Page 119 of When She Falls (The Fallen)
“Sit down,” he barks.
Cleo and I exchange a look. She didn’t do anything wrong. Ludovico crossed a line and paid for it. Papà can’t blame his death on her.
“We’ll stand,” Cleo says.
“Suit yourself.” Papà plunks an empty glass on his desk and splashes some whiskey in it. He downs it in one go. “Ludovico was one of my top earners. An excellent asset. You knew this, Cleo. It’s why I wanted you to marry him.”
“Yes, I know. I was to be a reward for good work,” she retorts.
I close my eyes. My sister’s brave, but she can be so damn stupid. This is not the time to push Papà’s buttons.
“Tell me exactly what happened.”
“As soon as we got to the club, he wouldn’t leave me alone. He was grabbing me, Papà. Trying to pull me on the dance floor and grinding against me. It was disgusting.”
“You made a scene?”
“When he tried to kiss me, I punched him and stomped on his foot. That made him mad. He was about to hit me when Rafaele stopped him.”
Papà’s mouth becomes a thin line. “You provoked him.”
“Are you kidding? I didn’t provoke anything.”
“Don’t lie to me!” He jumps out of his seat, the chair scraping loudly against the floor. His eyes are wild with anger. “I know how you are, you ungrateful brat. You made him mad. If you’d just danced with him like he wanted you to, all of this could have been avoided. Instead, you had to humiliate him in front of nearly everyone important in the family. What the fuck am I going to do with you? No one will want to touch you with a ten-foot pole after this fucking mess.”
Cleo snarls. “Good. I don’t want to marry any of the losers who work for you.”
Papà lunges toward Cleo, and I put myself between them. “Papà, Cleo doesn’t mean it! She’s shaken up from last night. I was there. I saw how drunk Ludovico was. Cleo didn’t provoke him.”
Cleo sucks in a breath like she’s about to say something else, even though anyone in their right mind would know to stay quiet.
He’s never hit her. She doesn’t know what he’s capable of.
I speak before she gets a chance to make things even worse. “Papà, let her go lie down. She watched Rafaele kill somebody. She was right there. It was horrible.”
Papà’s nostrils flare, but he seems to consider my words.
Somehow, Cleo manages to keep her mouth shut for the few seconds it takes him to give a slight nod. “Fine. Get out of my sight.”
My sister flies out of the room, and Papà’s gaze slams down on me.
I do my best to keep my voice steady. “Rafaele didn’t have to kill him. He pulled that knife out of nowhere and plunged it into Ludovico’s eye. You can’t blame Cleo for Rafaele’s short fuse.”
Although itwasstrange. Rafaele doesn’t strike me as someone to act on impulse. Did he have a history with Ludovico?
Or was it seeing Cleo getting hurt that made him snap?
He’s always been a little off around her, hasn’t he?
Papà shakes his head, the tension loosening from the cords in his neck. “I didn’t expect that from Rafaele.”
“Maybe you don’t know him as well as you think you do.” The words are out of my mouth before I realize they sound like an accusation.
Papà’s eyes narrow. “I know everything I need to know to be confident he’ll make a good don. Don’t start with me on that again, Gemma. The matter is settled. The Garzolos will be in good hands. You know I always do my best to take care of our family.”
I clench my fists, feeling a wave of anger wash over me. The way he lies is outrageous, because he somehowbelievesthe lies. He really thinks he’s doing what a good don would do.
I’m good at keeping my mouth shut around Papà, but after last night, my nerves are fried. The words are right there on the tip of my tongue.
