is like getting infected with a fatal virus. Deno's strong jaw loosens as his gaze is drawn to me. He grins. I smile, aware it has been months since we have seen each other. Not for his lack of trying, but the guys and I have been quite busy with our things these last few months. The last time I was in our future, Capo's presence was an amusing memory. It involved me, a bottle of tequila and his bar counter. The thought makes my skin fluster. Everyone knows Deno is next in line to be Capo. What I want to know is why Marco isn't. Deno gets ushered away as the soldiers walk him inside. 'I don't remember him being so heavily guarded before." 'I heard Marco and Marcello flew in with a jet." I frown just thinking about him, Marco Catelli. He stole that touch from me, and now I hear his name wherever I go, why? He isn't a man I knew before today. Yet, he has crept his way like a thief into my thoughts. His black eyes, a haunting promise in my mind. I've only met him once, but it feels like I have seen him before today. An unwanted thought crosses my mind and I do well to push it back. One time in that man's presence is more than enough to know seeing him again in one day will be too much. I don't question why my eyes do a quick sweep of the men around. I am too scared of the answer. My Papa says that sometimes ignorance is the most significant defense we have in this world if we want to stay a bit longer. Ignorance is bliss. "Aliyana, let's go." My stepmother holds my elbow, not giving me much of an option but to follow. Gabriel walks behind us, not saying a word. He is aware of my she-demon stepmother. She is his father's sister, so like I do, he puts up with her shit. But Gabriel DeMarco is a man who I know won't think twice of zapping his father's sister if she pisses him off. 'How are you going to find a husband if you are always hugging different men?" She scolds me. "Guardando." By looking She drops my elbow as we step inside. I spot the twins and my sister talking to Aunt Fay. The old lady is close to 70, but she doesn't look a day older than 55. My stepmother dislikes the woman. Talking to Aunt Fay always gives Guilia a lot of satisfaction when my stepmother shoots her daggers. "Looking isn't going to get you married." "Why are you so worried about me getting married?" I ask her, it is all she ever talks about since she has arrived. In fact, my sister has hinted it a few times as well. It's almost like they're forcing me to make a choice soon. Papa said I have time. Is there something I didn't know? The restaurant nightclub looks fantastic. The chandeliers are dimmed to a warm glow as the roof lights remain warm blue with a few bright lights in the center of the room creating a whimsical ambiance. The glass tables line the two walls, as smaller tables are arranged around the big hall area. The navy carpet creates a walkway to the stage in front that is currently occupied by a group of teenage girls on one side and two young boys on the other. I smile as I think of Guilia and I spying on the men today from my window. The doors separating the conference room have been opened to cater for the hundred and fifty people. Kids run in circles around the chocolate fountain on the left with their marshmallows falling all over. Cleaning this place is going to be a bitch. I make a mental note to offer Deno some help. I know he won't employ a cleaning service but get some of the women to assist. Ilaria touches my shoulder. I stare at her, waiting, 'Your father isn't going to let you stay single for long. It makes us look bad. You have ruined our name enough over the years. Even lucky people can't beat fate." I smile, there it comes. 'I was wondering when your true self was going to show. Tell me, Ilaria, is it my half Russian blood that makes you look bad? Or is it that I remind you of why Papa will never love you like my mother?" Ilaria's eyes widen as I wink at her. Ignoring the nosy woman behind Ilaria staring openly at our little scene. That is precisely what it is, a scene. My need to get out of here is potent. If I don't leave now, I will do something that will really get people talking. Something that will have me put in an early grave. 'Aliyana, get back here!" I ignore her as I should have done when she ushered me inside. It isn't difficult when I do so now. I hate her so much. I leave the gathering of people and go through the hall, barely even glancing at Leonardo. Taking a sharp left by the white doors that lead to the back of the restaurant, my legs carry me past the guests that lurk in the passage. I release a sigh of relief when I pull the familiar door open and make a quick exit to the emergency landing staircase. Deno took us up to this rooftop a few times before it became the reason I was a regular at his club. There's a helicopter always on standby in case they need to evacuate. But evacuating isn't what I intend to do. The idea holds appeal, but escaping for a few stolen moments is the only option I'll ever have. In reality, I can