CHAPTER 16: SEBASTIAN
1921 Words
"I’m here to see your grandmother.”
“My grandmother?” she screeched.
“You need to leave right now.” I ignored her.
“My father never mentioned Maribel had a granddaughter.”
“Probably because Maribel and I don’t tell suits like you our family business.”
Her grandmother hollered from down the hall to let us all in. I straightened a cuff link while she decided whether she wanted to obey.
“We’re coming in either way, Morina.” Her eyes narrowed, and I knew a snide comment was about to whip out of her mouth.
“I’m definitely regretting the decision I made last week now.” That would make two of us, piccola ragazza.
I didn’t say it out loud. There was no need to fan the fire. She backed away as I stepped in and took in the quaint home. A few plants lined the entryway, and straight ahead, in the kitchen, a scuffed wooden table told me that Maribel was hiding her wealth. If my family knew, then most cartels, gangs, and other families did too.
Yet, Maribel hid from someone in plain sight and that was her granddaughter. Morina waved at the table.
“Well, take a seat or don’t. Grandma will be out in a minute.”
“We don’t intend to stay long,” I mumbled, hoping she’d leave. I didn’t want to discuss business in front of her.
“You intend to take our money, don’t you?” She tilted her head, her big eyes narrowed on me.
“What?”
“You’re here to collect on the town’s payment for protection and allegiance to you, right?”
“I don’t think that’s a conversation you and I should be having.”
“My grandmother’s dying, Bastian.”
Her voice was quiet, whispering the pain of love for someone I’d never felt. She dragged a fingernail on the table and then over some beaded bracelets she wore.
“She’s leaving everything to me. Including her debts and alliances. So that sort of is the conversation we should be having considering I’ll be paying you soon.” I glanced at Dante who pinched the bridge of his nose and then ran a hand through his short curly hair.
“She’s smarter than I give her credit for, you know,” Grandma Maribel said as she appeared in the doorway.
The woman had changed into a black dress with intricate pleating and layers.
Dante and I scanned her immediately. She most definitely was carrying but I wasn’t sure exactly where—I doubted Dante was either.
“When I said I was sick, I meant very sick. Mo will take over business proceedings whether she likes it or not.”
“I don’t like it.” The younger woman’s eyebrows pulled together as she sighed and ran a hand through her long wavy hair.
“I didn’t ask to be a part of the ridiculous—”
“No one asks for their lives, Mo,” her grandmother cut her off.
“I didn’t ask for it either. You inherit it and you run with it.”
“I’m not made for”—she waved at me and Dante—“dealing with suits. I just want to run the food truck and …” She stared at her grandma.
Maribel’s eyes glistened, and she rubbed her chest. Her other hand held the back of one of the wooden chairs so tightly her knuckles turned white.
“It’s only a few other loose ends, Mo.”
“I’m sorry, Grandma. I’m sorry. It’ll be fine.” Morina went to her side and put an arm around her.
They stood with their heads bowed for a moment. I was born into the business. I didn’t have the love they shared. Yet, I understood Morina’s struggle.
I’d never wanted the business handed to me either. I’d taken what was mine in the end though. I accepted that I’d been born into a life of sin and greed. I figured I’d change what I couldn’t live with and learn to live with what I couldn’t change. I cleared my throat, and Morina glared up at me.
“You’ve done this to us.” I crossed my arms and studied her.
“Your disrespect and accusations aren’t exactly the way to start a welcome meeting.”
“You’re not here to be welcomed.” Morina leaned her head on her grandma’s shoulder and dragged her eyes over both of us.
“You don’t want a friend. You want a business transaction.” I rocked back on my heels.
She wasn’t wrong. Yet, most of my father’s business partners had taken kindly to our partnerships with no need to force their hands. I’d made a lot of alliances where my father couldn’t because I was strategic in dealing with families. I treated everyone as one of our own. Even if they weren’t.
“I’m under the impression you’d both like to continue a partnership with the Armanelli family.”
“Do we have a choice?” Morina raised an eyebrow. Her grandmother chuckled and patted her cheek.
“You’ll be fine when I’m gone, I think. So much fire in you, even when you let the wind and water take your mind away half the time.” I didn’t understand what she was alluding to.
Nor did I care. Morina needed to be present and available for business proceedings and that was it. Outside of that, I didn’t care what the girl did.
“Just make sure you hold up your end of the bargain, Maribel. I don’t know what’s going on with that food truck.”
