“You only pointed at the car and pulled the trigger. I told you Carmine was the only person in the vehicle. You had no way of knowing his wife and child would be with him, and neither did I.”
“You told me he needed to die because he was a vicious enemy, a threat to our family. You told me this was what I hadto do to make my bones, but I never signed up to murder an innocent woman and endanger a child!”
“Hewasvicious, Nero. He plotted to kill us all, including your mother and sister.”
“You damn well better have proof of that.” Not that it would make a difference anymore.
“I did.”
“Decades later, his family member is trying the same.”
“It can’t be the Francos,” he insisted. “Their line died out with Carmine.”
“Clearly not!” I shouted. “It’s all clicking now. Why the fuck do you think we all thought the guy looked so familiar? He could be Carmine’s twin.”
“Carmine didn't have a brother.”
“Doesn't matter. Have the investigators look into the family tree. There were clearly more men in that family than you assumed.”
He released my shoulder. “It would make sense why a relative would target us, but they sure took their time.”
“Just like the fucking guard who let himself go fully under before he made his move. He was better able to blindside us that way.”
“That man was related to Sofia Franco—he was her brother—but I didn't know that until it was too late.”
“And all the secrets come out.” Lifting my hands, I dropped them back to my lap with a thud. “Mom’s death was ultimately my fault, then. The brother took her life in revenge for what I did to his sister.”
“We’ve both paid a high price for the actions we took that night. We operated on the intel we had, but the orders came directly from me. You merely did what you were told.”
Rubbing my mouth, I stared unseeingly at the wall. “You've tested my worth with my own blood before, and just when Ithought I could finally learn what it feels like to be mended, the world has come crashing down on my head.”
“You have to move past this, son, so that you can be happy.”
“How can I move past such an egregious betrayal?” And how much did it hurt to realize I meant both his and my own? “Do you realize what she went through because of me? Not just losing her parents, but losing herself. Losing her childhood.”
Finally, he drank the bourbon he’d held onto. “The best way to atone for your sins is to give her a happy life.”
“That’s the real reason you thought we’d make a good match, isn’t it? You think I can heal her when I’m the cause of her trauma?”
“As long as she doesn't know the rest of the truth, yes. If you tell her, what’s to stop her from going to the police?”
My stomach twisted. “I haven't even thought of myself in this scenario.”
He sighed. “This is what I’m telling you. The only way forward is to continue as you were. Otherwise, you could find yourself in prison.”
Which was where I belonged. I’d never felt much remorse for my actions before, but the playing field had just shifted under my feet.
My phone pinged, and I took it out of my pocket. With a knot in my throat, I opened the text from Sailor.
It’s okay to let me go if that’s what you need.
A sob broke from my chest, startling me. I hadn't even realized how much I loved Sailor until the idea of losing her became a reality. She was the balm for all the bad I’d done, for all the heavy decisions I made on a daily basis. She was the soft place to land at the end of the day, and I’d somehow fucked that up at the ripe age of eighteen.
“What is it?” Dad asked.
“She’s already sacrificing herself on her sword.” Standing again, I paced to the window and looked out at the lights of the city. “She thinks I’m pissed at her for not telling me her true identity sooner. She has no idea I’m over here having an existential crisis.”
“Get your damn self together and reassure her, then.”