never escape my life for more than a moment. I push the door ajar and inhale the dense, cold fresh air as my strappy heels click on the tarred rooftop. Spotting the greenhouse in the distance, I rush forward. Ignoring the two guards near the helicopter who acknowledge me with a nod. They perpetually just nod anyway. I have no idea why they don't just talk once in a while. My mood lightens at the thought of how stupid it is to work in a job where you can't talk to the people you are protecting unless they deemed it so. It feels like they're selling their souls. An unexpected breeze brings a welcoming chill seeping through the silk wrapped around my body. I knew I would end up here tonight, it's one of two places in Seattle I feel alone and safe to just let go. Be me. Never has it crossed my mind, I'd seek this familiar place so early on in the evening. Today is a big day for my sister, I should be down there with them. I feel like a fraud. They think I am a charlatan, and they are right to believe I am a fake. I will never be like them, the Italians. I will never have their pure-blood. I know my thoughts are unwarranted. My father has always looked at me with pride. He once confessed in a drunken state that I was ‘The reminder' that my mother existed. What if I resembled him, reminded him of himself? Would he look at me the same way, like I was more than just something? It was the question I asked him that night as he stared at me but didn't open his mouth to speak. His silence told me more than his words could. I was nine. I open the glass door, removing my heels. It's unfortunate to say that it isn't the first time my mind goes to that one thought. My father's love for me, so great, so powerful that I would never doubt it. But even his love runs on a condition. My friend Kylie told me once, she loved her family unconditionally, whether they felt the same or not. Would I ever experience something as meaningful as just hearing those words spoken about me? Or am I not born so lucky, as fortunate as I like to believe. Is my curse loneliness? Will I ever belong? My dress drags on the floor as I wander to the far side of the green room. A room that is made of glass and filled with white, yellow, and peach roses. A beauty to the sightless eyes, but to tainted ones like my own, that has measured beauty and lived through pain can see what this place represents - A memorial room for all those innocent lives lost in the games of power and war. The beauty, uncanny, but trapped in a magical glass castle only to die in that same castle, a gruesome death. I was once an unseeing eye until I noticed a flaw in the picture, red roses. Deno hates red roses. I asked him why, he said, 'I don't want this place tainted by death." I argued, telling him it represented love, he laughed and shook his head, 'To love is to die painfully. There is no love without loss." That day I honestly stared into our future Capo's eyes, and I swear I saw a longing for something more than what made him so powerful. But when I blinked, he was as emotionless as the day I first met him. The nippy air brings a cooling sensation, as I welcome the bliss of the cold deep in my lungs. I embrace the chill sliding intimately within me. Scented roses follow as I breathe deeper, welcoming the silence. The stars are my comfort as I gaze into the darkness. I smile, knowing for this moment I am not Aliyana Capello. I am just a barefoot girl in a greenhouse, wearing a beautiful dress staring at the stars. Free, yes, I am free. A chilly breeze teases my skin. I rub my cold fingers along my bared arms. Free 'Aliyana," My eyes close, as that voice slices my thoughts of freedom, stealing this small moment. Sucking in a sharp breath, I straighten my back. Saying nothing for a moment is all I am capable of doing. 'Go away," Two words finally spill out of my mouth, knowing it won't work, yet still hoping it would. 'That was the plan until I spotted you." I hear his footfall, just one as it comes closer. 'I will leave." I don't make a move, even as the words leave my lips. 'Isn't leaving what you did, when you raced all the way up these stairs?" I spin around at the deep masculine voice laced with sarcasm. This man My heart picks up speed as a rush of energy hits my nerve endings when I see him so close. I heard one footstep. How did he get so close? 'Why are you doing this?" My voice shakes, as the saliva in my mouth hits my throat harder than it usually does when I get nervous. I hate it. I am not meek, but this man. The whole demeanor belonging to him scares me. My feet want to march up to him and trample on his shoes, while my soul screams at him. Except, like the good, well-trained, scared mouse I'm ought to be, I STAY. 'Talking? We practically know each other, Aliyana. We've met twice in one day. A lot of women would be glad our paths have crossed, but you are not one of those women! It's a pity, really." 'The only pity is you coming here, spying on me like this." 