“I won’t tell them. They’ll find out, of course, and they won’t approve. Dad has made his standpoint very clear.”
“He knows?”
Orazio laughed darkly. “He doesn’t know that I’m going to marry, or that Lucy and I are together but he knows of Lucy.” The bitter, furious note to his voice startled me.
Anna sank back down, obviously bored by the topic when my insides practically burned up with curiosity and dread. “Lucy?” I repeated. Maybe it was short for Lucilla? Or another Italian name, but deep down I knew it wasn’t.
I swallowed. “You’re in love with an Outsider?”
Orazio grimaced. Suddenly I realized that this call was meant as a goodbye. I felt it deep down. If Orazio was marrying an Outsider, Papa would disinherit him. Unless I could convince Dante to talk to him, even if family matters were off limits for a Capo, but he could do it as son-in-law. “Maybe—”
“No,” Orazio said. “I have to leave, Val. There’s no other way.”
The truth I didn’t want to believe. I lowered my voice. “Orazio, you know the consequences of running away. That’s betrayal.”
Dante may not send out many men to search for Orazio as a favor to me, so maybe my brother could stay undetected. But what could he work? He’d never done anything but been a Made Man. “Let me talk to Dad and Dante. You know that there have been exemptions in the past where Made Men were allowed to marry outsiders.”
“Low soldiers, not the heir to Chicago,” Orazio corrected. “And trust me, there won’t be an exemption for Lucy.”
He glanced toward the side then nodded and a gorgeous girl came into view with pitch black hair… and an exotic face. An Asian girl. No, Dad would never accept her, nor would the still very traditional Outfit. I’d heard enough off-handed comments at social gatherings to know the lingering racism in our circles.
I forced a smile. “Hi Lucy.”
She smiled shyly, then peered up at my brother, and the look that passed between them made me realize nothing could stop Orazio. Nor would I want to get between them.
“Nice to meet you, Valentina,” Lucy said in a soft voice.
Could love ever be a crime? Could wanting to be with your love no matter what be considered betrayal?
“I’ll put in a good word for you with Dante. If you run off to Europe, maybe England, you could be safe.”
Lucy bit her lip, giving my brother a pained look. “I wish we could have met in person.” With that, she disappeared from view.
Orazio’s expression became tight. “Valentina, I’m sorry that I blamed you for my problems with Dad. You did your duty to marry again and somehow that made me even madder for a while. I’m glad I got to see Anna and Leonas one more time.”
“What’s going on, Orazio? I don’t understand.”
“I’m in a safe place so you can tell Dante what I just told you. You don’t have to think you need to protect me. Bye.”
“Bye, Uncle Orazio!” Anna called.
I couldn’t say anything, only watched the screen go black, feeling completely confused. Leonas came running my way, grinning but his good mood didn’t reach me. I stood and caught him as he threw himself into my arms, glad for the distraction and the necessary time it gave me to sort my thoughts. I didn’t understand what Orazio meant with a safe place. Was he already out of the States? For some reason, I didn’t think he was. The small part of the car I’d seen had looked like Orazio’s BMW.
Anna jogged after me as I walked back into the house. Leonas dropped sand everywhere. “Mom, I’m hungry,” he chimed.
“First, we need to change your diaper.”
Leonas shook his head wildly but I carried him up to his room anyway.
“Who was that girl with Uncle Orazio?” Anna blurted as she followed hot on my heels.
I put Leonas down on the changing table despite his protests. My clothes and the table were covered in sand, and I cursed myself inwardly for being so lost in my thought that I didn’t clean him in the bathroom first.
“Mommy?” Anna asked, standing on her tiptoes and holding onto the edge of the table.
I smiled shakily. “That was his friend.”
“Like Luisa and Sofia are my friends?”
“Yes, like that,” I said.
After changing Leonas’ diaper, we headed downstairs into the kitchen. Zita was in the utility room ironing Dante’s shirts and it was Gabby’s day off, so I had the kitchen to myself. To distract myself and because Anna and Leonas loved them, I prepared French toast with a vanilla-mascarpone crème on top.
Anna helped me whisk the eggs while Leonas dipped his fingers into the sugar and licked them clean. They loved their learning tower and I loved that it gave them the chance to feel involved when I cooked. We settled at the table and both Leonas and Anna dug in eagerly. They looked utterly content, their faces dusted with sugar and cream. I tried to cling to the sense of peace I felt watching them but my worry over Orazio soon took over. On the one hand, I was happy for him, happy that he’d found someone he loved, but on the other hand, I worried for his future, for his life. What if this was a spur of the moment thing? How long had he even known Lucy? Was she really worth leaving everything behind for? He couldn’t just change his mind in a few months when things didn’t work out. He’d be considered a traitor and… God, would Dante really kill my brother? What about Papa?