“It will be done with. Everything else will stay the same if that’s done with, right? When I’m gone, Mo will need protection too.” Maribel raised her eyebrows, hopeful.
“I don’t need protection,” Morina pushed back.
“No one cares about me. I’m secure enough with the sheriff and deputies around town.” Grandma Maribel coughed and the sound almost shook the room.
Instead of clearing her throat, though, the congestion rattled around and caused a fit of sorts. She gasped for air as Mo pulled out the seat for her to take at the table. Her skin grayed, paler than before.
She gripped her granddaughter’s hand and wheezed out, “No one’s safe around here once I’m gone.” Morina glared at us like the coughing fit was our fault and rubbed Maribel’s back.
Dante spoke up from behind me.
“Can I get a cup of water for you, Maribel?” Pointing toward one of the pine cupboards, she nodded.
Dante always wanted a balanced atmosphere. He said when the energy of the room was off, explosive things happened. In a weird way, I agreed with him.
“We’ll secure the area, Maribel. Same stipulations.”
“It won’t be enough,” she murmured and that one soft comment had me sitting down at the table.
. I needed all the information if she expected me to help her.
“What won’t be enough?”
“Oh, your father knew as well as I did, once we were gone, you’d all have to fend for yourselves. You’re fine. Mo, here, she’s as flippant as a hurricane. She’ll go full-speed one day and slow the next.” Morina tried to argue, but Maribel pulled her wrinkled hand from Morina’s and shushed her.
“You know it’s true. I don’t care. We’ve always loved that about you. It’s why I paid the Irish for your food truck area. It was the one thing that could keep your attention.”
“f**k me,” I grumbled, and Dante sighed.
“What?” Morina whispered.
“You can’t mix allies like that,” I said, my voice ominous.
“It wasn’t meant to be found out.” She shrugged.
“Just a little payment for one food truck to stay open.”
“They respect you I’m guessing,” I offered, my mind working it all out.
“Of course. They do it for me because I’m old. I have that power. I’m meaner than Mo too. I’ll chop a hand off—”
“Grandma!”
“Oh, child. It’s just a hand!” Dante chuckled but I watched Mo.
She wasn’t laughing. Her blue eyes widened to saucers, and I knew right then she wasn’t made to lead an area of mine. She wasn’t like the women in the mob. She was young, fun-loving, and completely naive to violence.
“Anyway,” Maribel went on, “with me gone, she goes into witness protection, dies, or …”
The silence stretched, and I let it hang in the air waiting for her request. I was used to discomfort and the absence of noise. It heightened everyone’s awareness, made them really think about their intentions and contemplate their gravity.
“You could have her marry one of your top guys for awhile. Put her in a position of power so they fear harming her enough.”
“Are you kidding me?” Morina stood abruptly as the question whispered out of her.
Then it bellowed out.
“Are you kidding me, Grandma?”
“Oh, it would only be for a few years,” replied Maribel.
“It’d save your life!” I raised my hands before either of them got too angry or too worked up.
“I won’t put my guys in that sort of position.” I shook my head.
Her hand in marriage wasn’t an option.
“What sort of position?” Morina asked, ready to unleash her anger on anyone.
“Don’t, piccola ragazza.” My voice cut through the air before I had time to contain the outburst.
“I’m saving you from an arranged marriage.” Instead of her shrinking in fear, she seethed, lifting her chin.
“Your men would be happy to have me.” I looked her up and down.
“My men want women, not girls. You’re too young for most of our tastes.” Her jaw dropped.
She paced up to me as if ready to slap me. And I found I wanted it. The way her fury boiled over into my space and burned me in just the right way had to be wrong. Still, I wanted her. Shaking her head after a minute of us staring one another down, she paced away to the window and glared outside.
“What planet is in retrograde right now? There has to be something off today.” Her grandma groaned, and I heard Dante shift behind me.
“You must be a Sagittarius.” She smiled at him.
“That I am. And you must be a Leo. I get along with Leos.”
“I think we’re going to get along just fine.” Dante smiled like she was right.
Was she? Did I need to research the damn signs now? My neck muscles tensed, like a f*****g feral dog wanting to claim her all of a sudden.
“We’ll be in touch. Maribel, I expect this to be put in your final will. I don’t want anything left out that will cause me to do anything illegal.”
“A true Mafia gentleman.” Her grandmother laughed and stood from the table.
“It’ll all be there.” We didn’t stick around after that. We left with only Dante waving goodbye to them.
- Writer
