The Mafia’s Forbidden Desire

ROSALINDA.

“How was it? I bet you had a blast.” Sofia sneered, walking past us.

She was the first person Carlo and I encountered upon returning home after a long day at the park, and I was sick and tired of the games she had been playing. It was high time we talked about it and smoothed things out. I wouldn’t want Papà asking me the same question he asked this morning again.

“Sofia.” I called, my brows furrowing, and she turned to look at me. “We need to talk.”

“Talk about what exactly?” She raised a brow.

“Please.” I added. “In my room, now.”

“I’m not interested in anything you want to say, but okay.” She rolled her eyes as she began to walk in the direction of my room.

“Mommy. Is Aunt Sofia upset?” Carlo asked, and I shook my head slightly, a small smile touching my lips.

“She is not. Why don’t you go and play with Joy?” I suggested when I sighted Joy.

Joy smiled approvingly, opening her arms wide for Carlo to run into, and he did just that.

When I got to my room, Sofia was sitting on the bed with her legs crossed.

“So. What did you want to talk about?” She asked me as I approached her.

“This morning, Papà asked why you and I have been acting strangely lately.” I told her as I sat beside her. A surprised look flashed across her face in reaction to what I said.

“I don’t like the way things are between us, Sofia.” I continued softly, placing my hands on hers. As expected, she swiftly yanked her hands away from mine.

“You caused it.” She accused, adjusting on the bed.

I knew denying my attraction to Antonio was a waste of time because it was evident. My desire for him was something she had happened to witness a number of times. Instead, I opted for the truth and was transparent with her.

“Believe me, Sofia, I know you think Antonio and I are having an affair or something, but that’s not true. I hate to admit that I am attracted to him, but I am. And I would never allow myself to give in to temptation. I hate myself for ever being attracted to him, and believe me, if there was anything I could do to get rid of the attraction, I would. I hate how I feel. It shouldn’t have been him, Sofia. It shouldn’t have been him.” Tears started streaming down my cheeks as a turmoil of emotions started whirling within me.

“Rosa.” Her eyes brimmed with empathy.

“I am sorry, Sofia. I’m so sorry.” I continued. “I never wanted any of this to happen. You are my sister, and I love you so much.”

“I shouldn’t-”  She paused for a few seconds before continuing. “I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did, Rosa. I should be the one apologizing. It’s just that there’s something else bothering me, and I’m unable to process my emotions, so I just allowed my darker side to overtake and control me. I’m sorry for calling him your ‘fuck buddy’ yesterday. After seeing Ruby at his place, I thought she was your intermediary or something, so I just lost it. I didn’t know I was wrong.”

“Wait. What?!” I exclaimed, my forehead creasing. “You saw Ruby at his place? What was she doing there?”ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

“You didn’t know?” Her brows raised in surprise.

“I didn’t know. Ruby had been avoiding me since the accident, so there’s no way I would have known.” I let her on as I started trying to process why Ruby was at his place and what Sofia went to do at his place as well.

“That’s surprising. The night you had an accident, I went to Antonio’s place to discuss something with him, and I was surprised to see Ruby there. I asked why she was there, and she said she was there with Marco. She even denied knowing Antonio and was surprised when she realised he was my supposed fiancée.” She narrated, confusion saturating her features.

“Rosa, what’s going on?”

Something was not adding up. Ruby definitely knew who Antonio was, and the latter was well aware of my inability to reach Ruby. Why didn’t he mention anything? And that night, Antonio left in a hurry, claiming there was an emergency. What could have happened? A torrent of possibilities started coursing through my mind, threatening to drive me crazy as I tried to decipher everything.

“There was something I noticed, though. I wasn’t sure, but I think she looked terrified.” Sofia added, taking me back to my earlier encounter with Ruby.

She looked scared then, too.

“Oh, my God.” I gasped as I started connecting the dots. I was born into the Mafia, and I know very well how things play out in the dark world. Antonio must have threatened Ruby, which was why she had been keeping her distance. But for what reason? I wondered.

“What’s going on?” Sofia prodded, her eyes widening with curiosity.

“Sofia, I think Antonio threatened Ruby.” I went ahead to let her in on everything that had been happening and about my encounter with her at the park.

“What are we going to do now?” She asked. I could sense the sincerity in the concern she showed.

“I need to get to her and find out the truth.” I said as I sprung to my feet, my breath heaving as the thought of Ruby being in danger troubled me.

“You know Papà won’t allow you to go out and-”

“Which is why I need you to cover for me, Sofia. I really need to get to Ruby. I am worried.” I interjected.

She slowly nodded in agreement, and I gave a grateful smile before dashing out of the room and making my way to Giovanni’s room. He had been staying with us since we got discharged from the hospital, and I wondered why. But today, I was grateful he never left.

“What?” A smug smile crept on his lips as I badged into his room. “Did I steal your kidney, or why’d you barge in like that?”

“Giovanni. I know asking you to do this for me would be selfish of me after what happened the last time, but please, I need to go to Ruby’s place right now. I’m not sure, but I think she’s in danger. And Antonio has something to do with it.” I said in one breath, and Giovanni blew out a sharp breath, not showing an atom of surprise.

He stared at me for a few seconds before finally uttering the words that surprised me. “I had been waiting for you to get your memories back.”

“What?” I knitted my brows in confusion. “What do you mean?”

He went ahead to tell me how he never lost his memory and how everything played out on that day. His explanation triggered my own memory to return with a pounding headache, forcing me to hold my head in my hands as I groaned in pain.

Everything began to make sense as I thought about it. Antonio kept asking about Giovanni and I’s memories, and I thought he truly wanted to help, hence why he was persistent about it. I never knew it was all a facade, and was only making sure his tracks were covered. He was truly a monster.

My head was still in severe pain, but I didn’t allow my physical condition to distort my plan to find out the truth. After all I just heard, I decided to confront Antonio himself and not Ruby.

“Please take me to the Russo’s mansion.” I pleaded, and he gave me a questioning look.

“Are you sure about that?” He asked.

I nodded. I was sure. I needed to find out from the monster himself why he abducted and threatened my best friend.

By the time we got to the Russo’s mansion, the rage boiling within me was at its peak, and I couldn’t wait to take it all out on Antonio before I exploded.

Marco was at the front door when I got there, and he tried to stop me from entering the building, but I was obstinate, determined to get to Antonio. And thus, driven by the rage within me, I kicked him hard in the balls. His grip on my arm loosened as he groaned in pain, giving me enough time to escape and run into the building.

As I navigated the house, searching for Antonio, a sudden pause seized me when I caught sight of the two people sitting across from each other by the hearth.

Antonio and Ruby!