HIS BITTER BETRAYAL (Excerpt) Angelo

                            "I'm the fucking boss. My word is the law now. If I decide to cancel these Sunday dinners, who has the guts to stop me?" Eugenio and Sergio glance at each other and then burst out laughing. Fuckers. They work for me now and I sign their checks but they have the nerve to laugh in my face. We'll see how much longer they'll continue doing that. Especially after I deduct their payment for being insolent little shits "While you're busy laughing, just remember that I'm the one in charge of your bank accounts" 

"No offense, boss but this isn't something you can decide on your own" 

"Why the fuck not? I hate attending these things" they're just an excuse for the elders to rip into me. They'll find the smallest faults and pretend that if they were in my position, they could have done better. Truth is, they don't know shit. They don't know what it's like to make a decision that could impact thousands of lives. When papa was still alive, I used to admire how he ran everything. He made it seem so easy and effortless. As if anyone could take over and still be able to control the clan and our associates while making new alliances and keeping our family happy. Now that I'm in his position, I can see how not effortless it is. And the last thing I need is people telling me what to do. 

"Good luck convincing madre," Sergio says pouring himself another glass of the Macallan. It's his third glass 

"Dude, go easy on that shit. It's fucking expensive" 

"You're the boss now. You can afford a hundred more bottles. Don't be one of those stingy bastards" 

"Is still expensive, you asshole" 

"Any word from Lia?" Eugenio asks trying to distract me. We grew up together so they know me well and I don't have to keep up appearances when it's just us. Giulia has been MIA for five months now and it's freaking me out. I know what she does. Sometimes, she has to go undercover and can't contact anyone until her mission is complete. But our relationship is different. She used to leave me messages from strange numbers to say she was fine. A simple 'Fine, G'. She'd never tell me where she was or what she was doing and I was fine with that. I respected it. But five months without a word from her? I have a bad feeling about this. 

The good thing about Emiliana taking over from Mama is that she's flexible. I can be open with her in a way I never was with our mother. She has people secretly looking for Giulia and it's the only reason I haven't sent the twins after her yet. 

"No. Do you guys think you can find her?" 

"Piece of cake. We'll bring her straight to you. Let's go, Sergio" 

Motherfuckers, do I look that dumb? 

"Stop right there!" 

"Any more instructions boss?" 

"You can leave tomorrow morning after dinner" 

"Saw right through that one. Huh" 

I glance at my watch. It's almost time for the damned dinner to start. Emiliana and Dante should be here. Pushing my chair back, I leave my office with twins flanking my sides. Just as we're passing by the front door, it opens and Emiliana walks in. I make a beeline for Camilla, plucking her out of Dante's arms. Her tiny hands wrap around my neck as she shrieks excitedly. 

"She's mine now. If anyone asks where she is, tell them you don't know" I declare burying my nose in her neck. I've never met a more open and accepting child like my niece. With the way she beams at everyone she meets, Dante has his work cut out for him. I pity the guy. 

"Where's Mama?" 

"Somewhere in the kitchen or the backyard ordering people around" 

"Damn it. We were hoping you'd be halfway through dinner but you haven't even started?" 

"Let's go and see the newest addition to your room, Principessa," I tell Cami ignoring Emiliana and heading upstairs. We added a wall aquarium this week and knowing her, she's going to be over the moon about it. The twins and Dante follow us to the room where we spend more than an hour entertaining Cami. Somewhere along the way, Eugenio accepted that he never had a chance with my sister and stopped glaring at her husband whenever they were in a room together. They even agreed to do a job for Dante once, although they made him pay double what they always charge. 

Mama has to come get us herself and takes our only excuse for staying in the room. Leaving us to follow them. Like always, the elders pull me aside after dinner and give me a piece of their mind. I pretend to listen to them while my mind is on Giulia. I wonder what she's doing. Why is she quiet? Should I force Emiliana to tell me where she is? But if Mama finds out, she'll only make things hard for her. As the boss, even my mother has to show me some respect. There are things she can't force me to do. Like, marrying a woman of her choice. But she could make the woman I love disappear. Fuck, is that what she did? Why didn't I think of that? 

According to her, I should marry someone with connections that'll help our business grow. As an orphan, Giulia doesn't qualify to be my wife. I wouldn't put it past my mother to hide her or ask her to leave. The second I get away from the elders, I pull Emiliana aside and interrogate her. 

"Are you sure Giulia went on a mission?" 

"Yes. Why would I lie to you about that?" 

"Because Mama put you up to it? I hope you're not lying to me, Em. You know how important she is to me and if anything happened to her, I will never forgive you" 

"Look, you're not the only one who's worried about her. We have people looking for her too. She should have..." 

"What?" I grab her shoulders, stopping short of shaking her "Why did you stop? What should she have done?" 

Emiliana sighs "She should have come back already. Two months ago" 

"And you're telling me this now?" I bellow, drawing everyone's attention. When Mama starts towards us, I spin around and leave. 

Two months. 

Fuck.

Shit, shit, shit. 

Something's wrong. I can feel it in my gut. The woman I know is diligent. She sticks to timelines as if her life depends on them. Or maybe she just doesn't want to disappoint Mama. Point is, Giulia is the kind of person that would arrive on a date an hour early. She hates being tardy and tries her very best not to make mistakes. If she was supposed to come back two months ago and didn't, then something is terribly wrong. I send the twins out the next morning. Telling them to retrace her steps and find out where she is. 

But as it turns out, they didn't have to find her. She shows up at a charity event clinging to Gerardo Di Toro. A well-known businessman that even papa has worked with in the past. He owns one of the largest pharma companies in the country. Last I heard, he was abroad looking to open more subsidiaries there. When did he get back? And why the fuck is he parading my woman around as if she belongs to him? 

"Calderone, my condolences for your father's passing and congratulations for taking over," he says holding out his hand. I shake it, grinding my teeth together to stop myself from breaking his fingers. First of all, it's been three years since papa died. And secondly, 

"Are you going to introduce me to your date?" 

"Oh, look at me, where are my manners? This lovely woman is Serena Di Toro. My wife. Bambino, say hello to Mr. Calderone" 

Hold up, did he just say, wife? 

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I couldn't resist leaving this here. Don't murder me for teasing you guys and be patient. Angelo and G are on their way.