Chapter 28

Marco I was raised to like what I do. To be proud of who I am, A Catelli. The day I killed my first man, I wasn't even 9. A burglar got into our house and held a gun against Deno's head. My mother tried to get the burglar to take her. The asshole shot her. My mother was brave and managed to get him on the leg. Deno ran away from the intruder, but I was so filled with anger that I took my mother's Glock and clipped him 5 times. Only to get outside and find the soldiers who were protecting our home, sleeping. My father killed them once he got home. I stood there and watched. My mother survived only to die 3 years later by a bullet to her head. My brother was barely 8 at the time, and Anya was just a baby. Deno remembers it in his dreams. I have lived that fucked up day for years. My father told me one saying that helped him along the years to deal with the nightmare, 'it is what it is.' Today those same words came back to me; only I wasn't burying my mother. There is no excuse for what happened to my youngest brother, Lorenzo. He was the untainted one from all of us. His future was supposed to be bright. He was going to be the normal one, well as normal as he could be in this dark, twisted world, we were cursed into. Deno and I knew he was different from the rest of us. Lorenzo wasn't perfect. His hands were tainted with death at a young age. A young Prince protecting his friends in another King's territory didn't come without a bloody price. Deno kept tabs on the 5 sacrificial lambs who were sent to Chicago to prevent a war my father started. My brother survived that fuck fest only to die in the place he was supposed to be safe. Deno and I would find the ones responsible and make them pay. Even knowing the blood we'll spill in his name is something he would detest to, won't bring him back, we will get our revenge. It will make Deno and I sleep better. Revenge was never meant to placate the dead but used as a form of therapy by the ones alive. I didn't see the need to verbalize all of that to Sartini's daughter. When she said sorry, the only thing I thought about saying was, 'it is what it is!' I wasn't going to lie to her. Nor was I going to inform the half-blood that I loved my brother, but never got the chance to really know him. Deno took on the role of big brother. Truth is, I couldn't look at Lorenzo without seeing the reason behind Deno's misery. "What the fuckin' hell were you thinking, putting claims on Aliyana?" Deno says in his low, bored tone, as he hands me some Brandy. Knowing by the end of the night Deno and I would be borrowing happiness from tomorrow one way or the other, I take a big sip of the smooth dark liquid. "I've waited long enough. Moretti doesn't want the deal. He's stalling." Deno takes a seat on the rust-colored leather sofa. I've just arrived at my Penthouse, and already I want to leave. The modern man cave is not the most desirable place to spend my time, considering it was designed by Lorenzo. The drive to my Manor and back to see my father, however, isn't going to work for me today. I needed to be close to the city. By the end of the night, if all panned out, I would know who beat my cousin by my fucking dock. Which means I would have to make an appearance at the warehouse once they pick the fuckers up. "Give Moretti time. You can't marry Aliyana, Marco. If I was Capo, sure, but our father is. DeMarco isn't going to give a fuck about who you marry so, don't waste your time with him either. And Sartini will never agree to you marrying his daughter. The leverage we got on him won't sway the fucker, not yet. She's our second choice." "She's promoted to first." "Marrying you is a guaranteed death sentence to Sartini's daughter. You know how he feels. The Famiglia won't be happy with your sudden choice of bride, no matter your fucking reason. I say she is fine where she is." "Why, because she's a half-breed? Just say it, brother!" I stare at the bare grey walls, a mirror to everything that surrounds this entire fuck up we in. "I am not going to say what you already know. Wait for the Moretti girl, have a son. Once you take over from DeMarco, divorce her, hell, force a marriage with Sartini's daughter. I don't care. But, right now, I am not in the mood for another war. Remember Vince and Lucca? All over fuckin' pussy, look where that ended up? 6 years of fuckin' headaches. The damage it has caused our family, still is causing our family, look at what Lucca did to Amariya, Mischa." My brother is acting logically. That is Deno, always thinking of everything from all angles. But logic is my brother's strength and weakness. And that will be his downfall. I am proud of him, he turned out better than the rest of us. He is the wiser out of my father's 5 children- strong, brave, intelligent, and deadly. The things we need to survive in our world. Now we were down to four. I get up and walk toward the glass windows looking at just one of the Cities soon to fall on my shoulders. The weight of it all has been sitting on my shoulders