But this is between them. I will defend my sister with everything I have, but I can see it too, Arlo loves her.
I know she loves him too. Or maybe that’s wishful thinking, because I want happiness for her so desperately it hurts. But I’ve seen the way she looks at him, and eyes don’t lie.
She didn’t confide in me, not that I expected her to. After everything that happened, after the weight that’s been thrown at us for years, slowly pulled us apart.
If Arlo truly wants my sister, then he needs to fight for her.
I turn back to Ophelia and take her hand.
“Come back,” I whisper, pressing a kiss to her knuckles.
“I need you, Lia.”
Chapter 48
Octavia
I sit opposite my father in his office in Florence, surrounded by marble and dark wood. I look at him and realise, with a chill that settles deep, that I don’t know this man at all.
My sister’s accident destroyed whatever illusions I had of him. I see him clearly now, for who he has always been.
“We need to talk,” I say.
He nods, impatient already.
“First, Ophelia,” I begin.
He doesn’t let me finish. “Your sister is fine. It was a simple accident. She’s alive. We have more important matters to discuss.”
My chest tightens dangerously, but I don’t let it show.
I ball my hands into fists beneath the table, my nails biting into my palms, keeping me in control through the pain. “I don’t like how easily you dismiss this.”
“I’m not dismissing anything,” he replies coolly. “Accidents happen. She was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“She was in a coma,” I snap. “For days.”
His jaw tightens. “I am well aware of that.”
“Then why did it take you so long to be there?” My voice trembles despite my effort to control it. “Why weren’t you at her bedside when you knew she was fighting for her life? Why didn’t you even let mamma call? I’m not talking about visiting, just a damn phone call.”
He offers no reply.
But she did call, eventually.
I don’t know whether it was Arlo or the Bratva, but I know they have leverage over my father.
Not only did Arlo force him to dissolve the marriage he’d arranged for Ophelia with that repulsive old bastard, he replaced it entirely, with himself.
And after that, my mother was suddenly allowed to call. I know that wasn’t a coincidence.
“There was nothing I could do,” my father says after a moment. “I had more important matters. The family relies on me. The shipments—”
“More important than your daughter?” My voice rises before I can stop it. “More important than knowing she was safe? That she was being treated properly?” I lean forward. “You left her. What if I hadn’t been there? What if Arlo hadn’t been there?”
I inhale slowly. “Do you want to know what I finally realised?” I say, my voice tight. “You care about me. Why, I don’t know. You even love mamma, in your own warped way. But you despise my sister. You’ve always held something against her, resentment, bitterness, whatever you want to call it.”
My jaw tightens. “You’re just a toxic, egocentric—”
