Chapter 20 - Forgivness
1355 Words
Angel walked down the hallway to her office, her pencil skirt giving her the bit of power that she was feeling. She had no clue how to address her dad, but she knew that she would have to. And now, after resting for a day and letting her mind rest, she knew she would have to say something. Hopefully privately but she wasn’t above making her dad a public issue among the men either.
She sat down at her desk and took a sip of her coffee before starting up her computer. She had some final details that she needed to go over before she dealt with her dad though. Once her computer was going, she logged in to her files, pulling up some statements for the clubs. After 15 minutes though, someone knocked on her door, causing her to look up.
“Dad,” she said, looking at the sheepish man standing here.
“May I come in Angelina?” She really wanted to say no because she wasn’t ready to deal with him but instead she waved her hand for him to enter.
“Please have a seat.”
“Thank you.” He unbuttoned his jacket before he sat down. “The most important thing that any Don can do is keep their cool and their temper, when they can. There is a time to unleash it and a time to not, to hold it in for the greater good.”
“Yes, I believe this why my sweet voice is very deceitful behind the powerhouse that I really am,” she told him, to which he nodded.
“And for that, you would be right. Many people underestimate you, thinking you are not fit for the job at hand. And many would stand up to you, wanting to take you down and those same people would not get very far because you are ruthless and cunning.”
“But?”
“There is no but Angelina. You are everything that a damn good Don needs to be and everyone should respect you for that purpose alone. You won’t let the family down and you won’t destroy it.”
“Everyone?”
“Yes, and that goes for me.” And there lies the reason he was here. Not that she thought she wouldn’t hear from him, she just thought it would take a bit for the man to come to her.
“And what about you, dad?”
“I was the worst of the lot.” He looked down at his hands that were lying in lap as if he needed to find the words to say. “You know I’m not very good at apologizing, it’s not in my nature to feel bad.”
“Yes, I’m more than aware.”
“You won’t make this easy, will you?” he questioned, looking back up at her again.
“I’m sorry, was I supposed to? You know you f****d up dad: you don’t need me to tell you. Nor do you need me to tell you that if that had been anyone else, and that includes my family, I would have cut out their God damn tongue. You one and only saving grace is that you are my dad!”
“I know, I know, and I am sorry, bambina. But there is something I did far worse than disrespect you like that I’m not sure you could ever forgive me.” Okay, sure, he was bad, but it wasn’t like a couple of ‘sorrys’ and ‘love you’ wouldn’t make things better.
“I don’t understand….”
“I saw you as my little girl needing help, not as a Don who is smart enough and powerful to run this city with a tight fist. And that is the worst thing I could have done. That goes beyond disrespecting and I can promise you, Angelina, I would never do that again. I am so very sorry.” Angel sat there, quite stunned, her mind taking a moment to process everything he just confessed.
“You mean you saw your daughter not the Don, because I’m a female? If Ric was the Don, you wouldn’t have done this; regardless that it was your child?” At his nod, she stood up and walked to the window. She wasn’t aware that it was his thoughts behind it but now she hurt on a whole new level. “Do you think I can’t do this?”
“No!” She heard him jump up and come up behind her, tentatively resting his hands on her shoulders. “You will be amazing. And you are the only one who could do this. Ric is strong and most anyone would follow him anywhere, but he is too impulsive and always has been, and he knew that. But you look at everything; you get the bigger picture and try to put things together to get the job done right.
“After you left, I knew what I had done. I talked to Ric, hoping he would never make the same mistake I did. And I think, like you, he was shocked that I could do something like that. And he was right, I was too. I thought I never would, that when I picked you to follow that I would always see the Don. But it was the hardest thing not to see that but see my girl.” Angel swallowed hard. She knew that she should forgive the man; he was her dad, but how? Would he always be like this? And it wasn’t as if she was even going to him, she was just being respectful.
“I appreciate you coming in; I know that for you, this was one of the hardest things to do.”
“It’s never easy to ask your daughter for forgiveness.”
“No that it isn’t.” She finally turned around and looked at him.
“As your Don, I forgive you but highly suggest that you never do that again, or think twice before you do.”
“But?”
“But as your daughter, padre, this is not a simple forgiveness. I can’t just do that. You really hurt me and to know that you saw me as a powerless female rather than as someone else, that’s even worse. I love you dad, and always will, but I can’t say those words right now.” Her dad sighed but nodded.
“The best of the Don’s knew how to separate the two.” Angel looked at him and smiled.
“I am trying.”
“I know. Ric also told me, after her got a call, that you had some issues.” Angel sighed and walked back over to her desk, pulling out the chair but not sitting.
“I was….a little under focus and ran out of gas in a bad part of town.”
“Hence the arm?” Angel frowned, looked at her arm that was covered by her jacket and then back at him. “One, you never keep your jacket on while you are at the office. And two, you flinched when I touched you.”
“Fine, I might have been hit by some gang bangers. I managed to get them but still suffered some wounds myself.”
“Ric’s guy found the bodies, but not you.”
“I, uh, knew where Damian lived and thought he would be able to help me without me going to the hospital.”
“I can’t say I like it, but I’m glad you’re okay. And I feel even worse, but I know,” he said, raising his hand to stop her from saying anything, “that won’t make any difference.”
“No, not at all, sorry dad.”
“So,” her dad said, leaning back in the chair and crossing his ankle over his leg, “want to explain why you need my son?” Angel looked from her dad to the man who had just come into her doorway.
- Writer
