“Mi figlio mio. Mi sei mancato.” She hugs me tightly. I can sense the pleasure and fear in her eyes.
“I missed you too, Mama.” I kiss the top of her head.
“Come inside, the both of you,” my father whispers his command harshly, looking around nervously as if someone’s going to take us out. I don’t know all the details of what’s going on, but he looks scared.
“He can wait there,” my father says pointedly referring to my driver. I nod to Joey. I’ll let him have that little bit of upper hand if he thinks it’ll help. Joey can drop every single one of my father’s men in a matter of seconds.
Looking around at all the guards and then up at my father, Joey says, “Are you sure, boss?”
“Of course, Joey. I’ll be back soon.” He nods with a smirk. I know he’s not going to sit there wasting his time. I give an discreet tip of my chin to him, and then I walk up the stairs, holding on to my mother’s hand.
My father claps my face, kissing my cheeks. “I have missed you, my son. You have grown a lot in the past two years.” His words are hollow, but I don’t let on that he’s not giving an Oscar-worthy performance.
“I’m so glad they were forced to let you go. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there, but I won’t risk your mother’s life.” God, how I survived living here is a damn surprise.
“Thanks. It’s good to be free,” I remark with a smirk. My goal is to play the grateful son. “Have you learned who set me up?” I question the second we’re through the front doors.
“I have not. I have men looking into it, but it seems they’ve covered their tracks well. I’m not putting it past the Avanti family.” There were some things I learned in prison, and some things I learned growing up. One was when my father was lying to me, and he’s doing it right now. That pisses me off more than I thought it would. Is he covering for my brother, or does this lie directly at his feet?
After what I learned, he’s had to live with the kid he didn’t create. I look at my mother, and I doubt she could cheat on him. Hell, he would have killed her for that alone. I wish I could ask her today. My mother wasn’t allowed to visit me in prison without my father, and that visit only came once because it was a hassle to get to the prison. Her letters were always sweet but vague because I’m sure he read through them before she sent them. One thing I’m going to do is set her free if he’s had anything to do with my imprisonment.
“Please come in. There’s much you have missed,” my mother says. The warmth from her smile takes the edge off my revenge. I know her heart is good. It’s always been that way despite my father’s intentions to destroy the goodness in her. Maybe it was payback for all of his betrayals.
“Where’s Rafael?” I ask, knowing that he just left.
“He had some business to attend to, but you know he’s married. You have a sister-in-law now,” my father says with a tinge of gloating in his voice. I can’t wait to meet the whore he chose for his wife. She’ll be on my chopping block too.
“Wonderful.” I can’t contain the annoyance. I know they wanted me to meet and eventually marry one of the daughters of the Avanti family, but that was when I broke off from the family and a few days before I ended up in cuffs, so he ended up with her.
“Don’t be like that. She’s a sweet girl.” She swats my arm, scolding me like I’m a child. Something about that genuine feeling gives me the warmth that I didn’t know I was missing. It’s so wonderful to see my mother again. If she’s a good girl, then my brother has probably ruined her. If she’s sweet, she’s stupid for getting involved with Rafael to begin with.
“Excuse me.” My father briefly steps from the room and returns a moment later. “I’ve called for Giada to join us.”
I look between them and make my apologies. “I can’t stay long. I have much to do. My company needs my attention, but I had to come see you first.”
“Please don’t tell me you’re leaving so soon.” My mother looks as if she’s going to cry, and it’s the only thing keeping me here.
“At least stay for lunch. We were about to eat. Besides, there is some business I would like to talk to you about.” He looks for the distaste in my expression, but I’ve learned a few tricks while incarcerated.
“Sure. Sounds good. I have some matters to discuss as well.”
“I will inform the cook,” my mother says, leaving the room for a moment.
“My boy, it is good to see you, but I can see how you’ve been hardened. You are better than your brother and I ever were. Don’t let the past get in the way of your happiness.” He’s a fucking liar and he does it so smoothly that if I didn’t know better, I’d get caught up in his praise.
“Let us hope that the past stays that way,” I say, biting my tongue and leaving out the part about how those who did this to me will pay, and how I know he’s not my dad and that’s a part of my past I don’t want in the past.
“How about a drink?” He waves a tumbler toward me from his sideboard.
I put my hand up to refuse. “No, thanks. I haven’t had more than a drink in two years, and I’ve had three today.”
Before he can respond, my mother comes back into the
