I replay every excuse he’s sent me, again and again, until it all adds up and the truth is clear.
I was blind for years.
I tried to convince myself their differences were small and manageable. I never wanted to see how deep it really went.
To him, she was always something to be traded.
Negotiated.
Used.
I don’t know whether I truly didn’t see it, or whether I chose not to.
I was given choices, real or pretend, but still choices.
She never was.
I should have noticed the signs, but I was too wrapped up in my own battles to look closely.
As I stare at my unconscious sister, I know that if it were me in that bed, he would already be here.
That truth hurts more than anything else.
I failed her.
I should have seen the way he treated her. He isn’t abusive, or at least, I hope he isn’t. If I ever discover he laid a hand on my mother or my sister, I would kill him myself. Father or not.
But he never bothered to hide how much he favoured me. Or how little he cared for her.
He arranged Ophelia’s marriage to a man older than himself, and I knew even then it was a form of punishment.There were plenty of young, powerful Italian men within the mafia he could have chosen instead.
Again, I was blind to it.
Maybe it was too much to see at that age. Maybe I was already burdened with more than I could carry, and I chose not to look too closely.
Or maybe I simply didn’t want to know.
I would never have allowed that marriage. I promised my sister as much. I knew I was meant to take over the family one day, and I fought for time wherever I could find it. I convinced him to delay the wedding until after we finished the academy. It bought us a few years.
He was prepared to marry her off at eighteen.
Fuck.
It was all right in front of me, and I didn’t see it.
The door opens.
Luigi Bellanti steps inside at last, finally gracing us with his presence.
His eyes flick immediately to Markev’s arm around me, his jaw tightening.
But he stays quiet.
Then his eyes meet Arlo’s, shifting briefly to Ophelia before returning to him. If looks could kill, Arlo would already be on the floor.
They exchange a few quiet, loaded words before Arlo follows him out into the corridor.
I consider stopping them.