since I got back from the Navy. Taking over territory is one thing, ruling an entire Continent is another altogether. I never wanted to be the Capo. I never wanted the life gifted to me on my birth. Refusing it wasn't an option, but life had a more challenging road for me when it took the decision out of the equation. I am not sure when I decided to tempt fate and landed up with all of it. But here I am, the un-wanting heir, the Future King of Kings, and all I can think about is a face of a girl in a green dress, standing barefoot in a glass cage staring at the stars with a challenge in her gaze, yet so lost, empty. "Do you remember the day when we first saw her? How old was she?" I ask Deno. "Twelve, where are you going with this, Marco?" "Sartini handed her a Glock; she didn't need words. She shot that man. You said she wouldn't, but she did. Do you recall her pause, her face, do you remember that?" "Yes, she looked like killing him was logic. He killed her mother, she was exacting revenge." "A Mezzosangue," I say. "Sartini should have never let her do it. He was crazy, still is. He holds her in high regard. Everyone knows she's his favorite, but he puts her life at risk as is. Aliyana doesn't deserve the fate you want for her, or the one her father has thrown at her, and she certainly doesn't deserve the fucking mess she will inherit from her mother." No, she doesn't "In the Bratva, when a person kills your parent, their life and death belong to the first child. Sartini was teaching her. How many women in The Famiglia can kill someone?" I ask Deno. "A handful. Our dead mother being one of them, but Aliyana isn't the firstborn." "No, she's not. She is, however, half Russian. The Bratva, at least the ones in Manhattan and Canada, consider her family. They will be loyal to her no matter what. Aliyana is a perfect choice. A wife who will protect Mischa at any cost." "She is a child herself, barely out of her teens. You think you are going to convince our father that Sartini's daughter is going to make our family stronger?" Deno laughs. "I don't need to convince anyone. He isn't going to agree. You know how he feels about the situation, and Sartini will never forgive our father for what he did." "We won't give her away Marco, Mischa is family. I will go to war with Lucca if I have to, fuck Amariya will kill anyone who gets too close. But, Sartini will never let you marry his daughter, especially if he finds out you only doing it for gain. He has given her a choice, and whether he likes it or not, her mother has made sure that Aliyana will always have a choice." "Not entirely. Mischa needs protection. I can't do it like this much longer. Lucca is looking for Mischa, and Amariya has disappeared, probably hiding in fuckin' DC again. Anya is up to something, I don't trust our sister not to do something stupid." "Let me ask you something, when your tongue was down Aliyana's throat, did it cross your mind that you would have to marry her for life? The Bratva won't take likely their own getting divorced by us. They would want you to bare an heir or two." "Yes, I have." "So, you okay with handing them your first child? And what about the future heir to our family? Which needs to be 100% Italian! Which was the reason we asked for Moretti's granddaughter." Deno comes to stand next to me as we both stare at the buzzing city in the distance. Knowing our future ahead of us is no fairytale. Two brothers born to be leaders. "An illegitimate Italian child will be just as good an heir as any. We both know that more than anybody. Like we both know I have no intention of having any kids, that is what we have Leonardo and Anya for." "You think Aliyana is going to be okay with having no kids? Or her husband fuckin' his way through Seattle while she sits at home and raises someone else's child?" Deno laughs, but I am not laughing. Nothing about this is funny. Dante Moretti was the last Capo Dei Capi, he is one of the most feared Capo's in the world at 87. He is the Godfather of all Godfathers and his granddaughter; Camilla Moretti is the apple of his devil eye and the most protected woman in America. She is also the first person I chose to marry. Well, 'did' want to marry. Since I saw Aliyana up close and smelt her innocence mixed with something dangerous. That kiss, her bottle-green eyes, when she stared at me, having her, is a need. She is no more the sacrificial lamb I saw with a gun in her hand. She is something dangerous, something I want. Camilla has protection, but Aliyana will have power. "I think she will do the right thing and protect the ones she loves," I tell my brother. "Aliyana will gut you in your sleep and feed you to those wolves she keeps around. The only thing small about her is her height. Be careful, brother." "You know her so well." "Yes. Ren and I have been the ones doing your dirty work for years. While you played soldier, I have protected her father's spawn. Cleaned up her mess after the 5 of them decided to get fucking trigger happy. And the little