“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Bruni,” I said, offering a polite smile.
Her response made my smile freeze. “Oh, sweet girl. Don’t be so quick to judge.”
“Excuse me?”
“Not the best time for jokes, Mother. You’re embarrassing her.” Tony said.
Carmen ran a hand through her short, golden hair and looked at him, totally unfazed.
“Like she gives a fuck,” the blond man scoffed.
Tony leaned back in his chair, giving me a clear view of the two other men at the table.“You’ve already met my cousin, Brando. This is my uncle, Giuseppe, my mother’s brother. And next to him is my stepfather and uncle, Fernando… the head of the Bruni family.”
The way he said “the head” held a trace of sarcasm.
I did my best to keep a smile on my face, even though my stomach was in knots. “Nice to meet you, Brando and Giuseppe. And you too, Mr. Bruni.”
“You can call me Mr. Rossi,” Giuseppe said evenly, “and address Mr. Bruni as Don Fernando.”
My throat dried from the humiliation. I looked at Tony. Nothing, no reaction. Carmen looked indifferent, but at least Lucia had some sympathy in her eyes.
“Cousin, huh?” Brando broke the silence. “Your mom’s my mom too. So how exactly are we cousins?” He sounded clearly annoyed, any trace of the charming jokester was long gone.
Tony stayed calm. “And your father’s my uncle. That makes our cousin relationship much stronger than our brotherhood.”
A bitter smile tugged at Brando’s lips. “Here’s the heartless monster of Chicago. Welcome home, cousin. Not that I expect your stay to end well.”
Tony became deadly serious. “Mind your own business, and nothing bad will happen to you. At least for now.”
Brando downed his drink in one gulp. “I’m not so sure,” he retorted. “That depends on the wife-killer. After all, you’re in his territory now.”
For some reason, that made Tony flip out. “This is still Don Fernando’s realm. Carlo has no voice here.”
Brando shrugged, clearly satisfied he’d struck a nerve. “Not yet, anyway!”
“The next capo of the family hasn’t been chosen yet,” Giuseppeinterjected. “You’ve got as much of a shot as Carlo, or even more, considering you’re Don Fernando’s only legitimate son.”
The wordcapohit me like a slap. I was half Italian. Of course, I knew whatcapomeantand what came with it. Where there’s a capo, there’s a Mafia. Tony’s family wasn’t just wealthy or powerful. They were the Mafia.
I must’ve looked like I’d seen a ghost, because Brando didn’t miss it. He laughed, mean and loud. “Oh my God. Looks like someone forgot to tell his little bird he’s dropping her straight into the eagle’s nest.”
Then he turned to me. “Come on, little bird. Anyone who speaks a word of Italian knows the Bruni family runs the biggest Mafia operation in all of Europe.”
I stared at Tony, horrified, but he just casually motioned to the maid to refill the glasses. “My family’s business has nothing to do with me or Emily.”
“What about your business in Chicago?” Brando shot back. “I’m guessing she hasnoclue where those millions of yours come from.”
I was barely holding back tears, doing everything I could not to break down in front of this nightmare of a family. My focuswas still on Tony, silently begging him to say something, anything, to prove Brando wrong.
But what came out of his mouth wasn’t even close to what I’d hoped for. “She knows everything she needs to know. Now shut up and eat.”
Brando just smirked and sipped his drink.
Tony picked up his spoon. Lucia did the same, though she only pushed her food around. My lungs refused to work, like all the air had been sucked out of the room. No windows, no escape.
I pushed back my chair, barely on my feet when Tony’s steady voice rang out. “Sit down.”
“I’m not hungry.”