'You remind me of something right now." Darkness envelops him as he advances closer toward me. I should've turned on the lights. However, would I need them? His presence, danger, and power radiate off him in waves. It burns my body from the inside out. He should not be here, alone, with me. 'Ah. That's it, you remind me of a little bird caught in a lion's den," His deep voice emanates the space between us. 'Birds fly. They also go for the eyes when they attack," I inform him. My apparent tone mocking. A man as egotistical as Marco even can't deny the little threat. He laughs, surprising me, 'Tell me something, Aliyana, your mother is the...." 'The Russian, yes," I complete his sentence. Most people who know of my family are aware of my mother. Sadly, I, her child remembers only her absence. 'It's amazing how time goes. It isn't easy growing up without your mother." Marco steps into my vision as his words leave his mouth. Such a common thing to say, yet the current behind those two statements coming from him, hold such truth. 'It's manageable," I say, knowing the lie behind the words I speak. I offer him a small smile, examining him up close, I can't deny that right now, Marco Catelli is much more imposing than when I saw him this afternoon. The darkness wraps around him like a well-fitted blanket. He is drowning in it as his own wickedness pushes through. Two negatives equal a positive. His cologne hits my nose as he takes one smaller step this time. Closer to me. I didn't hear him approaching earlier, but now this man is everywhere. Marco Catelli is the center of all my senses. The thought, his presence, creates a flutter within my belly, angering me, yet, awakening something else. I should not be this unraveled by a man. He should not be the one, he is not the brother I want. 'I am sorry." That rough voice, wrong. All wrong 'It was a long time ago. I don't even remember her, so saying sorry for a mother I never knew, is just a wasted apology," I snap at him, but my voice betrays my false bravado for what it is, hurt, confusion and maybe even a bit of defeat. The emerald green dress wrapping my body is supposed to make me feel like I am covered, yet, I turn to face the lights of Seattle feeling exposed. Naked If I am that transparent, I rather he sees my back. Marco Catelli has already stolen enough from me. A thief. I am grateful the sky has the extra radiance to it tonight. The streets below dimming the night's sky's true potential, as it buzzes with cars and people. 'Apologies are never wasted if you mean them," He responds in that deep voice, fast becoming ingrained in me, as I feel his orbs secure me to the ground with sheer will. He is standing behind you ALIYANA, I scream in my head. 'Why would you apologize and mean it if you don't even know me?" My question comes out as a whisper, confusion apparent in every word uttered. He stands next to me, on my left. Everything about Marco Catelli is wrong, evil, deadly, and wrong. 'I do know you." His answer, simple, a fact. I should not be drawn to him, not like this. But in this glass cocoon, surrounded by peach, white, and yellow roses, with a made-mad-man next to me, I can't deny the feelings I am experiencing right now. Belonging. Peering from the corner of my eye, I tilt my head slightly to the right and stare at his suit pocket. The urge to touch him takes me on. His scent ingraining itself in me. My body burns as he brushes his arm against mine. It is the second time he has touched me without consent. It feels forbidden yet, not mistaken. 'We are practically attached to the hip now, Aliyana. How about a wager?" He slips his hands in the pocket of his slacks. His words take me off guard. 'A wager? What does that have to do with anything?" 'You question my honesty and sincerity. I, well, we can say I am a man that doesn't like to be distrusted!" His answer holds more than the explanation he gives me. 'Okay, fair enough, what kind of wager, we talking about?" 'How about I give you a clue?" He asks, but is it really a question? I can feel him watching me as the light breeze of The State he controls with his brother, blows my hair back, cooling the heat this man is festering in me. Did he know he was going to affect me like this? I feel betrayed by my own body, for even staying here. Why is Marco here with me? Does he feel the same way I am currently feeling? Or is he like Gabriel, a man who just wants to live in the moment, an impending death, an early grave? Or like Mero, a quiet fox, with a deadly plan. 'You want to spoil my virtue?" It is a rhetorical question and earns me a laugh when I say it. Not sure why I say what I do, but they are now words between us. His laughter sounds nice, but I will never admit that to him. There is a lot of things I would never tell a soul. How I really feel right now, is one of them. 'You aren't too far off the mark. Better me than some strange man downstairs." 'Why is that? Do you crave the kiss of death?" My sarcasm is unbidden. 'A kiss of death is not a bad way to leave this world."