temper tantrum she had a year back with that Spanish boy? Remember that fucking mess? All at your fuckin' bidding. So yes, I know her well, and she might look weak, but she is as made as the men we pay for their loyalty." "I never asked you to encourage her behavior or get involved in their affairs, nor did I ask Ren to become her partner in crime. You taught her how to aim for the head, and the others encouraged the rest. So, don't blame me for that. I asked you to watch her and keep her safe. I told Ren to find out what her father was hiding that he put his daughter in danger on purpose. I said nothing about becoming BFFs with her. That was all you, and I'm not complaining. I needed five minutes in her presence, and I could understand why." "If she ever finds out, Ren started hanging out with her because he had to, it will kill her. I happen to like the little she-devil." I turn to face Deno, and I usually would twist his balls, getting wussy on me, but I don't. "She won't, the only people who know anything is in this room." "You told me Aliyana will be a last option. Now you are making out with her on the rooftop, dancing to sappy songs, having fucking dinner? Want to tell me what's really going on in that head of yours?" Yes, she was the last option. Three girls were important in our world. Two of them were Camilla and Aliyana, both of who had a lot more than their virgin bodies to offer a man. Both protected by their family. The third one was protected by me. I study my brother. He is watching me - waiting. I show him what I would never let many see as I say the words, I would never be able to take back. Something, not even Aliyana knows yet, and I only figured out a few days ago. "She quietens the noise." "Fuck. You should have said that in the first place. Now I feel like a puss. I'll come with you to talk to our hard-headed father." Yes, Fuck. We both remain still, staring at our city, drinking brandy, as the ring on our index fingers sits heavy on our hands. My confession so short, but holds so much current, can never be taken back. My brother and I have always stood side by side. The bastard sons of Capo Marcello Catelli. Even Villains fall in love. "I will never be like you, Marco." His words are true and hang between us. It is the difference between Deno and I. My choices are based on emotion, it is my strength. One day it will also be the reason for my early grave. Maybe even Aliyana's too. "Let's eat, I'll make some wraps, you can cut the veg," Deno declares. I put my arm around his shoulder and squeeze his arm before we head to the kitchen. For a split second, I imagine my siblings and Mischa in this kitchen prepping lunch. One day. I leave soon after we eat, Deno and I agree to meet later. The drive to the suburbs is long and needed to clear my head. But my mind keeps flashing back to another time, long ago. War, soldiers and blood, lots of blood, everywhere. The screams of kids, the howls of women, the sand in my eyes, the stench of death, and poverty. Going to the Navy is a tradition every first son has to complete. My father told me that killing a man wasn't so difficult, but killing many men in war, serving your country was something only true brave men came out of. I did 4 tours. The 1st one was for tradition. My 2nd for my friend, Stringer, who died saving a kid only to be blown up with the same kid. Then came the 3rd for all the brothers who lost their lives too soon. And the 4th one, my final tour, was for me. By then, I just wanted to kill as many of those fuckers as I could. After my time ended, I was accepted in the special forces, I refused. I was done with that shit and ready to take my place. The Special ops didn't take no for an answer, though, and called me a few times. When the price was right, I agreed to do an odd job, but, mostly I said yes because I had a particular skill, not many possessed these days. I never failed. My father said the war didn't change me like it did him. Truth is, it changed me a lot. I just became a master at hiding all the rage burning within me. Now, I am always on fire. Waiting to kill, snap. All I need is a reason. Aliyana comes to mind as I take the corner toward the gated community. I should let her be, make Leonardo marry her. That is what she ultimately wants. The Bratva will still assist us. Family is Family. She has gone through enough, and her need to find her sister will only cause her more pain when she learns the truth. Deno is right, my wife would be a queen, but she will also be the most wanted woman in the world. An early death sentence is almost guaranteed. I didn't get this life playing war games. The Shadow is a name too feared to be even whispered as a horror story. Knowing all of this still won't change my mind. I'll never earn Aliyana's love, and hurting her is something I know I will do. But acceptance from her is something I'm certain I can have; she will walk by my side, accepting the blood on my hands. The rest we will figure out, but one thing is clear, I have to have her.