Mario heard his father talking and as he put the phone back to his ear.
Julien was ranting.“How dare she speak to me in that tone!How dare she.”
Mario swallowed hard and cleared his throat to say, “I think she meant every word, Papa.We didn’t do our job as a family when we left this country.We should have taken her with us and we didn’t.”
“Si, I know that now, don’t I?”He growled.“Then I put Ray in charge of her.I should have known better about that as well.”
“Si Papa, you should have,” Mario agreed.“I was barely older than Charli at the time but even I wondered about that decision.Plus, we always knew Ray wanted something different in his life.Different from what the rest of us had.Yes, he worked the blacksmith flames well, he could mold and shape the blades we made well but we all knew he wanted more.I guess he found it and he used the family money to get him started.He took the money the family left for Charli to build his own empire.”
“I’ll be there in two days and I’m bringing the Council with me.They will put this mistake right,” Julien snapped.
Mario sighed as he knew his father would say something like this.“Papa, they won’t be able to force her to do anything she doesn’t want to do.Like she said she’s full grown now.”
“She will defer to what the family says.”Julien growled again.Then he ended the call.
Mario shook his head.His father had always been stubborn but this was something else that would prove to be too hard to accomplish.Mario put the phone back into his pocket and turned to face the door.He didn’t know if he was welcome here anymore but when he tested the door, he found it unlocked.
He walked inside and found himself facing six very angry, very big men.They all had their arms folded over their chests and rage building on their faces.
Mario swallowed hard.Holding his hands up at them he said,.“My father is coming here and he’s bringing the Council members with him.I can’t stop him and Charli told him to stay away but my dad is stubborn as hell.So he’s coming anyway.”He took a deep breath and went on nervously, “I don’t know what happened to the family fifteen years ago but we somehow lost track of what was important.We lost track of Charli and put uncle Ray in charge.I came here to get her and bring her back with me.I didn’t know she’d found a husband and a family.”He ran his hand over his face and said, “Nor did we know about what Ray was doing.”He paused and looked at Charli.“I’m so sorry bella.We left you behind and we never reached out until now.I am sorry that we never checked about the support before now.You are my cousin and I failed you at every turn.”
Charli’s expression didn’t soften a bit.“Yes Mario, you did.With your silence, your distance and the fact that after half my lifetime, you came here expecting me to fall into line because of who my father was.Well guess what cousin?My father died twenty years ago and instead of knowing his family, you all left me behind in more than one way.But my grandfather Ben never did that, no sir, he was there for me every single day.He stayed with me even when he no longer needed to.He was here, he’s the one who taught me things a father should have.He and grandma showed me what it meant to be family, they showed me love just like when my parents were alive.They protected me for all those years while you and your family never did.”
Mario kept shaking his head while looking saddened by her words.
“Then I met these men and you know what?They accepted me and Ben into their family.I love the man I married or I never would have married him.I made a vow in a church of God that I would stand beside him, in sickness or in health, for the rest of my days and I plan to do just that.Your dad can’t tell me that I’m not married, or that I have to give up my husband and my child.I don’t recognize his authority over me.He didn’t raise me, Ben did.He didn’t protect me, again Ben did that too.He didn’t feed me, Ben did.Your dad has been the leader of your tribe since my dad died and for all I care, he can keep that position.Because I don’t want it.I’ve long forgotten the rules your family lives by, the rules my father lived with.”
Mario nodded.“My father thinks you are old enough now to take his place but I tried to remind him that years ago he made a mistake in not bringing you with us.He told me then he wasn’t ready to raise you back then and once you knew how important the position was that you would come willingly enough.”
Charli shook her head.“No, I wouldn’t.And this is the last time I will tell you...NO.I am not willing to disrupt my life here to live in Italy.I have a home, a husband and a son here.I’m not going anywhere.”
Mario ran his hand over the back of his head again, “Yeah about that, he’s not going to recognize that you’re already married without permission from the Council.”
Everyone in the room froze.
Ace looked over at Mario with a glare in his eyes.His lip curled as he retorted, “He has no authority here.And I’m not giving her up.I don’t care what he or your Council says.She’s my wife and she’s not going anywhere.”
“She doesn’t have a choice,” Mario said softly.“She’s Michael’s only child.His seat should have passed to her when he died.”
Charli shook her head and scoffed at him.“I do have a choice.What do you think this is?A third world country?Here we can do as we wish, Mario.I don’t want the position my father held.We can go round and round about this but my mind is made up.I’m not leaving the only home I’ve ever known and I’m married in the eyes of God and man and I’m not leaving my husband and my son behind for anyone.If Uncle Julien comes here, he’ll be going home with only you in tow.”
Mario nodded then looked at the men again.They all shared the same expression and it didn’t bode well for Mario or his father.“How did things get so out of hand?”he muttered.“How the hell did Ray fool everyone for so long?”He looked at Ace and asked, “Is he really part of your takedown?Like a part of this guy’s empire?”
Ace didn’t want to answer, but he did anyway, “If he is Tirade, your Uncle Ray is part of the biggest gun and drug ring in the nation.We located the worst of the group and took them down but there are two factions we haven’t found yet.Tirade is one of them and Hammer is the other one.”
Mario slowly shook his head as he still looked upset.He looked over at Charli again.“Mia cara, I am so sorry for what the family has done to you.We should have checked on you in person.I don’t know why the Council never did, but the threats we found against you are very real.It saddens me to say this but I think it might be Uncle Ray himself.The more I think about it the more I realize that Ray thinks he can’t be found.But maybe, just maybe he thinks because the family has turned their back on you that you may not have family backing.Maybe he even thinks that you are here all alone.”
“But why?”Charli asked.“Why would he come after me?I don’t understand.”
Mario shrugged.“I’m not sure why.Maybe he thinks you shouldn’t take over?Or is it because he never gave you or Ben the money the family sent to him?And he wants to shut you up over that?I mean we haven’t seen him in years and now I am sure he has heard of us wanting you to come home.”He swung his gaze over to Ace and his brothers.“But I will just bet that he doesn’t know you have your own protection already in place.I don’t think he does, he wouldn’t be so brave or so stupid if he did.Stupid because he’s finally going to have to come out of his hidey hole to try to kill you, when you are with the very people he’s hiding from.”Mario nodded as he looked more upbeat and he actually chuckled now.“To think he fears the Warlords and then he comes waltzing in to get at Charlie and comes face to face with them?”
The brothers all stared at him as they didn’t join in his amusement.
“Maybe I can help you guys find that miserable low life before he comes here,” Mario suggested.
“And just why would you do that?”King asked him with a raised brow.“Why would a man like you go against his family to help us find Ray?He’s your uncle isn’t he?”
Mario nodded.“Si senor, he is and he is also Charli’s uncle.But Charli is my cousin and I was always fond of her.Ray has blemished the name of our family as well.He’s broken one of our laws by taking the money the family sent back here for Charli to pay for her keep.He knew better than to steal it like he did.Then he used it to set up his own gun and drug running?The family will never accept that, as they shouldn’t.Ray will pay the price for his thievery.Whether you guys catch him or we do, he will pay with his own blood.That will be how this ends.”
