Inéz stopped in front of her new apartment and reached for the keys in her bag. "I miss you so much," she whispered when she stepped inside the room. The darkness swallowed her whole.
"I miss you too," he answered. In the background, she heard someone calling her brother. "Someone needs you. Go, we’ll talk later," she promised, trying not to fall apart again.
Her brother didn’t need her to hold him back. Now even more than ever. She was a part of the Famiglia. And hell would freeze before she would allow him to be dragged into her mess. "Alright." Francisco chuckled. "Oh and Inéz," he started. There was a pause. "Whatever you do, you’re still my sister."
The tears fell down her cheeks once again after hearing those words. "Te quiero," she added and hung up before he could hear her cries.
She drew a deep breath. This was her life now, and she had to deal with it. It was far from ideal but she couldn’t turn back. There was no way out now that she’d taken an oath. As much as she might regret what she did in the club, Francisco was right, she had to move on because she wouldn’t be able to change it. Perhaps, it wouldn’t be long before Gastone spilled all his secrets.
The lights went on, brightening the studio. But it wasn’t Inéz who’d switched them on. A strange unease filled her, as her head turned immediately towards the window, hearing a light movement. Her heart almost stopped before she spotted Noah leaning back against the wall in- between the windows.
"Are you trying to give me a heart attack? For goodness’ sake couldn’t you wait outside until I come back as any normal person would?" she seethed, dropping the keys on the kitchen counter.
The Capo didn’t answer. A smirk started to grace his face but disappeared as soon as he saw the girl’s face in full light. She had red eyes and her cheeks were still a little wet with tears. Realization flashed in her mind. She turned around and wiped it quickly before facing him again.
"What happened?" he asked, clearly feeling awkward.
It had been a while since he found himself in a situation when he was supposed to comfort someone. He’d always done it with his younger sister whenever she was upset or scared, but years passed since then.
Inéz put on her biggest fake smile, trying to throw him off. "Nothing. What are you doing here?"
"Inéz, I don’t appreciate people lying to me, so don’t make a habit out of it. I’ll ask once more and this time I’d better hear the truth. What the fuck happened?" he came closer to the girl. His beady eyes were transfixed on her.
"God, I said it was nothing. I was talking to my brother on the phone. I just miss him, that’s all," she explained.
It was the truth, but not the whole truth. Inéz missed her twin like no-one else, but it didn’t even come close to the anger she felt towards her job, and it hadn't even started for real yet. But Noah seemed to believe her because he moved towards the couch and sat down.
"You cannot tell him anything. Remember your oath," he ordered.
"As if I would ever pull Francisco into this world. He deserves much more than this."
Frustration welled up in her just thinking about such a possibility. She had been drawn to this life ever since she found out it existed. Especially when she’d gone with Jason and Noah to find Lynette at that warehouse in Lakewood. Upon seeing the horrible and dark part of this life, she couldn’t resist thinking about actually being involved in it. That was the reason why, at first, she’d kept in touch with Noah. But it was only until Lynette’s supposed death. Then, the girl had realized how dangerous a game that was. It had opened her eyes widely, and she didn’t reach out to the man after that.
But that didn’t mean Inéz hadn’t found herself thinking about what ifs. She’d started reading books about the mafia, their traditions, the jobs and the structure. And she couldn’t help but see the depth of the organization’s work. Of course, it couldn’t be denied that Cosa Nostra was about murders, illegal business and money - everything that was bad, but underneath it all, it was a completely separate society built on traditions and oaths. They had their own rules which might be a little bit out of date most of the time, but the appeal had remained. They cared about the weak ones, helped them whenever it was needed and protected each other. It was a family in a bigger sense, and there was nothing wrong with that. All the people belonged. The only thing was that the way the mafia worked was not accepted by the outside world. It was not tolerated and for a very good reason. But for Inéz thinking about the Cosa Nostra in only bad terms was the same as saying that the government only ever did good. There was much more to that. Something that people were used to ignoring.
Noah Falcone was the perfect example of everything the Cosa Nostra was about. He was fair, honest and intelligent, but also cruel and dangerous. That was the combination most people were required to have in order to survive in this world, and he didn’t lack anything as far as ruling the Las Vegas Famiglia went. Inéz might not have known his father and didn’t see firsthand his way of being a Capo, but she’d heard about the things Noah had changed when he came into power. The restructuring of the organization, killing those who wished bad would befall the Famiglia and entrusting the businesses to people deserving it. He didn’t
