“That house is a hell that even you couldn’t possibly imagine, because you didn’t get even a taste of the abuse she faces,” Rayna seethes, never taking her eyes off Melani. “And still, youknew.You knew the way your mother picked and prodded at her. You knew the way she treated Sienna, and here I am finding out you’ve made no effort to get her out.”
Throwing a hand in my direction, she continues to yell, “Matteo didn’t even know she existed, and from what Yordan says, he knows everyone! You could have asked your husband to go get her out, and youdidn’t.”
“Is this true?” Dad demands, turning his attention toward Emilio and his wife. My brother looks utterly fucking confused and almost hurt, while Melani looks like she’s seen a ghost.
When Melani doesn’t answer, Rayna does it for her.
“Elio has been checking in on her for years, and she hasn’t said a word to him about how bad it really is there. She hasn’t said anything because she doesn’t want to burden this family, or her own. She’s been permanently altered by them, and she won’t tell Elio because she still loves her parents enough to not want them dead.”
“Nico, let’s go,” Elio barks, standing up from the table with a violent push. His chair stumbles behind him.
“Nico?” Melani gasps, finally speaking up. “Donothurt my family, Elio!”
“Get fucked, Melani,” he growls.
Nico gets up, a cold calculation filling his eyes as he moves toward Elio.
Melani makes a noise, like she’s going to protest further.
“I’m not going to slaughter them becausesheasked,” Elio states roughly. “But the fact that you care more about the state of their well-being than hers makes me tempted to disregard her wishes entirely.”
Apollo doesn’t leave room for any more discussion, standing up as he pulls out his phone. “I’ll call Abramo. Don’t land in his territory without my text confirming you’re free to.”
Nico nods, and Elio grunts, “Got it.”
“Well.” Dad clears his throat, watching them leave. “I believe dinner has run its course. Feel free to finish up at the table or in whatever room you’d prefer. I’m going to make a few calls.”
Melani flees the table without a word, Emilio follows her, and Rayna drops down into her seat, exhaling hard. She steals Apollo’s unfinished wine and chokes it down, looking up at the ceiling.
Twenty minutes later, things have calmed down, and I’m not sure what to do with all the information that came out tonight. I was hoping for lighthearted bickering, some teasing, and some drama. Not life-altering news that throws the family into tension. Not that I blame Rayna, it seems like she was dying to get that out, and apparently, Elio only knew that Sienna existed. Not that she was being essentially tortured daily.
One thing is for sure, I want to talk to Anya.
Matteo
Dinner was not what I expected.
Anya
Do you want to talk about it?
I breathe out, smiling at her kind question. Deciding to take a risk, I type out my next message and hit send before I can rethink it.
Matteo
Can you FaceTime?
Chapter Ten
Anya
Matteo
Can you FaceTime?
My breath catches, reading the new message over and over. FaceTime…a video chat with Matteo. Why does that seem so intense? We’ve already met in person, surely a video call can’t be more nerve-racking than that.
Matteo
