Page 2 of Love Above Law

My best friend—Chris.

I should have felt more pain in the fact that the woman I loved had cheated on me, but I didn't. I was more hurt by the fact my best friend, my partner—my brother, had stabbed me in the back. In the end, what did that say about mine and April's relationship? I left that day without saying a word to either one of them and never looked back.

I feel the start of a headache at the base of my skull as I turn onto the street my parents live on. Pulling into the driveway of my childhood home, I try to shake away all the bullshit wrapped around my head, grab the wine and head to the front door. The moment I step inside the smells of Sunday dinner engulf me, and I feel myself relax just a little. I find my dad in his usual spot sitting in his recliner in front of the TV watching the football game and my Nonno napping in his favorite chair next to the window.

"Who's winning?" I pause and watch the kicker on the opposing team miss the field goal.

"We are; by one touchdown, and we still have forty minutes left in the game. Grab us both a beer after you've seen your mom and watch the rest of the game with me." He finally looks up from the TV after calling bullshit on the call the referee just made against our team. "Damn referees have been making shitty calls against us all night. You look tired and pissed. Work?" his observation is usually accurate when it comes to my moods. He knows the nature of the beast so no need in lying about it.

"New case. Let me go grab those beers, and I'll join you," I tell him. My dad doesn't say any more about it as I turn and head toward the kitchen.

"Sneak me one of those cannolis will you?" My dad tries to whisper, so my mom doesn't hear him.

As soon as I appear in the kitchen, my baby sister Lily pounces me. "Lex!"

I embrace her. "Hey, little bit."

She pulls back, looks up at me and scrunches her nose. "What wrong?" All my sisters stop what they are doing and hone in on me. Great. Don't let them smell your fear. Out of five kids, I'm the oldest, and I have four sisters. Francesca, Viola, Ariana, and Lily. The women in this family have a sixth sense for things that are none of their business. And know when you're trying to bullshit them. Their interrogation tactics are better than mine.They won't stop until you give in. I walk over and set the wine I'm carrying on the counter next to the platter of cannolis and go to grab one, but my mom stops me. "Spill the beans if you want that cannoli."

Shit. Do I want one bad enough? Is nabbing one for my dad worth it? "I ran into April at Frank's."

"That bitch," my sister Vi mumbles under her breath as she takes dinner out of the oven.

"Need me to take care of the skank?" Ari says never taking her eyes from her phone.

I have to laugh. "And what is it you plan on doing to her?"

Her shoulder shrugs. "The less you know, the better."

Turning around, I open the refrigerator door and grab a couple of beers. I get it; my sisters loath April for what she did. With them, once you hurt the family, you get no second chance. I hear the front door open and seconds later my nephew and niece Luca and Emma barge into the kitchen. My mom grabs them each a sweet treat off the platter, kisses them on the forehead and they leave just as quick as they came.

"How is it I have to spill my guts to get something to eat, and those turds get grub for free?" I pop the top on my bottle and take a drink. My mom looks at me and does not explain because she doesn't need to. Her house her rules. End of story.

"That girl stopped me in the grocery store the other day. Wanted to talk to me as if she didn't stomp all over my boy's heart. She wanted to know how you were and if she could have your phone number. Good thing she doesn't speak Italian because I had a few choice words for her before I kindly told her I didn't wish to speak with her," my mom chops tomatoes and tosses them into the salad bowl.

"What's all the fuss about in here?" Fran finally makes her way into the kitchen I desperately want to escape.

"April cornered Lex at Frank's this evening. Whatever she had to say to him left him in a bad mood, and we are still waiting for him to tell us," my baby sister Lily tells her. Fran looks at me and waits to see if I'm going to divulge any more information.

"You ladies leave my Principino alone. Stay out of his business and stop picking at him like vultures. Shew," my sweet Nonna shuffles into the kitchen behind her walker. This may be my mother's home but Nonna is the matriarch of our family, and she rules with an iron fist.

Leaning down, I kiss her cheek. "How are you today, Nonna?"

My Nonna is everything to me. I've always had a special connection with her. She also happens to save me from the wolves from time to time. Her small hand pats my cheek, and she looks at me. "I am good, sweet boy. Go sit with your father and your Nonno and leave the kitchen to us women." She studies me a moment longer. "You remember that everything in life good or bad happens for a reason. You are being prepared for much better things. They call it the past for a reason, Principino." Her warm smile makes me smile back at her.

"Now, go get you a cannoli and take one to your father too." Nonna gives her order. With a grin on my face, I look at my sisters and my mom. They all know I'm Nonna's favorite. With beers in one hand and cannolis in the other, I walk out of the kitchen.

2

Leyna

Glancing at the clock on the wall, I've concluded Thomás is not going to show for his tutoring session. Thomás is a thirty-five-year-old father of three. He works two jobs to support his wife and three children. I have been teaching him to speak English for the past two months.

Cuba, specifically, Havana is a huge tourist attraction. The jobs at hotels and restaurants pay a little more than others and knowing English will almost guarantee you a position. Thomás told me his primary goal is to get hired on at one of the finer five-star resorts, so he can ditch the two positions he has now. Knowing Thomás and how seriously he takes his lessons, I know for a fact he has a good reason for not showing up today.

I love what I do. In fact, I almost went to school to become a teacher. But when I was eighteen, I began teaching a friend of mine English. Before I knew it, people were coming at me left and right for lessons. That was five years ago. I'm twenty-three now. It's my brother Gabriel I owe everything to. When I was fifteen, he bought me one of those DVD sets that teach you how to speak another language.

Thinking about my hermano causes a wave of sadness to wash over me. My father fled Cuba when I was a young girl taking Gabriel with him. I'll never forget the morning Mamá, and I woke to find Papi and Gabriel gone. My father had left my mother a note. Fourteen years of marriage and my father leaves a note. To this day I have never quite forgiven him for what he did to my family—for splitting us up. My father's poor choices lead to a shattered marriage and a broken family. My mother cried every day for a year after Papi left. Not only did she lose a husband, but she lost her son. For me, my only heartbreak was for my brother. I was too angry with my father to give him my tears; he didn't deserve them.