Filed to story: Bound by Honor (Aria & Luca) Drama Story
Aria walked into the kitchen in that moment, but she stopped when she saw us. “Am I interrupting anything?” She glanced between Luca and me. “I thought we should start dinner. Father gave our maid the day off because he doesn’t want anyone in the house right now. That means we have to cook.”
“Let’s order pizza,” Luca said. He walked toward his wife and pulled her against him before kissing the top of her head. In the first few years of working for Luca, I’d have bet everything that he wasn’t capable of that kind of affection.
“Did your conversation have something to do with Lily?” Aria asked casually as she rifled through several flyers from pizza delivery services.
I didn’t say anything, and Luca shrugged. “Why do you ask?” he said.
Aria shook her head. “I’m not blind. Lily has been acting odd ever since she returned from her walk with Romero.” She fixed me with a warning stare. “I don’t want her alone with you.”
Luca’s eyebrows shot up. I knew I had to look pretty shocked too.
“Don’t give me that look. You know I like you Romero, but Lily has been going through so much recently and when it comes to you her brain stops working. I don’t want to have to worry about her.”
“So now you’re protecting her virtue?” I asked sarcastically.
“Hey,” Luca said sharply. “Don’t take that tone with her.”
Aria shook her head. “No, it’s okay. I’m not protecting her virtue. I just don’t want her to get hurt. You have younger sisters, don’t you want to keep them safe?”
“I do,” I said. “And I would never do anything that’ll hurt Lily. But I respect your wish. I won’t be alone with Lily from now on.” With a curt nod in Luca’s direction, I headed out of the kitchen. Aria’s words didn’t sit well with me. Luca had trusted me with her, though he was a possessive bastard, but Aria didn’t trust me with her sister. Of course, truth was I’d never been remotely interested in Aria. I wasn’t blind. She was beautiful, and definitely sexy, but I’d never fantasized about her, and not just because I knew Luca would cut my dick off if I made a move. Lily was a different matter. I’d imagined her naked body beneath me more than once and when I was close to her I wanted to press her against the wall and have my fucking way with her. That was a major problem. Maybe it was for the best that Aria’s orders were now another barrier between Lily and me.
CHAPTER FIVE
Liliana
Someone was shaking me. I opened my eyes but at first everything was blurry.
“Lily, get up. I think Mom’s going to die,” Aria said in a panicky voice. I jerked upright, my head spinning.
Aria was already on her way out of my room, probably to wake the others. One of us had always sat at Mother’s bed to make sure she was never alone. Tonight it had been Aria’s turn. I untangled myself from my blankets, slipped out of bed and hurried toward the bedroom at the end of the corridor. The smell of antiseptic and disinfectant greeted me even before I entered but my nose had grown used to the biting stench by now. Gianna was already inside, perched on the edge of the bed. Mother’s eyes were closed and for a moment I was sure I was too late and she’d already died. Then I saw the slow rise and fall of her chest. I approached the bed hesitantly. Gianna barely glanced my way. She was glowering at her lap. I wrapped my arms around her shoulders from behind and pressed our cheeks together.
“I hate this,” Gianna whispered.
“Where’s the nurse?”
“She left so we could say goodbye in peace. She gave Mother another dose of morphine so she could go without pain.”
Aria and Fabi came into the room. Fabi was wearing his brave face, and damn it, he looked so grown up. He was taller than Aria already. Luca stood in the corridor but didn’t come in, instead he closed the door, giving us privacy.
Mother’s breathing was low, barely noticeable. Her eyes flickered back and forth under her lids as if she was watching a movie in her head. It wouldn’t be much longer. Fabi grabbed the foot of the bed, his knuckles turning white. There were tears in his eyes but his face was like stone. I knew that look, that posture;
I turned away from him. Aria walked up to us. “How is she?”
I wasn’t sure how to answer that question.
Gianna glared. “Where’s Father? He should be here!” She’d spoken quietly but Aria and I still chanced a worried glance toward Mother. She didn’t need to get upset in the last moments of her life. My stomach constricted painfully and for a second I was sure I’d have to rush to the bathroom to throw up. Death was part of our life, especially when you grew up in our world. I’d attended countless funerals in the last few years but almost all of them had been from people I’d barely known.
“I don’t know,” Aria admitted. “I knocked at his door and even walked in but it didn’t look like he’d slept in his bed at all.”
Gianna and I exchanged a look. Was he really with one of his whores tonight? Mother had been feeling very weak yesterday so it didn’t come as a surprise that tonight could be the night. He should have stayed home to be there for her.
“Do you know where he is? You’ve been acting like his best buddy the last few days,” Gianna muttered with a scowl in Fabi’s direction.
He stiffened. “He doesn’t tell me where he goes. And I’m not his best buddy, but as his only son I have responsibilities.”
Gianna stood, and I had no choice but to let her go. “Oh my god, what kind of bullshit is that. I can’t believe it,” she hissed.
“Gianna,” Aria said in warning. “It’s enough. Not here, not right now.”
“It doesn’t matter that Father’s not here,” I said firmly. “We are here for her. We are the most important people in her life, not him.”
That was the last time we mentioned Father that night. Hours passed with Mother’s state staying the same, and occasionally my eyes fell shut, but then her breathing changed.
I sat up in my chair and took her hand. “Mom?” I asked.
Aria was holding her other hand. Gianna didn’t move from her spot in the armchair in the corner. Her legs were pressed up against her chest, her chin resting on her knees. Fabi had fallen asleep with his cheek on the wooden foot of the bed. I reached out and nudged him. He jerked up in his chair.
Mother’s eyelids fluttered like she was going to open them. I held my breath, hoping she’d look at us once more, maybe even say something but then her breathing slowed even more.
I wasn’t sure how much longer it took. I lost any sense of time as I monitored Mother’s chest, the way it barely moved, until it stopped altogether. Fabi ran out to get the nurse, but I didn’t need her to tell me what I already knew; our mother was gone. The nurse moved around us, and then with a sad nod, she disappeared again.
I let go of Mother’s hand, stood from my chair and stepped back. Aria didn’t move, still clutching Mother’s hand. One moment Mother was there and the next she was gone. Just like that a life ended, and with it the dreams and hopes of that person. Life was so short, any moment could be your last. Mother had told me to be happy, but in our world happiness wasn’t something that came by easily.