Filed to story: Submitting to My Bestie’s Daddy Read Online >>???
“Yeah, I get that, I just think maybe him bossing you around is a sore spot for you, and it might have made you jump to conclusions a little bit.”
She had a point. It was obvious that my history with Elio made me feel touchy about the way he talked to me. Even if he was just trying to keep me safe, I couldn’t stand it when he told me what to do. And I especially hated it when he acted like he could just override my decisions.
“Maybe you’re right,” I admitted.
I realized that I desperately hoped she was right. The idea that Elio was just being overly cautious was a lot more palatable than my sneaking suspicion that there was something huge that he was hiding from me. I sighed, trying to convince myself that I was overreacting, but feeling uncertain.
“Alright, well I better head home. I know he’s worried right now,” I said.
Anna followed me to the door and gave me a hug goodbye.
“Alright, go see your boyfriend,” she teased.
I couldn’t help but smile at the word.
Back at home, I let myself in the side door. I could hear my mom and Elio talking, so I followed their voices to the study. They didn’t hear me, and it was obvious they were discussing the events of the day. I decided to stay quiet and see if I could figure out what the hell was going on.
“Alessandro said it’s definitely Antonio,” Elio said.
I wondered who Antonio could be. Was that the competing real estate agent who had started the fire? Why in the world would Alessandro know the guy? And why would my mom care about that at all?
“How can he be certain?” my mom asked.
“He said he has some guys who have been tracking Antonio for years, trying to get a solid lead on him,” Elio said. “They have reason to believe he’s come over here to stop our family from growing the mafia business.”
What the fuck? Did he just say mafia? Were Elio and Alessandro in the mafia?
“I hate that he’s here. I’ve spent so long shielding Cat from that world. I thought after so long, we were safe from it all,” my mom responded to Elio.
At that, I couldn’t stand staying in the shadows any longer. My own mom had been hiding this from me?
I walked into the study, practically shaking with anger.
“What the hell is going on?” I demanded.
As I had expected, they both began stammering excuses, trying to cover up what they had been talking about.
“Just stop it!” I yelled, “I’m tired of all the lies! You’re the two people I trusted most in the world, and you’ve been lying to me all this time! I knew something was going on, but you just treated me like I was stupid instead of trusting me enough to tell me the truth!”
“Caterina, calm down right now,” my mother said sternly, but I was on a roll.
“I will not calm down until I get some goddamn answers! I am sick and tired of being treated like a child. This all ends right now. You both tell me what you know, right now!” I knew I was screaming, but I didn’t care.
I stood in front of them, my chest heaving with emotion. I looked back and forth between the two of them and saw the way they exchanged a glance. My mother nodded at Elio, and he stood up.
“Cat, why don’t you sit down? This is going to be a lot,” he said in that maddeningly calm voice.
I sat down, even though what I really wanted to do was stomp my foot and cross my arms stubbornly. I knew that wouldn’t help my case.
“You know your father was murdered. But you don’t know who did it or why. We’ve kept the truth from you all these years, and I have to say, I’m so sorry for keeping it a secret, but we thought it would help you stay safe. We know exactly who killed your father, and we know why it happened. It’s because my family, the Valentino family, runs the Italian mafia. They’re extremely powerful, which has gained them the attention of a lot of power-hungry people. My dad was in charge of it in Italy, but he quit that life so my mom and I could lead a normal one. My cousin Tallon became the new Don, but he eventually quit, too. Alessandro is currently in charge.”
He took a breath. “Your father Vinny was Tallon’s best friend and most trusted advisor. He was a part of the mafia life, but he was killed because of his relationship with Tallon.”
He paused, checking to see if I was taking it all in. I was stunned into silence. For a second, I wondered if I was going into shock. I could feel my heart beating abnormally fast and my hands were clammy. How could they have kept such a major part of my identity a secret all these years?
“Your dad was killed by a man named Antonio,” he continued. “Now, the reason why this all matters is because Antonio was the one behind the warehouse fire that Alessandro called me about this morning. Antonio is back, and I’m terrified for your safety. Your mother and I have worked so hard to keep you safe all these years, but now I’m afraid that Antonio could be closing in, and you just might be his target.”
A cold shot of fear went through my heart. No wonder Elio had been so desperate to get my mom and me to stay with him. But why hadn’t he just told me the truth? Surely there was no reason to continue to keep it from me now that I was an adult.
Had Elio and my mom planned on keeping this all a secret for the rest of their lives? It felt like the only reason they had bothered to tell me was because I had backed them into a corner.
A complicated mix of betrayal, fear, and shock swirled through me. I stared up at Elio, then turned to see my mom. Tears were streaming silently down her face as she looked back at me.
At that moment, I realized that I had to get away from them. I just couldn’t stand to look at either of them for one second longer, knowing what they had kept from me.
I stood up from the couch and ran out of the room, both of them calling out for me as I left.
*Caterina*
I managed to hop in my car and drive off before my mom or Elio could stop me. I sped away, not sure where I was going, my mind racing through my entire life, wondering how it could be possible that they had kept such a massive secret from me.
dad was in the mafia?
Elio’s entire family ran the mafia?
How could it be possible?
But when I really considered it, everything started to make a lot more sense. The family connections in Italy, the extreme wealth, the way that my mom had always glossed over questions I had about my dad… all of it was evidence that something weird had been going on, but I had never really questioned it.
I had never thought that the two people closest to me would be keeping such a huge secret. Why would I? The turmoil in my heart was killing me. I couldn’t stand to be alone any longer.
Even though I had literally just left her house, I called Anna. She picked up right away, probably waiting for me to call with an update about Elio.
“Hey, girl, what’s up?” she asked.
I wanted to break down into tears the second I heard her voice, but I just barely managed to keep it together.
“Can I come over?” I asked, my voice wobbly.
It was obvious that she could tell I was almost to my breaking point. “Of course! Come on over, I’ll get out the ice cream!”
Luckily, I was only a couple minutes from her apartment, so I was able to get there before totally breaking down. But the second I walked in the door and she looked at me with concern, I burst into tears. She rushed over and wrapped her arms around me.
“Oh no, what happened?” she asked.
“My whole life has been a lie,” I sobbed.
She was visibly confused, but like the great friend she was, she held her questions and led me to the couch, letting me get my emotions out before asking me to explain everything to her.
I sat and cried in her arms for a few minutes, taking comfort in the fact that at least she had never lied to me the way my mom and Elio had.
“Alright, what’s going on?” she asked once my sobs had subsided for a few minutes.
“You’re never going to believe what I’m about to tell you,” I said, “Hell, I’m not even sure how much I believe. I mean, it’s genuinely crazy.”