It killed to me to think I might not know her as well as I used to, but that was something that could be remedies with time. The next fifty years to be exact. There was no way I was letting Frankie go again, and if I had to hold her prisoner in my house, I would.
Then there was the matter of Massimo’s funeral. I knew that he and Luca had it already planned and paid for, and it was going to be a farewell to rival a king’s. However, Luca, Ciro, Frankie, and I would not be in attendance. While I was pretty confident that Massimo was respected enough by everyone that there’d be no bloodshed on his fateful day, we still couldn’t risk it. So, it was arranged that, when Massimo passed, he would be moved to a private room at the hospital where a priest will meet us, and we are to have our own private ceremony, just the five of us.
Now I had no illusion that mine and Frankie’s reunion would go smoothly. I knew it wouldn’t. Just like I had six years of pent-up pissed-the-fuck-off and loneliness to contend to, I imagine she had a lot of shit she wanted to get off her chest, too.
The night Frankie left, we learned the hard way that she had gotten fed up with mine and Ciro’s lies and caginess and had followed us to the Benetti warehouse. She had climbed on top of some abandoned crates and, through a dirty window up top, she had seen mine and Ciro’s initiation.
The. Entire. Fucking. Thing.
And while we were being introduced and drinking to a job well done, Frankie had run home, packed only the shit she needed, and had fled. Of course, not before she left a note to us all, telling us that the moon shone beautifully through the north end corner window around the docks.
Ciro had ranted and raved.
Luca had shut down.
I had lost my mind and destroyed everything in the house.
We had all been prepared to go after her until Luca came to his senses and stopped us. He took his emotions out of the equation and convinced us that she deserved her space. He promised he would put guards on her and that she’d be safe while she cooled down. However, the joke was on us. It was six years later, and the girl had still not cooled down.
Tonight was going to be fucked-up.
Chapter 6
Francesca~
The drive to Morgan City had done nothing to help put the past behind me. In fact, the drive over only fueled the anger and resentment I thought I conquered years ago.
The first few months, anger and righteousness kept me warm at night. Sure, I missed Phoenix terribly, but anger, hurt, and resentment kept me from reaching out to him. There was also the fact that I had been too busy trying to build a new life. I had submerged myself in finding jobs and a place to stay.
I had worked many jobs those first two years, sometimes holding down four jobs at once. It helped to keep me from starving or being homeless, but it also kept me from being lonely. I barely had time to eat or sleep, so there was no time to dwell in the heartbreak of leaving my family behind. I had also lucked out and found an affordable apartment almost immediately. It wasn’t much, but it had included utilities and that was practically unheard of.
The third year was when I got my job at Brighton and met Robbie and Mona and everyone else. Robbie and I clicked immediately having guy names, but I became friendly with almost everyone who worked at Brighton. No one knew my story, not even Robbie, as I lied to everyone and told them I had dropped out of college because I was no longer happy in life. I gave a speech about how happiness was more important than money and I’d rather be a waitress with real friends than a corporate rat drowning in Wallstreet waters.
They all bought it.
I sold it so well, it was hard not to believe it sometimes.
The past three years have been spent going through the motions. Sure, I had girls’ night and enjoyed my job and friends, but the hole in my heart was always there. I missed my brother, best friend, and lover. I never contacted Phoenix or Luca, but because Ciro was my brother, and we lost our parents the way we did at such a young age, I owed it to him to let him know I was alive and well. So, after I got a new phone and I texted him that it was me, over the years I sent him random texts here and there just to let him know I was fine. He never pushed for conversation and his texts were always the same.
One word-Okay.
But come to find out it was all for nothing as Luca so casually informed me. The entire drive back to Morgan City, he thought it necessary to inform me that they’ve always known where I’ve been and what I’ve been doing. I wanted to be pissed off and surprised, but, deep down, I wasn’t. They let me walk too easily and now I knew why.
I had never really left.
By the time we reached the hospital, I’d reached my limit of Luca Benetti and was ready to see Massimo. My plan was to jump out of the car as soon as it came to a stop in front of the hospital, but it didn’t work out that way. Luca hadn’t pulled up to the front of the hospital. He had driven around the back of the five-story building and had pulled into the physicians’ entrance.
When I reached for the door, Luca’s voice stopped me. “Don’t you fucking dare.” I froze where I sat and waiting like a good underling as Luca got out, rounded the car, and opened the door for me.
