The guys look over at me and do a double take. Tommy looks shocked at first, and it guts me. He's quick to replace the shock with a wide smile. He's the first to get up and greet us as we make our way to the dining room.
“You brought a friend?” he asks with his eyebrows raised. I look past him at Vince and answer as Tommy pats my back. “Yeah,” I say as I bring her close to me. “Meet my girl, Catherine.”
My sweet kitten blushes a beautiful shade of red and holds her hand out for Tommy. He chuckles but accepts it, which is a good thing. He doesn’t need to have his paws all over her.
I expect a lot of things when I walk in, but I don’t expect the cheers from the women and Aunt Linda rushing over to greet Catherine.
It’s obvious that she didn’t expect that either. She holds onto my hand for dear fucking life. The sounds of the kids playing and the men laughing fills the room. But all I can see is Vince, staring at me like I’ve betrayed him. And maybe I have, but I had to do this. He needs to know she’s not going anywhere.
Vince just needs to understand. What happened wasn't her fault. That fucking prick hit her. She had to leave. He can’t expect that she wouldn’t have done otherwise. She’s strong for what she did.
I’m not going to let him take her. He’ll listen and he’ll understand. My confidence sways, but I ignore it. She’s mine.
I stand from my chair in the dining room. Vince is alone in the kitchen. The women are in the den and the men are all in here. Now’s my chance to talk to him. I push the chair back, pick up my dishes, and go to him. I need him to hear me out. The tension’s been thick between us all night. I just need him to understand. Now that he’s seen her, he has to know what she means to me.
“I don’t want a rat here. Around my familia. In my home.” He speaks to me in a hushed tone as I set my glass in the sink. It takes all my strength not to break it, not to smash him over the head with it.
“She didn’t have a choice, Vince.” He just needs to listen to me.
“You’re defending her?” I hate that he questions me at all. Someone has to defend her. She’s not a rat. She doesn’t deserve to be killed, and I won’t do it.
“He beat her. When she saw that shit, he made her life hell. She had no choice!”
“He kept her? Are you fucking serious? What’d he keep her as, Anthony? A fucking pet?” He sneers the last word and it’s the last fucking straw.
“How fucking dare you!” That fucking prick! He has no right!
“How can you do that to her when you were supposed to kill your own wife? Catherine’s not good enough to spare?” I ask, raising my voice.
“I love Elle. She’s my wife!” he screams at me. I don’t hold back any longer, I can’t. I let loose and swing as hard as I can, landing a punch on Vince’s jaw. He staggers back a few feet, cupping his chin and looking up at me with daggers, but he doesn’t make a move to counter. He stands there waiting as he rubs his jaw. He gave me a pass this time. But I won't get another.
He takes two steps and spits in the sink. “If you can tell me right now that you love her, I’ll back off. You going to marry her, Anthony?” He’s asking like it’s a dare. Like he knows me. It fucking tears me up inside that he’s right. He doesn’t know her. He doesn’t know us.
“She’s as close to a wife as I’ll ever have.” I didn’t even know how true the words were until I spoke them.
“Until you kill her.” Vince says the words just as Catherine walks into the doorway. Her mouth parts and her eyes widen as she looks between us.
“Fuck you,” I say with disdain at Vince and quickly go to her. I take Catherine by the hand and brush past my brother as he walks into the doorway.
“Whoa,” he says with shock. “You guys alright?”
“We’re leaving,” I answer with my back to him and drag her out of the house with everyone staring at us.
As the door slams shut behind us, I look at my girl, but I know she’s not okay.
My heart hammers with a fear I’ve never felt before. Although I’m gripping onto her like my life depends on it, she’s already gone. I’ve lost her.
Catherine
I sure as fuck wasn’t expecting this to be so...comfortable and normal. I’m usually a bit awkward with people—and I still am today, don't get me wrong—but I don't feel the nervous energy I thought I would. I'm able to relax somewhat and just be my usual awkward self. At least around the women.
“So, do you want to be a writer?” Elle asks me. She’s Vince’s wife. Her voice is soft like you’d think it would be after taking one look at her since she’s sweet and petite. Vince isn’t. He looks scary as fuck. All the men are intimidating. I’m super fucking happy to be in a room with just the girls.
Being around the men is different. I felt like a sheep brought to the slaughter. I couldn't stop trying to determine which position in the mafia each man had. I couldn’t even breathe for the first few minutes. So many fucking flashbacks made me feel like I was drowning. But this is nothing like what I experienced with the Cassanos.
Lorenzo would start talking about things with the other members of his familia anywhere, and then look at me like I shouldn’t have been there. Like it was my fault. It happened a few times, and then they started doing it on purpose and blocking me from leaving. They liked scaring me and taunting me by calling me the meek mouse. I never felt safe, and they said that was a good thing. Lorenzo said it was good to be afraid. And I was. They made damn sure to keep me afraid.
I stayed with Lorenzo far too long because of that fear and then...well, by the time I had the courage to leave, that’s when I actually saw shit. Shit that changed my life forever. I shake my head and try to forget. I don’t want to go there in that headspace. Not now.
It’s not like that here though with the Valettis. Everything is lighthearted. It took me a while to even want to eat, but when I did it seemed to help. I just kept something at my mouth the entire night hoping no one would talk to me. It’s odd how I still felt included in conversations even though I only really ever smiled and nodded. It felt nice though. It’s been a long time since I’ve even talked to anyone. I’ve been too afraid. Back when I was in hiding, I had the ridiculous idea that the very first person I talked to would somehow know the Cassanos and they would tell them where I was.
But that doesn’t matter anymore. I have Anthony now. I’ve never felt more safe in my entire life than I do tonight. It’s the first time I’ve felt like I could fit in, like I could have a family again. And I want it. I haven’t wanted for anything in so long. But I want this.
The kids are all in bed now and the men are in the dining room. Anthony left me alone with the wives. I start to answer Elle’s question, but hear a crash of toys from the living room. His aunt, Linda I think, is straightening everything up. I feel weird sitting here not helping. Even though it’s not my mess.
“Should we--” I start to ask.
“No,” Becca answers before I can finish. She’s a bit older than me and she’s a no-nonsense kind of person. “Trust me,” she places a hand on my forearm, “she will not let you help.”