Undressed By The Mafia God

"Ma." marco called.

She turned away, pressing both hands to her mouth. Her body trembled, and Marco’s own fear shifted instantly. His grief, his heartbreak, all of it stepped aside for the one thing he had never been able to bear: Carol in pain.

"Ma!" He rushed forward as her knees weakened, catching her before she could sink fully against the counter. "Ma," he said again, holding her in his arms. "Look at me. Look at me. I assure you...Luca has it handled."

She gripped him tighter. "You need to leave."

"Ma—"

"No. You need to leave here. This is the first place they will look for you."

"I am not hiding."

"You must."

"I cannot run."

"Yes, you can."

"That is not who I am."

"That is who I am!" Carol cried.

The words tore out of her with a force that seemed to shock even her. She released his shirt and stepped back, wiping at her face with shaking hands.

"I run, Marco," she said. "I have run from blood, from Massimo. I know what it means to choose life over love."

"Ma..."

"I cannot... please, Marco. I cannot lose you. Massimo will not listen," she said. "He won’t listen. I know him. My beautiful boy," she whispered.

"However this turns out, Ma," Marco said, "I love you. I have always loved you... From the moment you looked at me and decided I was going to be your son. And I know you want me to run. I know you want to drag me somewhere Massimo cannot reach." He smiled faintly, brokenly. Marco took her hands in his. "let me spend this time with you...please."

Carol held on to her son, and for once, she was the one needing comfort. She had always been the wall. The woman who stood when everyone else broke. Marco wrapped his arms around her and held on. "I’m going to kill her."

Marco exhaled. "I know."

"With my bare hands."

It would have been funny if the target of her rage had not been his wife.

"But you can’t," Marco said softly.

Carol turned away, pressing her fingers to her lips. "Please tell me Veronica knows about this."

"Not yet."

"Well, what the fuck are you and Luca doing keeping secrets from her?" she demanded. "She is Donna."

Marco rubbed a hand over his face. "You forget... Valentina is Veronica’s sister."

"Oh," she breathed. "Oh."

Then horror crossed her face.

"You do not plan on taking the fall to save her, do you?"

Marco did not answer immediately.

"Marco."

"She has been playing me for months already," he said. "She has been lying to me. Looking at me. Sleeping beside me. If this was a one-time mistake, if she had stumbled into something stupid, I would throw myself in front of the knife. I would not even think. But she has looked me in the eye consistently...lying to me and using me."

The kettle began to whistle right then. Carol turned sharply and switched off the cooker. She took a moment, hands braced on the counter, shoulders rising and falling. Then she turned back to him.

"I know this hurts," she said. "But whatever you do, Marco, there are people who depend on you. I depend on you."

His head lifted. "No, you don’t."

"You came into my world and lit it up, Marco." Carol placed both hands on his face. "You taught me so many things...You taught me what sacrifice means. You taught me what motherhood should truly be. You make me feel needed. So yes, I depend on you. Luca depends on you too. And Matteo,"

"Matteo will most definitely need you."

Marco shut his eyes. That little boy had no idea the world had shifted beneath his feet. No idea his mother had set fire to their lives. Marco inhaled shakily. "I didn’t even get to say goodbye to him."

"You keep your head low," she said, "and you will be with him soon. I am proud of you, by the way... Taking that child to be yours."

"He is mine," Marco said instantly.

Carol looked at him and nodded. She respected that conviction. Carol understood chosen love better than most women ever had to. Blood had given her Luca. Fate had dropped Marco by the side of a road. She had chosen him, and from that moment, he had been hers in every way that mattered.

So when Marco said Matteo was his, Carol did not argue. Family was not always made in bodies. Sometimes it was made in decisions.

Carol turned towards the counter, bracing one hand against it. "I’m going to call Veronica."

Marco’s head lifted immediately. "Ma..."

"You can’t."

Carol’s eyes flashed. "I can do whatever I want."

"Yes, I know. That is half the problem with this family. You do not know the full details...Calling Veronica now may jeopardise Luca’s plans."

"You know," she said, looking down at the counter, "I used to think that of both sisters, Valentina was just like me. Fierce. Bold. Not afraid to express her feelings. I liked that about her. I needed someone like that for you. Someone who could balance your quiet. Someone who could protect you from yourself."

"I thought she would show you that you deserved to be loved unconditionally. Completely."

Marco sighed. Valentina had done that. She had loved him. He knew she had. She had made him feel wanted. "Maybe I rushed her," he mused. "She wasn’t ready yet. For this life. For me. For Luca. For all of it." He rubbed both hands over his face. "I thought I could love her through it."

"Do you have any idea why she did what she did?" Carol asked.

"She thinks Luca is the enemy."

"Stupid child. Stupid, foolish child. Luca is the one you want on your side. Luca bends," she said. "For people he loves even when he pretends he does not have a heart." Carol pointed towards him. "Massimo is different. He is bound by duty, by famiglia laws. Massimo does not know how to bend without believing something sacred has broken inside him."